Netheravon
| Netheravon | |
 Netheravon Manor |
|
  Netheravon |
|
| Population | 1,060 (in 2011)[1] |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | SU148487 |
| Civil parish | Netheravon |
| Unitary authority | Wiltshire |
| Ceremonial county | Wiltshire |
| Region | South West |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Salisbury |
| Postcode district | SP4 |
| Dialling code | 01980 |
| Police | Wiltshire |
| Fire | Wiltshire |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament | Devizes |
Coordinates: 51°14′13″N 1°47′24″W / 51.237°N 1.790°W
Netheravon is a village and civil parish on the River Avon and A345 road, about 4 miles (6.4 km) north of the town of Amesbury in Wiltshire, South West England. It is within Salisbury Plain.
Governance
The village is the most populous part of 'The Collingbournes and Netheravon' electoral ward. This ward starts in the west at Netheravon and then stretches east to Collingbourne Ducis and ends in the east at Chute Forest. The total population of this ward taken at the 2011 census was 4,186.[2]
Notable people
The writer Frank Sawyer (1906–1980), although born in Bulford, spent most of his life in Netheravon as a river keeper on the Avon and died on the banks of the river near the parish church. He developed the Pheasant Tail Nymph for fly fishing and wrote the books Keeper of the Stream and Nymphs and the Trout.[3]
Notable buildings
The Anglican Church of All Saints dates from the 11th century and is Grade I listed.[4][5]
Netheravon House, built in the 18th century for the Beech family and extended in 1791 by John Soane, is Grade II* listed.[6] Evidence of a Roman villa has been found on part of its site.[7] In 1898 Michael Hicks Beach sold the house and estate to the War Office.
Military Camps
Cavalry School – Choulston Camp
Military activity was first established at Netheravon in 1904 with the creation of a Cavalry school[8] under the sponsorship of Major General Robert Baden Powell as the Inspector General of Cavalry. Baden-Powell envisioned developments in the use of Cavalry following his experiences in Southern Africa and India and lessons from the Second Boer War. The school emphasised the use of cavalry for scouting and reconnaissance, recognising that the traditional effects of mass of cavalry had been diminished by the availability of modern weapons. The Officers' Mess was established in the Manor House with the stables and buildings to the east of the A345 and training areas to the west.
Aviation operations and training
Netheravon Airfield is in the parish of Figheldean, on the east side of the Avon.
Avon Camp
With the establishment of the Airfield in 1912 the Cavalry School continued to operate in the remaining training areas until the beginning of the war, re-opening briefly in 1919. In 1922 the school amalgamated with the Royal Artillery Riding Establishment in Northamptonshire and the location was taken over by the Machine Gun School, following a move from Grantham.
The Machine Gun School was absorbed as an element of the Small Arms School Corps in 1926. Over time the school expanded to encompass support weapons in general, becoming the Support Weapons Wing of SASC. Support Weapons Wing remained at Netheravon until 1995 when Avon Camp was closed and the Wing moved to the Land Warfare Centre, Warminster.
Courses at Avon camp included the use of:
- Mortar
- Heavy Machine Gun
- General Purpose Machine Gun – Sustained Fire
- Man Portable Anti-Tank
- Surveillance
Netheravon Dovecote
The Netheravon Dovecote (at 51°14′05″N 1°47′29″W / 51.23467°N 1.79135°W) is a dovecote containing over 700 dove boxes which was built in the 1700s. The Dovecote is a Grade II listed building.[9]
See also
References
- ↑ "Wiltshire Community History – Census". Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ↑ "The Collingbournes and Netheravon ward 2011.Retrieved 15 March 2015".
- ↑ Vines, Sidney (1984). Frank Sawyer – Man of the Riverside. London: George Allen & Unwin. ISBN 0-04-799023-6.
- ↑ Historic England. "Church of All Saints, Netheravon (1033956)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ↑ "Church of All Saints, Netheravon". Wiltshire Community History. Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ↑ Historic England. "Netheravon House (1299956)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ↑ Historic England. "Roman Villa and tessellated floor, Netheravon (218930)". PastScape. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ↑ "Netheravon". Wiltshire Community History. Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ↑ English Heritage list entry for Dovecote, with map
External links
- "Victoria County History – Wiltshire – Voll 11 pp165-181 – Parishes: Netheravon". British History Online. University of London. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- A Church Near You: Netheravon All Saints
Media related to Netheravon at Wikimedia Commons