Hillesley is a village in
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...
, England. It was transferred from the county of
Avon in 1991 and is now in
Stroud District
Stroud District is a local government district in Gloucestershire, England. The district is named after its largest town of Stroud. The council is based at Ebley Mill in the district of Cainscross, west of central Stroud. The district also ...
. The village forms part of the civil parish of
Hillesley and Tresham
Hillesley and Tresham is a civil parish in the Stroud District of Gloucestershire, England. It had a population of 591 according to the 2001 census, decreasing to 391 at the 2011 census. The parish contains the villages of Hillesley and Tresham ...
. It is close to the
Cotswold Edge, near the
Cotswold Way and about south of the town of
Wotton under Edge ().
Until the 1980s the name of the village was spelt Hillsley.
History
In 972, Hillesley was recorded as ''Hildeslei'' (meaning "clearing belonging to Hild"), a
tything of the parish of
Hawkesbury. The village remained in the parish of Hawkesbury until the boundary changes of 1991. 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 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
of 1086 it is recorded as held by
Turstin FitzRolf.
Local amenities
Pevsner notes the following buildings: The local church is St Giles – it was designed in 1851 by the amateur, Rev. Perkins. The farmhouse is from the 17th century, and Yew Tree Cottage is dated 1701. The greyish-white limestone farmhouse known as "Lovettswood," a prominent landmark, takes its name from the
Lyvet family, who were lords of the manor of Hillesley in the 12th and 13th centuries.
The local pub is the ''Fleece Inn''. In July 2012, The Fleece Inn, after a short period of closure, was re-opened by the community. It was bought and re-furbished by The Hillesley Community Pub Limited which has over 120 local shareholders.
Village amenities include a primary school, the church, a playing field hosting cricket, a tennis court and club, allotments and a mother and toddler group. Until recent years, the village field hosted a successful football team, competing in local leagues.
In popular culture
In 1971 journalist
John Craven
John Raymond Craven (born 16 August 1940) is an English journalist and television presenter, best known for presenting the BBC programmes '' Newsround'', '' Countryfile'' and '' Beat the Brain''.
Early life
Craven was born in Leeds, West Rid ...
made a TV programme report about Hillesley; he revisited the village in 2023 for the TV programme ''
Countryfile'' to see how life in the village had changed over 52 years.
Notable residents
*
William Nicholson, Oscar-nominated screenwriter, whose family farmed in the village.
References
External links
Hillesley & Tresham Parish CouncilVillage pub website, with some history
Villages in Gloucestershire
Stroud District
{{Gloucestershire-geo-stub