Langton Matravers
Encyclopedia
Langton Matravers is a small village
on the Isle of Purbeck
, in the county of Dorset
in the south of England
.
Langton Matravers is part of the Purbeck local government district
and is within the South Dorset constituency of the House of Commons
and the South West England
constituency of the European Parliament
. The first Langton Matravers Parish Council was elected in 1894.
The village is situated about two kilometres directly west of Swanage
and about eight kilometres (five miles) south-east of Corfe Castle.
Langton Matravers had a population of 973 in 2001, up from 773 in 1991. The village is a popular tourist
destination and 16.9% of homes in the village are second home
s .
The name Langton stems from "long town" and the name Matravers stems from the name of Lord Mautravers who once resided there, and ultimately originates from the French "mal traverse".
Langton Matravers Museum is behind the Parish Church of St. George in St. George's Close in the centre of Langton Matravers village. The Museum has a gift shop with many mementoes including etched and polished stone, books about Langton Matravers and the stone industry. Near Langton Matravers there are quite a few Quarries. Purbeck Marble
and Purbeck Limestone have been used from Roman times to the present day for walls, roofs and floors of buildings, from humble homes to great cathedrals. Its history is displayed in the Museum, which is housed in a former Coach House. The museum, which with the Village itself, is an ongoing illustration of the uses of stone. The Museum provides a complete picture of the ways in which the local stone was quarried and used. The total number of artefacts is approximately 25,000.
The village is home to St. George's first school which was established at the end of the 19th century. Next door is The Old Malthouse
, a preparatory school
for boys and girls founded in 1906, but closed in 2007. Another preparatory school Durnford School
was located in Durnford House also closed; Ian Fleming
of James Bond fame was educated there.
Leeson House
, a Grade II listed 19th century house, is a field studies centre located in the village.
Langton Matravers has two campsites, which are widely used by tourists visiting the local area: Tom's Field Camping and Acton Field.
The village is within walking distance of Dancing Ledge
, Seacombe and Winspit
, located on the Jurassic Coast
and a fine stretch for climbing and walking.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
on the Isle of Purbeck
Isle of Purbeck
The Isle of Purbeck, not a true island but a peninsula, is in the county of Dorset, England. It is bordered by the English Channel to the south and east, where steep cliffs fall to the sea; and by the marshy lands of the River Frome and Poole Harbour to the north. Its western boundary is less well...
, in the county of 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...
in the south of 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...
.
Langton Matravers is part of the Purbeck local government 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...
and is within the South Dorset constituency of 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...
and the South West England
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:...
constituency 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...
. The first Langton Matravers Parish Council was elected in 1894.
The village is situated about two kilometres directly west of Swanage
Swanage
Swanage is a coastal town and civil parish in the south east of Dorset, England. It is situated at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck, approximately 10 km south of Poole and 40 km east of Dorchester. The parish has a population of 10,124 . Nearby are Ballard Down and Old Harry Rocks,...
and about eight kilometres (five miles) south-east of Corfe Castle.
Langton Matravers had a population of 973 in 2001, up from 773 in 1991. The village is a popular tourist
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...
destination and 16.9% of homes in the village are second home
Second home
Second home may refer to:* Vacation property* Pied-à-terre* Second Home , an album by Marié Digby...
s .
The name Langton stems from "long town" and the name Matravers stems from the name of Lord Mautravers who once resided there, and ultimately originates from the French "mal traverse".
Langton Matravers Museum is behind the Parish Church of St. George in St. George's Close in the centre of Langton Matravers village. The Museum has a gift shop with many mementoes including etched and polished stone, books about Langton Matravers and the stone industry. Near Langton Matravers there are quite a few Quarries. Purbeck Marble
Purbeck Marble
Purbeck Marble is a fossiliferous limestone quarried in the Isle of Purbeck, a peninsula in south-east Dorset, England.It is one of many kinds of Purbeck Limestone, deposited in the late Jurassic or early Cretaceous periods....
and Purbeck Limestone have been used from Roman times to the present day for walls, roofs and floors of buildings, from humble homes to great cathedrals. Its history is displayed in the Museum, which is housed in a former Coach House. The museum, which with the Village itself, is an ongoing illustration of the uses of stone. The Museum provides a complete picture of the ways in which the local stone was quarried and used. The total number of artefacts is approximately 25,000.
The village is home to St. George's first school which was established at the end of the 19th century. Next door is The Old Malthouse
The Old Malthouse
The Old Malthouse School was a preparatory school in the village of Langton Matravers near Swanage in the Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, United Kingdom....
, a preparatory school
Preparatory school (UK)
In English language usage in the former British Empire, the present-day Commonwealth, a preparatory school is an independent school preparing children up to the age of eleven or thirteen for entry into fee-paying, secondary independent schools, some of which are known as public schools...
for boys and girls founded in 1906, but closed in 2007. Another preparatory school Durnford School
Durnford School
Durnford School was a notoriously spartan and uncomfortable preparatory school which opened in 1894 on the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset. The school occupied Durnford House, in High Street in the village of Langton Matravers near Swanage...
was located in Durnford House also closed; Ian Fleming
Ian Fleming
Ian Lancaster Fleming was a British author, journalist and Naval Intelligence Officer.Fleming is best known for creating the fictional British spy James Bond and for a series of twelve novels and nine short stories about the character, one of the biggest-selling series of fictional books of...
of James Bond fame was educated there.
Leeson House
Leeson House
Leeson House is a field studies centre in the village of Langton Matravers in the heart of the Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, England. The Isle of Purbeck forms part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site, designated in 2001...
, a Grade II listed 19th century house, is a field studies centre located in the village.
Langton Matravers has two campsites, which are widely used by tourists visiting the local area: Tom's Field Camping and Acton Field.
The village is within walking distance of Dancing Ledge
Dancing Ledge
Dancing Ledge is part of the Jurassic Coast near Langton Matravers in the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset, England.-Geology:Dancing Ledge is a flat area of rock at the base of a small cliff . It is signposted on the South West Coast Path a few kilometres west of Swanage...
, Seacombe and Winspit
Winspit
Winspit is an old quarry on the cliffs near Worth Matravers in the Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, England that is no longer in use. More recently it has been used as a set for Doctor Who and Blake's 7....
, located on the Jurassic Coast
Jurassic Coast
The Jurassic Coast is a World Heritage Site on the English Channel coast of southern England. The site stretches from Orcombe Point near Exmouth in East Devon to Old Harry Rocks near Swanage in East Dorset, a distance of ....
and a fine stretch for climbing and walking.