Holford
Encyclopedia
Holford is a village and civil parish
in West Somerset
within the Quantock Hills
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
, and about 10 miles (16 km) west of Bridgwater
and 6 miles (10 km) east of Williton
. The village has a population of about 200. The village is on the Quantock Greenway
and Coleridge Way
footpath
s. The parish includes the village of Dodington.
The River Holford
which runs through the village flows to the sea at Kilve
.
Hundred, while Dodington was part of the Williton and Freemanners Hundred.
Holford Glen was once the site of a Huguenot
silk
factory.
The 15th century Doddington Hall manor house contains the mechanism of a water driven spit in the cellar below the kitchen, and also has heraldic glass dating back to 1485 in parlour wing.
The tannery was built by James Hayman, in the 16th century and is now a hotel. The waterwheel which powered the tannery is still present.
Dodington was the site of the Buckingham Mine where copper
was extracted. The mine was established before 1725 and followed earlier exploration at Perry Hill, East Quantoxhead
. It was financed by the Marquis of Buckingham until 1801 when it was closed, until various attempts were made to reopen it during the 19th century. The remaining engine house is now a listed building.
Alfoxton House
(now Alfoxton Park Hotel) was built as an 18th-century country house and occupied by poet William Wordsworth
and his sister Dorothy
, between July 1797 and June 1798, during the time of their friendship with Samuel Taylor Coleridge
.
groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council.
The village falls within the Non-metropolitan district
of West Somerset
, which was formed on April 1, 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972
, having previously been part of Williton Rural District
. The district council is responsible for local planning
and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health
, market
s and fairs, refuse collection and recycling
, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism
.
Somerset County Council
is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education
, social services, libraries
, main roads, public transport
, policing
and fire services, trading standards
, waste disposal and strategic planning.
It is also part of the Bridgwater and West Somerset county constituency represented in the House of Commons
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP)
by the first past the post system of election, and part of the South West England constituency
of the European Parliament
which elects seven MEPs using the d'Hondt method
of party-list proportional representation
.
run by the Somerset Wildlife Trust
and is part of the Quantock Hills
Site of Special Scientific Interest
(SSSI). The Ge-mare Farm Fields
SSSI consists of an unimproved species-rich flood pasture community with interest enhanced by the presence of a wetter area supporting a lowland mire community. These habitats are rare both nationally and within the county of Somerset.
as a Grade II listed building.
All Saints Church in Dodington
was rebuilt and enlarged in the 15th century. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a grade I listed building. Dodington Hall was built in the 15th century and enlarged and refenestrated in 1581. It was the home of Sir Francis Dodington who fought for the king during the English Civil War
.
hit song (Everything I Do) I Do It for You
was filmed in Holford Glen.
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...
in West Somerset
West Somerset
West Somerset is a local government district in the English county of Somerset. The council covers a largely rural area, with a population of 35,075 in an area of ....
within the Quantock Hills
Quantock Hills
The Quantock Hills is a range of hills west of Bridgwater in Somerset, England. The Quantock Hills were England’s first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty being designated in 1956 and consists of large amounts of heathland, oak woodlands, ancient parklands and agricultural land.The hills run from...
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an area of countryside considered to have significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government; the Countryside Council for Wales on...
, and about 10 miles (16 km) west of Bridgwater
Bridgwater
Bridgwater is a market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is the administrative centre of the Sedgemoor district, and a major industrial centre. Bridgwater is located on the major communication routes through South West England...
and 6 miles (10 km) east of Williton
Williton
Williton is a medium-sized village and civil parish in West Somerset, England. It has many of the facilities of a small town, being the administrative centre for the district. Williton is situated at the junction of the A39, A358 and B3191 roads...
. The village has a population of about 200. The village is on the Quantock Greenway
Quantock Greenway
The Quantock Greenway is a footpath in the Quantock Hills in Somerset, England, which opened in 2001.The route of the path follows a figure of 8 centred on Triscombe, the northern loop taking in Crowcombe and Holford is , the southern loop to Broomfield is...
and Coleridge Way
Coleridge Way
The Coleridge Way is a footpath in Somerset, England.It was opened in April 2005, and follows the walks taken by poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, to Porlock, starting from Coleridge Cottage at Nether Stowey, where he once lived.The footpath is waymarked...
footpath
Trail
A trail is a path with a rough beaten or dirt/stone surface used for travel. Trails may be for use only by walkers and in some places are the main access route to remote settlements...
s. The parish includes the village of Dodington.
The River Holford
River Holford
The River Holford is located in the east Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Somerset England.It is approximately long. Its source is at Lady's Fountain Spring, Frog Combe which is near Halsway and 250 m above sea level before flowing past Holford towards its mouth at Kilve.The...
which runs through the village flows to the sea at Kilve
Kilve
Kilve is a village in West Somerset, England, within the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the first AONB to be established, in 1957....
.
History
The parish of Holford was part of the WhitleyWhitley (hundred)
The Hundred of Whitley is one of the 40 historical Hundreds in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England, dating from before the Norman conquest during the Anglo-Saxon era although exact dates are unknown. Each hundred had a 'fyrd', which acted as the local defence force and a court which was...
Hundred, while Dodington was part of the Williton and Freemanners Hundred.
Holford Glen was once the site of a Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
factory.
The 15th century Doddington Hall manor house contains the mechanism of a water driven spit in the cellar below the kitchen, and also has heraldic glass dating back to 1485 in parlour wing.
The tannery was built by James Hayman, in the 16th century and is now a hotel. The waterwheel which powered the tannery is still present.
Dodington was the site of the Buckingham Mine where copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
was extracted. The mine was established before 1725 and followed earlier exploration at Perry Hill, East Quantoxhead
East Quantoxhead
East Quantoxhead is a village in West Somerset, from West Quantoxhead, east of Williton, and west of Bridgwater, within the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Somerset, England.-History:...
. It was financed by the Marquis of Buckingham until 1801 when it was closed, until various attempts were made to reopen it during the 19th century. The remaining engine house is now a listed building.
Alfoxton House
Alfoxton House
Alfoxton House, also known as Alfoxton Park, was built as an 18th century country house in Holford, Somerset, England, within the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty...
(now Alfoxton Park Hotel) was built as an 18th-century country house and occupied by poet William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth was a major English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with the 1798 joint publication Lyrical Ballads....
and his sister Dorothy
Dorothy Wordsworth
Dorothy Mae Ann Wordsworth was an English author, poet and diarist. She was the sister of the Romantic poet William Wordsworth, and the two were close for all of their lives...
, between July 1797 and June 1798, during the time of their friendship with Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet, Romantic, literary critic and philosopher who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets. He is probably best known for his poems The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Kubla...
.
Governance
The parish council has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council’s operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and neighbourhood watchNeighbourhood Watch (UK)
The Neighbourhood Watch scheme in the United Kingdom is a partnership where people come together to make their communities safer. It involves the Police, Community Safety departments of local authorities, other voluntary organisations and, above all, individuals and families who want to make their...
groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council.
The village falls within the Non-metropolitan district
Non-metropolitan district
Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially shire districts, are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties in a so-called "two-tier" arrangement...
of West Somerset
West Somerset
West Somerset is a local government district in the English county of Somerset. The council covers a largely rural area, with a population of 35,075 in an area of ....
, which was formed on April 1, 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
, having previously been part of Williton Rural District
Williton Rural District
Williton was a rural district in Somerset, England, from 1894 to 1974.It was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894.In 1974 it was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 when it became part of West Somerset....
. The district council is responsible for local planning
Planning permission
Planning permission or planning consent is the permission required in the United Kingdom in order to be allowed to build on land, or change the use of land or buildings. Within the UK the occupier of any land or building will need title to that land or building , but will also need "planning...
and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health
Environmental health
Environmental health is the branch of public health that is concerned with all aspects of the natural and built environment that may affect human health...
, market
Market
A market is one of many varieties of systems, institutions, procedures, social relations and infrastructures whereby parties engage in exchange. While parties may exchange goods and services by barter, most markets rely on sellers offering their goods or services in exchange for money from buyers...
s and fairs, refuse collection and recycling
Recycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
.
Somerset County Council
Somerset County Council
Somerset County Council is the county council of Somerset in the South West of England, an elected local government authority responsible for the most significant local government services in most of the county.-Area covered:...
is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education
Local Education Authority
A local education authority is a local authority in England and Wales that has responsibility for education within its jurisdiction...
, social services, libraries
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
, main roads, public transport
Public transport
Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...
, policing
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
and fire services, trading standards
Trading Standards
Trading Standards is the name given to local authority departments in the UK formerly known as Weights and Measures. These departments investigate commercial organisations that carry out trade in unethical ways or outside the scope of the law.-History:...
, waste disposal and strategic planning.
It is also part of the Bridgwater and West Somerset county constituency represented in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP)
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
by the first past the post system of election, and part of the South West England constituency
South West England (European Parliament constituency)
South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:...
of the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
which elects seven MEPs using the d'Hondt method
D'Hondt method
The d'Hondt method is a highest averages method for allocating seats in party-list proportional representation. The method described is named after Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt who described it in 1878...
of party-list proportional representation
Party-list proportional representation
Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of voting systems emphasizing proportional representation in elections in which multiple candidates are elected...
.
Sites of Special Scientific Interest
Holford Kelting, just north of the village, is a 5.3 ha (13 acres) nature reserveNature reserve
A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...
run by the Somerset Wildlife Trust
Somerset Wildlife Trust
Somerset Wildlife Trust is a wildlife trust covering the county of Somerset, England.The trust, which was established in 1964, aims to safeguard the county's wildlife and wild places for this and future generations and manages almost 80 nature reserves. Examples include Fyne Court, Westhay Moor,...
and is part of the Quantock Hills
Quantock Hills
The Quantock Hills is a range of hills west of Bridgwater in Somerset, England. The Quantock Hills were England’s first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty being designated in 1956 and consists of large amounts of heathland, oak woodlands, ancient parklands and agricultural land.The hills run from...
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
(SSSI). The Ge-mare Farm Fields
Ge-mare Farm Fields
Ge-mare Farm Fields is a 4.1 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest near Holford on the Quantock Hills in Somerset, notified in 1988....
SSSI consists of an unimproved species-rich flood pasture community with interest enhanced by the presence of a wetter area supporting a lowland mire community. These habitats are rare both nationally and within the county of Somerset.
Religious sites
The parish church of St Mary the Virgin was built in the 19th century on the site of an earlier church going back to the 12th century. It has been designated by English HeritageEnglish Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II listed building.
All Saints Church in Dodington
All Saints Church, Dodington
All Saints Church at Dodington in the parish of Holford, Somerset, England was rebuilt and enlarged in the 15th century. It has been designated by English Heritage as a grade I listed building....
was rebuilt and enlarged in the 15th century. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a grade I listed building. Dodington Hall was built in the 15th century and enlarged and refenestrated in 1581. It was the home of Sir Francis Dodington who fought for the king during the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
.
Cultural references
The video to Bryan AdamsBryan Adams
Bryan Adams, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, producer, actor and photographer. Adams has won dozens of awards and nominations, including 20 Juno Awards among 56 nominations. He has also received 15 Grammy Award nominations including a win for Best Song Written...
hit song (Everything I Do) I Do It for You
(Everything I Do) I Do It for You
" I Do It for You" is a power ballad performed by Bryan Adams and co-written with Michael Kamen and Robert John "Mutt" Lange, featured on the soundtrack album from the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and on Adams' album Waking Up the Neighbours...
was filmed in Holford Glen.
Notable people
- George DodingtonGeorge DodingtonGeorge Dodington was a Whig politician under the patronage of Edward Russell, 1st Earl of Orford.Dodington represented Charlemont in the Irish House of Commons from 1707 to 1713. He served as Secretary to the Treasurer of the Navy during the reign of William III, and in 1707-1708 was Secretary to...
(1662-1720), WhigBritish Whig PartyThe Whigs were a party in the Parliament of England, Parliament of Great Britain, and Parliament of the United Kingdom, who contested power with the rival Tories from the 1680s to the 1850s. The Whigs' origin lay in constitutional monarchism and opposition to absolute rule...
politician - George Dodington, 1st Baron MelcombeGeorge Dodington, 1st Baron MelcombeGeorge Bubb Dodington, 1st Baron Melcombe PC was an English politician and nobleman.Christened simply George Bubb, he acquired the surname Dodington around the time his uncle George Dodington died in 1720 and left him his estate...
politician and nobleman
- Frederic NortonFrederic NortonFrederic Norton born George Frederic Norton on 11 October 1869 in Broughton, Salford, England. Died on 15 December 1946 in Holford, England. British composer, most associated with the record breaking Chu Chin Chow, which opened in 1916....
(1869-1946), British composer. - John Cornish WhiteJack White (cricketer)John Cornish White, known as "Farmer" or "Jack", was an English cricketer who played for Somerset and England. White was named Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1929...
, (known as "Farmer" or "Jack"), (1891 – 1961), EnglishEnglish cricket teamThe England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
cricketerCricketerA cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....