Campden was, from 1894 to 1935, a

rural district Rural districts were a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales, and Ireland for the administration of predominantly rural areas at a level lower than that of the Ad ...

in the

administrative county An administrative county was a first-level administrative division in England and Wales from 1888 to 1974, and in Ireland from 1899 until either 1973 (in Northern Ireland) or 2002 (in the Republic of Ireland). They are now abolished, although mos ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) 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. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, England. The district lay on the north-eastern boundary of Gloucestershire, and consisted of three separate areas nearly surrounded by the counties of

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...

and

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...

. The county and district boundaries were simplified in 1931 and the district was abolished in 1935.

Formation

The rural district was created by the

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...

from that part of Shipston on Stour Rural Sanitary District which lay in Gloucestershire. The remainder of Shipston RSD became Shipston on Stour Rural District in Worcestershire (Warwickshire from 1 April 1931). The rural district was named after

Chipping Campden Chipping Campden is a market town in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. It is notable for its terraced High Street, dating from the 14th century to the 17th century. ("Chipping" is from Old English ''cēping'', 'market', 'market- ...

and was governed by a directly elected rural district council (RDC), which replaced the rural sanitary authority that had comprised the

poor law In English and British history, poor relief refers to government and ecclesiastical action to relieve poverty. Over the centuries, various authorities have needed to decide whose poverty deserves relief and also who should bear the cost of hel ...

guardians Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Uni ...

for the area. Campden RDC continued to hold its meetings in the offices of Shipston Poor Law Union, outside the district.

Boundaries and constituent parishes

The rural district lay on the edge of three counties with very irregular boundaries, including a number of detached parishes. The district initially consisted of two parts: Seven

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 ...

es formed part of a salient of Gloucestershire surrounded by Warwickshire and Worcestershire: *

Admington Admington is a village and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of the English county of Warwickshire. The name Admington means "estate associated with a man called Æthelhelm" and the village is referred to in the Domesday Book as '' ...

* Clopton *

Ebrington Ebrington (known locally as Yabberton or Yubberton) is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, about from Chipping Campden. It has narrow lanes and tiny streets of Cotswold stone houses and cottages, many of which are thatched. ...

Hidcote Bartrim Hidcote Bartrim is a hamlet (place), hamlet and former civil parish, now in the parish of Ebrington, Gloucestershire, Ebrington, in the Cotswold (district), Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. The nearest town is Chipping Campden, whi ...

* Mickleton * Quinton Three parishes formed an area to the south, separated from the main part of the district by the Worcestershire parish of

Blockley Blockley is a village, civil parish and ecclesiastical parish in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England, about northwest of Moreton-in-Marsh. Until 1931 Blockley was an exclave of Worcestershire. The civil and ecclesiastical parish ...

: *

Batsford Batsford is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. The village is about 1½ miles north-west of Moreton-in-Marsh. There is a falconry centre close to the village and Batsford Arboretum is nearby, ...

Bourton-on-the-Hill Bourton-on-the-Hill is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England, and about west of Moreton-in-Marsh. In 2010 it had an estimated population of 288.Moreton-in-Marsh Moreton-in-Marsh is a market town in the Evenlode Valley, within the Cotswolds district and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Gloucestershire, England. The town stands at the crossroads of the Fosse Way Roman road (now the A429) and the ...

A further two parishes lay to the east: *

Lower Lemington Lower Lemington is a small village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Batsford, in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. The village is about north-east of Moreton-in-Marsh. Lower Lemington lies east of the Fosse Way, ...

* Todenham

Boundary changes and abolition

In February 1930

Warwickshire County Council Warwickshire County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Warwickshire in England. Its headquarters are located at Shire Hall, Market Square, in centre of the county town of Warwick. Politically the county is ...

made an application under the

Local Government Act 1888 Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States * Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...

for an alteration of the county's boundary. The council sought to annex the parishes of Admington and Quinton along with the entire

Marston Sicca Rural District Marston Sicca was, from 1894 to 1931, a rural district in the administrative counties of England, administrative county of Gloucestershire, England. The district formed part of a salient of Gloucestershire nearly surrounded by Warwickshire and ...

. Following the coming into force of the

Local Government Act 1929 The Local Government Act 1929 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that made changes to the Poor Law and local government in England and Wales. The Act abolished the system of poor law unions in England and Wales and their board ...

later in the year, county councils gained the power to adjust boundaries by negotiation, subject to ministerial approval. In December 1930, following a public inquiry conducted in

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

, the

Minister for Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...

approved a scheme to transfer a number of parishes between Gloucestershire, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire. The alterations required the promotion of a private parliamentary bill, which was approved by the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

in February 1931, and came into force on 1 April 1931.Ministry of Health Provisional Orders Confirmation (Gloucestershire Warwickshire and Worcestershire) Act, 1931, c.ix The Act added five parishes to Campden RD: these were the Worcestershire parish of Blockley and four parishes from the abolished

Pebworth Rural District Pebworth was, from 1894 to 1931, a rural district in the administrative county of Gloucestershire, England. The district consisted of four parts, divided from each other by a section of Worcestershire. Formation The rural district was created ...

: Aston Subedge,

Saintbury Saintbury is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold District of Gloucestershire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 Census was 83. Saintbury was mentioned in the Domesday Book (1086) as ''Suineberie''. The Church of St N ...

Weston Subedge Weston-sub-Edge (also known as Weston Subedge) is a village in Gloucestershire, England. History This Cotswold village, recorded in the Domesday Book, lies at the foot of Dover's Hill. Named after Robert Dover who organised his ‘Olimpick’ ...

and

Willersey Willersey is a village in Gloucestershire, South West England, situated close to the boundary with Worcestershire, West Midlands region and southwest of Evesham. Although situated in Gloucestershire, the postal county for the village is Worces ...

. The district was finally abolished in 1935 and its area redistributed. The bulk of the district was merged with

Stow on the Wold Stow-on-the-Wold is a market town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, on top of an 800-foot (244 m) hill at the junction of main roads through the Cotswolds, including the Fosse Way (A429), which is of Roman origin. The town was founde ...

urban and

rural districts Rural districts were a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales, and Ireland for the administration of predominantly rural areas at a level lower than that of the ad ...

to form the new

North Cotswold Rural District North Cotswold was, from 1935 to 1974, a rural district in the administrative county of Gloucestershire, England. Formation Under the Local Government Act 1929 county councils were given the duty of reviewing the districts within their county. G ...

. Three parishes in the north of the district, Admington, Clopton and Quinton, were transferred to Warwickshire and to Stratford on Avon Rural District.

References

{{Reflist Districts of England created by the Local Government Act 1894 History of Gloucestershire Rural districts of England