Place:Kingsdon, Somerset, England

Watchers
NameKingsdon
TypeAncient parish, Civil parish
Coordinates51.036°N 2.693°W
Located inSomerset, England
See alsoSomerton Hundred, Somerset, Englandhundred in which it was located
Langport Rural, Somerset, Englandrural district 1894-1974
South Somerset District, Somerset, Englanddistrict council covering the area since 1974
the text in this section is based on an article in Wikipedia

Kingsdon (#20 on map) is a civil parish and a village in Somerset, England, situated 3 miles (4.8 km) southeast of Somerton (#27). The village had a population of 303 in the UK census of 2011, but this is set to rise to around 350 once the Kingsdon Manor development is complete. The majority of the houses in the village are clustered on the side of the hill from which there are scenic views across the Somerset countryside.

Many of the old buildings and houses in the village are protected with Grade 2 listed building status and the centre is also a conservation area. Recently-built houses have been faced with Blue Lias stone to ensure that they blend in suitably to the village. Some buildings are thatched, including the Kingsdon Inn.

The village is situated near the Fosse Way Roman road. Two Roman villas were excavated in the village in the 19th century, but nothing remains of them today.

The village name is derived from Kingsdon Hill which is in the northwest of the parish and reflects its history as part of the royal estate of Somerton at the time of the Norman Conquest of 1066. The manor was granted to the Gouvis family by 1194, and in 1528, bought by Thomas Arundell (1502-1552) of Wardour Castle in Wiltshire, whose descendants held it until it was sold to Aaron Moody in 1801.

Image:Langport Rural 1900 small.png

Governance

Kingsdon was a parish in the Somerton Hundred, one of the hundreds or early subdivisions of the county of Somerset. From 1894 until 1974 it was part of the Langport Rural District.

In 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, all urban and rural districts across England were abolished and counties were reorganized into metropolitan and non-metropolitan districts. Kingsdon has been in the non-metropolitan South Somerset District since 1974.

Research Tips

  • GENUKI page on Kingsdon.
  • An article on Kingsdon from the Victoria History of the Counties of England – History of the County of Somerset], produced by The Institute of Historical Research.
  • The Somerset Heritage Centre (incorporating what was formerly the Somerset Record Office and the Somerset Local Studies Library) can be found at its new location at Langford Mead in Taunton. It has an online search facility leading to pages of interest, including maps from the First and Second Ordnance Survey (select "Maps and Postcards" from the list at the left, then enter the parish in the search box).
    The Heritage Centre has an email address: archives@somerset.gov.uk.
  • Three maps on the A Vision of Britain through Time website illustrate the changes in political boundaries over the period 1830-1945. All have expanding scales and on the second and third this facility is sufficient that individual parishes can be inspected.
  • Somerset Hundreds as drawn in 1832. This map was prepared before The Great Reform Act of that year. Note the polling places and representation of the various parts of the county.
  • Somerset in 1900, an Ordnance Survey map showing rural districts, the boundaries of the larger towns, the smaller civil parishes of the time, and some hamlets and villages in each parish
  • Somerset in 1943, an Ordnance Survey map showing the rural districts after the changes to their structure in the 1930s
This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original content was at Kingsdon, Somerset. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with WeRelate, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.