Grittleton
| Grittleton | |
|---|---|
 Grittleton village (westwards) |
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 Grittleton
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| Grittleton shown within Wiltshire | |
| Population | 539 (in 2011) |
| OS grid reference | ST860800 |
| Civil parish |
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| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Chippenham |
| Postcode district | SN14 |
| Dialling code | 01249 |
| Police | Wiltshire |
| Fire | Dorset and Wiltshire |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | sites |
Grittleton is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, 6 miles (10 km) northwest of Chippenham. The parish includes the hamlets of Foscote, Leigh Delamere, Littleton Drew and Sevington, and part of the hamlet of The Gibb.
The Gauze Brook, a small tributary of the Avon, rises near Littleton Drew and flows east across the parish. The M4 motorway was opened in 1971 across the south of the parish, passing close to The Gibb, Foscote, Sevington and Leigh Delamere.
The Fosse Way Roman road crosses the parish from north to southwest. The Domesday Book of 1086 recorded settlements of 23 households at Gretelintone, 15 at Sevamentone (Sevington) and 16 at Liteltone (Littleton Drew).
The Grittleton estate was bought in 1828 by Joseph Neeld, a London lawyer who had inherited a considerable sum. Over time he replaced the manor house with a much larger building, and built lodges and extensive stables. His philanthropy in the parish included the rebuilding of the near-derelict church at Leigh Delamere and construction of a row of six almshouses nearby; farms were improved and houses were built for estate workers, together with a small private school at Sevington. After Joseph's death in 1856 the estate passed to his brother John.
Schools were built at Grittleton in 1858 (closed 1975) and Littleton Drew in 1850 (closed 1926).
Grittleton House, a large Grade II* listed country house across the road from St Mary's Church, was built between 1832 and 1856 for Joseph Neeld, replacing a 17th-century house. Architects were James Thomson and (later) Henry Clutton. Neeld also built lodges and an extensive stables complex (c. 1835). Between 1951 and 2016 the house was the home of an independent school.
In 1848, Joseph Neeld built a small private school for the children of estate workers at Sevington. Thomson was again the architect, and he re-used stonework, including the bell tower, from the Church of St Margaret of Antioch at Leigh Delamere, which had been rebuilt in 1846. The school closed in 1913 but the schoolroom remained largely unchanged; the schoolroom and schoolteacher's house were designated as Grade II* listed in 1988. Since 1991 the schoolroom has been used as a re-enactment centre for primary school children.
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Wikipedia