LIDDINGTON
The parish of Liddington lies to the south-east of
Swindon and is a narrow rectangle in shape. It
measures c. 4½ miles in length and in width varies
between c. ¾ mile at its northern and c. 1½ mile at its
southern end. It is bounded on the north by a small
stream which flows south-westwards from the River
Cole and then turns sharply south to form the eastern
boundary of Coate tithing before flowing into Coate
Water. At its north-east tip it is bounded by the
Roman road to Mildenhall and further to the south
the eastern boundary is formed by a stream
anciently called the 'Liden Brook', whence the parish
derives its name. The eastern boundary takes a
sharp bend eastwards after leaving the 'Liden' to
join the ancient trackway known as 'Lyde Cumb'. (fn. 1)
It continues south-eastwards along a track called
'Sugar Way', while the southern boundary follows
that known as the 'Thieves Way'. (fn. 2) In 1881 the area
of the parish was reckoned at 2,767 a. (fn. 3) while ten years
later the land acreage was 2,535. (fn. 4) The reason for the
decreased acreage was the transfer in 1884 of a
detached portion of the parish, the tithing of Coate,
to the civil parish of Swindon. (fn. 5) Coate, part of which
is within the parish of Chiseldon, lies immediately
south-east of Swindon and c. ½ mile west of the
northern part of Liddington, and is made up of 232 a.
bounded on the south by the main SwindonChiseldon road and on the east by a tributary of the
River Cole. It was part of the parish by the 12th
century and continued to be a tithing until 1884
when it was transferred to Swindon. More recently,
as a result of this transfer, the eastward expansion of
Swindon has completely absorbed the tithing. The
house formerly belonging to Prince's Farm in Coate,
and now surrounded by a housing estate, was used
in 1966 as the Common Room of the Park Boys'
Club in Cranmore Avenue.
Liddington is characteristic of the long narrow
parishes of the Wiltshire chalk country. From the
low-lying clays in the north, the land rises gradually
across the Upper Greensand to the Marlborough
Downs in the south. In the north, around Liddington Wick, the clay soil is pre-eminently suited to
dairy farming. The Upper Greensand belt which
flanks the clay on the south is porous and fairly
resistant to weathering, and this combination has
produced more suitable conditions for the growth
of settlements. (fn. 6)
The main settlement of Liddington is situated
below the chalk scarp but the parish also contains
two outlying hamlets: Liddington Wick c. 1½ mile
north-west of the main village and Medbourne c. ¼
mile to the south-west. Both these hamlets were
once the centres of small estates within the parish.
Both Liddington itself and Medbourne are situated
on the gently rising Upper Greensand ridge just
above the spring-line, whence they draw their water
supply. To the south of these settlements the chalk
scarp rises sharply and at its highest point, Liddington Castle, just south-west of the village, reaches a
height of 910 ft. (fn. 7)
The parish, bounded by ancient lines of communication such as 'Sugar Way' and 'Lyde Cumb',
and traversed by the Ridge Way, has been an area
of settlement since the earliest times. The site was
occupied in Mesolithic times and a number of pits
have been claimed as Neolithic flint-mines. The
discovery of 28 loomweights and 4 pits of the early
Iron Age suggests considerable activity in the growing of wool and weaving of woollen cloth in the area
at this time. (fn. 8) The outstanding archaeological feature
of the neighbourhood is the univallate Iron Age
hill-fort known as Liddington Castle which covers
some 7½ a., (fn. 9) while to the east of this is a roughly
rectangular system of earth-works covering c. 10 a., (fn. 10)
and between the Ridge Way and Liddington Castle
there is possibly an 80-acre field system of early
date. (fn. 11)
From place-name evidence the main settlement
west of the brook known by the pre-Saxon name of
'Liden' (fn. 12) may be attributed a Saxon origin. (fn. 13)
Liddington Wick, like the main settlement, formed
part of the lands of Shaftesbury Abbey by the mid
12th century, (fn. 14) although the larger hamlet of
Medbourne is not mentioned until the 13th century. (fn. 15) The prosperity of the parish must have been
fairly considerable, since in 1334 the contribution of
Liddington to the 15th of that year was second only
to that of Wanborough, the most highly-rated
fiscal unit in Thornhill hundred. (fn. 16) Again, in 1377,
174 persons in the parish were qualified to pay
the poll tax, a number second again only to Wanborough. (fn. 17) There were only two contributors to the
Benevolence of 1545, a fairly low number compared with the other parishes of the hundred. (fn. 18) The
number of contributors to the Subsidy of 1576 was
similarly low. (fn. 19) In 1801 the total population of the
parish was estimated at 337 and thenceforth rose
steadily to 454 in 1841 and included 43 persons who
lived in Coate tithing, but thereafter the population
gradually declined and in 1961 stood at 346. (fn. 20)
The parish, as shown above, was served by a good
number of ancient trackways, one of which, the
Ridge Way, traversed the parish from east to west
just north of the village and has been metalled in
modern times. (fn. 21) A map of 1773 shows numerous
tracks traversing the parish. One of these ran from
Aldbourne Chase and entered Liddington in its
south-west corner, whence it ran north-eastwards
past Liddington Castle to join the SwindonHungerford road south of its junction with the Ridge
Way. Another track ran from the Ridge Way north
to Medbourne. (fn. 22) These tracks no longer had any
importance in the 20th century. In the 18th century
a lane following a semi-circular course ran off the
village street to give access to Upper Mill, which
stood north-west of the manor house. The lane
curved north-westwards to join the road from
Badbury to Wanborough. (fn. 23) It had disappeared in
1967. The main roads in Liddington have changed
little since the 18th century. The SwindonWanborough road was turnpiked by 1841, (fn. 24) the
Swindon-Hungerford road, which passed through
Liddington, in 1813–14 and the Coate-Marlborough
road, which joins the latter just north of Common
Head, in 1819. (fn. 25) In 1939 the Swindon-Hungerford
road was diverted to by-pass Liddington and became
the trunk road to Aldbourne and Newbury. (fn. 26)
The village of Liddington is arranged in a triangular pattern around the green. To the south-west
of the by-pass road lies the parish church, the
Parsonage Farm, and the school, unoccupied since
1962. The main nucleus of the village lies to the
north of the road with the manor-house on its
eastern outskirts. (fn. 27)
In 1583 some kind of ale-house was kept by a
tailor, Thomas Gilbert, (fn. 28) and by the middle years
of the 18th century the number of ale-houses in the
parish had increased to three, although their location
is unknown. (fn. 29) In 1753 a complaint was received by
the Justices of the Peace that disorderly alehouses kept by Thomas Hatt and Robert Berry were
disturbing the parish. (fn. 30) It is possible that the complaint was partly justified since in 1761 only two of
the three ale-houses in the village were still licensed,
including the one kept by Thomas Hatt. (fn. 31) These
two remaining ale-houses were probably the 'Sun'
and the 'Bell', mentioned by name for the first time
in 1822 (fn. 32) and which in 1966 were still serving the
parish. The village contains several thatched
cottages of various periods, one of the most recent
having a date tablet of 1827. The development of
Liddington in modern times has been confined to
the building of a number of private houses in large
gardens to the east of the manor-house and along
the Wanborough road. Several older houses have
also been modernized as middle-class residences.
Council houses have been built in the centre of the
village. At Medbourne there is a stone farm-house
probably of late-17th-century origin (fn. 33) and in recent
times a number of council houses have been built.
The hamlet of Liddington Wick has a farm-house
and several cottages.
The parish of Liddington will always be associated
with Richard Jefferies (d. 1887), the poet-naturalist. (fn. 34)
Although he was born at Coate Farm, then in
Chiseldon, two of his works, The Story of My Heart
(1883), and Wild Life in a Southern County (1885),
draw much of their inspiration from the area around
Liddington Castle. In 1938 a memorial plate to
Richard Jefferies and to another Wiltshire poet
Alfred Williams (d. 1930), was affixed to the O.S.
Triangulation Pyramid on Liddington Castle. (fn. 35)
Manors and Other Estates.
By the time
of the Domesday Survey the manor of LIDDINGTON, assessed at 38 hides, belonged to Shaftesbury
Abbey, (fn. 36) but it is not known at what date the abbey
had acquired it. A grant in 940 by King Edmund to
his man Adulf of 10 mansae at Liddington is included in the abbey's 15th-century cartulary, (fn. 37) but
these, it has been suggested, (fn. 38) may not have been
held by Shaftesbury at the time of Domesday and
may represent the 5-hide estate, called the Burgate
and previously held by Picote de Burgate, which
Henry 1 granted to the abbey in 1121–2. (fn. 39)
Liddington remained among the possessions of
Shaftesbury Abbey until the house was dissolved in
1539. (fn. 40) In 1542 lands in Coate and Medbourne, both
in Liddington, which had previously belonged to
Shaftesbury, were granted to Sir William Sharington
of Lacock (fn. 41) and in 1543 Sharington received a grant
of the manor of Liddington. (fn. 42) On his attainder a
few years later Sharington forfeited all his lands but
these were restored to him in 1550. (fn. 43) He died without
issue in 1553 and was succeeded by his brother
Henry. (fn. 44) Henry's heirs were his three daughters and
on his death in 1581 (fn. 45) Liddington passed to the
youngest, Olive, who married John Talbot. Olive
died in 1646 and was succeeded by her grandson
Sharington Talbot (d. 1677). His heir was his son
John (d. 1714) (fn. 46) who sold the manor to the Duke of
Marlborough (d. 1722). (fn. 47) It then descended with
the Marlborough title until 1877 when the Liddington estate, including Medbourne Farm, Liddington
Upper Farm, and Parsonage Farm, was sold in
lots. (fn. 48)
The manor-house at Liddington stands to the east
of the village just above the source of the 'Liden'
brook. Here a spring, rising from below the
Greensand, supplies a pond or small lake which
may formerly have served Upper Mill. (fn. 49) The house,
approached by a bridge across the lake, is a building
of stone rubble dating from the late 16th or early
17th century. It consists of two stories and attics,
having stone mullioned and transomed windows
and a three-gabled front; internally there is a contemporary stone fireplace on the upper floor.
Lands in Medbourne probably formed part of
Shaftesbury Abbey's estate in Liddington from at
least the 13th century. John of Earlscourt and Alice
his wife subinfeudated a messuage and 2 virgates of
land in Medbourne to William Giffard in 1270. (fn. 50)
The lands may have already been held in chief by
Shaftesbury Abbey, since in 1301–2 William of
Earlscourt, presumably the son of John, regranted
them to the abbess. (fn. 51) Shaftesbury also appears to
have been granted a small amount of land in Medbourne in the early 14th century by William
Giffard. (fn. 52)
In 1392 the manor known as that of MEDBOURNE DOYNEL and MEDBOURNE STOKE
was held of the abbey by William Wroughton
(d. 1392) and his wife Isabel. (fn. 53) The lands were
presumably connected with the Doygnel family at
an earlier date, but it is not known exactly when the
Wroughtons acquired them. The estate then
descended in the Wroughton family until the 16th
century in the same way as the manor of Woodhill
(in Clyffe Pypard). (fn. 54)
Medbourne did not pass to Sir William Sharington with the rest of the Shaftesbury Abbey lands in
Liddington but was granted to him in 1547–8 by
William (III) Wroughton. (fn. 55) On the death of Sir
William Sharington in 1553 (fn. 56) the Medbourne estate
presumably passed to his brother, Sir Henry, (fn. 57)
who, in c. 1556–7 enfeoffed his brother John and
the latter's wife, Anne, with lands known as Medbourne Farm. (fn. 58) It is not known when John Sharington died, but, after his death, Anne married a
second husband, Nicholas Stephens of Chiseldon. (fn. 59)
Anne died c. 1577 (fn. 60) and the estate passed to her
eldest son Edward Sharington, who died seised of
Medbourne Farm c. 1583. (fn. 61) The Medbourne
property then passed to William Sharington,
Edward's son, (fn. 62) who died seised of the farm in
1610. (fn. 63) After William's death the Medbourne lands
passed, in part, at least, to his sister Anne, wife of
William Saule, (fn. 64) although her sister-in-law, Elizabeth, widow of William and later the wife of Thomas
Farwell, had an interest in the estate. (fn. 65) The history
of the estate then becomes obscure, but in 1617–18
the lands at Medbourne were said to be held of the
lord of the capital manor of Liddington. (fn. 66) By the
18th century the estate had become broken up into
at least four small freehold estates, and at the end
of the century three of these were held by the
Eycott family. Two parcels of land were bought by
the Duke of Marlborough from S. and J. Eycott in
1771, while a third, called Larges Close, was purchased from J. Eycott in 1772. In 1776 land which
probably represents the remnant of the estate known
as Medbourne Farm, was sold by Thomas Warman
to the Duke of Marlborough. (fn. 67) Henceforward the
estate was let to farm by the Duke of Marlborough,
and at the end of the 18th century was said to be
made up of 255 a. (fn. 68) Medbourne Farm, the house of
which is probably of late-17th-century construction,
was reckoned at 223 a. in 1877, and was sold in that
year, (fn. 69) together with other estates held by the Duke
of Marlborough in Liddington.
There appears to have been a smaller estate within
Medbourne, which is first mentioned in 1412, when
John Blakett was said to hold the manor of Medbourne. (fn. 70) This estate was certainly not the main
manor, which was held by the Wroughtons at this
date. What was probably the same land was still part
of the farm at Medbourne in 1617–18, when the
estate was said to include 2 yardlands known as
'Blaks'. (fn. 71)
The estate, sometimes called the manor of
LIDDINGTON WICK, formed part of the main
manor (fn. 72) until 1543 (fn. 73) when Sir William Sharington
conveyed the lands to William Fisher (d. 1585). (fn. 74)
A water-mill and other tenements in Liddington
Wick were conveyed to Fisher in 1578–9 by John
Purlyn. (fn. 75) William Fisher died seised of 9 messuages
in Liddington Wick, (fn. 76) and this estate passed to his
son Thomas, who died seised in 1598 of c. 294 a.
in Liddington Wick and Moor, which included
pastures called Burlands and Ellonds Mead. (fn. 77)
Thomas's son Henry was seised of 9 yardlands in
1617–18, (fn. 78) and was still styled of Liddington Wick
in 1623, (fn. 79) but by the time of his death he was said
to be of Westlecott (in Wroughton), (fn. 80) and had
apparently sold Liddington Wick. Henry was succeeded by his son William, who died in 1663, leaving
a widow Jane, a son Henry, and a brother John.
William devised his lands to Henry and John for the
payment of his debts. The will was disputed by Jane,
who claimed that she had surrendered part of her
marriage jointure to enable her husband to buy the
manor of Liddington Wick, possibly from his
father, and that in return William had agreed to
settle the manor on her for life if she survived him.
William had, however, in 1636, settled the manor
upon his brother John, for the payment of his
debts. (fn. 81) The outcome of this involved dispute is not
known, but by 1643 the estate included lands in
Liddington Wick, Liddington Moor, and Medbourne, (fn. 82) and by 1652 Liddington Down had been
acquired. (fn. 83) William Fisher was a Royalist but his
estate, said to be worth £200 a year, was not sequestered. (fn. 84) In 1695 Frances Fisher, widow of Henry,
William's son, was seised of the manor and after her
death the estate passed to her oldest daughter
Henrietta (d. 1742), who married Stephen Gythens
of Gloucester. Their daughter Henrietta (d. 1756)
devised the property to her cousin Rachel Gythens of
Bristol and to Samuel Commeline in equal parts.
In 1760 Rachel sold her share to Commeline for
£2,000. (fn. 85) No more is known of the estate until 1794
when Liddington Wick Farm, reckoned at c. 164 a.,
was held by Ambrose Goddard, who at this date
was arranging to exchange it with the Duke of
Marlborough for Walcot in Swindon. (fn. 86) The exchange must have taken place, as Liddington Wick
Farm was part of the Duke of Marlborough's
Liddington estate in the 19th century. (fn. 87)
In 1567 William Fisher and Thomas Fisher his
son leased 3 messuages and lands including Ellonds
Mead to John, William's younger son. (fn. 88) The next
year John was leasing a further 2 messuages in Liddington Wick. (fn. 89) In 1578–9 John was granted a long
lease of the estate conveyed to his father William
and brother Thomas by John Purlyn. (fn. 90) It is possible
that the 4 yardlands, held in 1617–18 by a William
Fisher, represent this estate, and that William
was the son of John. (fn. 91) In 1652 William Fisher, the
Royalist, leased the site of the farm and manor of
Liddington Wick, and lands including Liddington
Down, to William Button of Lyneham and West
Tockenham (d. 1654–5). (fn. 92) In 1695 the capital
messuage of Liddington Wick was leased to Henry
Harding by Frances Fisher, widow of Henry, the
great-great-grandson of William Fisher (d. 1585). (fn. 93)
The later history of the estate of Liddington Wick
is obscure but in 1877 the land there, reckoned at
c. 171 a., was sold (fn. 94) with other of the Duke of Marlborough's Liddington estates.
In 1543, when Sir William Sharington acquired
the manor of Liddington, it was in the tenure of the
former bailiff of the Abbess of Shaftesbury, Thomas
Bristowe, (fn. 95) who was recorded in 1535 as farming
the manor for a rent of 13s. 4d. (fn. 96) In 1543–4 Sir
William Sharington conveyed the site of the manor
and certain of the demesne lands, which included
400 a. called Farmer's Down, to William Bristowe, (fn. 97)
who died in 1568 holding the site of the manor, (fn. 98)
which then passed to his son Anthony Bristowe. (fn. 99)
On Anthony's death in 1591 the estate passed to his
grandson William, a boy of six. (fn. 100) In 1615 William
Bristowe conveyed the site of the manor of Liddington to Richard Younge. (fn. 101) The subsequent descent of
this small estate has not been traced but it seems subsequently to have been re-united with the capital
manor, since in 1768 the Duke of Marlborough
was leasing out land there. (fn. 102)
Immediately upon receiving the grant of the site
of the manor from Sir William Sharington in 1544
William Bristowe (see above) obtained licence to
alienate the land known as Liddington or Farmers'
Down to Thomas Stephens of Chiseldon, (fn. 103) who died
seised of it in 1553. (fn. 104) Also known as Leferves or
Bristowe's Down, (fn. 105) this small estate of c. 600 a. (fn. 106)
remained in the Stephens family until c. 1607. On
the death of Thomas Stephens the elder it passed to
his son Thomas Stephens the younger (fn. 107) (d. 1596). (fn. 108)
On the death of Thomas (II) Stephens the Down
passed to his heir Nicholas Stephens (d. 1611), (fn. 109)
who sold it to Richard Goddard (d. 1615), (fn. 110)
probably just before 1607 when Goddard settled it
as part of a marriage jointure on his wife Jane Fettiplace. (fn. 111) On Goddard's death it probably passed to
his son Thomas, (fn. 112) but by 1652 had been acquired
by William Fisher (d. 1663). (fn. 113) The estate remained
only a short time with the Fishers and was acquired
by the dukes of Somerset at some date during the
later 17th century when they were said to hold a
considerable freehold estate within the parish, (fn. 114) and
the duke certainly held Liddington Down in 1707. (fn. 115)
In 1715 the Down, together with 110 a. known as
Farringcombe Down was held by Charles, Duke of
Somerset (d. 1748). On his death the estate passed to
his son Algernon, on whose death in 1749 it passed
to a grandson, Charles Wyndham, Earl of Egremont
(d. 1763). Liddington and Farringcombe Downs
were inherited by his third son, Charles Wyndham,
who was confirmed in these and other lands by Act
of Parliament in 1779. (fn. 116) In 1817 the estate, then
estimated at 613 a., was held by William Wyndham. (fn. 117) By 1893 John Heath had succeeded him. He
sold it in that year, under the name of Liddington
Warren, for £3, 300. (fn. 118)
In 1341 the rector held 2 virgates and a meadow. (fn. 119)
This small estate had increased considerably by
1677 when the rectorial glebe consisted of c. 42 a.
situated in Liddington Breach, the field next to
Wanborough, Middle Down Field, the Down Field
next to Badbury, South Down, West Field, Middle
Field, and Farm Fields. (fn. 120) In 1716 the rectorial estate
was estimated at c. 36 a., (fn. 121) and the same amount of
glebe was recorded in 1731 and 1776. (fn. 122) By the inclosure award of 1777 some 190 a. were allotted to
George, Duke of Marlborough, as the impropriator,
in lieu of tithes. (fn. 123) In 1817 the rectory estate,
estimated at c. 143 a. and valued at c. £68 a year,
formed part of the demesne lands of the Duke of
Marlborough. (fn. 124) The estate was made up of Home
Farm, which covered c. 73 a. to the south of the
church, and 2 smaller areas of c. 24 a. and c. 46 a.
respectively, which lay in Liddington Mead, a large
area of meadow land in the north-east corner of the
parish. (fn. 125) In 1887 the total area of glebe belonging
to the benefice was estimated at c. 186 a., (fn. 126) a figure
which probably included both rectorial and vicarial
glebe. The rectorial estate, both before and after the
Dissolution, was probably often let to farm by the
rectors, as in the early 16th century when the
parsonage estate was farmed by Thomas Appryce
and William Stradlyng. (fn. 127)
Economic History.
At the time of the Domesday Survey the parish, which contained meadow land
4 furlongs in length and 3 furlongs in breadth, and
pasture land measuring ½ league by 4 furlongs, was
assessed at 38 hides, of which 24 were held in
demesne; the remaining 14 were farmed by tenants
of the abbess. There were 6 serfs on the demesne,
which contained land enough for 4 ploughs, while
the remaining land contained land for 7 ploughs and
supported 23 villeins and 17 bordars. The land
T.R.E. was worth £18, but by the time of the
Domesday Survey its value had risen to £22. (fn. 128)
A survey of the lands of Shaftesbury Abbey,
which has been dated c. 1160, shows the parish as
made up of three distinct agrarian units, which were
subject to an economy typical of the lowland clays
and the higher chalk scarps of downland country,
and which no doubt were organized much as were
the lands of other Benedictine communities. (fn. 129)
Coate, a detached part to the north-west, contained
5 hides which supported 10 holdings, for the most
part of ½ hide in area. Services here laid stress on
work with the flock and at haymaking. In Liddington there were 29 holdings of varying amounts, including one of 3 hides held by Everard of Medbourne, for a rent of 30s. The ploughmen in Liddington held by virtue of the same services as the
men of Coate, except that they were bound to send
2 measures of grain to Shaftesbury Abbey at Martinmas, as were the men of Wick. There were 19
cotsetlers and 1 crofter in Liddington. In Wick,
to the north of Liddington, there was pasture for
30 cows and 9 a. of meadow land. There were 4 smallholdings there, each amounting to no more than a
few acres. One of the cotsetlers of Wick, to be chosen
by the abbess's bailiff, tended the abbess's cattle
and had to render 10 cheeses of Winchester measure
to the abbess, a service for which he was granted
certain privileges, such as the right to pasture his
beasts with those of the abbess. (fn. 130)
In the 12th-century survey of the Shaftesbury
lands the duties and services of both lord and
tenant are described in detail. Without exception
small amounts of rent, normally no more than a
few shillings or pence varying with the amount of
land held, were payable to the abbey in addition to
services due. (fn. 131) Little can be said of the pattern
of land tenure within the parish before the Dissolution, but by the 17th century the number of
holdings seems to be fewer perhaps as a result of
the accumulation of more land in the open fields by
individual tenants. In the late 16th century there
were 3 leaseholders and 49 copyholders, of whom 4
and possibly a fifth were tenants at will on the manor,
according to a survey of this date. (fn. 132) A few years later
in 1617–18 there were some 43 tenants, of whom 3
were leaseholders, 29 copyholders, and 11 cottagers,
and who together owed a rent of c. £27. (fn. 133) Henceforward the number of copyholders declined and the
number of those holding by lease gradually increased; in 1672 there were 20 leaseholders in Liddington and 11 in Coate, and 6 copyholders in
Liddington. (fn. 134) This development continued into
the 18th century and in 1731 the manor contained
30 leaseholdings, including those in Coate and Medbourne, together with 7 copyholdings and 10
customary holdings. (fn. 135) Nineteenth-century surveys
of Liddington manor show no copyholding, (fn. 136) and
in 1817 there were said to be 12 leaseholdings and
17 freeholdings within the manor. (fn. 137)
In 1617–18 there were 4 arable fields in the parish,
2 called Overfields and 2 called Lower Fields, a
meadow known as Liddington Mead, which lay in
the north-east corner of the parish, once open but
now farmed in several allotments, and three pastures,
Liddington Down, Marsh Leaze, and Ox Leaze. (fn. 138)
It seems likely that some of these open lands lay
in the north-west of the parish on either side of the
Swindon-Hungerford road east of Common Head,
since this area was known as Liddington Common
in 1773. (fn. 139) By 1776 the number of open fields had
increased to 6, Upper and Lower East Fields, Upper
and Lower Middle Fields, and Upper and Lower
West Fields, covering a total of c. 639 a. There
were 3 commons, Cow Common, Sheep Down, and
Sheep Pasture, with an overall acreage of c. 421 a. (fn. 140)
According to a survey of 1617–18, 30 sheep could be
kept on each yardland and 15 on each 'corcytrell'
on Liddington Down, while a horse and 2 cows
might be kept on each yardland and a horse and cow
on each 'corcytrell' in Marsh Leaze, while in Ox
Leaze an ox could be pastured on a yardland and on
a 'corcytrell'. In Coate there was a marsh containing
leaze for 60 beasts together with 2 'slades' of c. 50 a.
and a fallow field, where there was leaze for 30
horses. At this date it was estimated that there were
37 yardlands and 15 'corcytrells' within the manor of
Liddington, while the 'manor' of Coate was said
to be made up of 20 yardlands. (fn. 141) In the late 17th
century arable land in three upper fields was valued
at 4s. 6d. an acre, and in the three lower fields at
5s. 6d. an acre. Pasture land and meadow in the
open fields was worth 16s. an acre yearly, while land
in Liddington Meadow was valued at 20s. an acre,
the Horse Common at 12s., and the Beast Common
at 6s. yearly. (fn. 142)
The economy of the parish was until recent times
largely devoted to the rearing of sheep on the downs
in the south of the parish. (fn. 143) Towards the middle of
the 17th century it was estimated that Liddington
Down contained common grazing for 14,000 or
15,000 sheep, and in addition there was a large
beast common of some 110 a., (fn. 144) probably at this
time, and certainly by the 18th century, known as
Farringcombe Down. (fn. 145) In 1731 the total amount of
sheep pasture within the manor of Liddington
was 423 a., while 118 a. were given over to cow
commons. (fn. 146) On Spring, or Liddington Farm in
1746, the tenant farmer had 163 sheep and lambs
but only 17 cattle. (fn. 147) The best pasture land was in
the more northerly part of the parish away from the
chalk escarpment. Here some meadows may have
been laid out as water-meadows. Bee Leaze, comprising about 26 a., was so described in the late 18th
or early 19th centuries. This was part of Medbourne
Farm and lay below Common Head to the southeast of the Coate-Marlborough road. (fn. 148) The arable
land also lay in the north of the parish. About 1746
the amount of acreage devoted to the growing of
wheat on Liddington Farm was some 80 a., while
about 45 a. were given over to barley. (fn. 149) There is no
further evidence of barley, but in 1801 the average
wheat yield was 40 bushels an acre. (fn. 150)
As in neighbouring parishes a certain amount of
inclosure was being carried out in the early 17th
century. In 1641 the tenants and freeholders of
the manor of Liddington were allowed to choose
8 men to arrange exchanges of arable and pasture
between tenants, so that they might be able to
inclose land as they wished. (fn. 151) At the same time there
were said to be a number of freehold estates within
the parish not intermixed with the open fields but
inclosed. (fn. 152) By 1766 many small inclosures of land
at Coate had been made: all tenants there had small
amounts of inclosed arable, pasture, and meadow,
while the holdings grouped together and known
collectively as Coate Farm amounted to some 137 a.
of inclosed land in 1766. In Liddington 19 leaseholders had small amounts of inclosed land. (fn. 153) But
even in Coate the land was by no means completely
inclosed, since a meadow, Coate Lot-Mead, was held
in common and divided by lot amongst the tenants
there. (fn. 154) In 1776 these old inclosures were said to
amount to some 206 a., (fn. 155) and these were allowed to
remain when allotments of land in the open fields
were made the following year. The main allotment
of some 900 a. was made to the Duke of Marlborough as impropriator and lord. The lands lay
chiefly in the Upper East and Upper Middle
Fields, and in Liddington Common, and were
bounded by Liddington Wick in the north and by
Stephen's Down in the south. (fn. 156)
In the early 18th century the numerous freehold
estates, which were being formed from the early
17th century onwards, begin to emerge as distinct
farms. Some 41 a. were farmed by Robert Webbe,
who appears as a leaseholder in the late 17th or early
18th century, while another farm, Ile's, was estimated at c. 32 a., and another, farmed by Richard
Pierce, was reckoned at c. 141 a. (fn. 157) The land farmed
by Robert Webbe was estimated at c. 95 a. in 1731
and at this date was said to be part of Liddington
Farm, itself part of the demesne lands of the
manor (fn. 158) and otherwise known as Bacon's or Spring
Farm. (fn. 159) At the same date the land at Coate, which
also formed part of the demesne lands of Liddington manor, was largely occupied by some 152 a.
farmed by John Prince. (fn. 160) The farm was tenanted by
William Prince in 1794 (fn. 161) and, as a result of its
associations with the family, became known as
Prince's Farm, a name which it retained into the
20th century. A survey made after the Inclosure Act
lists 4 farms held by tenants of the Duke of Marlborough: of these, Liddington Commons was
estimated at 101 a., Liddington Meadows at 70 a.,
while Medbourne Farm and Upper Farm were
reckoned at 255 a. and 520 a. respectively. (fn. 162) In 1817
the two latter farms were merged to form some 776 a.
known as Liddington and Medbourne Farm. (fn. 163)
Other farms at this date included Liddington
Commons, now called Common Farm and reckoned
at 102 a., and the Parsonage Farm, which covered an
area of some 143 a. and included 73 a. known as
Home Farm. (fn. 164) In the 20th century there were at
least 7 farms, (fn. 165) including the farms at Coate,
Medbourne, Liddington Wick, and Liddington
Warren, all of which were representative of earlier
freehold estates within the parish.
There were 2 mills within the manor of Liddington at the time of Domesday Survey, which together paid 5s. (fn. 166) In the mid 12th century one of
these mills was held by Edward the miller, who paid
a rent of 30d., while the other was held by a widow,
Maud, for a rent of 6d. (fn. 167) The former was probably
attached to the manor and was known as Liddington
Mill, the wheel of which tore Thomas Chauler to
pieces in 1249. (fn. 168) This mill was situated just northwest of the manor-house and it is likely that it remained part of the site of the manor, since in
1543–4 a water-mill was included in a grant of the
site of the manor to William Bristowe by William
Sharington. (fn. 169) This mill was still attached to the
manor in 1591 when William Bristowe's son,
Anthony, died seised of the site of Liddington
manor, (fn. 170) and remained so in 1768 when the lord of
the manor, the Duke of Marlborough, leased a
messuage, tenement, and water-mill with their tolls
and profits to the miller, Edward Cripps of Liddington. (fn. 171) By 1773 this mill was known as Upper Mill,
and was fed by a large pond which fronted the manorhouse. (fn. 172) It remained in use until the 20th century. (fn. 173)
A second mill, possibly that rented by the widow
Maud, was attached to the estate at Liddington
Wick by the 16th century, although it was situated
just north of Liddington village and was fed by the
same stream as Liddington Mill. It may have been
this mill that was held by John Wroughton in 1496, (fn. 174)
but a mill is seen certainly to be part of the Wick
estate by 1577–9 when tenements and lands there,
including a water-mill, were conveyed to William
and Thomas Fisher. (fn. 175) This mill, still part of the
estate in 1689 (fn. 176) and 1762, (fn. 177) was known as Lower
Mill (fn. 178) and remained in use until the 20th century. (fn. 179)
Local Government.
In 1967 no parish
records other than registers (see below) were known
to exist for Liddington.
Church.
The church of Liddington is first mentioned in 1291 when it was valued for the taxation
of Pope Nicholas. (fn. 180) Probably long before that date,
and certainly a few years later it was attached to
Shaftesbury Abbey as a prebend. This meant that in
return for certain services to the community at
Shaftesbury, the prebendaries or rectors of Liddington enjoyed the profits and perquisites of the
rectory, which was not appropriated to Shaftesbury. (fn. 181) To serve the church of Liddington the prebendaries or rectors appointed vicars. The earliest
known presentation of a vicar to serve the church
is that of John of Coate, who was presented by the
rector, Walter Burdoun, in 1297. (fn. 182)
The Abbess of Shaftesbury presented to the prebend throughout the Middle Ages, except in 1368–
1369 when the king presented by reason of an
alleged voidance. (fn. 183) In 1371–2 Robert Walsham,
Canon of Salisbury Cathedral, and William Walsham, Prebendary of Liddington, were granted a
royal pardon for in some way disputing the king's
right to present. (fn. 184) By 1389 the abbess was presenting
again, (fn. 185) and continued to do so until 1537 when Sir
Thomas Arundel presented with her consent. (fn. 186)
The prebendaries or rectors presented to the
vicarage without exception, so far as is known,
throughout the Middle Ages. (fn. 187)
In 1543 Sir William Sharington, who also acquired
the manor that year, was granted the advowson of
the rectory and of the vicarage of Liddington. (fn. 188)
His brother, Henry Sharington, to whom the manor
passed, presented to the rectory in 1554. (fn. 189) Thenceforth throughout the 17th and 18th centuries the
advowson of the sinecure rectory or prebend as it
began sometimes to be called again towards the end
of the 17th century, descended with the lordship
of the manor of Liddington. (fn. 190) On at least two
occasions, however, the right of presentation was
leased out: in 1591 when Nathaniel Torperley, a
prominent mathematician, presented, (fn. 191) and in 1632
when Sir John St. John presented. (fn. 192) The advowson
of the vicarage continued to belong, as it had before
the Dissolution, to the rectors or prebendaries, (fn. 193)
who appear to have leased their right of presentation
frequently in the 16th and 17th centuries. In 1583
the queen presented, apparently because there was
no rector to provide a vicar. (fn. 194)
The rectors were sometimes laymen, but in 1695
Sir John Talbot (d. 1714) presented his cousin
William Talbot (d. 1730), then Dean of Worcester,
and later successively Bishop of Oxford, Salisbury,
and Durham. (fn. 195) On the death in 1759 of Matthew
Tate, John Talbot's successor as lord of the
manor, the Duke of Marlborough presented John
Moore (d. 1805), the tutor of his younger sons,
Lords Charles and Robert Spencer. Like all the
rectors he did not live at Liddington and, while
still rector of the church there, became successively
Prebendary of Durham (1763) and Dean of Canterbury (1771). He relinquished the rectory of Liddington on becoming Bishop of Bangor in 1775 and subsequently became Archbishop of Canterbury in
1783. (fn. 196)
Soon after the beginning of the 19th century the
institution of incumbents was simplified: the rectors,
having been presented by the Duke of Marlborough
(as lord of the manor) began presenting themselves
to the vicarage. (fn. 197) The advowson of the church was
then said to rest jointly with the Duke of Marlborough and the Prebendary (or rector) of Liddington, while the incumbent was styled the Prebendary,
Rector, and Vicar of Liddington, and the benefice
was called a rectory and a vicarage. (fn. 198) In 1951
C. W. Francis, who had been Prebendary, Rector,
and Vicar of Liddington since 1936, left Liddington
for another living, but remained prebendary and as
such presented his successor to the vicarage. (fn. 199) On
Prebendary Francis's death, the vicar, the Revd.
H. R. Rogers, who had been presented by him in
1963, was presented to the prebend by the Duke of
Marlborough, who in 1966 still retained his right of
patronage. (fn. 200)
The church was valued at £13 6s. 8d. for the
taxation of Pope Nicholas in 1291, (fn. 201) 1308–9, (fn. 202) and
1341. (fn. 203) In 1772 sums totalling £200 were received
from the trustees of Lord Crew, Bishop of Durham,
and from those of a Mrs. Horner and a Mrs.
Pyncombe respectively. (fn. 204) A further £200 was added
from the Royal Bounty and the benefice endowed
in 1773. (fn. 205) It had a net income of £325 in 1835. (fn. 206)
The prebend, probably at the time of its foundation, was endowed with certain portions, presumably at first in the form of tithes, from the churches
of Chesilbourne, Compton Abbas, and Melbury
Abbas, all of which lay in Dorset. By 1291 Chesilbourne was making a yearly payment of £3 6s. 8d., (fn. 207)
Compton Abbas £3 10s., (fn. 208) and Melbury Abbas
£3 3s. 4d. (fn. 209) These portions were extracted with some
difficulty and the Rector of Liddington made
repeated and probably unsuccessful attempts in
1324, 1325, and 1326 to secure arrears of £28 from
Compton Abbas (fn. 210) and of £25 6s. 8d. from Melbury
Abbas. (fn. 211) These portions, which formed part of the
gross value of the rectory, continued to be made
throughout the Middle Ages and similar amounts
were still paid in 1535, (fn. 212) although by this date
Chesilbourne, in lieu of giving all its tithes to Liddington, paid £6, (fn. 213) a sum agreed upon by the respective rectors in 1438. (fn. 214) These portions continued to
be paid after the Dissolution, and in the 17th
century were said to belong to the prebend and to be
worth £12 10s. (fn. 215)
In 1341 the rectory was valued at £13 6s. 8d., of
which the great tithes amounted to £9 and those
small tithes, which the rector had in certain
meadows, to 40s. (fn. 216) In 1535 the rectory was valued
at £24 gross, less 7s. 5½d. for synodals. Its value was
made up of the portions paid by Chesilbourne,
Compton Abbas, and Melbury Abbas, all great
tithes, certain small tithes, and a landed estate. (fn. 217)
It is possible that this sum represents a miscalculation based on the assumption that Chesilbourne was
still paying £3 6s. 8d. instead of £6, and that the
value of the rectory was c. £27.
After the Dissolution there is no mention of any
small tithes being due to the rector, but, with the
exception of those from the glebe-lands and from
Liddington Meadows, all the great tithes belonged
to the rectory. (fn. 218) By 1705, and probably at an earlier
date, the rectorial tithes were impropriated by the
lords of the manor, (fn. 219) who then presumably granted
them to the successive rectors, whom they appointed.
In 1731 all great tithes from Liddington, Stephen's
Down, Medbourne, and Coate belonged to the
rectory, (fn. 220) with the exception of the great tithes from
the rectorial glebe which belonged to the vicarage. (fn. 221)
After the inclosure award of 1777 right to certain
great tithes was extinguished, (fn. 222) although 1,501 a. of
land in the parish remained subject to tithe. (fn. 223) In
1841 the great tithes in Coate were commuted for a
rent-charge of £42 9s., which was paid to the rector
and his lessee, Elizabeth Henrietta Crowdy. (fn. 224) At
the same date the rectorial tithes in Liddington were
commuted for a rent-charge of £174 7s., which was
paid to the rector's lessees, the Earl of Shaftesbury,
Sir Edward Stracey, and Sir James Graham. (fn. 225)
Together, therefore, the surviving rectorial tithes
in the whole parish were commuted in 1841 for
£216 16s. (fn. 226) The rectors leased out their tithes in the
16th century on at least two occasions. (fn. 227) The great
tithes were also leased from time to time in the 18th
century. (fn. 228)
The rector's house was described in 1677 as a
building of 4 bays with a barn, stable, and outhouses standing in a small garden. (fn. 229) It is likely that
as the rectors did not live in Liddington, the parsonage or prebendal house was occupied as a farmhouse from an early date. It was used as such in
1812 when it was described as a mean stone and
thatched building standing between the churchyard
and the vicar's house. (fn. 230) The Parsonage House, still
so-called, stands immediately south of the churchyard. It is of chalk-stone and retains some 17thcentury features, but was evidently altered and
enlarged in the early 19th century and later.
No ordination of a vicarage has been found. In
1535 the vicarage was worth £12 9s. 6d., less 4s. 2d.
for synodals. Its value consisted of certain great
tithes, all small tithes, except some which the rector
had, and other emoluments. (fn. 231) In 1677 (fn. 232) and 1704 (fn. 233)
the vicar had the tithes both great and small of all
the glebe-land belonging to the rector, as well as all
the small tithes. In 1705 the vicar maintained that
he had only the small tithes (fn. 234) but at this date, as in
1731 (fn. 235) and 1775, (fn. 236) he also had the tithes both great
and small from the rectorial glebe. By the inclosure
award of 1777 the rectorial and vicarial glebe were
freed from tithe and the vicar, in lieu of the great
tithes from the rectorial and vicarial glebe, was compensated with 53 a. of land. (fn. 237) In 1841 the vicarial
tithes were commuted for a rent-charge of £221. (fn. 238)
In c. 1634 the vicar had an estate of about 2 a., (fn. 239)
which remained unchanged until 1777 when under
the inclosure award of that year he received an allotment of land in the open fields of Liddington, in lieu
of tithes. (fn. 240) In 1786 this new estate was estimated
at c. 53 a. and most of the land was situated in the
Lower East Field. (fn. 241) In 1817 the vicar's estate was
estimated at c. 64 a., and was made up of two closes,
one south-east and the other north-east of the
church, while the third and largest part of the
estate, now known as Parson's Field, lay north of the
main settlement to the east of the Newbury road. (fn. 242)
There was also a vicarage house in 1677, then
described as a building of 4 bays with a barn and
stable attached. (fn. 243) The house is often mentioned in
the 18th century. (fn. 244) By the early 19th century the
incumbents no longer occupied it, since in 1783 the
Vicar of Liddington was also incumbent of Chiseldon where he lived, (fn. 245) and in 1812 the vicar lived at
King's Somborne (Hants). (fn. 246) In the same year it
was noted that the vicarage house had once contained a library, or collection of books, which had
long since disappeared because the house was unguarded and open to marauders. (fn. 247) In 1824 Prebendary Michael Hare, who was both rector and
vicar, built a new house and henceforth the incumbents lived there. (fn. 248) After 1835 the house was known
for a time as the Glebe House, (fn. 249) but it subsequently
became known as the Rectory. The Rectory is a
large house of rough-cast brick, standing in a garden
to the south-east of the church, and may possibly
occupy the same site as the former vicarage house.
At the end of the 18th century, services were held
in the morning and in the afternoon alternately with
those at Chiseldon. Holy Communion was celebrated
at the four customary seasons, and there was an
average of 12 communicants. Services were held on
Wednesdays and Fridays in Lent, again alternately
with those at Chiseldon. Children of the parish were
catechized on Sundays, Wednesdays, and Fridays in
Lent, and sermons were preached on the catechism
every other year during that season. The congregation was said to be fairly numerous. (fn. 250) Over half a
century later, on Census Sunday 1851, 100 people
were present at morning service, while 140 attended
the afternoon service, although one service was
presumably held at Chiseldon. (fn. 251)
The church of ALL SAINTS consists of chancel,
nave, north aisle, north vestry, and west tower.
There may originally have been a narrow south
aisle, as the chancel and chancel arch are not
centrally placed in relation to the present nave.
A severe restoration of the church by C. E. Ponting
in the late 19th century makes it difficult to distinguish how many of its features are original. (fn. 252) The
chancel and north aisle date from the 13th century,
the former having two lancet windows in the south
wall and one in the north; the east window is a 19thcentury insertion. The north aisle appears to have
been little altered; (fn. 253) there are two lancets and a
trefoil-headed doorway in the north wall and its
east window consists of three graded lancets beneath
a rear arch which is supported on corbelled shafts.
The aisle's west window has a cusped rear-arch and
curious star-shaped tracery, apparently of the early
14th century. The windows in the south wall of the
nave, which date from the 19th-century restoration,
have similar tracery and possibly replace original
windows of the same design. The north aisle contains two tomb-recesses of c. 1300. The embattled
west tower, of three stages with diagonal buttresses
to its western angles, dates from the late 15th or
early 16th century. (fn. 254) Most notable among the
church furnishings is the circular font bowl of
c. 1200 which has tapered sides and bands of pellet
and zig-zag ornament. (fn. 255) Other furnishings, including the sanctuary rail, pulpit, lectern, and choir
stalls, were installed during the 19th-century
restorations. (fn. 256) The vestry was added outside the
north doorway of the aisle in 1900. (fn. 257) The glass in
the east window of the aisle was placed there in 1914
by Prebendary and Mrs. Pitt in memory of their son,
Clifford George Pitt. (fn. 258)
Three bells were noted by the king's commissioners in 1553 (fn. 259) but their fate is not known. The
church has 5 bells (in 1966): the first three, made by
Roger and William Purdue, are inscribed with the
churchwardens' names and date from 1663, while
the fourth and fifth date from 1786 and 1849
respectively and bear the makers' names, Robert
Wells of Aldbourne and William Taylor. (fn. 260) In 1553
the king's commissioners left a silver chalice weighing 6 oz. for the church: (fn. 261) this was still among the
church plate in 1812 but had disappeared by 1920. (fn. 262)
A paten was given by Prebendary George May in
1859. All other plate dates from 1886 when a
chalice, paten, flagon, and spoon were provided by
subscription. (fn. 263) The church also possesses a pewter
flagon, possibly of 18th-century date, of a type
which is found comparatively rarely in Wiltshire. (fn. 264)
A barrel organ, given by Prebendary May in 1846,
was restored to the church in 1891. (fn. 265) Outside the
church, near the chancel door, is the stump of an
ancient churchyard cross, and on one of the tower
buttresses is a medieval scratch dial. The registers
are complete from 1692. (fn. 266)
Nonconformity.
Bishop Compton's census
recorded no dissenters in the parish in 1676. (fn. 267) By the
1680s there may have been a group of Anabaptists in
the village, although the movement was slow to
establish itself in this part of the county. (fn. 268) In 1699
the house of John Warman in Coate was certified as
a meeting-house for protestant dissenters. (fn. 269) This
meeting may not have lasted long and by 1783 there
were again said to be no dissenters in the parish. (fn. 270)
In 1822 a building belonging to Thomas Besant
was registered as a meeting-place for Independents, (fn. 271)
although no more is heard of it. By the mid 19th
century both Primitive Methodists and Wesleyan
Methodists used the village green for meetings. (fn. 272)
In 1842 a chapel and premises, belonging to and
occupied by James May, were registered for the use
of protestant dissenters, (fn. 273) most probably Primitive
Methodists. On Census Sunday in 1851 it was
estimated that over the past year an average of 38
people had attended morning service in this chapel,
while there was an average of 42 in the afternoon,
and 60 in the evening. (fn. 274) Wesleyan Methodists in the
village registered a chapel in 1870 (fn. 275) and this was
still in use in 1966. (fn. 276)
Education.
By 1819 a group of dissenters in Liddington supported a school 'for want of contributions from the parishioners', at which about 20
children were taught. (fn. 277) A Sunday school, which
began in 1823, was supported by the parishioners
and had 50 pupils. A daily school was opened in
1825, where 10 pupils were taught at the expense of
their parents. (fn. 278) A school with a teacher's house
attached was built in 1851 at a cost of £400, the
money being provided by the rector and public subscription. By 1859 there were about 20 children
being taught by a 'dame' from Chiseldon. (fn. 279) In 1896
the school received a parliamentary grant (fn. 280) and subsequently became united with the National Society. (fn. 281)
The average attendance was 56 in 1910, but by 1938
had dropped to 29, (fn. 282) although in 1950 attendance
had risen again to an average of 55 children. (fn. 283) The
school was closed in 1962 and the pupils were transferred to Wanborough. (fn. 284)
Charities.
By his will proved in 1876 William
Brind bequeathed £100 in trust, the income of which
was to be used to provide an evening school for boys
employed in farm labour. (fn. 285) In 1884 the Charity
Commissioners were informed that the income had
been used to maintain a reading room, since a night
school was said to be no longer required. The charity
was extended in 1887 to enable books to be purchased
for a lending library or for distribution as prizes
for farm-labouring boys. The income from the investment was about £2 in 1903 and the money was generally used to buy books for distribution as prizes in
the village school. In 1968 it was about the same.
As is explained below, Liddington was supposed
to have a share in the apprenticing charity founded
by William Savage of Wootton Bassett in 1882. (fn. 286)
But in 1903 no child of Liddington had benefited
from this and the rector complained to the Charity
Commissioners that it was difficult to obtain information about the fund. The charity still existed in
1963 when the income was about £2.
Jonathan Gosling, by his will proved in 1915,
bequeathed £250, the profits of which were to be
distributed annually to the sick and poor of the
hamlet of Coate, which then lay partly in Liddington
and partly in the neighbouring parish of Chiseldon. (fn. 287)
During 1962–6 the Gosling Bequest Fund yielded
about £9 yearly. In 1966 the Vicar of Chiseldon
complained of a lack of adequately qualified beneficiaries in Coate which, since 1915, had been engulfed in the south-eastward expansion of Swindon
(see above).