Fovant is a medium-sized village and
civil parishIn England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and in some places the lowest tier of local government, below districts and counties. A civil parish can alternatively be known as a town, village, neighbourhood or community by resolution of its parish council; and in a limited number of...
in southwest
WiltshireWiltshire is a ceremonial county in the south west of 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 3,485 km²...
,
EnglandEngland 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 and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is located between
SalisburySalisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England. It has also been called New Sarum to distinguish it from the original site of settlement to the north of the city at Old Sarum, but this alternative name is not in common use. Similarly, a native of Salisbury may be known as a "Sarumite", but...
and
ShaftesburyShaftesbury is a town in North Dorset, England, situated on the A30 road near the Wiltshire border 20 miles west of Salisbury. The town is built 750 feet above sea level on the side of a chalk and greensand hill, which is part of Cranborne Chase, the only significant hilltop settlement in Dorset...
in the
Nadder valleyThe River Nadder is one of the chalk stream rivers of southern England, much sought after by fly fishermen because of its clear waters and abundance of brown trout. It is one of the main tributaries of the River Avon, rising from a number of springs and small streams at Donhead St. Mary in south...
. Its name is derived from the Old English Fobbefunta, meaning "spring of a man called Fobbe". It has a population of 683.
It is principally known for several regimental badges cut in chalk into a nearby hill. These were created by soldiers garrisoned near Fovant during the First World War and are clearly visible from the
A30The A30 is an old trunk road which runs from central London to Land's End, the westernmost point of the mainland of southern Great Britain , and is sometimes called the Great South West Road. At 284 miles long, it is the third longest 'A' road in the United Kingdom, behind the A1 and A38...
which runs through the village. The Fovant Badge Society holds an annual 'Drumhead' Service which is attended by the Australian High Commissioner, local mayors and members of parliament. These services fund the war memorial which is the Fovant Badges, helping to conserve a part of the area's wartime history.
Originally with three pubs, an unusual occurrence in a small village, Fovant currently has one functioning pub, The Pembroke Arms, which has changed ownership a number of times in recent years.
Fovant has a post office, a village shop and a doctor's surgery all at one end of the village. There is also a stream that runs through the village.
The post office is famous for having drivers crash into its front wall, mostly at night as the road bends round in an unexpected manner at the bottom of the hill.
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