Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 09:37, 24 July 2006

Marshfield is a village in the local government area of South Gloucestershire, England, on the borders of the counties of Wiltshire and Somerset.

Location

File:Sunrisemarshfield.jpg Rushmead Lane at Sunrise Feb 2002.

Marshfield is at the southern end of the Cotswold Hills, 8 miles north of Bath, 15 miles east of Bristol and 28 miles south of Gloucester. The A420 road bypasses the village on its northern side.There can be few Gloucestershire villages of such size and quality and little known as this southern outpost of the Gloucestershire Cotswolds. Marshfield which is in the county Of South Glos is at the very extremity of the county with Bath and North East Somerset to the south and Wiltshire only a mile to the east of the church. Gloucestershire is to the North. The village stands more than 600 feet above sea level on a ridge which formerly made up the boundry between Wessex and Mercia in Anglo-Saxon times.

Marshfield looks out onto two distinct aspects. To the north is the long stretch of flat-looking fields bordered by dry-stone walls. To the south, the view and the country is quite different, for there one is quickly into the wooded valleys and hedge-lined fields of Bath and North East Somerset, not that the north is without it's interesting small valleys too.

There are numerous footpaths (many signposted), bridle paths, and pleasent walks in all directions. The ridge is of oolitic limestone and fossils can be found. So too can Roman pottery- The Fosse Way is not far away and there is evidence of Roman settlement.

The Manor at Marshfield, classed in the Domesday Book as under Crown lands, was given by William the conqueror to the Bishopric of Wells. In 1106 it passed to the Bath Abbey and in 1170 to Keynsham Abbey, the church belonging to Tewkesbury Abbey. It was the abbot of Keynsham who obtained the grant of a market eight centuries ago. Marshfield's bailiff and sergeant-at-mace was largely concerned with the supervision of the market. His mace from Charles I's time is still used on special occasions. It is made of brass and measures 25 inches from base to tip, has a crowned poppy-head with embossed arms of Charles, and with four panels bearing national emblems of rose, thistle, harp, and fleur-de-lys. At the foot are the arms of the Goslett family. The top is crowned and under the ball the flat top has in the centre the royal arms and the initials "C.R." the bailiff also had duties in the manorial court and with the almshouses. The mace, as the foregoing may indicate, was given by the Gosletts ( builders also of the Tolzey Hall), Haringtons, and Codringtons, all great benefactors of Marshfield.

Sheep and corn were the historic mainstay of Marshfield and its greatest fame was for many years in malting, throughout Georgian times and until the last century. At one time there were as many as 80 malthouses, vast stocks being sent to the Bath and Bristol breweries.Marshfield differs from other medieval Cotswold towns in that its economy derived from barley rather than wool. Significantly, in around 1280 the abbot was granted the taxes of bread and beer in the town, and by the 15th century, there is evidence that barley was being grown for malting. In this process, which converts the grain into fermentable material that can then be sold for brewing beer and ale, the barley is soaked, allowed to begin to germinate and then killed by heating -- all in special buildings called 'malthouses'. Marshfield at one time boasted at least 80 of these, but the last one ceased operation in the first decade of the 20th century.

Marshfield also became important in the post-medieval period as the first stage on the Bristol-London stagecoach route -- hence the large number of pubs/inns that the town once supported. The main road through Marshfield was turnpiked in the 18th century, and there were two toll houses in the town, of which only one (in the west) survives. The Second was replaced in the late 50's by a Police station.

It is to those days, at their peak in the 18th century but not long gone from living memory, that Marshfield owes its distinguished architectural heritage.

In the coaching days Marshfield was the first stage from Bristol on the main road to London. An old stone set in the house stated "103 miles from Hyde Park Corner". It was necessarily removed during the second World War and now a modern plaque annouces the same message.

Amenities

These include 3 pubs, a general store, a butchers, Post Office, a pet shop, public toilets, skate park, petrol station, motocross shop, estate agents, hairdresser and a cafe.

History

File:Wives2.jpg BBC Publicity photos for Wives & Daughters.

The name derives from the old English word March or Border, hence Border Field being the literal translation.

The town is rich in history because of its location in the heart of Cotswold wool country, near to Bath and Bristol.

Located within an agricultural area, Marshfield gained market status in 1234. The layout conforms to that of a typical market town with long narrow gardens extending back from the narrow frontages, and served by two rear access lanes (Back Lane and Weir Lane).

The majority of buildings lining the street are of 18th century origin although several buildings date from the 17th century. The building style is largely Georgian. The facades of the buildings are unified by the consistent use of local stone and other materials, which adds character to the village.

The Church

St Mary's Parish Church with its tower provides an important focal point that can be observed from numerous points in the village and is a landmark visible from miles around. The church is on the eastern side of the village. The Church of St Mary the Virgin dominates the skyline for miles around enabling the visitor to identify Marshfield's location from some miles away without the help of a map. A church has stood on that site for more than 1000 years. The first was dedicated to St Nicholas, and at west Marshfield there was another, of which no traces remain, to St Pancras. It is thought that a field called St Pancras Close marks the site. In Bristol museum there is an ancient deed of about 1125 confirming to the Abbot of Tewkesbury various tithes and ecclesiastical benefices, among them Marshfield church, at that time very much smaller than the church we see today.

It is recorded in the annals of Tewkesbury Abbey that on June 1st 1242, in the reign of Henry III, Walter de Cantelupe, Bishop of Worcester, in whose diocese Marshfield then stood, came to dedicate a newly-built church at Marshfield. The monks of Tewkesbury Abbey restored and re-built the church in the perpendicular style in about 1470. After the dissolution of the monasteries the right of presentation of the benefice was given to the warden and fellows of new College, Oxford, by Queen Mary, in lieu of property of which they had been robbed by Henry VIII. The college's first incumbent came into residence in 1642, only to be disposed during the Civil War. New college still has the benefice in its jpgt.

Timeline of Church events

A chalice of 1576 and a paten probably dating from 1695 are in regular use, and communion plate given by the long family in 1728, including two large flagons, is used for the Christmas Eve midnight service each year. The church was restored in 1860 and more carefully in 1887 and 1902-3 under the late Canon Trotman. Restoration of the chapel of St Clement in the north aisle was restored to its original design in 1950 as a memorial to the late Major Pope of Ashwicke Hall, a considerable benefactor of Marshfield. A new cemetary to the north of the village was opened in 1932, the churchyard being full. Non-conformist worshippers in the village are served by Baptist and Congregational chapels, and by Hebron Hall. Conversion of an old barn into the present church hall was done in 1933 at a cost of £650. Further funds for the recent renovation of the hall were raised by enterprising villagers, including WI members, who provided cooked breakfasts in the church hall for early morning holidaymakers passing the village, shortly before the M4 took away much of the summer traffic.

The parish register dates from 1558, the first years of Elizabeth I's reign. The first two volumes were indexed and fifty copies printed by a London antiquarian in the time of Canon Trotman. For the first 150 years entries were generally written in Latin and initially only baptisms were recorded, burials being first entered in 1567 and marriages five years later. Although many of the earliest names recorded are forgotten today, many more are still familiar in Marshfield. As well as poor Edmund Roach. (See The Highwaymen Link) a few curious entries from the register, translated from Latin are;

" 1580 12th April. A well-known woman named Ellen Pain was buried, who was Murdered in a wood belonging to John Blanchard Snr. "

" 1634 29th January. William the sons of Richard Biggs was buried ( Then in old English ) who died a little below Ashton's Linch, as he was comminge from Bristowe, by reason of the vehemency of the weather, in extraordinary snowe. "

" 1636 27th December. Eliza Wickham was buried, the daughter of John Wickham ( added in English ) who was chocked by eating a bitt of the foot of a bullock's henge. " (I've no idea what a Bitt or henge is).

" 1638 6th August. Catherine Stockman was buried, who, ( then in English ) as she was a-stealing apples out of Mr Michael Meredith's orchard, fell downe from the tree, beinge the sabbath day at night and broke her neck."

The Church Bells are currently being renovated.

Layout

High Street is the single main thoroughfare of Marshfield and is approximately 350m in length and straight.

The eastern part of the village contains the parish church, Manor House and Home Farm, a group of historic buildings noted for their architectural features.

Almost every house along the high street is more than 100 years old, from the Georgian Gothic tollhouse at the western end to the splendidgroups of medieval barn, dovecote (The lord of the manor was the only man allowed to keep pigeons-for fresh meat in winter), and early Georgian stable range which go with the Manor house and Home farm. Near the tollhouse stand the fine almshouses of 1612, built for the use of eight elderly villagers by the two sons of Marshfield, Nicholas and Ellis Crispe, who had gone to London and made their fortunes largely through the West Indies trade. They endowed the houses with funds to provide a free residence, garden, and £11 yearly. Many houses date from Tudor and Stuart times ( a few were originally timber-framed ) and have gables and mullioned windows. Several have bow fronts and there are five examples of shell-pattern door arches typical of Queen Anne work. The finest front in the high street is perhaps the Catherine Wheel ( right ) some of whose buildings at the rear are much older than 1700.

The Malting house is a typical example of the village's former prosperity in that trade. Other notable high street buildings include the former independent chapel of 1752, the gabled range of the Hospice, the Red House, the former police station (now number 123), numbers 44, 83, 115, and 126.

The Crown, the Lord Nelson, the old Inn, and several farms still in the heart of the village are also noteworthy: Wier farm in Wier lane, with it's gables, was once a malting house, and Pitt farm, at Little end, is 17th century. The vicaridge, whose front was rebuilt in the 1730's by Mrs Dionysia Long, is particulary handsome with it's barn, stable block, and large walled garden fringing the market place.

The Tolzey or Town House was built in 1690 for the people of Marshfield by John and Mary Goslett. As well as being the old town's administrative headquarters ( the parish council still meets here) it also housed a Marshfield fire engine and served as a lock-up. ( The fire manual is now in Blaise Castle Museum, Bristol). Fresh information suggests that it now appears to be missing after enquiries by a local business-woman. (1999)

Castle farm is about a mile to the north of Marshfield. In its two-acre farmyard is an ancient longhouse with the original fireplace and the dividing screen between the human and animal dwellings. On the neighbouring land where lynchets show in some fields, many Bronze Age and Stone Age implements have been picked up and a skeleton in a stone coffin discovered.

Formerly there were two mansions to the south of the village- the Rocks, now a ruin, and Ashwicke Hall, now a private bording school. (The International School of Chouetfait). The Rocks, covering 1188 acres belonged to the Taylor family, and was originally Jacobean. It was visited by the late Queen Mary during her stay at Badminton in the second World War. Ashwicke, ancient seat of the Webbfamily, was bought and rebuilt by John Orred in 1857, replacing an older house that stood nearby. After his death it was bought by the Horlooks who later moved to the Manor House. The hall then passed through other hands and the Firth family sold it to its last private owner, Major Pope, in 1909. The two houses employed many people from the parish in the past and the footpath running from the village to Ashwicke is a reminder of those days of service.

On this former estate is the Rocks East woodland training centre which has several guided walks and wooden sculptures. Open most days with energetic walks leading to the old walled gardens. Across the lane leading down to St Catherines valley (Oakford Lane) lived Major Jeremy Taylor who was a Captain in the 23rd Hussars (Tank Regiment) and was decorated in WW2. He grew up on the estate in it's heyday. He later worked as an Animal Wrangler in the film "Lawrence of Arabia" and performed the "long" camel riding shots for Peter O'Toole. He boasted wonderful evenings out with David Lean, Audrey Hepburn and Alec Guiness in Cairo. He then assited in training the Indian Army with their horse regiments finally buying a bar and nightclub in Bath before retiring to a wooden chalet beside a man-made lake in the woods within the old Rocks estate. He died peacefully in the RUH Bath a few years ago.

The War Memorial

According to inscriptions on the village's War Memorial 27 villagers died in action during the two World Wars, 20 men during 1914 - 1918 and 7 men during 1939 - 1945.

Details:-( From the Commonwealth War Graves Commission )

Name / Rank / Date died / Regiment / Where laid to rest.(inc location of grave)

ALBERT PERRIMAN Gunner Saturday, 20th November 1915 29 "C" Bty. 59th Bde., Royal Field Artillery 10397 Son of Jonah and Rhoda Perriman, of High St., Marshfield, Chippenham. HELLES MEMORIAL, Turkey.

EDWARD JAMES BALL Private Saturday the 16th September 1916 21 42nd Canadian He was the son of William and Harriett Ball of Ringswell CONTAY BRITISH CEMETERY, CONTAY, Somme, France.

THOMAS COOK Private. Nothing further is known.

WILLIAM EDWARDS WOODHAM Private, Wednesday, 29th March 1916. 23 1st/4th Bn., Somerset Light Infantry 2515 Son of John and Mary Jane Woodham, of East End, Marshfield, Avon. KIRKEE 1914-1918 MEMORIAL, India Face C

THOMAS BURGESS Private Saturday, 1st July 1916. 25 1st Bn., Somerset Light Infantry. 8610 u/k THIEPVAL MEMORIAL, Somme, France Pier and Face 2 A

EDWARD JAMES BALL. Private Saturday, 16th September 1916. 21 42nd Bn., Canadian Infantry (Quebec Regt.) 418724 Son of William and Harriett Ball, of Ringswell, Marshfield, nr. Chippenham, England. CONTAY BRITISH CEMETERY, CONTAY, Somme, France Grave Panel Number: II. B. 25.

CHARLES JONES Private Wednesday, 22nd November 1916. 33 1st/6th Bn., Gloucestershire Regiment. 5427 He was the son of Mr C Jones of 2 Springfield Cottages THIEPVAL MEMORIAL, Somme, France. Pier and Face 5 A and 5 B

P FULLER MM Gunner. Saturday, 21st July 1917. 20 36th Bty. 33rd Bde., Royal Field Artillery 1729 Son of Arthur and Clara Fuller, of Marshfield, Chippenham, Wilts. VLAMERTINGHE NEW MILITARY CEMETERY, Ieper, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium I. H. 27.

JOSEPH MORGAN Private.

LEONARD COLES Gunner Thursday, 13th September 1917 21 306th Siege Bty., Royal Garrison Artillery. 39039 Son of James and Georgina Coles, of Little End, Marshfield, Glos. LIJSSENTHOEK MILITARY CEMETERY, Poperinge, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium. Panel Number: XVIII. E. 20.

JOSEPH MORGAN Private Tuesday 31 July 1917 31 Royal North Lancashire. HOOGE CRATER CEMETERY, Ieper, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium.

ARTHUR BRITTON Driver 1917 22 Royal Engineers.

ARTHUR PULLIN Private Wednesday, 26th September 1917 27 4th, Australian Army Medical Corps 1787 Son of Harry and Ellen Pullen, of Nailey Farm St. Catherines, Bath, England. YPRES (MENIN GATE) MEMORIAL, Ieper, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium Grave. Panel 31.

EDWARDS ELMS BOWN Second Lieutenant. Friday, 2nd November 1917. 34 1st/4th Bn., Northamptonshire Regiment Son of John James and Hester Rachel Bown. Born at Marshfield, Glos. GAZA WAR CEMETERY Panel XV.C.5.

ARTHUR EDWIN BRYAN. Corporal. Gold Medal (Serbia). Monday, 19th November 1917. 24 16th Sqdn. Machine Gun Corps (Cav). 110828 Son of Edwin and Jane Bryan, of Brook House, Doynton, Bristol. Native of Marshfield, Glos. ALEXANDRIA (HADRA) WAR MEMORIAL CEMETERY.EGYPT. D. 221.

GEORGE CHAS EDWARDS WOODHAM Driver 25/4/1918 27 57th Field Company of the Royal Engineers 162899 Lijssenthoek Military Cemetary, Belgium.

EDWARD SALMON. Lance Corporal Thursday, 28th March 1918. 21 8th Bn., Gloucestershire Regiment 37334 u/k ARRAS MEMORIAL, Pas de Calais, France.

ALBERT GEORGE PULLIN. Private Wednesday, 24th April 1918 18 2nd/5th Bn., Gloucestershire Regiment 44456 Son of Austin and Mary Louisa Pullin, of Turnpike House, West End, Marshfield, Chippenham, Glos. LOOS MEMORIAL, Pas de Calais, France Panel 60 to 64.

CHARLES WALTER BODMAN. Second Lieutenant Enlisted in Oct., 1914. Saturday, 24th August 1918. 28 15th Bn., Durham Light Infantry Son of Walter and Sarah Bodman, of High St., Marshfield, Chippenham, Wilts. VIS-EN-ARTOIS MEMORIAL, Pas de Calais, France Panel 9.

S A HARDING Private Saturday, 19th October 1918. 27 1st Bn., Gloucestershire Regiment 52048 HIGHLAND CEMETERY, LE CATEAU, Nord, France Panel Number: VIII. D. 4.

JOHN JAMES BURGESS Gunner Monday, 21st October 1918. 30 Royal Field Artillery 239614 Son of Mr. and Mrs. Amos Burgess. MARSHFIELD (ST MARY) CHURCHYARD (GLOUCS), Gloucestershire, United Kingdom.

HAROLD SIDNEY HINTON Gunner Monday, 28th October 1918. 21 Royal Field Artillery 17337 Son of Sidney J. and Alice Hinton, of West End, Marshfield. MARSHFIELD (ST MARY) CHURCHYARD (GLOUCS), Gloucestershire, United Kingdom.

ARTHUR JOHN LEWIS Driver Friday, 31st May 1940 21 Royal Army Service Corps T/122710 u/k DE PANNE COMMUNAL CEMETERY, De Panne, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium Plot 3. Row B. Grave 2.

WILLIAM THOMAS BRITON DEACON Able Seaman Wednesday, 10th December 1941 26 H.M.S. Repulse, Royal Navy D/JX 227709 PLYMOUTH NAVAL MEMORIAL, Devon, United Kingdom Son of George James Deacon and Louisa Priscilla Deacon, of Marshfield, Panel 46, Column 3.

ERNEST WILLIAM JAMES BILLETT Lance Corporal Tuesday, 30th March 1943. 29 9th Queen's Royal Lancers, R.A.C. 317398 Son of James and Annie Billett; husband of Joan Billett, of Marshfield. MEDJEZ-EL-BAB MEMORIAL, Tunisia Face 2.

CHARLES ANDREW HARDING Corporal Thursday, 30th December 1943. 36 Royal Army Service Corps S/1117731 Son of Henry and Emma Harding, of Marshfield. RAMLEH WAR CEMETERY, Israel Panel Number: 3. L. 19.

WILLIAM CHARLES BOND Private Saturday, 5th August 1944. 29 6th Bn., South Wales Borderers formerly, Wiltshire Regiment 5577054 Son of Walter George and Sarah Bond, of Marshfield. TAUKKYAN WAR CEMETERY, Myanmar. (Fomerly Burma) Panel Number: 6. G. 1.

WILFRED JAMES BOOY Private Monday, 19th March 1945. 43 Pioneer Corps 14288870 Son of John and Louisa Booy, of Marshfield. MARSHFIELD CEMETERY, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom Sec. K. Grave 11.

ARTHUR MAURICE LEWIS Gunner Monday, 9th July 1945. 20 186 Field Regt Royal Artillery 14386476 Son of Ernest George and Emily Lewis, of Marshfield. MARSHFIELD CEMETERY, Gloucestershire. Sec. K. Grave 15.

• v
• t
• e

• Villages in South Gloucestershire
• South Gloucestershire District geography stubs