Swineshead, Bedfordshire
| Swineshead | |
|---|---|
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 Swineshead
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| Swineshead shown within Bedfordshire | |
| Population | 122 (2011 Census) |
| OS grid reference | TL057658 |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BEDFORD |
| Postcode district | MK44 |
| Dialling code | 01234 |
| Police | Bedfordshire |
| Fire | Bedfordshire and Luton |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament | |
Swineshead is a civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in the county of Bedfordshire, England.
The parish of Swineshead is recorded as Suineshefet (1086), Swynesheved (13th century), Swineshead (16th century). It was an exclave of the county of Huntingdonshire, and surrounded by Bedfordshire, until 1888 or 1896, when it was transferred to Bedfordshire. The parish was an exclave because it was within the great manor of Kimbolton, once the property of Harold, the last Saxon king of England, and part of this manor was held to be in Huntingdonshire though separated from the rest of the county by about half a mile at the nearest point. Thus although King Harold's lands were granted to different persons by William the Conqueror, Swineshead and Stonely both passed to Fitz-Piers and both remained in the county of Huntingdonshire. At the time of the Domesday survey, land in Kimbolton and in Swineshead was held by William de Warenne, and his influence may have been used to keep his property in the same county.
Swineshead was enclosed by Act of Parliament in 1803.
The parish was part of Eaton Socon rural district from 1896 to 1934, then becoming part of Bedford rural district until 1974.
The soil in the parish is loam and gravelly and the sub-soil mainly blue galt. The chief crops are wheat, barley beans, and peas. The surface is undulating and is between 139 and 236 feet (42 and 72 m) above sea-level. The village itself stands at about 155 feet (47 m). The parish was once well wooded, Swineshead and Spanoak Woods in the north of the parish still remain but now are not as large as they once were. They are owned by the Woodland Trust and Swineshead Wood is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
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