Bradpole is a village and
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 authorit ...
in south west
Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, in the
Brit valley, outside
Bridport
Bridport is a market town in Dorset, England, inland from the English Channel near the confluence of the River Brit and its tributary the Asker. Its origins are Saxon and it has a long history as a rope-making centre. On the coast and wit ...
. In the
2011 census the population of the parish was 2,339.
In 1651
Charles II passed through Bradpole in his
efforts to evade capture after he failed to sail to France from
Charmouth
Charmouth is a village and civil parish in west Dorset, England. The village is situated on the mouth of the River Char, around north-east of Lyme Regis. Dorset County Council estimated that in 2013 the population of the civil parish was 1,31 ...
following his defeat at the
Battle of Worcester
The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell d ...
. An inscribed stone in the south of the parish, where Lee Lane meets the
A35 trunk road between Bridport and Dorchester, marks the place where he took a turning off the main road to escape from his pursuers.
Bradpole is the birthplace of industrialist and
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
politician
William Edward Forster
William Edward Forster, PC, FRS (11 July 18185 April 1886) was an English industrialist, philanthropist and Liberal Party statesman. His supposed advocacy of the Irish Constabulary's use of lethal force against the National Land League ea ...
(1818–1886), who was instrumental in bringing through the 1870
Elementary Education Act. He is commemorated by the village Memorial Hall.
The parish church was built in 1845, following two previous buildings on the same site. Its communion cup dates from the 16th century.
A
chapel of ease,
St Andrew's, was built in 1858-60 and is now redundant.
References
External links
Official Bradpole Parish Council WebsiteBradpole Parish Plan
Villages in Dorset
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