Kemerton

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Kemerton Court from the park
Kemerton Court from the park
Kemerton
Kemerton (Worcestershire)
Kemerton

Kemerton shown within Worcestershire
Population 393 in 2001
OS grid reference SO94613720
District Wychavon
Shire county Worcestershire
Region West Midlands
Constituent country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town TEWKESBURY
Postcode district GL20
Dialling code 01386
Police West Mercia
Fire Hereford and Worcester
Ambulance West Midlands
European Parliament West Midlands
UK Parliament West Worcestershire
List of places: UKEnglandWorcestershire

Coordinates: 52°01′58″N 2°04′43″W / 52.0328, -2.0785

Kemerton is a village and civil parish in Worcestershire in England. It lies at the extreme south of the county in the local government district of Wychavon. Until boundary changes in 1931 it formed part of neighbouring Gloucestershire, and it remains in the Diocese of Gloucester. The northern half of the parish lies within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The parish is approximately 4 miles long by 1 mile wide, descending from the summit of Bredon Hill in the north (981 feet) to the Carrant Brook in the south (c.100 feet), encompassing 1,590 acres. The north and south parish boundaries are recorded in a Saxon charter of the 8th-century.

Notable historic features include Kemerton Camp, an Iron Age hill fort surmounting Bredon Hill, thought to have been vacated suddenly after a considerable battle. On the fort’s south rampart is a two-storey stone tower known as Parsons Folly, built in the mid-18th century by John Parsons, MP (17321805), the squire of Kemerton, who reputedly wished to raise the summit of Bredon Hill to 1,000 feet. Significant buildings include Kemerton Court, the Church of St Nicholas and Bell’s Castle.

The parish includes several important wildlife sites including the Kemerton Lake Nature Reserve and sections of the Bredon Hill Special Area of Conservation, which are managed by the Kemerton Conservation Trust. Well known residents of Kemerton have included the anarchist publisher Charlotte Wilson and the writer John Moore.

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[edit] References

  • Elrington, C.R. ed. (1968). Victoria County History: A History of the County of Gloucester, Volume VIII.