Whaddon 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 ...

in the

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 ...

Hilperton Hilperton is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The village is separated by a few fields (the Hilperton Gap) from the northeastern edge of the town of Trowbridge and is approximately from Trowbridge town centre. South of Hilper ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

, England.

Location

The hamlet is northeast of the county town of

Trowbridge Trowbridge ( ) is the county town of Wiltshire, England, on the River Biss in the west of the county. It is near the border with Somerset and lies southeast of Bath, 31 miles (49 km) southwest of Swindon and 20 miles (32 km) southeas ...

. It is only accessible via Whaddon Lane which connects the hamlet to Hilperton. The River Avon and the Kennet and Avon Canal, half a mile apart, define the natural boundaries of the hamlet. The river separates Whaddon from the village of Holt, and the canal separates it from Hilperton and

Semington Semington is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The village is about south of Melksham and about northeast of Trowbridge. The parish includes the hamlets of Little Marsh and Littleton.

History

Archaeological finds at the current location of the hamlet indicate occupation as early as the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...

, lasting into Roman times. Under the name of ''Wadone'', the village 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, being held by a Saxon called Alvric, supporting two plough teams, and also having meadow and pasture. The Saxons used wood both for building and their utensils, so they have left little evidence in the archaeological record, other than a possible fragment of late Saxon pottery found at the site. At that time, Whaddon included Paxcroft, now part of Hilperton; the total population would probably have been between 15 and 25 people. The village was then located on the major road going from Trowbridge through Hilperton to Whaddon and then alongside the river Avon to

Melksham Melksham () is a town on the River Avon in Wiltshire, England, about northeast of Trowbridge and south of Chippenham. At the 2011 census, the Melksham built-up area had a population of 19,357, making it Wiltshire's fifth-largest settlement aft ...

. By 1428, the population of Whaddon counted 10 householders; then it rose to 36 people in 1801 and further to 63 in 1821. For a long time, Whaddon was a separate parish; but in 1894 it was merged with Semington parish, and since then the population of Whaddon on its own has not been recorded. It was not until the late 20th century that Whaddon was united with its more obvious neighbour, Hilperton.

St. Mary's Church

The church of St. Mary the Virgin was built by the 12th century and still contains a blocked 12th century north doorway and a reconstructed 12th century south doorway with a decorated tympanum. Later in the 14th century the church was altered, and the door is made of two 14th century oak panels with heavy hinges. In 1676-8 the church was rebuilt, and c.1778 pulled down and rebuilt again. The present chancel was built in 1879 because damage to the foundations, caused by the work of 1778, was responsible for cracks in the walls and roof damage. It is Grade II* listed.

References

External links

Hilperton parish at Wiltshire Community History
{{Commons category-inline, Whaddon, Hilperton Hamlets in Wiltshire Former civil parishes in Wiltshire