Orcheston
Encyclopedia
Orcheston is a civil parish
and village
in Wiltshire
, England
, lying on Salisbury Plain
less than a mile north-west of neighbouring Shrewton
. The present day village combines the two former parishes of Orcheston St Mary and Orcheston St George.
, with the spelling Orchestone.
The two civil parishes of Orcheston, based on the two Church of England
parish church
es of St Mary and St George, were united into a single civil parish in 1934 and into a single ecclesiastical parish in 1971. St George's Church
was built in the 13th century. It has been designated as a Grade II* listed building and is now in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
. The church is built of flint
and has a Norman
north door. The windows in the nave
and Early English chancel
and low tower also date from the 13th century. The church was restored in 1833 during which the roof of nave was raised.
Orcheston now contains about sixty-five houses, of which twenty-six are listed buildings, and has a single parish council. It is close to the source of the River Till
.
Almost all local government
services are provided by the new Wiltshire Council
unitary authority
.
The parish gives its name to the 'Orcheston long grass' (Agrostis stolonifera), also called 'Creeping Bent', the most commonly used species of Agrostis
. The Rough-Stalked Meadow Grass (Poa trivialis
), is also called Orcheston Grass, and in the early 19th century there was something of a controversy among botanists as to which was the true Orcheston Grass.
Mick Channon
, the footballer and racehorse trainer
, was born in the village.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
and village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in Wiltshire
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...
, England
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...
, lying on Salisbury Plain
Salisbury Plain
Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in central southern England covering . It is part of the Southern England Chalk Formation and largely lies within the county of Wiltshire, with a little in Hampshire. The plain is famous for its rich archaeology, including Stonehenge, one of England's best known...
less than a mile north-west of neighbouring Shrewton
Shrewton
Shrewton is a village in Wiltshire, England, located around 9 km west of Amesbury and north of Salisbury. It lies on the A360 road between Stonehenge and Tilshead. It is close to the source of the River Till, which flows south to Stapleford. Its population at the 2001 Census was 1,826, as...
. The present day village combines the two former parishes of Orcheston St Mary and Orcheston St George.
History and description
The village is recorded 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...
, with the spelling Orchestone.
The two civil parishes of Orcheston, based on the two Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
es of St Mary and St George, were united into a single civil parish in 1934 and into a single ecclesiastical parish in 1971. St George's Church
St George's Church, Orcheston
St George's Church in Orcheston, Wiltshire, England was built in the 13th century. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building, and is now a redundant church in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust...
was built in the 13th century. It has been designated as a Grade II* listed building and is now in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
Churches Conservation Trust
The Churches Conservation Trust, which was initially known as the Redundant Churches Fund, is a charity whose purpose is to protect historic churches at risk, those that have been made redundant by the Church of England. The Trust was established by the Pastoral Measure of 1968...
. The church is built of flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
and has a Norman
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
north door. The windows in the nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
and Early English chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
and low tower also date from the 13th century. The church was restored in 1833 during which the roof of nave was raised.
Orcheston now contains about sixty-five houses, of which twenty-six are listed buildings, and has a single parish council. It is close to the source of the River Till
River Till (Wiltshire)
The River Till is a river that rises near Tilshead on Salisbury Plain, and which flows south and south-east to join the River Wylye near Stapleford. It also flows through Shrewton and Winterbourne Stoke. It has been designated as a SSSI site....
.
Almost all local government
Local government
Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state.The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government...
services are provided by the new Wiltshire Council
Wiltshire Council
Wiltshire Council is the unitary authority for most of the county of Wiltshire, in the West of England, the successor authority to Wiltshire County Council and to four districts—Kennet, North Wiltshire, Salisbury, and West Wiltshire—all of which had been created in 1973 and were...
unitary authority
Unitary authority
A unitary authority is a type of local authority that has a single tier and is responsible for all local government functions within its area or performs additional functions which elsewhere in the relevant country are usually performed by national government or a higher level of sub-national...
.
The parish gives its name to the 'Orcheston long grass' (Agrostis stolonifera), also called 'Creeping Bent', the most commonly used species of Agrostis
Agrostis
Agrostis is a genus of over 100 species belonging to the grass family Poaceae, commonly referred to as the bent grasses...
. The Rough-Stalked Meadow Grass (Poa trivialis
Poa trivialis
Poa trivialis , is a perennial plant, and is regarded in the USA as an ornamental plant and is of the Poa family.-Description:...
), is also called Orcheston Grass, and in the early 19th century there was something of a controversy among botanists as to which was the true Orcheston Grass.
Mick Channon
Mick Channon
Michael Roger "Mick" Channon is a sportsman who enjoyed a career as a striker with Southampton and England in the 1970s and later became a hugely successful racehorse trainer.-Southampton:...
, the footballer and racehorse trainer
Horse trainer
In horse racing, a trainer prepares a horse for races, with responsibility for exercising it, getting it race-ready and determining which races it should enter...
, was born in the village.
External links
- Orcheston St Mary at genuki.org.uk
- Orcheston St George at genuki.org.uk
- Map of Orcheston at ordnancesurvey.co.uk
- Map of Orcheston in Wiltshire at streetmap.co.uk
- Orcheston St George, Wiltshire photo at geograph.org.uk
- Orcheston St Mary, Wiltshire photo at geograph.org.uk
- Salisbury Diocesan Guild of Ringers, Orcheston, St George at sdgr.org.uk