Batcombe, Somerset
| Batcombe | |
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 Church of St Mary the Virgin, Batcombe |
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 Batcombe
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| Batcombe shown within Somerset | |
| Population | 439 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | ST695395 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | SHEPTON MALLET |
| Postcode district | BA4 |
| Dialling code | 01749 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
Batcombe is a village and civil parish in the Mendip District of Somerset, England, situated in the steep valley of the River Alham five miles south-east of Shepton Mallet. The parish has a population of 439. Batcombe village is at the heart of the parish, which also includes the hamlets of Westcombe, Spargrove and Eastcombe (historically Ashcombe).
The name Batcombe comes from Saxon and means "Bat's Valley".
Around 1 mile (1.6 km) from the hamlet of Westcombe is an Iron Age hill fort on Smalldown Knoll which dates back to the Iron Age and possibly the Bronze Age.
Batcombe is thought to have been established around 660 CE following the Saxon invasion of Great Britain. Both settlements are recorded in the Domesday Book written after the Norman invasion of England in 1066. The parish of Batcombe was part of the Whitstone Hundred.
The Mendip district was, for several centuries, highly dependent on the wool industry, with which these villages were linked.
Westcombe was for many years property of Glastonbury Abbey which was destroyed with the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The hamlet and area as a whole had strong links with the English woolen industry, which gave name to settlements such as Milton Clevedon.
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Wikipedia