Barwick, Somerset
Encyclopedia
Barwick is a village and parish
in Somerset
, England, situated 2 miles (3.2 km) south of Yeovil
in the South Somerset
district and on the border with Dorset
. The parish, which includes the village of Stoford has a population of 1,289.
burial which were found in 1826, a little to the north of the village of Stoford, which may be a Saxon name derived from Stow-Ford.
Settlement may go back as far as Saxon times, the earliest mention of Barwick being in 1185.
In the Middle Ages, Stoford was shown as a new town and in an Inquisition or survey of 1273 there were 74 burgage
s each paying 10d (ten pence
) a year. The total population of the borough in 1273 was probably over 500. Stoford kept its borough status for at least 300 years. A Guildhall was mentioned in 1361 and there is proof of a separate borough court. There was still a 'borough of Stoford' in the musters
of 1569.
The parish was part of the hundred of Houndsborough
.
groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council.
The village falls within the Non-metropolitan district
of South Somerset
, which was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972
, having previously been part of Yeovil Rural District
. The district council is responsible for local planning
and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health
, market
s and fairs, refuse collection and recycling
, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism
.
Somerset County Council
is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education
, social services, libraries
, main roads, public transport
, policing
and fire services, trading standards
, waste disposal and strategic planning.
It is also part of the Yeovil county constituency represented in the House of Commons
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP)
by the first past the post system of election, and part of the South West England constituency
of the European Parliament
which elects seven MEPs using the d'Hondt method
of party-list proportional representation
.
The estate originally formed part of the property of Syon Abbey
, and passed through various hands after the Dissolution
in the 1530s.
The present house and park are thought to have been built in 1770 by John and Grace Newman, whose relations owned neighbouring Newton Surmaville
.
The house was set in pleasure grounds containing a lake and grotto, while the surrounding parkland was ornamented with a Gothic
lodge and a group of four follies
. In the early 19th century the estate passed to a Yeovil glove manufacturer, George Messiter, and in 1830 the mansion was remodelled in a Jacobean Revival style. An orangery
was constructed adjoining the north side at the same period. During the early 20th century the estate again passed through several hands.
During World War II
, it was the location of a Prisoner of War camp, initially housing Italian
prisoners from the Western Desert Campaign
, and later German prisoners after the Battle of Normandy
.
From the late 1960s through to the early 1980s the mansion and surrounding grounds were bought by a Major Arthur Grey for use as a privately run approved school taking in difficult teenage boys from inner-city London, Liverpool and several other local authorities around the country. This school was home to T.S.Gryphon, a Sea Cadet
unit, with affiliations to H.M.S. Hampshire
and nearby H.M.S. Heron.
In the 1990s the estate was sold to a private owner, and substantial repairs were carried out to the House, orangery, and landscape structures. The site remains in private ownership.
for a nominal £5 when the estate was sold in the early 1990s, these extraordinary follies are something of a mystery. Locals say they were built to give the estate labourers work during a time of depression during the 1820s. They were possibly commissioned by George Messiter of Barwick to mark the park boundaries at the four cardinal points: Jack the Treacle Eater (a stone arch topped by a round tower) to the east, the Fish Tower in the north, Messiter's Cone (also known as the Rose Tower), which is 75 feet (23 m) high, at the west end and the Needle to the south. However, paintings of Barwick House in the 1780s, forty years earlier, include two of the follies.
, which runs on the London
–Exeter
line.
on the western end of the village, about half a mile away from the main centre of population.
The church was built at the turn of the 13th century and continues to offer weekly worship today. No longer with a resident vicar, these days the parish is part of the benefice of Holy Trinity, Yeovil
.
The most architecturally significant feature of the church are the bench ends, dating from 1533 - the very eve of the English Reformation
. The bench ends depicts scenes from village life as well as typical religious symbolism from that period such as the Green Man
and the unicorn, a symbol of eternal life. There are also religious objects dating back much earlier, presumably from the church originally on the site e.g. the Norman font.
In spite of some re-ordering during the Victorian
period, it is still very easy to imagine how the church would have looked almost 500 years ago. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building.
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, England, situated 2 miles (3.2 km) south of Yeovil
Yeovil
Yeovil is a town and civil parish in south Somerset, England. The parish had a population of 27,949 at the 2001 census, although the wider urban area had a population of 42,140...
in the South Somerset
South Somerset
South Somerset is a local government district in Somerset, England.The South Somerset district covers and area of ranging from the borders with Devon and Dorset to the edge of the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 158,000...
district and on the border with Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
. The parish, which includes the village of Stoford has a population of 1,289.
History
The earliest signs of habitation in the area were the relics of a Bronze AgeBronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
burial which were found in 1826, a little to the north of the village of Stoford, which may be a Saxon name derived from Stow-Ford.
Settlement may go back as far as Saxon times, the earliest mention of Barwick being in 1185.
In the Middle Ages, Stoford was shown as a new town and in an Inquisition or survey of 1273 there were 74 burgage
Burgage
Burgage is a medieval land term used in England and Scotland, well established by the 13th century. A burgage was a town rental property , owned by a king or lord. The property usually, and distinctly, consisted of a house on a long and narrow plot of land, with the narrow end facing the street...
s each paying 10d (ten pence
Penny
A penny is a coin or a type of currency used in several English-speaking countries. It is often the smallest denomination within a currency system.-Etymology:...
) a year. The total population of the borough in 1273 was probably over 500. Stoford kept its borough status for at least 300 years. A Guildhall was mentioned in 1361 and there is proof of a separate borough court. There was still a 'borough of Stoford' in the musters
Muster (military)
The term muster designates the process or event for the of accounting for members in a military unit. Within the United States Army Reserve, it is an annual event used for screening purposes.-Historical:...
of 1569.
The parish was part of the hundred of Houndsborough
Houndsborough (hundred)
The Hundred of Houndsborough is one of the 40 historical Hundreds in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England, dating from before the Norman conquest during the Anglo-Saxon era although exact dates are unknown. Each hundred had a 'fyrd', which acted as the local defence force and a court which...
.
Governance
The parish council has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council’s operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and neighbourhood watchNeighbourhood Watch (UK)
The Neighbourhood Watch scheme in the United Kingdom is a partnership where people come together to make their communities safer. It involves the Police, Community Safety departments of local authorities, other voluntary organisations and, above all, individuals and families who want to make their...
groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council.
The village falls within the Non-metropolitan district
Non-metropolitan district
Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially shire districts, are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties in a so-called "two-tier" arrangement...
of South Somerset
South Somerset
South Somerset is a local government district in Somerset, England.The South Somerset district covers and area of ranging from the borders with Devon and Dorset to the edge of the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 158,000...
, which was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
, having previously been part of Yeovil Rural District
Yeovil Rural District
Yeovil was a rural district in Somerset, England, from 1894 to 1974.It was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894.In 1974 it was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 when it became part of South Somerset....
. The district council is responsible for local planning
Planning permission
Planning permission or planning consent is the permission required in the United Kingdom in order to be allowed to build on land, or change the use of land or buildings. Within the UK the occupier of any land or building will need title to that land or building , but will also need "planning...
and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health
Environmental health
Environmental health is the branch of public health that is concerned with all aspects of the natural and built environment that may affect human health...
, market
Market
A market is one of many varieties of systems, institutions, procedures, social relations and infrastructures whereby parties engage in exchange. While parties may exchange goods and services by barter, most markets rely on sellers offering their goods or services in exchange for money from buyers...
s and fairs, refuse collection and recycling
Recycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
.
Somerset County Council
Somerset County Council
Somerset County Council is the county council of Somerset in the South West of England, an elected local government authority responsible for the most significant local government services in most of the county.-Area covered:...
is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education
Local Education Authority
A local education authority is a local authority in England and Wales that has responsibility for education within its jurisdiction...
, social services, libraries
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
, main roads, public transport
Public transport
Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...
, policing
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
and fire services, trading standards
Trading Standards
Trading Standards is the name given to local authority departments in the UK formerly known as Weights and Measures. These departments investigate commercial organisations that carry out trade in unethical ways or outside the scope of the law.-History:...
, waste disposal and strategic planning.
It is also part of the Yeovil county constituency represented in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP)
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
by the first past the post system of election, and part of the South West England constituency
South West England (European Parliament constituency)
South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:...
of the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
which elects seven MEPs using the d'Hondt method
D'Hondt method
The d'Hondt method is a highest averages method for allocating seats in party-list proportional representation. The method described is named after Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt who described it in 1878...
of party-list proportional representation
Party-list proportional representation
Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of voting systems emphasizing proportional representation in elections in which multiple candidates are elected...
.
Barwick Park
Syon Abbey
Syon Monastery , was a monastery of the Bridgettine Order founded in 1415 which stood until its demolition in the 16th c. on the left bank of the River Thames within the parish of Isleworth, in the county of Middlesex on or near the site of the present Georgian mansion of Syon House...
, and passed through various hands after the Dissolution
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
in the 1530s.
The present house and park are thought to have been built in 1770 by John and Grace Newman, whose relations owned neighbouring Newton Surmaville
Newton Surmaville
Newton Surmaville is a small park and house south of Yeovil, Somerset in the district of South Somerset, in England. It lies just outside the town in the parish of Barwick.- House :...
.
The house was set in pleasure grounds containing a lake and grotto, while the surrounding parkland was ornamented with a Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
lodge and a group of four follies
Folly
In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but either suggesting by its appearance some other purpose, or merely so extravagant that it transcends the normal range of garden ornaments or other class of building to which it belongs...
. In the early 19th century the estate passed to a Yeovil glove manufacturer, George Messiter, and in 1830 the mansion was remodelled in a Jacobean Revival style. An orangery
Orangery
An orangery was a building in the grounds of fashionable residences from the 17th to the 19th centuries and given a classicising architectural form. The orangery was similar to a greenhouse or conservatory...
was constructed adjoining the north side at the same period. During the early 20th century the estate again passed through several hands.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, it was the location of a Prisoner of War camp, initially housing Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
prisoners from the Western Desert Campaign
Western Desert Campaign
The Western Desert Campaign, also known as the Desert War, was the initial stage of the North African Campaign during the Second World War. The campaign was heavily influenced by the availability of supplies and transport. The ability of the Allied forces, operating from besieged Malta, to...
, and later German prisoners after the Battle of Normandy
Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...
.
From the late 1960s through to the early 1980s the mansion and surrounding grounds were bought by a Major Arthur Grey for use as a privately run approved school taking in difficult teenage boys from inner-city London, Liverpool and several other local authorities around the country. This school was home to T.S.Gryphon, a Sea Cadet
Sea Cadet Corps (United Kingdom)
The Sea Cadet Corps is a UK national youth organisation sponsored by the Royal Navy and open to young people between the ages of 10-18 years old. The SCC is the UK's largest Naval Cadet Force with over 30,000 cadets and adult volunteers...
unit, with affiliations to H.M.S. Hampshire
HMS Hampshire (D06)
HMS Hampshire was a County-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She was decommissioned in 1976 and cannibalised for spares to service her sister ships. Hampshire was sold for scrap in 1979.- See also :* List of ship launches in 1961...
and nearby H.M.S. Heron.
In the 1990s the estate was sold to a private owner, and substantial repairs were carried out to the House, orangery, and landscape structures. The site remains in private ownership.
Barwick Park Follies
Barwick Park boasts four follies. Bought by South Somerset District CouncilSouth Somerset
South Somerset is a local government district in Somerset, England.The South Somerset district covers and area of ranging from the borders with Devon and Dorset to the edge of the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 158,000...
for a nominal £5 when the estate was sold in the early 1990s, these extraordinary follies are something of a mystery. Locals say they were built to give the estate labourers work during a time of depression during the 1820s. They were possibly commissioned by George Messiter of Barwick to mark the park boundaries at the four cardinal points: Jack the Treacle Eater (a stone arch topped by a round tower) to the east, the Fish Tower in the north, Messiter's Cone (also known as the Rose Tower), which is 75 feet (23 m) high, at the west end and the Needle to the south. However, paintings of Barwick House in the 1780s, forty years earlier, include two of the follies.
Transport
The parish contains Yeovil Junction railway stationYeovil Junction railway station
Yeovil Junction railway station is the busier of two railway stations serving the town of Yeovil in England. The station is outside the town in the village of Stoford; although Yeovil is in Somerset, the station was in Dorset until 1995. It was opened by the London and South Western Railway in...
, which runs on the London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
–Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
line.
Religious sites
The Church of Saint Mary Magdalene is located just off the A37A37 road
The A37 is a major road in southern England. It runs north from the A35 at Dorchester in Dorset into Somerset through Yeovil and Shepton Mallet before terminating at the Three Lamps junction with the A4 in central Bristol...
on the western end of the village, about half a mile away from the main centre of population.
The church was built at the turn of the 13th century and continues to offer weekly worship today. No longer with a resident vicar, these days the parish is part of the benefice of Holy Trinity, Yeovil
Yeovil
Yeovil is a town and civil parish in south Somerset, England. The parish had a population of 27,949 at the 2001 census, although the wider urban area had a population of 42,140...
.
The most architecturally significant feature of the church are the bench ends, dating from 1533 - the very eve of the English Reformation
English Reformation
The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th-century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church....
. The bench ends depicts scenes from village life as well as typical religious symbolism from that period such as the Green Man
Green Man
A Green Man is a sculpture, drawing, or other representation of a face surrounded by or made from leaves. Branches or vines may sprout from the nose, mouth, nostrils or other parts of the face and these shoots may bear flowers or fruit...
and the unicorn, a symbol of eternal life. There are also religious objects dating back much earlier, presumably from the church originally on the site e.g. the Norman font.
In spite of some re-ordering during the Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
period, it is still very easy to imagine how the church would have looked almost 500 years ago. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II* listed building.