Wikipedia

Draycot Cerne

Draycot Cerne (Draycott) is a small village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Sutton Benger, in Wiltshire, England, about 3 miles (5 km) north of Chippenham.

Draycot Cerne
Church of St James
Draycot Cerne is located in Wiltshire
Draycot Cerne
Draycot Cerne
Location within Wiltshire
OS grid referenceST934787
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townCHIPPENHAM
Postcode districtSN15
Dialling code01249
PoliceWiltshire
FireDorset and Wiltshire
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Wiltshire
51°30′23″N 2°05′44″W / 51.50639°N 2.09556°W / 51.50639; -2.09556

History

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The parish was referred to as Draicote (Medieval Latin) in the ancient Domesday hundred of Startley when Geoffrey de Venoix ("the Marshal")[1] was lord and tenant-in-chief in 1086.[2] The morpheme dray is common in England's place names, yet unused elsewhere in the English language, so is considered an ancient Celtic word. By the 14th century, the old village was known as Draycot Cerne, in part to differentiate it from similarly named villages in other areas of England. The suffix Cerne is the French surname of the lords of the manor.[3][4]

The ancient parish of Draycot Cerne comprised three manors: Draycot Cerne, Knabwell (or Nables) and a detached part to the southeast at Avon, near Kellaways.[5] The old village of Draycot Cerne (also known in the 19th century as Lower Draycot), close to the church and Draycot House, was removed by Henry Wellesley, 1st Earl Cowley after 1865 and Upper Draycot was renamed Draycot Cerne. All of the cottages and farms of Draycot Cerne were within the Draycot Estate, belonging to Draycot House.

In 1931 the civil parish had a population of 113.[6] The parish of Draycot Cerne, together with Seagry parish to its north, was added to Sutton Benger civil parish on 1 April 1934.[7] In 1971 all land north of the newly built M4 motorway, including part of the former Draycot parish, was transferred to a recreated Seagry parish.[5]

Former parish church

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Main article: St James's Church, Draycot Cerne

St James's Church, a Grade II* listed building, was built around 1260 and has a 16th-century tower.[8] It was declared redundant in 1994 and is now in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.[9]

The benefice was united with Seagry in 1939[10] but in 1954 the union was dissolved,[11] and for church purposes the village is now within the parish of Kington Langley.[5]

Draycot House

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A medieval manor has occupied the site since the 14th century.[5] Old Draycot House was probably built for John Long in the mid 15th century. The house was extensively re-modelled, over the years, by the Long family. In 1773–75 Sir James Tylney-Long (1736-1794) added a new south front, and east and west wings around the core of the medieval manor.[12][13] Further work was undertaken in 1784, including the design of a ceiling by James Wyatt,[14] with one of his pupils, and again, in 1864, after Lord Cowley's inheritance.[15] The house was demolished in 1952–4.[16]

The Long family of Draycot Cerne

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The following family members were active in English politics:

Between 1412 and 1610, the Long family held Draycot House jointly with South Wraxall Manor, near Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire.

Other members:

The Draycot Estate

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The Draycot Estate covered 4,300 acres (17 km2) at its most, covering as landlord (with some principal demesne, i.e. private parkland) all but a small minority of land (remaining commons, rectories, vicarages and glebelands) of Draycot Cerne, Kellaways, Sutton Benger and Seagry, parts of Startley, Little Somerford, Christian Malford and Kington Langley.[17] It was the third-largest holding of the Tylney-Long baronets.[17]

Notable people

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  • John Buckeridge (c. 1562–1631), theologian, was born in Draycot Cerne.[18]
  • John Aubrey (1626–1697), antiquary, natural philosopher and writer, was a frequent visitor to old Draycot House.[17] His biography, by Ruth Scurr, was illustrated on the front cover with a watercolour of Aubrey and Sir James Long, 2nd Baronet of Draycot hunting together.[19] Some of the correspondence between Aubrey and Sir James Long, at the Bodleian Library, is published in Early Modern Letters Online.[20] Other letters were directed to Aubrey via Robert Hooke at Gresham College.[21]
  • John Britton (1771–1857), antiquary, was educated at Draycot House school, although he later complained about the quality of the teaching.[17]
  • Francis Kilvert (1840–1879), the diarist, was a frequent visitor to Draycot Cerne.[22][23]
  • Henry Wellesley, 1st Earl Cowley inherited the former Long family estate of Draycot Cerne in 1863 from his cousin the 5th Earl of Mornington, and lived there in retirement until his death in 1884.
  • Prince Franz von Hatzfeldt-Wildenburg of the House of Hatzfeld and his wife, Clara, leased Draycot House between 1896 and 1915. He was the owner of Ascetic's Silver, the winner of the 1906 Grand National. She was the adopted daughter of the American billionaire Collis Potter Huntington.[17]

Further reading

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  • Nicol, Cheryl (2016). Inheriting the Earth: The Long Family's 500 Year Reign in Wiltshire. Warminster: Hobnob Press. ISBN 978-1906978372. OCLC 1007842988.
  • Couzens, Tim (2001). Hand of Fate: The History of the Longs, Wellesleys and the Draycot Estate in Wiltshire. Bradford on Avon: ELSP. OCLC 49204947.

References

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  1. ^ RootsWeb: Geoffrey de Venoix le Marshal, accessed June 2017
  2. ^ Draycot Cerne in the Domesday Book
  3. ^ The Place Names of Wiltshire (English Place-Name Society), pp. 69-70, 72-73.
  4. ^ 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. 23, page 862.
  5. ^ a b c d Baggs, A.P.; Freeman, Jane; Stevenson, Janet H (1991). Crowley, D.A. (ed.). "Victoria County History: Wiltshire: Vol 14 pp75-82 – Parishes: Draycot Cerne". British History Online. University of London. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  6. ^ "Population statistics Draycot Cerne CP/AP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  7. ^ "Relationships and changes Draycot Cerne CP/AP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  8. ^ Historic England. "Church of St James (1200500)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  9. ^ "St James' Church, Draycot Cerne, Wiltshire". The Churches Conservation Trust. Retrieved 29 May 2017.
  10. ^ "No. 34643". The London Gazette. 7 July 1939. p. 4652.
  11. ^ "No. 40149". The London Gazette. 16 April 1954. pp. 2286–2287.2286-2287&rft.date=1954-04-16&rft_id=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/40149/page/2286&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Draycot Cerne" class="Z3988">
  12. ^ WSA 190:1
  13. ^ Draycot House, by Geraldine Roberts, accessed June 2017
  14. ^ "James Wyatt | Ceiling Design for Draycot Cerne, Wiltshire". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
  15. ^ WSA 1001/1-7
  16. ^ "Draycot House | England's Lost Country Houses".
  17. ^ a b c d e Hand of Fate. The History of the Longs, Wellesleys and the Draycot Estate in Wiltshire. Tim Couzens 2001 OCLC 49204947
  18. ^ "RBH Biography: John Buckeridge, Bishop of Rochester (1562-1631)".
  19. ^ "Ruth Scurr - Writer, Historian & Literary Critic - Error". Archived from the original on 12 August 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  20. ^ "Early Modern Letters Online : Results".
  21. ^ Bodleian Library Ref MS Aubrey 12 ff. 267-268. 16 July 1676.
  22. ^ "Ct-christmas1870".
  23. ^ "How Did You Spend Christmas?". Wiltshire & Swindon History Centre. 29 December 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
 
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