Brendon is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of

Brendon and Countisbury Brendon and Countisbury is an English civil parish in the district of North Devon and the county of Devon. The civil parish was created on 26 October 2012, by the merger of the previous civil parishes of Brendon and Countisbury Countisbury is ...

, in the

North Devon North Devon is a local government district in Devon, England. North Devon Council is based in Barnstaple. Other towns and villages in the North Devon District include Braunton, Fremington, Ilfracombe, Instow, South Molton, Lynton and Lynmouth ...

district, in the county of Devon, England. It is close to the border with Somerset within the Exmoor National Park, the village is southeast of Lynton and west of

Minehead Minehead is a coastal town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It lies on the south bank of the Bristol Channel, north-west of the county town of Taunton, from the boundary with the county of Devon and in proximity of the Exmoor National P ...

in the East Lyn Valley. It is located just off the A39 and is on two long distance footpaths, the Coleridge Way and the

Samaritans Way South West Samaritans Way South West is a Long-distance footpath in South West England. It was officially opened on 21 April 2004 by the Ramblers Vice Chairman, the Samaritans (charity) Chief Executive and a farmer from Gloucestershire who headed the ...

. The Church of St Brendon is from the village and was built in 1738, possibly with building material brought from another site. In 2001 the parish had a population of 159.

The village

The Church of St. Brendon was built in 1738, possibly using the stones from the original church at Cheriton. It lies midway between Cheriton and Brendon, about two miles (3 km) from each, and has a tower and four bells. The church was further restored in the nineteenth century and houses a Norman font. There is a sundial above the porch dated 1707. The village is located just off the A39, the parish of Brendon is roughly square in shape and is defined by the East Lyn River to the north, the Hoaroak Water to the west and the

Badgworthy Water Badgworthy Water is a small river which flows through Malmsmead on Exmoor, close to the border between Devon and Somerset, England. It merges with Oare Water to become the East Lyn River. On the banks of the river are the remains of a few dwe ...

to the east; a tributary of the latter, the Hoccombe Water defines part of its southern boundary. Brendon Common occupies a part of the moorland area which characterises the south of the parish. Badgeworthy Water is crossed by the 17th century

packhorse A packhorse, pack horse, or sumpter refers to a horse, mule, donkey, or pony used to carry goods on its back, usually in sidebags or panniers. Typically packhorses are used to cross difficult terrain, where the absence of roads prevents the use of ...

Malmsmead Bridge Malmsmead Bridge is a 17th-century stone bridge which crosses Badgworthy Water in the hamlet of Malmsmead, on the road between Oare and Brendon. The Badgworthy Water forms the boundary between the counties of Somerset and Devon, and the bridge ...

History

The name contains two

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

place-name elements, the first – from ''brom'' – referring to the plant broom and the second – from ''dun'' – which tends to signify a fairly extensive and flat hill or upland expanse. It is recorded in the Domesday Book as ''Brandone''. It is not connected with the Brendon Hills in Somerset, the name of which has a different origin. ''White's Devonshire Directory'' (1850) describes Brendon as follows:

A small village 1½ miles SE of Lynton & 15 miles W of Minehead is in a picturesque valley of the river Lyn, has in its parish 271 souls & 6733 acres of land including Leeford hamlet & a large tract of moorland on the borders of Somersetshire where the rivers Exe, Lyn and Barle have their sources. F. W. Knight Esq. is the Lord of the mannor owner of most of the soil, and patron of the rectory ... valued in 1831 at £148. The Rev. T. Roe of Oare, Somerset is the incumbent, and has 57a, 2r, 22p, of glebe. The parsonage is a small cottage, and the church t. Brendonis an ancient structure with a tower and 4 bells.

Brendon is home to the Exmoor Folk Festival, and is both on the route of the Coleridge Way and the

. On 1 April 2013 the parish was abolished and merged with

Countisbury Countisbury is a hamlet on Exmoor in Devon, England. It is roughly two miles east of Lynmouth along the A39. It has a church and pub. The National Trust owns the other buildings. Since 2012, Countisbury has formed part of the civil parish of B ...

to form "Brendon and Countisbury". Image:Brendon 2.jpg, The Stag Hunters Inn Image:River Lynn.jpg, The East Lyn River Image:Deer over Brendon.jpg, Deer on the hillside over Brendon

References

External links

Brendon Valley
{{authority control Villages in Devon Former civil parishes in Devon North Devon