Rendcomb is a village in the

Cotswold The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale. The area is defined by the bedrock of Juras ...

local authority area of the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county of

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 ...

. It is about five miles north of Cirencester in the Churn valley.

History

Etymology

Remdcomb is thought to get its name from the stream running through the small valley or ''coomb'' which lies south of the village. The stream which flows into the Churn, was called ''Hrindan Broc'' in 852 AD, with the modern name of Rendcomb deriving from ''Hrindan'' + ''coomb''.

History

In 1086 a total of 39 inhabitants of Rendcomb and Eycot was recorded in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

as part of Rapsgate Hundred. By 1563, there were 12 households in Rendcomb. The existence of Rendomb Park estate was recorded in 1544, and by the 1670s it consisted of 250 acres. During the middle ages, Rendcomb manor was the property of the earls of Gloucester and owned by their knights including the de la Mare family. In 1503, the manor was sold to Edmund Tame of

Fairford Fairford is a town in Gloucestershire, England. The town lies in the Cotswold hills on the River Coln, east of Cirencester, west of Lechlade and north of Swindon. Nearby are RAF Fairford and the Cotswold Water Park. History Evidence of se ...

, son of

John Tame John Tame (c. 1430 - 8 May 1500) of Cirencester and of Beauchamp Court (or "Warwick Court") in the parish of Fairford, both in Gloucestershire, England, was a wealthy wool producer and merchant who re-built the surviving St. Mary's Church, Fairf ...

. Sir Richard Berkley was the owner in 1564 who invited

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

to the manor house in 1592. It later came into the possession the MP Sir Christopher Guise. In 1864, the manor was sold to

Sir Francis Goldsmid Sir Francis Henry Goldsmid, 2nd Baronet (1 May 1808 – 2 May 1878) was an Anglo-Jewish barrister and politician. Early life The son of Sir Isaac Lyon Goldsmid and a member of the Goldsmid banking family, Francis was born in London, and private ...

, MP for

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

. Soon after 1914, the estate had multiple owners and had essentially disintegrated. St Peter's church dates from the 16th century. It was restored by Frederick R. Kempson in 1895. The diplomat Thomas Roe was living at Rendcomb in 1608. In 1641, Sir Maurice Berkeley and Richard Berkeley of Rendcomb were fined by Parliament for supporting the Royalist cause in the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

, but were spared having their estates seized. About 1773, the lord of the manor, Sir William Guise, improved access from the village to Cirencester by building a new road. Sir

Berkeley Guise Sir Berkeley William Guise, 2nd Baronet (14 July 1775 – 23 July 1834) of Highnam Court in the parish of Churcham, Gloucestershire, was a British landowner and Whig Member of Parliament. Origins He was the eldest son of Sir John Guise, 1st Bar ...

funded a charity school at Rendcomb from 1808. In the mid 1860s, Sir Francis Goldsmid rebuilt the manor-house, Rendcomb Park, and made some improvements to the village, including a new river bridge and funds for the village school which closed in 1930.

Philip Hardwick Philip Hardwick (15 June 1792 in London – 28 December 1870) was an English architect, particularly associated with railway stations and warehouses in London and elsewhere. Hardwick is probably best known for London's demolished Euston Arch ...

was the architect commissioned to undertake the improvements.

Education

A free school was established in 1808, supported by

. In 1857, a National school was built and supported by Sir Goldsmid. It closed in 1930 In 1920,

Rendcomb College Rendcomb College is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils aged 13–18), located in the village of Rendcomb five miles north of Cirencester in Gloucestershire, England. Rendcomb College was founded in 1920 ...

was founded at Rendcomb Park adjacent to the village.

Notable residents

Frederick Sanger Frederick Sanger (; 13 August 1918 – 19 November 2013) was an English biochemist who received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry twice. He won the 1958 Chemistry Prize for determining the amino acid sequence of insulin and numerous other p ...

(1918–2013),

biochemist Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. They study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. Biochemists study DNA, proteins and Cell (biology), cell parts. The word "biochemist" is a portmanteau of ...

who won the

Nobel Prize in Chemistry ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then "M ...

twice, in 1958 and 1980; the fourth person to win two Nobel Prizes * R. N. D. Wilson (1899–1953), Irish

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

who taught at Rendcomb College from 1934 to 1944

References

Villages in Gloucestershire Cotswold District {{Gloucestershire-geo-stub

History

Etymology

History

Education

Notable residents

See also

References