Great Shefford
Encyclopedia
Great Shefford is a village and civil parish in the English
county of Berkshire
.
, on the River Lambourn
. The modern civil parish includes the historical parish
of Little or East Shefford, a small hamlet and lost settlement downstream. The tiny Church of St Thomas
there contains important monuments
to the widespread Fettiplace
family. The parish also includes the village of Shefford Woodlands
, about 1 miles (1.6 km) to the south of Great Shefford and close to M4 junction 14.
The toponym
of both Sheffords is derived from the Old English for "sheep ford". Great Shefford village has a public house
, school, shop and petrol station, and 896 inhabitants (880 listed on the Millennium Stone opposite the petrol station).
The Church of England parish church
of Saint Mary
is one of two existing round-tower church
es in Berkshire
. The other one is at St Gregory's parish church at nearby Welford
.
Unlike the three round-towered churches in Sussex, where the towers are plain flint cylinders with few openings, the tower at Great Shefford is built up of sections with ample fenestration, more like the East Anglian type. The base of the tower at least seems to date from the 13th century, and it joins the west wall of the nave in such a way that suggests it was constructed at the same time as the nave, which shows early gothic features.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
.
Topography and history
The parish is in the district of West BerkshireWest Berkshire
West Berkshire is a local government district in the ceremonial county of Berkshire, England, governed by a unitary authority . Its administrative capital is Newbury, located almost equidistantly between Bristol and London.-Geography:...
, on the River Lambourn
River Lambourn
The River Lambourn is a chalk stream in the English county of Berkshire. It rises in the Berkshire Downs near its namesake village of Lambourn and is a tributary of the River Kennet, which is itself a tributary of the River Thames.-Perennial River:...
. The modern civil parish includes the historical parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
of Little or East Shefford, a small hamlet and lost settlement downstream. The tiny Church of St Thomas
St Thomas' Church, East Shefford
St Thomas' Church, East Shefford, is a redundant Church of England parish church at East Shefford in the English county of Berkshire. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust...
there contains important monuments
Church monument
A church monument is an architectural or sculptural memorial to a dead person or persons, located within a Christian church. It can take various forms, from a simple wall tablet to a large and elaborate structure which may include an effigy of the deceased person and other figures of familial or...
to the widespread Fettiplace
Fettiplace
Fettiplace is an English family name of Norman descent, with at least 800 years of history. They were landed gentry, chiefly in the counties of Berkshire and Oxfordshire.-Origin:...
family. The parish also includes the village of Shefford Woodlands
Shefford Woodlands
Shefford Woodlands is a village in the English county of Berkshire. It is situated in West Berkshire, near the villages of Great Shefford and Wickham and next to the M4...
, about 1 miles (1.6 km) to the south of Great Shefford and close to M4 junction 14.
The toponym
Toponymy
Toponymy is the scientific study of place names , their origins, meanings, use and typology. The word "toponymy" is derived from the Greek words tópos and ónoma . Toponymy is itself a branch of onomastics, the study of names of all kinds...
of both Sheffords is derived from the Old English for "sheep ford". Great Shefford village has a public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
, school, shop and petrol station, and 896 inhabitants (880 listed on the Millennium Stone opposite the petrol station).
The Church of England parish church
Church of England parish church
A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative region, known as a parish.-Parishes in England:...
of Saint Mary
Mary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
is one of two existing round-tower church
Round-tower church
Round-tower churches are a type of church found mainly in England, almost solely in East Anglia; of about 185 surviving examples in the country, 124 are in Norfolk, 38 in Suffolk, 6 in Essex, 3 in Sussex and 2 each in Cambridgeshire and Berkshire. There is evidence of about twenty round-tower...
es in Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
. The other one is at St Gregory's parish church at nearby Welford
Welford, Berkshire
Welford is a hamlet and civil parish in the English county of Berkshire, in the valley of the River Lambourn north-west of the town of Newbury. The parish is within West Berkshire unitary authority....
.
Unlike the three round-towered churches in Sussex, where the towers are plain flint cylinders with few openings, the tower at Great Shefford is built up of sections with ample fenestration, more like the East Anglian type. The base of the tower at least seems to date from the 13th century, and it joins the west wall of the nave in such a way that suggests it was constructed at the same time as the nave, which shows early gothic features.
External links
- Welcome to Great Shefford
- Royal Berkshire History: West Shefford
- Great Shefford Observatory
- Shefford Young Farmers Club
- Website with photos of Great Shefford St. Mary, a Round-tower churchRound-tower churchRound-tower churches are a type of church found mainly in England, almost solely in East Anglia; of about 185 surviving examples in the country, 124 are in Norfolk, 38 in Suffolk, 6 in Essex, 3 in Sussex and 2 each in Cambridgeshire and Berkshire. There is evidence of about twenty round-tower...