Sedbury
Encyclopedia
Sedbury is a village
in the Forest of Dean
district of west Gloucestershire
, England
. It is located on the eastern bank of the River Wye
, facing the Welsh
town of Chepstow
. The village is in the parish
of Tidenham
.
, a defensive ditch and dyke built in the late 8th century by Anglo Saxon King Offa
of Mercia
to mark the border with Wales. After the Norman Conquest, the manor of Tidenham, which included Sedbury, fell within the lordship of Striguil
, or Chepstow
. It was transferred to Gloucestershire
following the abolition of the Marcher lordships through the Laws in Wales Acts 1535-1542
.
Until the early 19th century, Sedbury was usually known as Sudbury, a name derived from "south fortification", referring either to Offa's Dyke or a Roman settlement in Sedbury Park.
Until the opening of the Severn Bridge
nearby in 1966, ferries
crossed the Severn estuary
between the adjoining village of Beachley
and Aust
.
building designed by Sir Robert Smirke
, the architect of the British Museum
. The surrounding estate was established, as Barnesville, around 1800 by Sir Henry Cosby. In 1825 it was bought by the historian and antiquary George Ormerod
, who renamed it Sedbury Park, and commissioned Smirke to add classical colonnades and a portico to the existing house. Ormerod's youngest daughter, Eleanor Anne Ormerod
, was born there in 1828, later becoming a renowned entomologist
.
The estates were bought by the businessman and politician Samuel Marling
in 1875, and his son Sir William Henry Marling made major alterations to the house around 1898. The estate included 25 farms in Tidenham, Hewelsfield
and Woolaston
. The house became a hotel in 1921, and an approved school in 1942, before later becoming a residential nursing home. In the 1930s many of the fittings and furnishings were removed from Sedbury House to the Tennessee
home of Leslie Cheek, heir to the Maxwell House
coffee empire.
, and Offa's Mead Primary School.
The top of the cliffs overlooking the Severn estuary
at Sedbury is one end of the Offa's Dyke Path
, a waymarked long-distance footpath and National Trail, stretching to Prestatyn
in North Wales
, close to the Wales-England border.
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...
in the Forest of Dean
Forest of Dean (district)
Forest of Dean is a local government district in Gloucestershire, England, named after the Forest of Dean. Its council is based in Coleford. Other towns in the district include Cinderford, Newent and Tidenham....
district of west Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, 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...
. It is located on the eastern bank of the River Wye
River Wye
The River Wye is the fifth-longest river in the UK and for parts of its length forms part of the border between England and Wales. It is important for nature conservation and recreation.-Description:...
, facing the Welsh
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
town of Chepstow
Chepstow
Chepstow is a town in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the River Wye, close to its confluence with the River Severn, and close to the western end of the Severn Bridge on the M48 motorway...
. The village is in the parish
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...
of Tidenham
Tidenham
Tidenham is a village and civil parish in the Forest of Dean of west Gloucestershire, England, adjoining the Welsh border.The parish includes the villages of Tidenham, Beachley, Boughspring, Sedbury, Tutshill and Woodcroft, and according to the United Kingdom Census 2001 had a population of 5,316...
.
History
Sedbury is located on the eastern (English) side of the southern end of Offa's DykeOffa's Dyke
Offa's Dyke is a massive linear earthwork, roughly followed by some of the current border between England and Wales. In places, it is up to wide and high. In the 8th century it formed some kind of delineation between the Anglian kingdom of Mercia and the Welsh kingdom of Powys...
, a defensive ditch and dyke built in the late 8th century by Anglo Saxon King Offa
Offa
Offa may refer to:Two kings of the Angles, who are often confused:*Offa of Angel , on the continent*Offa of Mercia , in Great BritainA king of Essex:*Offa of Essex A town in Nigeria:* Offa, Nigeria...
of Mercia
Mercia
Mercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
to mark the border with Wales. After the Norman Conquest, the manor of Tidenham, which included Sedbury, fell within the lordship of Striguil
Striguil
Striguil or Strigoil is the name which was used from the 11th century until the late 14th century, for the port and Norman castle of Chepstow, on the Welsh side of the River Wye which forms the boundary with England...
, or Chepstow
Chepstow
Chepstow is a town in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the River Wye, close to its confluence with the River Severn, and close to the western end of the Severn Bridge on the M48 motorway...
. It was transferred to Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
following the abolition of the Marcher lordships through the Laws in Wales Acts 1535-1542
Laws in Wales Acts 1535-1542
The Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 were parliamentary measures by which the legal system of Wales was annexed to England and the norms of English administration introduced. The intention was to create a single state and a single legal jurisdiction; frequently referred to as England and Wales...
.
Until the early 19th century, Sedbury was usually known as Sudbury, a name derived from "south fortification", referring either to Offa's Dyke or a Roman settlement in Sedbury Park.
Until the opening of the Severn Bridge
Severn Bridge
The Severn Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the River Severn between South Gloucestershire, just north of Bristol, England, and Monmouthshire in South Wales, via Beachley, a peninsula between the River Severn and River Wye estuary. It is the original Severn road crossing between England and...
nearby in 1966, ferries
Aust Ferry
Aust Ferry or Beachley Ferry was a ferry service that operated across the River Severn between Aust and Beachley both in Gloucestershire, England. Before the Severn Bridge opened in 1966, it provided a daily service for road traffic crossing between the West Country and South Wales...
crossed the Severn estuary
Severn Estuary
The Severn Estuary is the estuary of the River Severn, the longest river in Great Britain. Its high tidal range means it has been at the centre of discussions in the UK regarding renewable energy.-Geography:...
between the adjoining village of Beachley
Beachley
Beachley is a village in Gloucestershire, England, near the border with Wales. It is located on a peninsula at the junction between the Rivers Wye and Severn, where the Severn Bridge ends and the smaller secondary bridge for the River Wye begins. The tidal drop here is one of the highest in the UK...
and Aust
Aust
Aust is a small village in South Gloucestershire, England, the historical site of the eastern terminal of the Aust Ferry crossing route over the River Severn between England and Wales, believed to have been used in Roman times as a continuation of Icknield Street which led from Eastern England...
.
Sedbury Park
Sedbury House is a Grade II* listed GeorgianGeorgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
building designed by Sir Robert Smirke
Robert Smirke (architect)
Sir Robert Smirke was an English architect, one of the leaders of Greek Revival architecture his best known building in that style is the British Museum, though he also designed using other architectural styles...
, the architect of the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
. The surrounding estate was established, as Barnesville, around 1800 by Sir Henry Cosby. In 1825 it was bought by the historian and antiquary George Ormerod
George Ormerod
George Ormerod was an English antiquary and historian. Amongst his writings was a major account of the history of Cheshire, a county in northwestern England.-Biography:...
, who renamed it Sedbury Park, and commissioned Smirke to add classical colonnades and a portico to the existing house. Ormerod's youngest daughter, Eleanor Anne Ormerod
Eleanor Anne Ormerod
Eleanor Anne Ormerod was an English entomologist. She was a daughter of George Ormerod, F.R.S., author of The History of Cheshire, and was born at Sedbury Park, Gloucestershire. From early childhood insects were her interest and she had great opportunities to study them in the large estate where...
, was born there in 1828, later becoming a renowned entomologist
Entomology
Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology...
.
The estates were bought by the businessman and politician Samuel Marling
Samuel Marling
Sir Samuel Stephens Marling, 1st Baronet was a British cloth manufacturer and Liberal Party politician. He was particularly associated with the village of Selsley, Gloucestershire....
in 1875, and his son Sir William Henry Marling made major alterations to the house around 1898. The estate included 25 farms in Tidenham, Hewelsfield
Hewelsfield
Hewelsfield is a village and parish in the Forest of Dean District of Gloucestershire, England. It is located 6 miles south of Coleford and 5 miles north-east of Chepstow, close to the Wye valley and partly within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The parish also includes the separate...
and Woolaston
Woolaston
Woolaston is a village and civil parish in the Forest of Dean district of Gloucestershire in South West England. It lies on the north side of the Severn Estuary approximately 5 miles from the Welsh border at Chepstow and is surrounded by woodland and agricultural land.-The Village and its...
. The house became a hotel in 1921, and an approved school in 1942, before later becoming a residential nursing home. In the 1930s many of the fittings and furnishings were removed from Sedbury House to the Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
home of Leslie Cheek, heir to the Maxwell House
Maxwell House
Maxwell House is a brand of coffee manufactured by a like-named division of Kraft Foods. Introduced in 1892, it is named in honor of the Maxwell House Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. For many years until the late 1980s it was the largest-selling coffee in the U.S. and is currently second behind...
coffee empire.
Amenities
Sedbury is the location of Wyedean School, one of the schools attended by author J. K. RowlingJ. K. Rowling
Joanne "Jo" Rowling, OBE , better known as J. K. Rowling, is the British author of the Harry Potter fantasy series...
, and Offa's Mead Primary School.
The top of the cliffs overlooking the Severn estuary
Severn Estuary
The Severn Estuary is the estuary of the River Severn, the longest river in Great Britain. Its high tidal range means it has been at the centre of discussions in the UK regarding renewable energy.-Geography:...
at Sedbury is one end of the Offa's Dyke Path
Offa's Dyke Path
Offa's Dyke Path is a long distance footpath along the Welsh-English border. Opened in 1971, it is one of Britain's premier National Trails and draws walkers from throughout the world...
, a waymarked long-distance footpath and National Trail, stretching to Prestatyn
Prestatyn
Prestatyn is a seaside resort, town and community in Denbighshire, North Wales. It is located on the Irish Sea coast, to the east of Rhyl. At the 2001 Census, Prestatyn had a population of 18,496.-Prehistory:...
in North Wales
North Wales
North Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales. It is bordered to the south by the counties of Ceredigion and Powys in Mid Wales and to the east by the counties of Shropshire in the West Midlands and Cheshire in North West England...
, close to the Wales-England border.