The River Tarrant is a 12 km long tributary of the
River Stour in
Dorset
Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...
. The valley lies to the east of
Blandford Forum
Blandford Forum ( ) is a market town in Dorset, England, on the River Stour, Dorset, River Stour, north-west of Poole. It had a population of 10,355 at the United Kingdom 2021 census, 2021 census.
The town is notable for its Georgian archit ...
. The river rises near
Cranborne Chase
Cranborne Chase () is an area of central southern England, straddling the counties Dorset, Hampshire and Wiltshire. It is part of the Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
The area is dominated by, ...
, an area of
chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Ch ...
downland
Downland, chalkland, chalk downs or just downs are areas of open chalk hills, such as the North Downs. This term is used to describe the characteristic landscape in southern England where chalk is exposed at the surface. The name "downs" is deriv ...
, and flows broadly from north to south before joining the river Stour. The eight Tarrant Valley villages/hamlets all bear the name of the river. Listed in order from the river's source they are:
*
Tarrant Gunville
Tarrant Gunville is a village and civil parish in north Dorset, England, situated at the head of the Tarrant Valley on Cranborne Chase northeast of Blandford Forum. The parish covers at an elevation of . In the 2011 census the parish—which ...
: the source of the river is in the grounds of Gunville House, now demolished. The parish church is dedicated to St Mary.
*
Tarrant Hinton
Tarrant Hinton is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Counties of England, county of Dorset in southern England. It is situated in the Tarrant Valley, approximately northeast of Blandford Forum. In 2013 the estimated pop ...
: a village at a crossroads. The parish church is dedicated to St Mary.
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Tarrant Launceston
Tarrant Launceston is a small village and civil parish in north Dorset, England, situated in the Tarrant Valley northeast of Blandford Forum. The parish includes part of Blandford Camp to the west and a few buildings on the northern edge of nei ...
: a
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...
with a 17th-century three-arched bridge. The church, dedicated to St Mary, was demolished in the 1700s (the site is on Higher Dairy Farm). Now part of the parish of Tarrant Monkton.
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Tarrant Monkton
Tarrant Monkton is a village and civil parish in north Dorset, England, situated in the Tarrant Valley about east-northeast of Blandford Forum. Within the parish boundary, over hills to the west, lies the major part of Blandford Camp army b ...
: a village with a parish church dedicated to All Saints.
*
Tarrant Rawston: a very small settlement. This once had a parish church dedicated to St Mary, which still exists and is in private ownership but remains as a church.
*
Tarrant Rushton
Tarrant Rushton is a village and civil parish in north Dorset, England. The village is situated in the Tarrant Valley about east of Blandford Forum. In 2013 the civil parish had an estimated population of 80. Starting in the north east the pari ...
: a village with a parish church dedicated to St Mary. Near here was a
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
RAF airfield.
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Tarrant Keyneston
Tarrant Keyneston is a village and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is situated in the Tarrant Valley, southeast of Blandford Forum. In the 2011 census the parish had 152 dwellings, 145 households and a population of 310.
On the hills nor ...
: this is the largest village of the eight; it has a parish church dedicated to All Saints.
*
Tarrant Crawford
__NOTOC__
Tarrant Crawford is a small village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish at the lower end of the River Tarrant, Tarrant Valley in Dorset, England. The River Tarrant joins the larger River Stour, Dorset, River Stour here. The vi ...
, the final settlement, lies at the confluence of the rivers Tarrant and Stour. Here there is the church of
St Mary the Virgin held by the
Churches Conservation Trust
The Churches Conservation Trust is a registered charity whose purpose is to protect historic churches at risk in England. The charity cares for over 350 churches of architectural, cultural and historic significance, which have been transferred in ...
and Tarrant Abbey farm, where once stood a nunnery. Tarrant Crawford became part of the parish of Tarrant Keyneston.
There were possibly one or two other Tarrant communities:
* Tarrant Stubhampton, north of Tarrant Gunville and part of that parish: This is now known as Stubhampton, part of the parish of Tarrant Gunville. In the Middle Ages, a church existed in that village. This is the source of the Tarrant.
* Tarrant Antioch which may have been an earlier name for Tarrant Rawston, or may have been a distinct community just north of Tarrant Rawston. Tarrant Antioch was served by St Mary Tarrant Crawford, where there was a devotion to St Margaret of Antioch.
* Tarrant Preston, now Preston Farm
University of Nottingham Survey of English Place-Names
A 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 ...
followed the valley and there are many tumuli
A tumulus (: tumuli) is a mound of Soil, earth and Rock (geology), stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, mounds, howes, or in Siberia and Central Asia as ''kurgans'', and may be found through ...
on the hills on both sides of the river, evidence of long occupation.
References
External links
*
Article on Tarrant Valley
Rivers of Dorset
1Tarrant
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