The Hundred of Taunton Deane was one of the 40 historical Hundreds in the ancient county of

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 ...

, England, dating from before the

Norman conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

during the

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

era although exact dates are unknown. Each hundred had a 'fyrd', which acted as the local defence force and a court which was responsible for the maintenance of the

frankpledge Frankpledge was a system of joint suretyship common in England throughout the Early Middle Ages and High Middle Ages. The essential characteristic was the compulsory sharing of responsibility among persons connected in tithings. This unit, un ...

system. They also formed a unit for the collection of taxes. The role of the hundred court was described in the Dooms (laws) of King Edgar. The name of the hundred was normally that of its meeting-place. The Hundred of Taunton Deane consisted of the town of

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England. It is a market town and has a Minster (church), minster church. Its population in 2011 was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century priory, monastic foundation, owned by the ...

and the ancient parishes of: Angersleigh, West Bagborough,

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

Cheddon Fitzpaine Cheddon Fitzpaine is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated on the Quantock Hills north of Taunton. The village is situated near the Bristol and Exeter Railway, the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal, and the River Tone and has ...

, Combe Florey, Corfe,

Cothelstone Cothelstone is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated in the Quantock Hills six miles north of Taunton. The parish, which includes the hamlet of Toulton, has a population of 111. The view from Cothelstone with a telescope on ...

, Heathfield, Hillfarrance, Hull-Bishop's,

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

, Lydeard St. Lawrence,

Norton Fitzwarren Norton Fitzwarren is a village, electoral ward, and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated north west of Taunton. The village has a population of 3,046. History The village is on the southern slope of Norton Camp, a large hillfort that s ...

, Nynehead, Oake,

Orchard Portman Orchard Portman is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated south of Taunton. The village has a population of 150. The parish includes the hamlet of Thurlbear and the nearby Thurlbear Wood and Quarrylands Site of Special Scie ...

, Otterford, Pitminster, Ruishton, Staplegrove, Stoke St. Mary, Tolland,

Trull Trull is a village, Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom, electoral ward and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Somerset, England, situated near Taunton. The parish, which includes Dipford and Staplehay, has a population ...

, Wilton, and Withiel Florey. The parish of Rimpton was added to the hundred in about 1735, although it was some distance from the rest of the hundred. In 1871 it covered an area of . Much of the Hundred fell into the great manor of Taunton Deane, which was the property of the

Bishop of Winchester The Bishop of Winchester is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Winchester in the Church of England. The bishop's seat (''cathedra'') is at Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire. The Bishop of Winchester has always held ''ex officio'' the offic ...

. The manor was divided into three separate organisational divisions; the borough of Taunton, the outlying rural parishes which was known as the Liberty or Outfaring and an inner ring lying between the borough and the rural parishes known as the Infaring. The name derives from

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

('valley'), meaning "valley by Taunton", and survived in the name

Taunton Deane Taunton Deane was a Non-metropolitan district, local government district with borough status in Somerset, England. Its council was based in Taunton. The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, by a merger of ...

, a

local government district Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...

with

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

status. The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

, by a merger of the Municipal Borough of Taunton, Wellington Urban District,

Taunton Rural District Taunton was a rural district in Somerset, England, from 1894 to 1974. It was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894. In 1974 it was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 when it became part of Taunton Deane district. The ...

, and Wellington Rural District. Taunton Deane was granted

borough status Borough status is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or inhabitants of the district. In Scotland, si ...

in 1975, perpetuating the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

alty of Taunton. The importance of the hundred courts declined from the seventeenth century. By the 19th century several different single-purpose subdivisions of counties, such as

poor law union A poor law union was a geographical territory, and early local government unit, in Great Britain and Ireland. Poor law unions existed in England and Wales from 1834 to 1930 for the administration of poor relief. Prior to the Poor Law Amendment ...

sanitary district Sanitary districts were established in England and Wales in 1872 and in Ireland in 1878. The districts were of two types, based on existing structures: *Urban sanitary districts in towns with existing local government bodies *Rural sanitary dis ...

s, and

highway district Highway districts were areas in England and Wales united for the maintenance and repair of highways. They were first formed in 1862 and consisted of groupings of civil parishes in rural areas. They were abolished in 1894 when their powers and dutie ...

s sprang up, filling the administrative role previously played by parishes and hundreds. Although the Hundreds have never been formally abolished, their functions ended with the establishment of county courts in 1867 and the introduction of

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

by the

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The act followed the reforms carried out at county leve ...

References

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