The Hundred of Kingsbury is one of the 40 historical Hundreds in the

ceremonial county The counties and areas for the purposes of the lieutenancies, also referred to as the lieutenancy areas of England and informally known as ceremonial counties, are areas of England to which lords-lieutenant are appointed. Legally, the areas i ...

of Somerset, England, dating from before the Norman conquest during the

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

era although exact dates are unknown. Each hundred had a 'fyrd', which acted as the local defence force and a court which was responsible for the maintenance of the frankpledge system. They also formed a unit for the collection of taxes. The role of the hundred court was described in the Dooms (laws) of King Edgar. The name of the hundred was normally that of its meeting-place. The Hundred of Kingsbury which was originally called ''Cingesberia'', consisted of six separate areas covering the ancient parishes of:

Chard Chard or Swiss chard (; ''Beta vulgaris'' subsp. ''vulgaris'', Cicla Group and Flavescens Group) is a green leafy vegetable. In the cultivars of the Flavescens Group, the leaf stalks are large and often prepared separately from the leaf blade; ...

, Combe, Huish Episcopi, Kingsbury Episcopi, Winsham,

Ash Priors Ash Priors is a village and parish in Somerset, England, situated north west of Taunton in the Somerset West and Taunton district. The village has a population of 155. History The parish of Ash Priors was part of the Hundred of Kilmersdon. ...

, West Buckland,

Fitzhead Fitzhead is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated approximately north west of Taunton. The village has an estimated population of 264. History The name of the village, which was recorded as ''Fifida'' in 1178 indicates the or ...

Bishops Lydeard Bishops Lydeard () is a village and civil parish located in Somerset, England, north-west of Taunton in the district of Somerset West and Taunton. The civil parish encompasses the hamlets of East Lydeard, Terhill, and East Bagborough, and had a ...

, Wellington, and Wiveliscombe. It covered an area of . At some point in the 16th century it was two separate Hundreds: Kingsbury West and East Kingsbury. In 1663 it was recorded as having originally being a gift from Ine of Wessex to the Cathedral Church of Wells prior to 1066. The importance of the hundred courts declined from the seventeenth century. By the 19th century several different single-purpose subdivisions of counties, such as poor law unions, sanitary districts, and highway districts sprang up, filling the administrative role previously played by parishes and hundreds. Although the Hundreds have never been formally abolished, their functions ended with the establishment of

county court A county court is a court based in or with a jurisdiction covering one or more counties, which are administrative divisions (subnational entities) within a country, not to be confused with the medieval system of ''county courts'' held by the high ...

s in 1867 and the introduction of

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

by the Local Government Act 1894.

References

{{Hundreds of Somerset Kingsbury