Compton Chamberlayne
Encyclopedia
Compton Chamberlayne is a small village in south Wiltshire
, straddling the A30 road
some 8 miles from Salisbury
. It is bounded by the villages of Dinton
and Baverstock to the north, Barford St Martin
to the east, Fovant
to the west and Broad Chalke
to the south. On its southern border there is high chalk downland
and on its northern border is the River Nadder. There are approximately 25 houses privately owned. There is a village hall in the centre of the village. Abutting the A30 road is the cricket pitch used by the Compton Chamberlayne Cricket Club.
which shows that at that time the local manor had a mill, some pastureland, meadows and two woods. Today there is no evidence of the manor.
there were thousands of Australian and Canadian troops encamped in the fields below the chalk downland before being shipped to France
for combat. Compton Chamberlayne burial ground has about 20 graves of Australian soldiers who died, believed to be of influenza
, during their transit through the local camp. There is still today a field called 'hospital', previously the site of the military medical facility. The only tangible sign of the previous occupation was the outline of Australia
carved in the surface of the chalk downs (510 03' 30"N, 10 56'W) to the south east of the village which was left to grass over in 2005. The neighbouring village of Fovant
however boasts an impressive display of army regimental badges carved into the chalk downs.
was being constructed some 10 miles away. The church contains the Penruddocke family vault and has a peal of 6 bells, two dating from the 17th century and four from the 19th century.
was a royalist who took part in a failed uprising against Oliver Cromwell
, known as the Penruddock uprising
. He was tried and executed in Exeter
on 16 May 1665.
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
, straddling the A30 road
A30 road
The 284 miles A30 road from London to Land's End, historically known as the Great South West Road used to provide the most direct route from London to the south west; more recently the M3 motorway and A303 road performs this function for much of the route and only parts of A30 now retain trunk...
some 8 miles from Salisbury
Salisbury
Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England and the only city in the county. It is the second largest settlement in the county...
. It is bounded by the villages of Dinton
Dinton, Wiltshire
Dinton is a village in Wiltshire, England, on the B3089 road about 8 miles west of Salisbury. The population was 597 at the 2001 census.-Present day:...
and Baverstock to the north, Barford St Martin
Barford St Martin
Barford St Martin, a Wiltshire village with 467 adult residents, is situated about two miles from Wilton, on the junction of the A30 and the B3089. Barford is known as one of the Nadder Valley villages, named for the River Nadder which flows through the village.-History:The history of Barford can...
to the east, Fovant
Fovant
Fovant is a medium-sized village and civil parish in southwest Wiltshire, England. It is located between Salisbury and Shaftesbury on the A30 road in the Nadder valley. Its name is derived from the Old English Fobbefunta, meaning "spring of a man called Fobbe"...
to the west and Broad Chalke
Broad Chalke
Broad Chalke, sometimes spelled Broadchalke , Broad Chalk or Broadchalk, is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, about 8 miles west of the city of Salisbury. The 2001 Census recorded a parish population of 652 but this has now risen to around 850...
to the south. On its southern border there is high chalk downland
Downland
A downland is an area of open chalk hills. This term is especially used to describe the chalk countryside in southern England. Areas of downland are often referred to as Downs....
and on its northern border is the River Nadder. There are approximately 25 houses privately owned. There is a village hall in the centre of the village. Abutting the A30 road is the cricket pitch used by the Compton Chamberlayne Cricket Club.
History
Most of the inhabited part of the village lies within a small wooded valley which lends credence to the origin of the name "Compton" – coombe tun, or 'settlement in a wooded valley'. The 'Chamberlayne' seems to have been attached when a Robert le Chamberlayne, or possibly Geoffrey le Chaumberlang, took possession of the village in the Middle Ages. The village has a small entry in the Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
which shows that at that time the local manor had a mill, some pastureland, meadows and two woods. Today there is no evidence of the manor.
Recent history
During World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
there were thousands of Australian and Canadian troops encamped in the fields below the chalk downland before being shipped to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
for combat. Compton Chamberlayne burial ground has about 20 graves of Australian soldiers who died, believed to be of influenza
Influenza
Influenza, commonly referred to as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae , that affects birds and mammals...
, during their transit through the local camp. There is still today a field called 'hospital', previously the site of the military medical facility. The only tangible sign of the previous occupation was the outline of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
carved in the surface of the chalk downs (510 03' 30"N, 10 56'W) to the south east of the village which was left to grass over in 2005. The neighbouring village of Fovant
Fovant
Fovant is a medium-sized village and civil parish in southwest Wiltshire, England. It is located between Salisbury and Shaftesbury on the A30 road in the Nadder valley. Its name is derived from the Old English Fobbefunta, meaning "spring of a man called Fobbe"...
however boasts an impressive display of army regimental badges carved into the chalk downs.
The Church
The church of St Michael stands on a bank overlooking Compton House and a picturesque valley of woods and an artificial lake. The church was built at the end of the 13th Century in the Early English style, at the same time Salisbury CathedralSalisbury Cathedral
Salisbury Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, England, considered one of the leading examples of Early English architecture....
was being constructed some 10 miles away. The church contains the Penruddocke family vault and has a peal of 6 bells, two dating from the 17th century and four from the 19th century.
Compton House
Compton House was from the mid-16th Century until 1930 the family seat of the Penruddocke family. Colonel John PenruddockJohn Penruddock
Colonel John Penruddock , of Compton Chamberlayne, was an English Cavalier during the English Civil War and the English Interregnum. He is remembered as the leader of the Penruddock uprising in 1655....
was a royalist who took part in a failed uprising against Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
, known as the Penruddock uprising
Penruddock uprising
The Penruddock uprising was one of a series of coordinated uprisings planned by the Sealed Knot for a Royalist insurrection to start in March 1655 during the Protectorate of the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell....
. He was tried and executed in Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
on 16 May 1665.
Notable people
- ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
John PenruddockJohn PenruddockColonel John Penruddock , of Compton Chamberlayne, was an English Cavalier during the English Civil War and the English Interregnum. He is remembered as the leader of the Penruddock uprising in 1655....
, leader of the Penruddock uprisingPenruddock uprisingThe Penruddock uprising was one of a series of coordinated uprisings planned by the Sealed Knot for a Royalist insurrection to start in March 1655 during the Protectorate of the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell....
of 1655 - Thomas PenruddockeThomas PenruddockeThomas Penruddocke DL , of Compton Chamberlayne was a Wiltshire landowner and politician, briefly member of parliament for Wilton in 1679 and again in 1689 ....
External links
(Makes reference to Penruddocke.)- http://comptonchamberlayne.play-cricket.com/home/home.asp