Down Hatherley is a civil parish and village in Tewkesbury (borough) near Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. It has approximately 165 houses and a population of 450.
The village was recorded (combined with Up Hatherley) as Hegberleo in 1022.[1] It was listed as Athelai in the Domesday Book of 1086.[2][3] In 1273 it was known as Dunheytherleye and in 1221, Hupheberleg.[3] The name derived from the Old English hagu-thorn + lēah meaning "hawthorn clearning".[3] the distinguishing affixes "Up" and "Down" derived from the Old English upp meaning "higher upstream" and dūne meaning "lower downstream".[3] Up Hatherley is a separate parish three miles upstream on the Hatherley Brook.[1] Historic buildings include St Mary's Church (15th C tower, otherwise rebuilt 1860) and Hatherley Court (or House) (17th C), now a hotel.
Jemmy Wood, The Gloucester Miser, was a former owner of Hatherley House and estate.[4]