Stoodleigh is a village 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

Mid Devon Mid Devon is a local government district in Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, t ...

district of

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, England, located north of Tiverton and south of Bampton. It is situated above the Exe Valley, close to the

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

border. The centre of the village is a

conservation area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewoo ...

."About Stoodleigh"
Stoodleigh.org In the past it formed part of Witheridge Hundred and it is within the

Tiverton Deanery Tiverton most often refers to: *Tiverton, Devon, a town in England __NOTOC__ Tiverton may also refer to: Canada *Tiverton, Ontario, a village *Tiverton, Nova Scotia, a village known for its "Balancing Rock" United Kingdom *Tiverton, Cheshire, a vi ...

of 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, ...

Castle Close

Castle Close is a circular earthwork, close to Stoodleigh, that is most likely to be an

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

Hill fort A hillfort is a type of fortification, fortified refuge or defended settlement located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typical of the late Bronze Age Europe, European Bronze Age and Iron Age Europe, Iron Age. So ...

or enclosure.

Church of St Margaret's

The Church of St Margaret's was constructed in the 15th century and was extensively restored in 1782. It contains a Norman font which is likely to have come from an earlier church in the parish where the first recorded incumbent was installed in 1264.

Stoodleigh Beacon

Stoodleigh

Beacon A beacon is an intentionally conspicuous device designed to attract attention to a specific location. A common example is the lighthouse, which draws attention to a fixed point that can be used to navigate around obstacles or into port. More mode ...

is situated about 2 miles west of Stoodleigh village. It was anciently known as ''Warbrighsleigh'', ''Warbrightley'', ''Warpsley'', etc., also the name of the high hill on which it stood. The beacon was ordered to be set up by King

Edward II Edward II (25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327), also known as Edward of Caernarfon or Caernarvon, was King of England from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir to the throne follo ...

(1307–1327) "when he doubted of the landing of his queen

Isabel Isabel is a female name of Iberian origin. Isabelle is a name that is similar, but it is of French origin. It originates as the medieval Spanish form of ''Elizabeth (given name), Elisabeth'' (ultimately Hebrew ''Elisheba''). Arising in the 12th c ...

and Sir

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

(''sic'') of Henold" ( Risdon) This refers to Isabel's Invasion of England in 1326, having betrothed her son Prince Edward to

Philippa of Hainault Philippa of Hainault (sometimes spelled Hainaut; Middle French: ''Philippe de Hainaut''; 24 June 1310 (or 1315) – 15 August 1369) was List of English consorts, Queen of England as the wife and political adviser of King Edward III. She acted a ...

, the daughter of

William I, Count of Hainaut William the Good (, ; – 7 June 1337) was count of Hainaut (as William I), Avesnes, Holland (as William III), and Zeeland (as William II) from 1304 to his death. Career William, born , was the son of John II, Count of Hainaut, and Philipp ...

, from whom she received a substantial dowry and several warships. In the 16th and 17th centuries the estate of Warbrighsleigh, etc., was the seat of the Broughton family.Vivian, p. 111

References

External links

{{Mid Devon Villages in Mid Devon District Civil parishes in Devon