Stratton, Cornwall
Encyclopedia
- See also: Battle of StrattonBattle of StrattonThe Battle of Stratton was a battle of the south-western campaign of the First English Civil War. Fought on 16 May 1643, the resulting victory for Hopton confirmed Royalist control of Cornwall and destroyed Parliament's field army in Devon.-Prelude:...
1643
Stratton is a small town situated near the coastal resort of Bude
Bude
Bude is a small seaside resort town in North Cornwall, England, at the mouth of the River Neet . It lies just south of Flexbury, north of Widemouth Bay and west of Stratton and is located along the A3073 road off the A39. Bude is twinned with Ergué-Gabéric in Brittany, France...
in north Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, UK. It was also the name of one of ten ancient administrative shire
Shire
A shire is a traditional term for a division of land, found in the United Kingdom and in Australia. In parts of Australia, a shire is an administrative unit, but it is not synonymous with "county" there, which is a land registration unit. Individually, or as a suffix in Scotland and in the far...
s of Cornwall - see "Hundreds of Cornwall
Hundreds of Cornwall
Cornwall was from Anglo-Saxon times until the 19th century divided into hundreds, some with the suffix shire as in Pydarshire, East and West Wivelshire and Powdershire which were first recorded as names between 1184-1187. In the Cornish language the word for "hundred" is keverang and is the...
". A battle
Battle of Stratton
The Battle of Stratton was a battle of the south-western campaign of the First English Civil War. Fought on 16 May 1643, the resulting victory for Hopton confirmed Royalist control of Cornwall and destroyed Parliament's field army in Devon.-Prelude:...
of the English civil war
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
took place here on 16 May 1643.
History
The earliest known references to Stratton are found in King Alfred’s Will of 880, the Domesday survey of 1086, and the Stratton Hundred: see under Government below.The town has given its name to a traditional folk ballad "The Stratton Carol".
Religion
One of the most prominent buildings in Stratton is the 12th century Norman church dedicated to Saint AndrewSaint Andrew
Saint Andrew , called in the Orthodox tradition Prōtoklētos, or the First-called, is a Christian Apostle and the brother of Saint Peter. The name "Andrew" , like other Greek names, appears to have been common among the Jews from the 3rd or 2nd century BC. No Hebrew or Aramaic name is recorded for him...
which holds a central and elevated position within the town. It is listed Grade I. The church contains a brass to Sir John Arundell of Trerice, 1561.
As well as the main church, there were also other chapels around the village; this indicates a large population because only one church wouldn’t suffice. This is also supported by the existence of the large, old tithe barn
Tithe barn
A tithe barn was a type of barn used in much of northern Europe in the Middle Ages for storing the tithes - a tenth of the farm's produce which had to be given to the church....
; it needed to be large enough to hold the tax of one-tenth of their earnings/produce that all villagers paid to the church. The area around Cot Hill was an important sanctuary for pilgrim
Pilgrim
A pilgrim is a traveler who is on a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journeying to some place of special significance to the adherent of a particular religious belief system...
s travelling the pilgrimage route to Hartland
Hartland, Devon
The town of Hartland, which incorporates the hamlet of Stoke to the west and the village of Meddon in the south, is the most north-westerly settlement in the county of Devon, England....
during Medieval times. However, many of the chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
s are derelict or have now been converted, suggesting the population decline has been so great as to leave only enough people to use the church and one remaining chapel.
Justice
The town once had a jail, a police station and a courthouse, but the policestation has now been moved to Bude
Bude
Bude is a small seaside resort town in North Cornwall, England, at the mouth of the River Neet . It lies just south of Flexbury, north of Widemouth Bay and west of Stratton and is located along the A3073 road off the A39. Bude is twinned with Ergué-Gabéric in Brittany, France...
, the prison demolished and the courthouse converted into two dwellings. The door of the jail, marked "CLINK", is still visible in the church porch. The following quote indicates Stratton's importance as a centre of justice “As Stratton Town and the surrounding villages grew, the need to administer civil and criminal law from an appropriate
location was necessary” ("Stratton Past & Present", Bill Young & Bryan Dudley Stamp, 2002).
Government
The name Stratton was given to the unit of government for taxation during Saxon times, known as a ‘HundredHundred (division)
A hundred is a geographic division formerly used in England, Wales, Denmark, South Australia, some parts of the United States, Germany , Sweden, Finland and Norway, which historically was used to divide a larger region into smaller administrative divisions...
’. Stratton was the head of its hundred due to its importance in comparison to that of the local towns and villages, including Kilkhampton, Marhamchurch
Marhamchurch
Marhamchurch is a civil parish and village in north Cornwall, United Kingdom.Marhamchurch village is situated 1½ miles south of Bude off the A39 road.-History:...
, Boyton
Boyton, Cornwall
Boyton is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated close to the River Tamar and the border with Devon about six miles north of Launceston. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 378....
, Jacobstow
Jacobstow
Jacobstow is a civil parish and village in north Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is located east of the A39 road approximately seven miles south of Bude....
, Whitstone
Whitstone
Whitstone is a village and civil parish in east Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is roughly halfway between the towns of Bude and Launceston.-History:...
, Stratton itself, Poughill
Poughill
Poughill is a hamlet in north-east Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is located one mile north of Bude .-History and notable buildings:Poughill is mentioned in the Domesday Book as Pochelle. Notable old houses in Poughill include Burshill Manor , an open hall house, and Church House, dated 1525.The...
, Bridgerule
Bridgerule
Bridgerule is a village and civil parish in Devon, England, a mile from the border with Cornwall. The parish is divided by the River Tamar, which no longer forms the border between Devon and Cornwall there. The river frequently floods the High Street....
, Week St Mary
Week St Mary
Week St Mary is a civil parish and village in northeast Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated south of Bude close to the River Tamar and the border between Cornwall and Devon in the Hundred of Stratton....
, Launcells
Launcells
Launcells is a hamlet and civil parish in north-east Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is located three miles east of Bude.The civil parish contains other settlements of Red Post and Grimscott...
, North Tamerton and Morwenstowe. Other than Bridgerule, the Stratton Hundred remained undisturbed until the demise of the Stratton Rural District in the 1970s.
The Hundred is an indicator of Stratton’s importance not only for these reasons, but also because in the whole of Cornwall, there were only nine Hundreds and all of them had their own courts, this suggests that not only did Stratton have a courthouse, it was probably the only one in the Stratton Hundred. (At the time of Domesday Book there were only seven hundreds: the hundred of Trigg was later divided into Trigg, Lesnewth and Stratton. Stratton manor was the head manor of Trigg hundred in Domesday Book.)
Trade and industry
Leather
Leather is a durable and flexible material created via the tanning of putrescible animal rawhide and skin, primarily cattlehide. It can be produced through different manufacturing processes, ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry.-Forms:...
and agricultural trade. During medieval times
Medieval Times
Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament is a family dinner theater featuring staged medieval-style games, sword-fighting, and jousting performed by a cast of 75 actors and 20 horses. Each location is housed in a replica 11th-century castle, with the exception of the Toronto location, which is housed...
it dealt in leather, evidence of this is the road named after the trade; Poundfield area was where the animals were kept, Stratton also housed tanning pits and a rack park, where the leather was stretched. There is also evidence of farming in the milking parlours, barns and stalls that are made from cob, a traditional building material, and the Old Malt House shows where ale was produced in the church owned brewery
Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
. During medieval times herbs and spices were also considered important, for medicinal purposes as well as others, and Stratton was famous for having an abundance of wild garlic
Wild garlic
A number of different plant species of the genus Allium are known as Wild Garlic:*Allium ursinum *Allium vineale *Allium drummondii, Drummond's onion...
.
Trade events such as markets and fairs were a regular occurrence in Stratton and people would come from all around to attend. Lots of the evidence for events and trades in Stratton is subtle, for example street names like Market Street and Poundfield Lane. Stratton had up to 14 pubs, although some were houses where people brewed beer themselves. Many have now been knocked down or converted, however some, for example the Tree Inn, are still running, despite perhaps fewer customers than they would have expected before Bude became the main town. Although many of the shops that once lined the streets have now been converted into homes, the large front windows still hint at the lives led by the inhabitants when Stratton was the most important town in the area.
19th and 20th centuries
Trade directories allow us to compare the two towns, for example, in 1844, when Stratton had six shoemakers, Bude had only one, although Slater’s Trade Directory 1852-1853 shows the period in which Bude was beginning to catch up, although Stratton was still thriving. One of the main factors which led to the demise of Stratton’s influence was New Road which directed traffic away from the centre of Stratton in the early 20th century. The bypass was then built in 1950 when Stratton was well and truly defeated. Despite the downfall of Stratton, it still managed to keep the hospital and surgery running although the union and workhouse from the 1830s was no longer operating.Further reading
- Peachey, StuartStuart PeacheyStuart Peachey is a British historian specialising in the English Civil War and the history of food and clothing. He has produced many works on these and other subjects...
(1993) The Battle of Stratton 1643. Stuart Press ISBN 1858040183