Beckington is a village and

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 authorit ...

in the

Mendip Mendip may refer to: *Mendip District, a local government district of Somerset, England * Mendip Hills, a group of hills in Somerset, England ** Mendip Way, a footpath across the Mendip Hills **Mendip TV Mast, a transmitter in the Mendips area *For ...

district 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, across the River Frome from Lullington about three miles north of

Frome Frome ( ) is a town and civil parish in eastern Somerset, England. The town is built on uneven high ground at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills, and centres on the River Frome. The town, about south of Bath, is the largest in the Mendip d ...

. According to the 2011 census the parish, which includes the

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 ...

of Rudge, which has a population of 983, and the hamlet of Standerwick.

History

Beckington is mentioned 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 manus ...

of 1086, when it was held by a Roger Bushell, in the place of Æthelfrith, and it was taxed for ten hides, thereby suggesting that the cultivated area was around 1200 acres. The parish was part of the

hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to des ...

and, given that a Hundred comprised one hundred hides, the estate would appear to have made up a significant proportion of its hundred. During the medieval period, Beckington was a major centre for the wool trade. By the 15th century, fulling mills had been built along the banks of the River Frome which supported the spinning and weaving cottage industries. The English antiquary

John Aubrey John Aubrey (12 March 1626 – 7 June 1697) was an English antiquary, natural philosopher and writer. He is perhaps best known as the author of the '' Brief Lives'', his collection of short biographical pieces. He was a pioneer archaeologist ...

(1626–1697) noted in his ''

Brief Lives ''Brief Lives'' is a collection of short biographies written by John Aubrey (1626–1697) in the last decades of the 17th century. Writing Aubrey initially began collecting biographical material to assist the Oxford scholar Anthony Wood, who ...

'': "Carrots were first sown at Beckington in Somersetshire. Some very old Man there did remember their first bringing hither." In September 1766, rioters marched to Beckington and set on fire a mill and other property, in spite of being offered money and parish relief for their families.

Governance

The parish council has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council's operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and

neighbourhood watch Neighbourhood Watch in the United Kingdom is the largest voluntary crime prevention movement covering England and Wales with upwards of 2.3 million household members. The charity brings neighbors together to create strong, friendly and active comm ...

groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council. The village falls within the

Non-metropolitan district Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially "shire districts", are a type of Districts of England, local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties (colloquially ''shi ...

, which was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, having previously been part of

Frome Rural District Frome was a rural district in Somerset, England, from 1894 to 1974. The district was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894. It was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 when it became part of the district of M ...

, which is responsible for local planning and

building control Building automation (BAS), also known as building management system (BMS) or building energy management system (BEMS), is the automatic centralized control of a building's HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning), electrical, lighting, ...

, local roads, council housing,

environmental health Environmental health is the branch of public health concerned with all aspects of the natural and built environment affecting human health. In order to effectively control factors that may affect health, the requirements that must be met in ...

market Market is a term used to describe concepts such as: *Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand *Market economy *Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market Geography *Märket, an ...

s and fairs, refuse collection and

recycling Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. The recovery of energy from waste materials is often included in this concept. The recyclability of a material depends on its ability to reacquire the p ...

, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

. Somerset County Council is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

, social services,

libraries A library is a collection of Document, materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or electronic media, digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a ...

, main roads,

public transport Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typi ...

, policing and

fire service A fire department (American English) or fire brigade (Commonwealth English), also known as a fire authority, fire district, fire and rescue, or fire service in some areas, is an organization that provides fire prevention and fire suppression se ...

trading standards Trading Standards are the local authority departments with the United Kingdom, formerly known as ''Weights and Measures'', that enforce consumer protection legislation. Sometimes, the Trading Standards enforcement functions of a local authority a ...

waste disposal Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal. This includes the collection, transport, treatment and disposal of waste, together with monitorin ...

and strategic planning. The village falls in the 'Beckington and Selwood' electoral ward. The ward stretches from ''Beckington'' south to East Woodlands but avoiding

. The total population of the ward at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census was 2,125. It is also part of the Somerton and Frome (UK Parliament constituency), Somerton and Frome county constituency represented in the British House of Commons, House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament, Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. It was part of the South West England (European Parliament constituency), South West England constituency of the European Parliament prior to Brexit, Britain leaving the European Union in January 2020, which elected seven Members of the European Parliament, MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.

Transport

Beckington was on the A361 road, A36 until a bypass was built in 1989. For years, the T-junction in the centre of the village was in grid-lock during the busy commuter times and holiday season. The location was marked by a large, evergreen bush that was cleverly snipped to the shape of a battle-tank.

Education

Beckington school is a Church of England Voluntary Controlled First School which was built in 1852. Springmead Preparatory School is also based in the village.

Landmarks

Seymours Court Farmhouse, Beckington, Seymours Court Farmhouse dates from the 15th century and is Grade I listed. It was once the home of Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley, who married Queen Catherine Parr. Beckington Castle, which housed Ravenscroft School (Somerset), Ravenscroft School between 1945 and 1970, was originally built in the 17th century. It is now home to a company providing technical and procurement support to the Ministry of Defence. The Wool Hall, next door, dates from the 16th century, was substantially restored in the 19th century, and served as a recording studio from the early 1980s until its closure in 2004. The cottages along Church Street date from around 1720. Like the Wool Hall, the Woolpack Inn took its name from the village trade and opened as a coaching inn in the 16th century, but the current building was rebuilt on the site in the late 18th. Beckington is also home to two village pumps. One of these described as "smart", is near the church under a hooded wooden structure, whilst the other, described as "altogether less grand", is located on a parkway.

Religious sites

It has a Norman architecture, Norman Church of St George, Beckington, Church of St George dating from the 14th century. The tower contains two bells dating from 1756 and made by Thomas Bilbie of the Bilbie family. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building. The Abbey, Beckington, dating from 1502, is a former monastic grange and college for priests later adapted as a house.

Standerwick

The hamlet of Standerwick within the parish of Beckington includes the

Agricultural Market and has one public house, ''The Bell''. Its existence is recorded as far back as 1660. Buildings include Standerwick Court, a manor house in the grounds of which is said to be an ancient encampment, perhaps a connecting station between Bath, Somerset, Bath and King Alfred's Tower at Stourton. Foxes Drove Farm dates from around 1750.

Notable people

* Samuel Daniel (1562 – 1619), English poetry, poet and History of England, historian retired to a farm called "The Ridge" in the village and is buried in the parish churchyard. * Thomas Beckington (also spelt Beckyngton) (c. 1390 – 1465) was born in the village before becoming Bishop of Bath and Wells and 'King's Secretary' in Middle Ages, Medieval England. * Lislebone Long, Sir Lislebone Long (1613–1659) (baptised Loveban) was born in the village and became Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom), Speaker of the House of Commons in 1659. *Alfred Parsons (artist), Alfred Parsons (1847–1911), Artist.

References

External links

Beckington Castle

Village website

Village life in Beckington
{{Authority control Villages in Mendip District Civil parishes in Somerset