Baverstock is a small village and former

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

, England, about west of

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

. The village has 10 private dwellings, a church and several farm buildings. The manor of Hurdcott, a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

of a few houses, lies to the southwest of the village (not to be confused with

Hurdcott Winterbourne is a civil parish in south east Wiltshire, England, about northeast of Salisbury. The parish encompasses the contiguous villages of Winterbourne Dauntsey, Winterbourne Earls and Winterbourne Gunner, together with the hamlet of Hurd ...

near Winterbourne Earls). To the north of the village is cultivated chalk downland and extensive mixed woodland. To the south the village is bordered by the

River Nadder The River Nadder is a tributary of the River Avon, flowing in south Wiltshire, England. Course The river flows north from Ludwell to West End where it is joined by the Ferne Brook, close to the Lower Coombe and Ferne Brook Meadows site of spec ...

meandering through water meadows. The road through the village from the B3089 terminates in unmetalled farm track. For the purposes of local government, Baverstock is part of Dinton

. Baverstock parish was reduced in size when its southeast part, including Hurdcott hamlet, was transferred to

Barford St Martin Barford St Martin is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, about west of Wilton, around the junction of the A30 and the B3089. Barford is known as one of the Nadder Valley villages, named for the River Nadder which flows through t ...

in 1884; the whole of Baverstock parish was absorbed into Dinton in 1934. The

Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ca ...

of Saint Edith is dedicated to the Wiltshire saint

Edith of Wilton Edith of Wilton ( – 16 September 984) was an English nun, saint, and the only daughter of Edgar, King of England (r. 959–975), and Saint Wulfthryth, who later became abbess of Wilton Abbey. Edgar most likely abducted Wulfthryth from Wilto ...

and stands on the brow of a slope facing south across the Nadder valley. The building is from the 14th and 15th centuries, with restoration in 1880–1893 by

William Butterfield William Butterfield (7 September 1814 – 23 February 1900) was a Gothic Revival architect and associated with the Oxford Movement (or Tractarian Movement). He is noted for his use of polychromy. Biography William Butterfield was born in Lon ...

. The building is

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. The tower has a ring of three bells, two of which date from the 15th century. Today the church is part of the Nadder Valley team ministry. The churchyard contains, among others, the graves of 32 Australian soldiers from

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Soldiers were encamped locally before being transported to the war theatre in France. The majority died from infectious illness. Baverstock Manor is a Grade II* listed house from the 16th century, with later alterations and 1930s restoration. Close to the B3089 is the Penruddocke Arms, a public house named for the Penruddocke family who lived in neighbouring

Compton Chamberlayne Compton Chamberlayne is a small village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the River Nadder, Nadder Valley in south Wiltshire, England, about west of Salisbury. The Nadder forms the northern boundary of the parish; to the south are ...

during the 18th and 19th centuries. North of the village lies

Baverstock Juniper Bank Baverstock Juniper Bank () is a 2.6 hectare Biological Site of Special Scientific Interest to the north of the village of Baverstock in Wiltshire, England. Baverstock Juniper Bank is within the Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs Area of ...

, a biological

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...

at .

References

External links

{{authority control Villages in Wiltshire Former civil parishes in Wiltshire