Portal:Somerset

South Somerset is a local government district occupying an area of 370 square miles (958 km²), stretching from its borders with Devon and Dorset to the edge of the Somerset Levels.

There are 94 Grade I listed buildings in South Somerset. Most are Norman- or medieval-era churches, many of which are included in the Somerset towers—a collection of distinctive, mostly spireless Gothic church towers—but there are other religious buildings as well. Muchelney Abbey consists of the remains and foundations of a medieval Benedictine Abbey and an early Tudor house dating from the 16th century. Stavordale Priory was built as a priory church in the 13th century. The Hamstone Stoke sub Hamdon Priory is a 14th-century former priest's house of the chantry chapel of St Nicholas.

Since the Reformation the 13th-century Hanging Chapel in Langport has been a town hall and armoury before becoming a masonic hall in 1891. The house known as The Abbey in Charlton Mackrell takes its name from the site on which it was built, the Chantry Chapel of the Holy Spirit, founded in 1237. Naish Priory in East Coker, was never a priory, and similarly the Abbey Farm House and Abbey Barn in Yeovil which date from around 1420, have always been in lay-ownership; "abbey" was added to their names in the 19th century. The Burton Pynsent Monument was designed in 1757, for William Pitt. The other Grade I listed buildings in South Somerset are manor houses, built over long periods by local Lords of the Manor such as; the Tudor Barrington Court, Newton Surmaville Lytes Cary, Tintinhull, Ven House and Brympton d'Evercy. (Full article...)

Robert Burnell (sometimes spelled Robert Burnel; c. 1239 – 25 October 1292) was an English bishop who served as Lord Chancellor of England from 1274 to 1292. A native of Shropshire, he served as a minor royal official before entering into the service of Prince Edward, the future King Edward I of England. When Edward went on the Eighth Crusade in 1270, Burnell stayed in England to secure the prince's interests. He served as regent after the death of King Henry III of England while Edward was still on crusade. He was twice elected Archbishop of Canterbury, but his personal life—which included a long-term mistress who was rumoured to have borne him four sons—prevented his confirmation by the papacy. In 1275 Burnell was elected Bishop of Bath and Wells, after Edward had appointed him Lord Chancellor in 1274.

Burnell was behind the efforts of the royal officials to enforce royal rights during his term of office as chancellor, including the implementation of the Quo warranto procedures. He also helped with the legislative and legal reforms of Edward's reign. During Burnell's tenure the chancellor's office and records became fixed in London rather than travelling with the king. Burnell went abroad on diplomatic missions for Edward, and for a time governed Gascony. He continued to enjoy the king's trust until his death in 1292; one historian has suggested that Burnell may have been the most important royal official of the 13th century. (Full article...)

1. Somerset (Unitary)
2. North Somerset (Unitary)
3. Bath and North East Somerset (Unitary)

Clevedon
Co-ordinates 51°26′18″N 2°51′14″W / 51.4384°N 2.8539°W / 51.4384; -2.8539

Clevedon is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset. The town has a population of 21,957 according to the United Kingdom Census 2001. The town is situated amongst a group of small hills alongside the River Severn estuary, including Churchill, Wain's hill (which is topped by the remains of an Iron Age hill fort), Dial hill, Strawberry hill, Castle hill, Hangstone hill and Court hill which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Clevedon was mentioned in the Domesday Book but did not really grow until the Victorian era when Clevedon became a popular seaside town. It was served by a short branch line from the main railway at Yatton, between 1847 and 1961. Another railway also served the town, the Weston, Clevedon & Portishead Light Railway, which opened in 1897 and closed in 1940.

The seafront includes ornamental gardens, a Victorian bandstand, and other visitor attractions. The Salthouse Field has a light railway running round the perimeter and is used for donkey rides during the summer. The shore is a mixture of pebbled beaches and low rocky cliffs, with the old harbour being at the western edge of the town at the mouth of the Land Yeo. The rocky beach, which has been designated as the Clevedon Shore geological Site of Special Scientific Interest. Clevedon Pier was opened in 1869, one of the earliest examples of a Victorian pier still in existence in the United Kingdom. During the 20th century it fell into disrepair but was dismantled, restored and rebuilt, reopening in 1986. Other landmarks include Walton Castle, Clevedon Court the Clevedon clock tower and the Curzon cinema. Clevedon has a certain amount of light industry, mainly in industrial estates including Hither Green Trading Estate near the M5 motorway junction, and it is also a dormitory town for Bristol. The town is also home to a range of educational, religious and cultural buildings and sporting clubs. (Full article...)

From Wikipedia's "Did You Know" archives:

• ... that the Church of Saint Andrew (pictured) in High Ham, Somerset, England, has a 12th century lead-lined font on a stem with rope moulding?
• ... that the coldest temperature in south-west England on record was −16.1 °C (3.0 °F) at Yeovilton, Somerset, in January 1982?
• ... that the Wells and Mendip Museum has a skeleton believed to be that of the Witch of Wookey Hole?
• ... that Cothelstone Manor was largely destroyed during the English Civil War and rebuilt 200 years later?
• ... that the Cheddar Yeo forms the largest underground river system in Britain?

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Main project: WikiProject Somerset Parent projects: WikiProject UK geography, WikiProject England

Nearby projects: WikiProject Bristol, WikiProject Devon, WikiProject Dorset, WikiProject Wiltshire