Chewton Keynsham () is a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

on the

River Chew The River Chew is a small river in England that flows for some through the North Somerset countryside to form the Chew Valley before merging with the River Avon. The spring from which the Chew rises is just upstream from Chewton Mendip. The ...

in the

Chew Valley The Chew Valley is an affluent area in North Somerset, England, named after the River Chew, which rises at Chewton Mendip, and joins the River Avon at Keynsham. Technically, the area of the valley is bounded by the water catchment area of ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, England. It is 7 miles from

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, 7 miles from Bath, and south of the centre of the town of Keynsham. The hamlet lies on the

Monarch's Way The Monarch's Way is a long-distance footpath in England that approximates the escape route taken by King Charles II in 1651 after being defeated in the Battle of Worcester. It runs from Worcester via Bristol and Yeovil to Shoreham, West Su ...

long distance footpath.

Government and politics

Chewton Keynsham is part of the Farmborough Ward which is represented by one councillor on the

Bath and North East Somerset Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES) is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority district in England. Bath and North East Somerset Council was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the county of Avon. It is part of the Cer ...

unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...

which has wider responsibilities for services such as education, refuse, tourism etc. The village is a part of the North East Somerset constituency. Prior to

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC ...

in 2020, it was part of the South West England constituency of the European Parliament.

Demographics

According to the 2011 Census, the E00072685 output area (which extended from Queens Charlton to Burnett, both with higher populations), had 286 residents of which 40 were children, living in 117 households. Of these 242 described their health as 'good' or 'very good', 32 adults had no qualifications; 1 person was unemployed, whereas 77 were economically inactive, which includes carers, 18 students and 44 retirees.

Geography

The settlement is

linear Linearity is the property of a mathematical relationship ('' function'') that can be graphically represented as a straight line. Linearity is closely related to '' proportionality''. Examples in physics include rectilinear motion, the linear ...

with outlying farms on the valley slopes and has an 18th-century bridge crossing the

, which follows the course of the village street north-south. Farmland occupies most of the mixed clay and calciferous hillsides and semi-plateaus above, interspersed by small areas of ancient woodland and many hedgerows.

Chewton Place

The large house known as Chewton Place is a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. It was built about 1762 for the Popham family and further extended c. 1786. It was extensively remodelled in 1860–70 and restored in 1968 after flood damage. The house was fully renovated between 2013 and 2017. The building contains a number of historic features including a fine plaster ceiling from the late 19th century and a Gothic staircase. A

folly tower A folly tower is a tower that has been built as an architectural folly, that is, constructed for ornamental rather than practical reasons. Folly towers are common in Britain and Ireland, and often do have some practical value as landmarks, or as vie ...

, known locally as the Owl Tower, was built in the grounds in the late 18th century — a tall tapering square obelisk of coursed limestone, finished with a pyramidal cap. It has pointed-arched openings, east and west, giving a walk-through passage at the base, and diagonal

buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral ( ...

es. The carved owl on a keystone probably gives the folly, which is Grade II listed, its name. The gardens were laid out in the 18th century and include a

ha-ha A ha-ha (french: hâ-hâ or ), also known as a sunk fence, blind fence, ditch and fence, deer wall, or foss, is a recessed landscape design element that creates a vertical barrier (particularly on one side) while preserving an uninterrupted view ...

and riverside walks. The bridge next to the entrance lodge is also listed. The Lodge itself is an 18th-century building but remodelled in the Gothic style at the same time as the main house was altered in the 1860s.

References

External links