Burcombe is a village and (by the name of Burcombe Without) a civil parish

Civil parish

In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

 in Wiltshire

Wiltshire

Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 149. The village lies each side of an unclassified road. The village is about 5 miles west of Salisbury

Salisbury

Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England and the only city in the county. It is the second largest settlement in the county...

 city centre. Burcombe is an unspoiled village with many of the houses' gardens leading down to the River Nadder

River Nadder

The River Nadder is one of the chalk stream rivers of southern England, much sought after by fly fishermen because of its clear waters and abundance of brown trout. It is one of the main tributaries of the River Avon, rising from a number of springs and small streams at Donhead St. Mary in south...

.

History

At one time in antiquity called South Burcombe it had a twin, North Burcombe, which stood on the north side of what is now the A30 road. Nothing remains of North Burcombe but the Church.
To the south of the village there are a number of Neolithic earthworks which indicate the area has been a settlement since early times. The name is thought to derive from the Saxon name of Brydancumb or Bryda's Valley.

The Church of St John the Baptist

The Church of St John is built on higher ground on the A30 road, to the north of the village centre, it is assumed to protect it from the possibility of flooding from the river in the lower part of the valley. It was permitted by the Abbesses of Wilton and has features in the corner work of the masonry which indicate strongly that it was originally of Saxon construction although it has undergone many changes and restorations. The church is unusual in that it has a tower, which was rebuilt in 1667, lower than the nave roof.

The Quare Maps

When John Speed

John Speed

John Speed was an English historian and cartographer.-Life:He was born at Farndon, Cheshire, and went into his father's tailoring business where he worked until he was about 50...

 prepared a map of Wiltshire he copied a version by Christopher Saxton

Christopher Saxton

Christopher Saxton was an English cartographer, probably born in the parish of Dewsbury, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England around 1540....

 which contained the annotation Quare (possibly query) over the site of South Burcombe. It is thought that he intended to check the name later, but never did. Later map printers copied Speed's error and the Quare maps of Wiltshire appeared for 145 years until the mistake was rectified.

Amenities

The Ship Inn at Burcombe is a 17th century village pub with whitewashed walls, low ceilings with oak beams and a large open fire. In addition the village has a butcher's shop and a small suite of rented offices.

The Punchbowl

Nearby, to the south, accessible by footpath is a large semicircular, bowl shaped area of downland, called Burcombe Punch Bowl.