Coombe is a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depi ...

of the

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 ...

of Enford,

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, about north of the cathedral city of Salisbury. It lies on the River Avon between the larger villages of Enford and

Netheravon Netheravon is a village and civil parish on the River Avon and A345 road, about north of the town of Amesbury in Wiltshire, South West England. It is within Salisbury Plain. The village is on the right (west) bank of the Avon, opposite Fittl ...

, with nearly half of its houses on the road connecting the two and the remainder in Coombe Lane.

History

The history of Coombe is poorly documented, but an early reference to it dates back to the year 934, when Coombe, along with the

manor Manor may refer to: Land ownership *Manorialism or "manor system", the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of medieval Europe, notably England *Lord of the manor, the owner of an agreed area of land (or "manor") under manorialism *Man ...

s of Enford, Fifield, Littlecott and Longstreet was granted by Athelstan to

Winchester Cathedral The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". '' National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winche ...

as a single estate of thirty

hides __NOTOC__ Hide or hides may refer to: Common uses * Hide (skin), the cured skin of an animal * Bird hide, a structure for observing birds and other wildlife without causing disturbance * Gamekeeper's hide or hunting hide or hunting blind, a stru ...

. Coombe was part of the

Bishop of Winchester The Bishop of Winchester is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Winchester in the Church of England. The bishop's seat ('' cathedra'') is at Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire. The Bishop of Winchester has always held '' ex officio'' (except ...

's hundred of 'Elstub', together with the larger settlements of Enford,

and Fittleton. It is thought that since the name of the neighbouring hamlet of 'Fifield' translates as 'five hides', Coombe, of similar size, may also have been valued at five

at the time of 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 ...

. Since its foundation, Coombe has probably never grown much beyond the small hamlet that it is today, although no buildings survive from the earliest times. The foundations of a small chapel-of-ease dating from the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

are still said to be visible, although the chapel is thought to have fallen out of use in the 15th century.

Amenities

The

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activitie ...

and the nearest pub, ''The Swan'', are at Enford.

Economy

Since the only working farm was razed to make way for a small housing development in the late 1990s, Coombe has no industries and has become a commuter village, although the proliferation of the internet has allowed some people to work from home. A significant proportion of the population are, or have been, employed by the Ministry of Defence, due to Coombe's situation in the

Salisbury Plain Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in the south western part of central southern England covering . It is part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England formed by the rocks of the Chalk Group and largely lies w ...

Training Area (SPTA) and near to several

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

camps and headquarters.

Tourism

Situated between

Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, topped by connecting ...

and

Avebury Avebury () is a Neolithic British Isles, Neolithic henge monument containing three stone circles, around the village of Avebury (village), Avebury in Wiltshire, in southwest England. One of the best known prehistoric sites in Britain, it conta ...

, Coombe has several tourist attractions. The east end of Coombe Lane is the site of two

tumuli A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or '' kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones b ...

, which could be up to 5,000 years old. Nearby fields have been the site of a number of archeological digs, including one by the television programme '' Time Team'' around three miles to the east. The River Avon bridge crossing is a popular site for families on hot summer days due to its easy bathing access.

Media

Local events, village politics and sports are covered by the Enford Newsletter, based in Coombe Lane.

Nearby settlements

* Enford *

Amesbury Amesbury () is a town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It is known for the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge which is within the parish. The town is claimed to be the oldest occupied settlement in Great Britain, having been first sett ...

* Salisbury * Pewsey

References

Enford Concise History
at Wiltshire Community History

External links

Enford village newsletter
at enfordnewsletter.org {{Commons category-inline, Coombe, Enford Hamlets in Wiltshire