Stratford-sub-Castle in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, England, was anciently a separate 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 ...

, but is now in

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

. At approximately 170 ft above sea level, it is dominated to the east by the remains of 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 ...

hillfort 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 ...

, within the boundaries of which a Norman castle was built. This now-ruined castle led to the village taking the name Stratford-under-Castle, later changing to Stratford sub Castle. Stratford lies south-west of the abandoned medieval settlement of

Old Sarum Old Sarum, in Wiltshire, South West England, is the ruined and deserted site of the earliest settlement of Salisbury. Situated on a hill about north of modern Salisbury near the A345 road, the settlement appears in some of the earliest recor ...

which was also built within the area of the hillfort. The oldest building in the area is the Church of St Lawrence, which dates from the 13th century and is a

Grade I listed 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 ...

building. The west tower was restored by

Thomas Pitt Thomas Pitt (5 July 1653 – 28 April 1726) was an English merchant, colonial administrator and politician who served as the president of Fort St. George from 1698 to 1709. Born in Blandford Forum, Dorset, he eventually went to the Indian ...

in 1711. A section of the churchyard contains war graves from World War I and World War II that are looked after by the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

. Before his conversion to

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

ism, the hymnist

Edward Caswall Edward Caswall, CO, (15 July 1814 – 2 January 1878) was a clergyman and hymn writer who converted to Catholicism and became an Oratorian priest. His more notable hymns include: "Alleluia! Alleluia! Let the Holy Anthem Rise"; "Come, Holy Ghos ...

served as a

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () of souls of a parish. In this sense, ''curate'' means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy who are as ...

. In 1951 the civil parish had a population of 256. On 1 April 1954 the parish was abolished: the village and the site of Old Sarum were brought within the city, and the rest was merged with

Laverstock Laverstock is a village and civil parish on the north-east and east outskirts of Salisbury in the ceremonial county of Wiltshire, England. The parish is shaped like a figure 7 and incorporates Ford hamlet, the eastern half of the former manor of ...

. Stratford-sub-Castle cannot expand to the east or the west, being bounded by Old Sarum on one side and the River Avon on the other: it has thus become a

linear settlement A linear settlement is a (normally small to medium-sized) settlement or group of buildings that is formed in a long line. Many of these settlements are formed along a transport route, such as a road, river, or canal. Others form due to physical r ...

. There is a primary school; the nearest secondary school to the village is

South Wilts Grammar School South Wilts Grammar School, formerly South Wilts Grammar School for Girls, is a grammar school in Salisbury, south Wiltshire, England, for pupils aged 11 to 18. Established in 1927, the school converted to an academy in 2011. In 2020, the name ...

, a five-minute walk away from the southern boundary of Stratford sub Castle, on Stratford Road.

Areas within the ward

Stratford-sub-castle is in the St Francis and Stratford ward. Arguably the boundary between the two is the

A345 road The A345 is a secondary A road in Wiltshire, England running from Salisbury to Marlborough and the A4. The road is a main south–north link across Salisbury Plain, which is renowned for its rich archaeology, and passes many ancient points of ...

with Stratford-sub-castle to the west and St Francis to the east. Nowadays, the two areas are prosperous, largely residential suburbs north of the

A36 road The A36 is a trunk road and primary route in southwest England that links the port city of Southampton to the city of Bath. At Bath, the A36 connects with the A4 to Bristol, thus providing a road link between the major ports of Southampton an ...

. The ward of St Francis and Stratford is the least ethnically diverse ward in Salisbury being 94.5% White British in 2011, out of the ward's population which was 5,586. Also within the ward is the suburb of Paul's Dene which is a housing estate and terminus of a Salisbury Reds bus route. Paul's Dene is on the northern edge of Salisbury, being north-east of Stratford-sub-castle and north of St Francis. Main amenities in the ward are Hudson's Field, Old Sarum historic monument, Mawarden Court, Victoria Park and Five Rivers leisure centre. A historical feature formerly within the area was the recently demolished Salisbury gasholder on Coldharbour Lane, to the north of the A36 Salisbury ring road. Built in 1928, it was taken apart in 2017 by Southern Gas because of high maintenance costs and some local residents considering it an eyesore. The ruins of

, managed by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

, lie within the boundaries of Stratford sub Castle. A modern housing and industrial development, confusingly also known as Old Sarum, is further to the east and outside the Salisbury city boundary.

References

External links

Village website
{{authority control Villages in Wiltshire Geography of Salisbury Former civil parishes in Wiltshire