Wroughton is a large village and civil parish in northeast Wiltshire, England. It is part of the Borough of Swindon and lies along the A4361 between Swindon and Avebury; the road into Swindon crosses the M4 motorway between junctions 15 and 16. The village is about 2.2 miles (3.5 km) south of Swindon town centre on the edge of the Marlborough Downs, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The town of Marlborough is about 11 miles (18 km) to the south, and the World Heritage Site at Avebury is about 7 miles (11 km) to the south.
The parish includes North Wroughton, formerly a small settlement on the road towards Swindon but now part of the built-up area; and the hamlets of Elcombe and Overtown.
The earliest evidence of human presence in the area is from the Mesolithic period, although this is fairly limited.[2] More significant evidence of settlement and occupation in the area is available for the Neolithic period, most notably due to the extensive ritual complex at Avebury and scattered finds in the locality. The earliest archaeological evidence from within Wroughton dates from the Roman period (AD 43–410), showing a period of intensive settlement and farming in the area. Occupation of the area continued into the early Middle Ages (AD 410–1066) when two battles are understood to have taken place in the area: Breahburh (AD 567), thought to have been fought by Ceawlin of Wessex on the slopes of Barbury Hill, and Ellandun (AD 825) at Elcombe Hall by Egbert of Wessex. However, there is no agreement that the latter was here (it is known to have been south of Swindon). Burial sites in the vicinity are believed to be associated with these battles.[3]
До 19 века это была просто деревенская деревня. Роутон находится недалеко от Риджуэя , национальной тропы, ведущей к древней Уффингтонской Белой Лошади . В 20 веке деревня росла, но в значительной степени избежала последствий пригорода, в то время как ее более крупный сосед Суиндон быстро расширился на север. Строительство автомагистрали М4 не позволило Суиндону охватить Ротон, который сохранил деревенскую идентичность, хотя и с населением небольшого торгового городка (около 8000 жителей) в начале 21 века.
В 1874 году деревня два дня праздновала победу лошади Джорджа Фредерика , находившейся в конюшне на Хай-стрит, в Дерби . [4] Лошадь и ее дрессировщик Том Лидер, родившийся в Роутоне, были сопровождены духовым оркестром с железнодорожной станции Суиндона и приняты в деревне, которая объявила все свои пабы открытыми и предоставила бесплатное пиво всем желающим. повод. [5]
Между 1855 и 1930 годами проходил «ежегодный праздник» — недельная летняя ярмарка, которую во время школьных каникул посещали местные фермеры и жители северного Уилтшира . Мероприятия включали «Программу скачек на лошадях, пони, ослах и пеших скачках; восхождение на жирный столб …» призом в конце была баранья нога. Мероприятие проводилось позади паба «Три тунца» вместе с другими местными ярмарками, а на поле была построена трибуна . Главным событием стал «Champion Gip Fight», соревнование по боксу между цыганским чемпионом и претендентом. [5]
Frederick Large, in his book A Swindon Retrospect 1855–1930 comments: "At Wroughton Feast, an annual festival lasting a week, it was the custom for many years for "the champion gip" to fight the best man who could be produced, for a purse of gold. The venue was the paddock at the back of the Three Tuns tavern, where the usual paraphernalia of fairs used to congregate in full force. The Feast always took place in the summer at a time which included a week of our school holidays. I was not more than seven or eight years of age when, without my parents' consent, I wandered over to Wroughton ... This annual event always commenced on a Sunday evening by friends and neighbours from Swindon, Wroughton and neighbouring villages congregating at the Three Tuns, where, crowded inside and out, large quantities of beer and spirits were consumed. A miniature grand stand was erected for Feast Week in an orchard adjoining the paddock, upon which many of the elite of the neighbourhood, both ladies and gentlemen, occupied seats, and indulged freely in choice fruits and refreshments."[6]
The Church of England parish church of St John the Baptist and St Helen stands on a ridge above the southwest of the present village, near the road to Avebury. The present church is the result of remodelling in the 14th and 15th centuries but the Norman north and south doorways indicate an earlier building, of which the north arcade survived until T.H. Wyatt replaced it during restoration work in 1846.[7] The church was designated as Grade I listed in 1955.[8]
The shallow bowl of the font, simply decorated, is from the 13th century.[9] The oldest of the six bells is dated 1596, and three others are from the next century.[10] Stained glass in the 1852 east window is by Powell and Sons.[9]
The ecclesiastical parish extends a little further north than the civil parish,[11] to take in the large housing areas at Wichelstowe which began to be built in 2006. At some point the name of the parish was changed to Wroughton and Wichelstowe.[12]
The Ridgeway School and Sixth Form College opened in 1967 as Wiltshire's first purpose-built comprehensive school. It teaches about 1,500 children aged 11–18. The catchment area includes Bishopstone, Hinton Parva, Wanborough, Liddington, Coate, Badbury, Chiseldon, Hodson, Uffcott, Broad Hinton and Winterbourne Bassett.[13]
RAF Wroughton, just south of the village, closed in the 1990s. The site is now the Science Museum at Wroughton, a part of the Science Museum Group and used as a storage site occasionally open to the public. Since 2016, television series The Grand Tour has used part of the northern perimeter road as a car test track.[14]
The Ellendune Centre is a sports and entertainment venue that boasts one of the larger amateur facilities in the local area. It plays host to amateur dramatic groups who use it to meet and perform, including the Ellendune Entertainers and WADAMS (Wroughton Amateur Dramatic and Musical Society).
Wroughton reservoir on Overtown Hill Road is a live fishing site. The main types of fish are Tench, Bream, Crucian Carp, Rudd and Carp. The reservoir is 1.01 hectares in size and the water is fed from the large area of fields above.[15]
Wroughton ASC Swimming Club trains young swimmers and competes in team galas both locally and across Wiltshire, as well as the annual Wiltshire County Championships.
A greyhound racing track was opened in the fields opposite the Black Horse Hotel and Inn in North Wroughton on 26 July 1930. The race distance was 500 yards.[16] The racing was independent (not affiliated to the sports governing body the National Greyhound Racing Club) and it was known as a flapping track which was the nickname given to independent tracks.[17][18] It is not known when the racing ended.
For many years, the twinning committee organised a fun Bowls/Pétanque tournament. Some Saint-Germinois would come from the twin-town to play on Wroughton's boulodrome (pétanque terrain) and some Wroughtonians would return the compliment on St Germain's bowling green.
Wroughton is twinned with
Saint-Germain-lès-Corbeil, France[19]
