Chiseldon is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below district ...

in the

Borough of Swindon The Borough of Swindon is a local government authority in South West England, centred on the urban area and town of Swindon and forming part of the ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Wiltshire. History In 1974 the Thamesdown ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershir ...

, England. It takes its name from the Old English cisel dene, or gravel valley, being noted in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

as ''Chiseldene''. The village lies on the edge of the Marlborough Downs, a mile south of junction 15 of the

M4 motorway The M4, originally the London-South Wales Motorway, is a motorway in the United Kingdom running from west London to southwest Wales. The English section to the Severn Bridge was constructed between 1961 and 1971; the Welsh element was largely ...

, on the A346 between Swindon and Marlborough. The large village of Wroughton is to the east. The parish includes the hamlets of Badbury. Badbury Wick,

Draycot Foliat Draycot Foliat is a hamlet in Wiltshire, England, on the back road between Chiseldon to the north and Ogbourne St. George to the south. The nearest major town is Swindon which is about north. A notable feature is the small airstrip with its ...

Hodson Hodson is an English patronymic surname meaning 'son of Hodge'. Notable people with the surname include: *Alexander Carlton Hodson (1906–1996), American entomologist *Arnold Weinholt Hodson, British colonial administrator *Ashley Hodson, English ...

, and Ridgeway View; the ancient manor of Burderop is also within the parish.

History

Settlements in the area date back to prehistoric and Roman times, but Chiseldon itself was started by the

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country ( Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the No ...

s. The

of 1086 recorded a large settlement of 70 households at ''Chiseldene''. At one point the nearby hamlet of

was larger than Chiseldon. Chiseldon lies on one of the country's oldest highways, the

Icknield Way The Icknield Way is an ancient trackway in southern and eastern England that runs from Norfolk to Wiltshire. It follows the chalk escarpment that includes the Berkshire Downs and Chiltern Hills. Background It is generally said to be, with ...

, although this section of the road is more commonly known as

The Ridgeway The ancient tree-lined path winds over the downs countryside The Ridgeway is a ridgeway or ancient trackway described as Britain's oldest road. The section clearly identified as an ancient trackway extends from Wiltshire along the chalk r ...

. In 2004, a large group of

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

cauldrons was discovered at a site close to the centre of the village. This unique find, the largest group of Iron Age cauldrons to be discovered in Europe, was excavated in June 2005. Now thought to comprise 17 cauldrons, they were taken to the British Museum for conservation and research. The

Midland and South Western Junction Railway The Midland and South Western Junction Railway (M&SWJR) was an independent railway built to form a north–south link between the Midland Railway and the London and South Western Railway in England, allowing the Midland and other companies' ...

line was constructed in 1881 and ran through the centre of the village until 1961, with a

station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

that linked the village directly to Swindon Town station to the north and Marlborough to the south. Chiseldon Army Camp was opened in 1914 and closed in 1962. During both World Wars it was heavily used as a training base for troops. A

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

soldier, Arthur Bullock, recorded overcrowding and appalling conditions, including, in the canteen, having to re-use tables and plates from a previous sitting, on which lay 'bones and chewed bits of gristle'. He also recalls being kept awake by a

St Bernard dog The Saint Bernard or St. Bernard (, ) is a breed of very large working dog from the Western Alps in Italy and Switzerland. They were originally bred for rescue work by the hospice of the Great St Bernard Pass on the Italian-Swiss border. The hos ...

, 'the mascot of the camp'. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

the camp was a major base for US Army troops. Houses which were formerly married quarters are now known as Ridgeway View. The Chiseldon Local History Group maintains a website with information about the history of the village. They also organise a programme of lectures and have a museum in the village.

Religion

Most of the population are members of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

but other denominations of Christianity are present.

Holy Cross Holy Cross or Saint Cross may refer to: * the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus * Christian cross, a frequently used religious symbol of Christianity * True Cross, supposed remnants of the actual cross upon which Jesus was crucified * Feast ...

Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ca ...

has a dwindling regular attendance but many more attend on special occasions. There is a small congregation of Methodists in the village. The Methodists had a 19th-century church in the village, but sold it in 2006 due to low finances, low attendance, and regulations requiring the Methodist church to comply with the Disability Discrimination Act by building a ramp, which the church could not afford. Holy Cross parish now lets the Methodists use the church hall for services. The two groups co-operate on occasions, such as a joint service in 2007 to commemorate the abolition of slavery. Some villagers adhere to other major religions, but they are limited to a few families. Holy Cross parish is in the Church of England

Diocese of Salisbury The Diocese of Salisbury is a Church of England diocese in the south of England, within the ecclesiastical Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers most of Dorset (excepting the deaneries of Bournemouth and Christchurch, which fall within the ...

, unlike the rest of the

borough of Swindon The Borough of Swindon is a local government authority in South West England, centred on the urban area and town of Swindon and forming part of the ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Wiltshire. History In 1974 the Thamesdown ...

, which is within the Diocese of Bristol, but like the rest of

The parish

The Parish of Chiseldon encompasses not only the village but also the neighbouring hamlets of

and

. Draycot Foliat had its own church and parish in the medieval period, but in 1571 the Bishop of Salisbury ordered the church in Draycot to be demolished, as neither parish could sustain their own rectors any longer. As Chiseldon was the larger, Draycot was incorporated into that parish, and the materials from the church in Draycot were used to repair the church in Chiseldon. In 2017 a community governance review redrew the northern boundary of the parish to follow the M4, transferring the area to the north to the newly created

Central Swindon South Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

parish. This area included the former hamlet of Coate and the modern housing development of Badbury Park, on the southeastern edge of Swindon.

Local government

As well as having its own elected parish council, Chiseldon also falls within the area of the

unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governme ...

, which is responsible for all significant local government functions.

Amenities

The village has a school, Chiseldon Primary School, which had 193 pupils in 2021. The village has a surgery, as well as two hotels one of which is

Chiseldon House Hotel Chiseldon House Hotel in Chiseldon, Wiltshire in England is a building of historical significance and is listed in the National Heritage List for England, National Heritage Register. It was built as a villa in the early 19th century for the Browne ...

, an attractive historic property. There are two pubs in the parish: the Patriot's Arms in the village, and the Plough Inn on the main road north of the village. There is also a social club. The Oddfellows Hall, Chisledon - geograph

The Oddfellows Hall, Chisledon - geograph

Local shops declined in the 20th century, like in many other villages, due to more people shopping in larger towns ( Swindon) rather than in the village. Current local shops include Chaplins (a small newsagent), a hairdresser, a small supermarket and a petrol garage. The small supermarket was an army barracks before it was converted into a shop. There a 3 bus routes that operate 80, 81 & X5. All of which provide access to Swindon.

References

External links

Victoria County History, Wiltshire, Vol.9, 1970, Parishes: Chiseldon, pp.6-23

Chiseldon Parish Council

Ridgeway Benefice
{{authority control Villages in Wiltshire Civil parishes in Wiltshire Borough of Swindon