Stanton Prior is a small village within the civil parish of

Marksbury Marksbury is a small village and civil parish on the eastern edge of the affluent Chew Valley in Somerset, about from Keynsham and from Bath on the A39 where it meets the A368. The parish, which includes the villages of Hunstrete and Stant ...

, in the Bath and North East Somerset district, in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It is set in

Duchy of Cornwall The Duchy of Cornwall ( kw, Duketh Kernow) is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch obtains possession of the duchy and the title of 'Duke of Cornwall' at ...

countryside between Newton St Loe and Marksbury, west from the UK city of

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

. In 1931 the parish had a population of 85. On 1 April 1933 the parish was abolished and merged with Marksbury. Stanton Prior derives its name from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

'Stantona' (meaning Stone Town) and is reputed to be one of the smallest villages in Somerset, consisting of two farms, 21 houses and the Church of St Lawrence, which has its origins in the 12th century but is mainly 15th century and underwent heavy restoration in 1860. The church has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building. The village was the property of Saxon Kings who gave it to

Bath Abbey The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is a parish church of the Church of England and former Benedictine monastery in Bath, Somerset, England. Founded in the 7th century, it was reorganised in the 10th ...

before the Norman Conquest and it was held by the Prior until the dissolution of the monasteries. It was then granted to Thomas Horner, who sold it to General Erington in 1544. The parish of Stanton Prior was part of the

Keynsham Keynsham ( ) is a town and civil parish located between Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. It has a population of 16,000. It was listed in the Domesday Book as ''Cainesham'' (as it is pronounced), which is believed to mean the home of Sai ...

Hundred. Close by, on Stantonbury Hill, are the remains of an Iron Age hill fort known as

Stantonbury Camp Stantonbury Camp is the site of an Iron Age hill fort near Stanton Prior within the parish of Marksbury in Somerset, England. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Background Hill forts developed in the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age, roughly the ...

, which lies on the line of Wansdyke. Stanton is home to a rare chain

pump A pump is a device that moves fluids (liquids or gases), or sometimes slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic energy. Pumps can be classified into three major groups according to the method they u ...

, albeit without its chain.

References

External links

Ordnance Survey 1:10560 County Series 2nd edition (c. 1900)
{{Chew Valley Villages in Bath and North East Somerset Former civil parishes in Somerset