Castle Combe

Type: Village

Being voted the Prettiest Village in England in 1962 was perhaps the worst thing that ever happened to this beautiful and once peaceful village. The villagers could not have foreseen the far-reaching effects that this award would have on their lives. The announcement had been made in the Sunday papers and by lunchtime the narrow street was jammed solid by traffic generated by people wanting to see the unspoilt village. There have probably been more visitors to it, more photographs taken of it and more words written about it than any other village in the country.
Four years later, when the village had returned to a slightly quieter existence, it was chosen as the location for the production of The Story of Doctor Doolittle by 20th Century Fox. Parts of the village were rebuilt, the By Brook was made into a fishing harbour, complete with seven boats and plastic cobbles were laid over the tarmac. This generated even more visitors.
For many centuries the villagers were involved in the cloth industry, producing a red and white cloth known as 'Castlecombe' and using the water power of the By Brook to operate their fulling stocks and wash the wool. Weaving was carried out in the cottages and in the 16th century 50 new cottages for weavers, fullers and dyers were erected. By the end of the 17th century the waters of the By Brook began to decrease in volume and many weavers went elsewhere. By the beginning of the 19th century the woollen industry was concentrated in other larger towns and Castle Combe returned to an agricultural existence.
The Castle, which gave the village its name, began life as a Roman Fort and was used by the Saxons before becoming a Norman stone castle in 1135. By the mid-14th century the castle was ruined and being used as a stone quarry for building materials for village houses. Today all that remains are earthworks of a motte and four baileys with a little masonry.
Half a mile south-west of the castle is the present Manor House dated 1664 but very much altered by the Victorians so that it appears a house of fantasy, quite out of keeping with the village. In 1947 the then Lord of the Manor had put up the whole village for auction. The Manor House became a hotel and the cottages were sold in groups of two or three, or individually.
There are many architectural gems in the village.
At the centre of the village stands the well known Market Cross, date of building unknown but in existence by 1590. The church of St Andrew is basically Perpendicular and in the tower is a rare faceless clock made by a local blacksmith in 1380. Many houses were rebuilt in the 15th century and these probably still exist under later facades. Of special note is the Dower House of 1700 and The White Hart, half timbered under its facade and still on its original site. Despite much controversy the Castle Combe Motor Racing Circuit is still in existence to the south-east of the village and provides local people with a rare opportunity to watch motor sport.