Newent (; originally called "Noent") is a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...

and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the

Forest of Dean The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the Counties of England, county of Gloucestershire, England. It forms a roughly triangle, triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and no ...

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. The town is north-west of

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

. Its population was 5,073 at the 2001

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, rising to 5,207 in 2011, The population was 6,777 at the 2021 Census. Once a medieval market and fair town, its site had been settled at least since

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

times. The first written record of it appears in the 1086

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 ...

Etymology

Noent, Newent's original name, may have meant "new place" in Celtic. It also may mean "new inn", referring to lodgings for travellers to

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, according to John Leland (c. 1503–1552), who mentioned a house called ''New Inn'', later named ''The Boothall'', which provided lodging along the road to Wales. There was indeed such a house in Lewall Street, owned by members of the Richardson family in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Lewall Street runs between High Street and Court Lane, north of Broad Street.

Geography

Situated only 3 miles (4 km) east of the

Herefordshire Herefordshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England, bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh ...

border, Newent is on the northern edge of the

, within the

Forest of Dean District Forest of Dean is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in west Gloucestershire, England, named after the Forest of Dean. Its council is based in Coleford, Gloucestershire, Coleford. Other towns and villages in the district inc ...

. and south-east of the

River Wye The River Wye (; ) is the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn Estuary. The lower reaches of the river forms part of Wales-England bor ...

. The river was connected via Newent to Gloucester in the late 18th century by the 34-mile Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal.

History

Romano-British period

Roman road Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...

was laid between Newent and

Ariconium ''Ariconium'' was a road station of Roman Britain mentioned in Iter XIII of the ''Iter Britanniarum'' of the Antonine Itineraries. It was located at Bury Hill in the parish of Weston under Penyard, about east of Ross on Wye, Herefordshire, a ...

, near what is now

Ross-on-Wye Ross-on-Wye is a market town and civil parish in Herefordshire, England, near the border with Wales. It had a population estimated at 10,978 in 2021. It lies in the south-east of the county, on the River Wye and on the northern edge of the Fore ...

. Within of Newent, there were several metal-working sites used by the Romans. Further evidence of

Romano-British The Romano-British culture arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest in AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, ...

settlement occurs at 56 sites within of the town. Archaeological finds there include Roman coins and pottery near the town itself, Roman coins and treasure at Little Gorsley, and a settlement at Dymock.

Medieval period

The priory established in Newent was a cell of Cormeilles Abbey, founded in Normandy in 1060 by

William FitzOsbern, 1st Earl of Hereford William FitzOsbern, 1st Earl of Hereford, Lord of Breteuil ( 1011 – 22 February 1071), was a relative and close counsellor of William the Conqueror and one of the great magnates of early Norman England. FitzOsbern was created Earl of Herefo ...

. The abbey received an endowment from him that included the manor of Newent and surrounding woods, the church and its income, and other property he owned in England. The once Benedictine priory became part of the college of

Fotheringhay Fotheringhay is a village and civil parish in North Northamptonshire, England. It is north-east of Oundle and around west of Peterborough. It is most noted for being the site of Fotheringhay (or Fotheringay) Castle which was razed in 1627. ...

after the suppression of alien priories during the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

with France. Its site is now occupied by the Court House, adjacent to the parish church. The

records that in 1066 the lord of Noemt (Newent) had been

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was King of England from 1042 until his death in 1066. He was the last reigning monarch of the House of Wessex. Edward was the son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy. He succeede ...

. Twenty years later the

tenant-in-chief In medieval and early modern Europe, a tenant-in-chief (or vassal-in-chief) was a person who held his lands under various forms of feudal land tenure directly from the king or territorial prince to whom he did homage, as opposed to holding them ...

and one of the lords was Cormeilles Abbey. Other lords were Durand of Gloucester (brother of Roger de Pitres) and William son of Baderon ( William fitzBaderon). Newent, with 34.5 households, was located within the Botloe Hundred of Gloucestershire. There were 10 villagers, 19 smallholders, four serfs and one reeve. There were also four lord's plough teams, 19 men's plough teams, and three mills. Henry III approved an annual fair in 1226 and additionally allowed for a weekly market, which began in 1253. The town still has a

half-timbered Timber framing () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy Beam (structure), timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and Woodworking joints, joined timbers with joints secure ...

market house.

St Mary's

The

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a

Grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

located in Church Street. It dates from the 13th century, but the site had been occupied since the Anglo-Saxon period. The important 9th-century Newent Cross, which was found buried in the churchyard in 1907, now stands in the porch of the church, and has Old Testament scenes carved on three sides of the shaft: the Fall of Adam and Eve, David killing Goliath, and Abraham sacrificing his son Isaac; the fourth panel shows birds and animals. St Mary's church has stained glass windows from the famed company of

Clayton and Bell Clayton and Bell was one of the most prolific and proficient British workshops of stained-glass windows during the latter half of the 19th century and early 20th century. The partners were John Richard Clayton (1827–1913) and Alfred Bell (1832� ...

. Set on a tower with a ring of eight bells is an spire. The church organ was built in 1737 by Thomas Warne, a resident of the town.

19th century

In 1848, Newent had a population of 3,099, of whom 1,454 people lived in the town itself. This was fewer than in earlier periods. There were mineral springs near the canal. The Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal between Gloucester and

Ledbury Ledbury is a market town and civil parish in the county of Herefordshire, England, lying east of Hereford, and west of the Malvern Hills. It has a significant number of Tudor style timber-framed structures, in particular along Church Lane a ...

closed on 30 June 1881 and the section between Ledbury and Gloucester was converted into a railway line. The line opened on 27 July 1885 as a branch of the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...

. It closed in 1959, but the canal is now being restored.)

Survivals

Newent's many historical buildings include a stilted Market House and several other black-and-white, half-timbered buildings typical of Gloucestershire and

. Behind Church Street, an erstwhile museum of Victorian life called the Shambles took the form of a replica 19th-century street. The shops are now occupied by real traders. Historic England lists over 50 town-centre buildings and monuments, including most of Church Street and the Devonia in High Street, a Grade II-listed house of the

Georgian period The Georgian era was a period in British history from 1714 to , named after the Hanoverian kings George I, George II, George III and George IV. The definition of the Georgian era is also often extended to include the relatively short reign ...

. The early 18th-century Court House, standing in a small park by the parish church, occupies the site of the ancient priory and is reputed to contain its foundations. Its historic features include a fine Rococo plaster ceiling and several completely panelled rooms. It was restored by R. V. Morris, Chairman of Gloucester Civic Trust.

Transport

The nearest railway station is away at

on the

Cotswold Line The Cotswold Line is an railway line between and in England. History Early years The line between Oxford and Worcester was built under an 1845 Act of Parliament and opened in 1851 as part of the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway ...

;

is away, on the Gloucester–Newport line and also has services to Birmingham, Bristol and London. Bus routes through the town connect it to Ross, Ledbury and Gloucester, such as the 32 to Gloucester, which also serves

twice a day to transport students to and from John Kyrle High School. The "Daffodil Line" service 232, operated by DRM Bus, runs between Ross-on-Wye and Ledbury via Newent, serving those parts of the 32 and 132 no longer operated by Stagecoach West. There are also "market day" services to

Hereford Hereford ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of the ceremonial county of Herefordshire, England. It is on the banks of the River Wye and lies east of the border with Wales, north-west of Gloucester and south-west of Worcester. With ...

operated by Nick Maddy Coaches. These run one return trip on Wednesdays (457) and Saturdays (456)., Newent used to be served by Newent railway station on the Ledbury and Gloucester Railway, which opened in 1885, opposite what is now the fire station. It was closed to passengers in 1959 and for freight traffic in 1964. The buttresses of the Station Bridge can be seen in Old Station Road.

Outdoor attractions

Newent is near a

National Birds of Prey Centre The International Centre for Birds of Prey (ICBP), formerly the National Birds of Prey Centre, in the United Kingdom houses a large collection of bird of prey, birds of prey with over 60 species of owls, eagles and hawks. It works towards the c ...

, just east of the neighbouring village of Cliffords Mesne, and a vineyard, the Three Choirs. It is at the centre of the Golden Triangle, so-called after the

daffodil ''Narcissus'' is a genus of predominantly spring flowering perennial plants of the amaryllis family, Amaryllidaceae. Various common names including daffodil,The word "daffodil" is also applied to related genera such as '' Sternbergia'', '' ...

s in the surrounding area. The town's Onion Fayre included competitions for growing onions and for eating them. It dated from 1996 as a revival of an agricultural fair suspended about the time of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. It claimed to be Gloucestershire's largest free, one-day festival, with up to 15,000 visitors on the second Saturday in September. The fair was cancelled in 2022 after being unable to restore support after it was not held for two years because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The arts

The town is home to an orchestra, founded in 1940, a choral society, and several other amateur musical and performing groups. Traditionally,

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the Northern Hemisphere's March equinox, spring equinox and midsummer June solstice, solstice. Festivities ma ...

was celebrated by

morris dancing Morris dancing is a form of English folk dance. It is based on rhythmic stepping and the execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers in costume, usually wearing bell pads on their shins, their shoes or both. A band or single musi ...

on the summit of nearby May Hill at dawn, after which the dancers would process into Newent. Between 2007 and 2014, a

Joe Meek Robert George "Joe" Meek (5 April 1929 – 3 February 1967) was an English record producer and songwriter considered one of the most influential sound engineers of all time, being one of the first to develop ideas such as the recording studio a ...

festival was held in venues around the town. Artist Paul Nash took a collection of photographs around Carswalls Farm, Upleadon, Newent in the late 1930s or early 1940s that are held in the archives of the

Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the UK ...

Education

Education commissioners in the reign of

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. The only surviving son of Henry VIII by his thi ...

(1547–53) noted the lack of schooling in Newent, then a market town with over 500 inhabitants, but "all the youth of a great distance there hence rudely brought up and in no manner of knowledge and learning, where were a place meet to... erect a school for the better and more godly bringing up of the same youth." Today's Newent has three schools, two of them federated, all within the town. The federated Glebe Infant School and Picklenash Junior School provides primary education. Newent Community School offers secondary and tertiary education to those aged 11 and up.

Media

Local news and television programmes are provided by

BBC West Midlands BBC Midlands is the BBC English Regions, BBC English Region producing local radio and World Wide Web, web content for the City of Birmingham, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Worcest ...

and

ITV Central ITV Central, previously known as Central Independent Television, Carlton Central, ITV1 for Central England and commonly referred to as simply Central, is the Independent Television franchisee in the English Midlands. It was created following ...

. Television signals are received from the Ridge Hill TV transmitter. The town is served by both

BBC Hereford & Worcester BBC Hereford & Worcester is the BBC's local radio station serving the counties of Herefordshire and Worcestershire, which were one county from 1974 to 1998. It broadcasts on FM, DAB, digital TV and online via BBC Sounds from studios on Hylt ...

and BBC Radio Gloucestershire. Other radio stations including Heart West, Greatest Hits Radio South West, and Dean Radio, a community radio station with broadcast to the

. The town's local newspaper is ''The Forester''.

Sports and recreation

*The town's football team, Newent Town AFC, plays in the Hellenic League System. It was promoted as Champions of the North Gloucester Premier League after winning the title on 14 May 2013. Newent Town also won the Northern Senior "Reg Davis" League Cup in 2015/2016 and 2016/2017. It then won the Hellenic Div 2 West at its first attempt in the 2017/2018 season. Its reserve team plays in the Hellenic League 2 West. There is a third team which plays in the North Gloucester League. At youth level, the Under 16s won the Cheltenham top division without losing a game in the 2016/2017 season. In the 2018/2019 season there were only Under 18s. The home pitch and club house are at Wildsmith Meadow.
Newent RFC
plays Rugby Union in the Gloucester Premier Division of the Rugby Football Union South West Division and is based at the recreation ground in Watery Lane. It was promoted as Champions of Division 1 on 22 April 2013.
Newent Cricket Club
plays in the Gloucestershire County Cricket League, Division 2. The club is located at Three Ashes Lane, just outside Newent. * is run by the Forest of Dean District Council within the grounds of Newent Community School. Its facilities include a gym, a multi-use indoor arena, a squash court and a swimming pool, along with tennis courts and an all-weather,

artificial turf Artificial turf is a surface of synthetic fibers made to look like natural grass, used in sports arenas, residential lawns and commercial applications that traditionally use grass. It is much more durable than grass and easily maintained wi ...

pitch for football and hockey. These are run by the adjacent Sports Bar.

Notable people

* Rutland Boughton – English composer – lived for much of his life at a house called Bevan's Hill, Kilcot, near Newent * Alex Cuthbert – the Wales rugby star – went to Newent Community School. He scored the decisive try in the 2012 Six Nations game, and two tries in the 30–3 win over England in the 2013 title-deciding game. Cuthbert was raised and schooled in England but was given his chance in international rugby by the Welsh Sevens team, after being overlooked by the England set-up. *

Charlotte Dujardin Charlotte Susan Jane Dujardin (born 13 July 1985) is a British dressage rider, equestrian, and writer. A multiple World and Olympic champion, Dujardin has been described as the dominant dressage rider of her era. In 2014 she held the complete se ...

– Gold Medal Winner in the Team Dressage and Individual Dressage events at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

in London – is based at Newent. * Stuart Fleetwood – a professional footballer currently playing for

Luton Town F.C. Luton Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club from Luton, Bedfordshire, England. The club currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "The Hatters", L ...

– attended Newent Community School and played for various Newent Youth Football teams. Fleetwood previously played for Cardiff and represented Wales at U21 and U23 levels. * Andi Gladwin – well-known magician who went to Newent Community School – has featured on '' Penn & Teller: Fool Us'', ''Next Great Magician'', '' Masters of Illusion'' and other shows. Gladwin is the author of several books on magic. *

Carl Hester Carl Hester (born 29 June 1967 in Cambridgeshire, England) is a British dressage rider competing at Olympic level. As of 8 August 2012, the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI) rank him 12th in the world riding Uthopia. In 2012, Hest ...

– Gold Medal Winner in the Team Dressage and Individual Dressage events at the

in London – is based at Newent. *

Vicky Holland Vicky Holland (born 12 January 1986) is a British former triathlete who was part of the Great Britain and Northern Ireland Olympic team. Holland was the 2018 World Triathlon champion, the fourth British woman to win the title. She was also t ...

– World Triathlon Champion 2018 – went to Newent Community School. She became the only female Triathlon Olympic medal winner (Bronze 2016). She is a twice World Mixed Team Champion. *

– record producer and songwriter – was born at 1 Market Square. He produced the 1962 number 1 hit 'Telstar' by

The Tornados The Tornados were an English instrumental rock group of the 1960s that acted as backing group for many of record producer Joe Meek's productions and also for singer Billy Fury. They enjoyed several chart hits in their own right, including ...

. He is buried at Newent Cemetery under a black granite tombstone. * Michael Steven Park (1966-2005) – a

rally Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Political demonstration, a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a North American school or college sporting event Sport ...

co-driver A co-driver is the navigator of a rally car in the sport of rallying, who sits in the front passenger seat. The co-driver's job is to navigate, commonly by reading off a set of pacenotes to the driver (what lies ahead, where to turn, the severity ...

, one of the top co-drivers of his generation – died as a result of injuries sustained in an

accident An accident is an unintended, normally unwanted event that was not deliberately caused by humans. The term ''accident'' implies that the event may have been caused by Risk assessment, unrecognized or unaddressed risks. Many researchers, insurers ...

on the final leg of Wales Rally Great Britain, when his Peugeot 307 WRC left the road and struck a tree. As co-driver to

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

n Markko Märtin, he enjoyed considerable success for three seasons at Ford before joining

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French automobile brand owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was established in 1810, making it the oldest car company in the world. On 20 November 1858, Émile Peugeot applie ...

for 2005.

Notes

References

External links

Newent Informationphotos of Newent and surrounding area on geograph
{{authority control Towns in Gloucestershire Civil parishes in Gloucestershire Forest of Dean Market towns in Gloucestershire