England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Avebury St James

The Parish

The parish of Avebury lies in northern central Wiltshire roughly 8 miles west of the market town of Marlborough and a similar distance east of Calne. Avebury is a settlement of twin halves either side of the infant River Kennett, the main settlement of Avebury sits on the A4361 road which heads north across the downs to Swindon, whilst its twin Avebury Trusloe occupies the western banks, both are between a half and a full mile north of the A4, the London to Bath road. Avebury is perhaps unique, not only in Britain but also in the word, in being built upon one of the great archaeological wonders of the nation, it sits amongst the earthworks of the world's largest stone circle, the village lanes & the A4361 quartering the monument. Investigations by Alexander Keiller (of marmalade fame), who bought the entire village in order to investigate the henge, have shown that work probably began as early as c3100BC the encircling earthwork sheltering no fewer than c100 sarsen stones. Not only does Avebury enclose an ancient monument but it sits within an extensive ancient landscape, Silbury Hill & West Kennett Long Barrow sit to the south, the earthworks of the hill fort of Oldbury, to the west whilst the slopes which rise eastwards to The Ridgeway National Hiking Trail are dotted with yet more sarsens, The Grey Wethers. More prosaically the inhabitants of Avevury, at the time of this transcript, would have principally been engaged in pastoral farming on the thin chalk soils around, today more are arable as modern machinery and fertilisers have made arable more productive. Avebury is drained eastwards by the infant River Kennett, a spring rising to Avebury's south, Swallowhead Springs being believed to be a site of early rituals. The Kennett heads away eastwards, passing through Marlborough & Newbury, to meet the Thames at Reading then through the capital to the North Sea. Avebury is sited at around 160 metres above the sea but sits surrounded by chalk downs that billow to over 260 metres at Overbury hill-fort whilst the Ridgeway trail reaches 271 metres on Rough Hill. Avebury parish was rather extensive, covering a little over 4,600 acres which would have supported a population of close to 750 parishioners. Whereas today Avebury consists of twin mid-sized villages, in Domesday times it is recorded with no population or assets beyond its church, this manor being held directly by King William, himself.

The Church

St James' church sits just to the west of the ditch & embankment that encloses the henge, on the northern side of the High Street and adjacent to the manor. Given its mention in Domesday Book one might expect an early church and as Pevsner duly confirms this is ancient, indeed. Pevsner points immediately to the quoins of the northwestern corner of the nave and 3 clerestory windows to adjudicate an Anglo-Saxon origin for the rather tall nave. He is shy of assigning a date but the church's historic listing gives the 10th century for the earliest work of the church. The church was expanded considerably following the Norman arrival with aisles built either side of the early nave in the 12th century and in a Norman Romanesque style. The chancel is slightly later too, given a late 13th century date by Pevsner and placing it within the short Transitional period to early English Gothic. Perhaps the latest major piece is the western tower, 14th century together with the southern porch. Ab interesting Georgian addition of the early 1810s are the arcades of two bays with tall Tuscan columns, their simplified Doric-like profile surprisingly not jarring with the surrounding medieval. The final piece is the southern vestry, added during the typical Victorian restoration of the late 1870s. Street parking is sometimes permitted in the High Street but visitors are directed towards the ample car parks which support those visiting the ancient monuments as well as those of a medieval date. The entrance on High Street is made through a tall lychgate and the church approached along a lengthy pathway across the amply spacious churchyard, a mature tree guards the southwestern corner but otherwise all aspects are available to the photographer.