Stourton Caundle

Stourton Caundle
Village street, Stourton Caundle
Stourton Caundle is located in Dorset
Stourton Caundle
Stourton Caundle
Location within Dorset
Population439 
OS grid referenceST714152
Unitary authority
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townSturminster Newton
Postcode districtDT10
PoliceDorset
FireDorset and Wiltshire
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Dorset
50°56′03″N 2°24′28″W / 50.9343°N 2.4078°W / 50.9343; -2.4078

Stourton Caundle is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southwest England. It lies within the Blackmore Vale, about five miles (eight kilometres) east of Sherborne. In the 2011 census the parish had 181 households and a population of 439.[1]

Stourton Caundle is one of several settlements in the area to bear the name "Caundle", the others being Bishop's Caundle, Purse Caundle and Caundle Marsh. The origin of "Caundle" is uncertain.[2] In the Domesday Book in 1086 there are seven Domesday entries connected to the village, recorded as "Candelle", "Candel" or "Candele" in the hundred of Brunsell. The entries record a total of 45 households and a total taxable value of 17 geld units.[3] Sir Henry de Haddon, a lord from Northamptonshire, bought land and founded a manor here in 1202, and the resultant settlement was called "Caundel Haddon" [4] or "Caundle Haddon".[5] The Haddons retained the manor until 1461 when it passed to the Stourton family, which resulted in the current village name.[2]

The manor was on the west side of the main village street and was probably fortified, resulting in it being referred to as a 'castle',[6] though only a thirteenth-century chapel building (no longer used as such) and two fish ponds associated with the site now remain.[2][7]

Stourton Caundle's parish church is dedicated to St Peter and has a thirteenth-century nave and chancel, and a fourteenth-century tower.[8]

The village was once a venue for stave dancing.[9]

The village has a small pub called The Trooper, but villagers must travel to local town Stalbridge for other amenities.

Enid Blyton used Manor Farm as inspiration for her novel Five on Finniston Farm. She owned the farm for a short time in the late 1950s.[10]

  1. ^ "Area: Stourton Caundle (Parish). Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  2. ^ a b c North Dorset District Council (c. 1983). North Dorset Official District Guide. Home Publishing Co. Ltd. p. 49.
  3. ^ "Place: [Stourton] Caundle". Open Domesday. domesdaymap.co.uk. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  4. ^ Plea Rolls of the Court of Common Pleas; National Archives. CP 40 / 629; year: 1418;http://aalt.law.uh.edu/H5/CP40no629/aCP40no629fronts/IMG_0370.htm; first complete entry, with "Dors" in the margin. the name occurs in the first line: John Fox as chaplain
  5. ^ "Stourton Caundle A Brief History". stourtoncaundle.org. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
  6. ^ "Stourton Caundle Manor". gatehouse-gazetteer. 3 May 2013. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
  7. ^ Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Pathfinder Series, Sheet ST 61/71 "Sherborne and Sturminster Newton", 1985
  8. ^ "Stourton Caundle St Peter's Church". stourtoncaundle.org. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
  9. ^ Dommett, Roy. "Stave Dances". The Stave Dance Material. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
  10. ^ Shaw, Chris; Varndell, Colin (December 2008). "A glorious way to spend a Sunday afternoon". Dorset Life Magazine. Retrieved 6 February 2015.