Whimple
Encyclopedia
Whimple is a village and civil parish
in East Devon
in the English
county of Devon
, approximately 9 miles (14.5 km) due east of the city of Exeter
, and 3 miles (4.8 km) from the nearest small town, Ottery St Mary
. It has a population of 1,642. It was listed in the Domesday Book
as 'Winpla' which according to the Oxford Dictionary of English Place Names was originally the name of the stream that runs through the village, a Celtic name meaning 'white pool or stream'. The village is centred around the largely 19th century village square and rebuilt Norman church (which W. G. Hoskins
described as having little of interest 'except a few carved bench ends'). Through the square runs a small stream which is one of many local tributaries of the River Clyst
, which in turn feeds into the Exe
.
Whimple is large enough to support two pubs
and a Church of England primary school, and was mainly notable during the 20th century as being the home of Whiteway's cyder
and perry products. Although the factory lands were sold off for housing in the 1990s, the village is still surrounded by orchards of cider apples and in its heyday boasted the largest cyder apple orchards in the world. It is now home to the unrelated O'Hanlon's brewery.
The centre of the village is about 1 miles (1.6 km) north of the old A30 road
, and 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the new dual carriageway. Whimple railway station
is on the West of England Main Line
from London Waterloo
to Exeter. Outlying hamlets of Whimple include Cobden, Hand & Pen, Woodhayes, Slewton Combe
, Larkbeare, Strete Raleigh and Marsh Green.
Whimple has a long tradition of wassailing
which it celebrates every year on Old Twelvey Night - 17 January.
The Whimple Wassail
is an orchard-visiting wassail
ceremony and was first mentioned by the Victorian author and folklorist; the Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould
in his book Devon Characters and Strange Events (published 1908).
Later in 1931 the Whimple Wassail was given further mention in the Devon & Exeter Gazette describing how the Wassail was hosted at Rull Farm, Whimple by a Mr & Mrs Reynolds.
The ceremony stopped during World War II
but was revived by the Whimple History Society in 1980 and has grown into a very popular tradition
attracting visitors from all over the country.
The ceremony begins at the New Fountain Inn with the first rendition of the wassail song, then the procession first wassails one of the last remaining 'Whimple Wonder' trees before visiting three orchards and stopping for a salute at the village tethering-stone to remember and pay respects to the late "Mayor of Whimple" John Shepherd who was a much loved local character and the man responsible for reviving the tradition. He was also a great singer and recalled many old songs including the Whimple Wassail. After visiting the last orchard, the wassail party finish up at the cricket club on the other side of the village where the full song is sung followed by much music-making and consumption of cheese, apple cake and of course, cider!
once wrote a piece describing village life Whimple in The Guardian
, which consistently misspelled it as 'Wimple'.
The Whimple Wassail song and processional tune were recorded by local folk musician Jim Causley
, a native of Whimple, on his album Fruits of the Earth, a collection of traditional Devonshire and Westcountry songs, released in 2005 on WildGoose Records.
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 East Devon
East Devon
East Devon is a local government district in Devon, England. Its council is based in Sidmouth, and the largest town is Exmouth.The district was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the borough of Honiton with the urban districts of Budleigh Salterton, Exmouth, Ottery St. Mary, Seaton, Sidmouth...
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, approximately 9 miles (14.5 km) due east of the city of Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
, and 3 miles (4.8 km) from the nearest small town, Ottery St Mary
Ottery St Mary
Ottery St Mary, known as "Ottery" , is a town in the East Devon district of Devon, England, on the River Otter, about ten miles east of Exeter on the B3174. It is part of a large civil parish of the same name, which also covers the villages of West Hill, Metcombe, Fairmile, Alfington, Tipton St...
. It has a population of 1,642. It was listed in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
as 'Winpla' which according to the Oxford Dictionary of English Place Names was originally the name of the stream that runs through the village, a Celtic name meaning 'white pool or stream'. The village is centred around the largely 19th century village square and rebuilt Norman church (which W. G. Hoskins
W. G. Hoskins
William George Hoskins CBE FSA was a British local historian who founded the first university department of English Local History. His great contribution to the study of history was in the field of landscape history...
described as having little of interest 'except a few carved bench ends'). Through the square runs a small stream which is one of many local tributaries of the River Clyst
River Clyst
The River Clyst is a river of England. The river runs through the county of Devon.Rising near the village of Clyst William near Cullompton, the river runs west and southwest, flowing through the settlements of Norman's Green, Plymtree, Clyst Hydon, Clyst St...
, which in turn feeds into the Exe
River Exe
The River Exe in England rises near the village of Simonsbath, on Exmoor in Somerset, near the Bristol Channel coast, but flows more or less directly due south, so that most of its length lies in Devon. It reaches the sea at a substantial ria, the Exe Estuary, on the south coast of Devon...
.
Whimple is large enough to support two pubs
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
and a Church of England primary school, and was mainly notable during the 20th century as being the home of Whiteway's cyder
Cider
Cider or cyder is a fermented alcoholic beverage made from apple juice. Cider varies in alcohol content from 2% abv to 8.5% abv or more in traditional English ciders. In some regions, such as Germany and America, cider may be termed "apple wine"...
and perry products. Although the factory lands were sold off for housing in the 1990s, the village is still surrounded by orchards of cider apples and in its heyday boasted the largest cyder apple orchards in the world. It is now home to the unrelated O'Hanlon's brewery.
The centre of the village is about 1 miles (1.6 km) north of the old A30 road
A30 road
The 284 miles A30 road from London to Land's End, historically known as the Great South West Road used to provide the most direct route from London to the south west; more recently the M3 motorway and A303 road performs this function for much of the route and only parts of A30 now retain trunk...
, and 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the new dual carriageway. Whimple railway station
Whimple railway station
Whimple railway station serves the village of Whimple in East Devon, Devon, England. It was opened by the London and South Western Railway in 1860 but is now operated by South West Trains which provides services on the London Waterloo to Exeter route....
is on the West of England Main Line
West of England Main Line
The West of England Main Line is a British railway line that runs from , Hampshire to Exeter St Davids in Devon, England. Passenger services run between London Waterloo station and Exeter...
from London Waterloo
Waterloo station
Waterloo station, also known as London Waterloo, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex. The station is owned and operated by Network Rail and is close to the South Bank of the River Thames, and in Travelcard Zone 1....
to Exeter. Outlying hamlets of Whimple include Cobden, Hand & Pen, Woodhayes, Slewton Combe
Slewton Combe
Slewton Combe, also known as the Slewton Valley is an outlying farmstead approximately one mile to the East of the East Devon village of Whimple. Although outside of the officially recognised AONB boundaries it is widely regarded as a particularly beautiful area in the locality...
, Larkbeare, Strete Raleigh and Marsh Green.
Wassailing
Wassailing
The tradition of Wassailing falls into two distinct categories: The House-Visiting wassail and the Orchard-Visiting wassail. House-Visiting wassail, very much similar to caroling, is the practice of people going door-to-door singing Christmas carols...
which it celebrates every year on Old Twelvey Night - 17 January.
The Whimple Wassail
Whimple Wassail
The Whimple Wassail is an orchard-visiting wassail ceremony which takes place in the Devon village of Whimple annually every Old Twelfth Night ....
is an orchard-visiting wassail
Wassail
The word Wassail refers to several related traditions; first and foremost wassailing is an ancient southern English tradition that is performed with the intention of ensuring a good crop of cider apples for the next year's harvest...
ceremony and was first mentioned by the Victorian author and folklorist; the Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould
Sabine Baring-Gould
The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould was an English hagiographer, antiquarian, novelist and eclectic scholar. His bibliography consists of more than 1240 publications, though this list continues to grow. His family home, Lew Trenchard Manor near Okehampton, Devon, has been preserved as he had it...
in his book Devon Characters and Strange Events (published 1908).
Later in 1931 the Whimple Wassail was given further mention in the Devon & Exeter Gazette describing how the Wassail was hosted at Rull Farm, Whimple by a Mr & Mrs Reynolds.
The ceremony stopped during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
but was revived by the Whimple History Society in 1980 and has grown into a very popular tradition
Tradition
A tradition is a ritual, belief or object passed down within a society, still maintained in the present, with origins in the past. Common examples include holidays or impractical but socially meaningful clothes , but the idea has also been applied to social norms such as greetings...
attracting visitors from all over the country.
The ceremony begins at the New Fountain Inn with the first rendition of the wassail song, then the procession first wassails one of the last remaining 'Whimple Wonder' trees before visiting three orchards and stopping for a salute at the village tethering-stone to remember and pay respects to the late "Mayor of Whimple" John Shepherd who was a much loved local character and the man responsible for reviving the tradition. He was also a great singer and recalled many old songs including the Whimple Wassail. After visiting the last orchard, the wassail party finish up at the cricket club on the other side of the village where the full song is sung followed by much music-making and consumption of cheese, apple cake and of course, cider!
Trivia
Roy HattersleyRoy Hattersley
Roy Sydney George Hattersley, Baron Hattersley is a British Labour politician, author and journalist from Sheffield. He served as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party from 1983 to 1992.-Early life:...
once wrote a piece describing village life Whimple in The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, which consistently misspelled it as 'Wimple'.
The Whimple Wassail song and processional tune were recorded by local folk musician Jim Causley
Jim Causley
Jim Causley is an English folk singer, songwriter, and musician from Whimple, East Devon, England.-Biography:Jim Causley is a folk singer and musician from Devon who specializes in the traditional songs and music of the West Country and Devon in particular...
, a native of Whimple, on his album Fruits of the Earth, a collection of traditional Devonshire and Westcountry songs, released in 2005 on WildGoose Records.