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Codford St Peter

Codford
Thatched cottages, Codford St Mary - geograph.org.uk - 951532.jpg
Codford is located in Wiltshire
Codford
Codford
Codford shown within Wiltshire
Population 870 (in 2011)
OS grid reference ST968399
Civil parish
  • Codford
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Warminster
Postcode district BA12
Dialling code 01985
Police Wiltshire
Fire Dorset and Wiltshire
Ambulance South Western
EU Parliament South West England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Wiltshire
51°09′29″N 2°02′49″W / 51.158°N 2.047°W / 51.158; -2.047Coordinates: 51°09′29″N 2°02′49″W / 51.158°N 2.047°W / 51.158; -2.047

Codford is a civil parish south of Salisbury Plain in the Wylye Valley in Wiltshire, England. Its settlements are the adjacent villages of Codford St Peter and Codford St Mary, which lie some 7 miles (11 km) southeast of Warminster.

The two villages are on the A36 road between Salisbury and Warminster. The A36 previously ran along the whole length of the High Street, but a bypass which was built in the 1990s removed the through traffic.

The Chitterne Brook flows north–south through the parish, then turns southeast to flow through Codford St Mary before joining the Wylye.

A possible neolithic hillfort or enclosure, Codford Circle, stands at the summit of Codford Hill to the northeast of the villages. In the far north of the parish is Aston Valley Barrow Cemetery, a group of Bronze Age barrows.

Anglo-Saxon records show that in the year 906 the area was known as 'Codan Ford' probably meaning 'the ford of Coda' (a man's name). The river which is forded is called the Wylye, which may mean winding, treacherous or tricky stream.

The Salisbury branch line of the Great Western Railway was opened through the Wylye valley in 1856. Codford station was on the road towards Boyton, south of Codford St Peter. The station closed to passengers in 1955 and to goods in 1963; the line is still in use but there are no local stations between Salisbury and Warminster.

The ancient parishes of St Peter and St Mary became a united benefice in 1930. The parish also incorporates the tything of Ashton Gifford, a settlement that was cleared to make way for the principal house of Codford St Peter, Ashton Gifford House, in the early 19th century. The house was used by an independent prep school, Greenways School, from 1940 until the school closed in 1969.


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