Luckington

The parish of Luckington is found in the extreme north west of Wiltshire seven miles south west of Malmesbury and seven miles north east of Sodbury. The parish comprises the village of Luckington and the smaller village of Alderton found to the south west of the parish. The road which runs through the parish is the B4040 connecting Malmesbury with Old Sodbury. Parish boundaries border Gloucestershire in the west and Great Badminton and Sherston in the north east with Grittleton and Leigh Delamere to the south east. The centre and nucleus of Luckington is the cross roads, where two small triangular greens are found, with five roads meeting. The name of Luckington is thought to derive from “Lucca's Farm”. The earliest evidence of settlement in Alderton was the discovery of a Neolithic stone axe near to Drew's Pond and some Iron Age remains have also been found to the west of the village.

Author Brian J. Woodruffe describes Luckington as: “A happy blend of old and new, made up of some pleasant sub-areas of Cotswoldian character attached to a rather less attractive centre. Five roads meet here, interlaced in such a way that the core of the village is sliced up into triangular pieces, which in the distant past formed one large green.” The school and schoolhouse are found on the edge of one of these remaining greens.

The population of the parish in 1801 was 304, and despite a dip in the ensuing 50 years, rose to 339 in 1851. It grew to 470 in 1951 and 532 people lived in the parish at the time of the 2001 census.

In 1086 there were two manors at Luckington held by Herman (of Durand of Gloucester) and Edward (of Ralf de Mortemer). The total population would have been around 120 people and there was enough land for eight ploughteams, each with eight oxen, and a mill on the infant Avon. From 1141 until the 14th century, the manor of Luckington was held by the Earls of Hereford. The church has the same dedications as Hereford Cathedral - St. Mary and St. Ethelbert - indicating perhaps a tangible link between Hereford and Luckington.

In the 16th century the manor passed to the Fitzherbert family and remained with them until 1798, when the last heiress is said to have eloped with a man from Bristol (reportedly a butcher) named Jones, creating the family of the Fitzherbert Jones. It was this family that added the impressive front of Luckington Court.

In 1086 there were also two manors in Alderton, held by Richard (of Ralf de Mortemer) and Hugh (of Drew Fitz Ponz). The population would have been around 60 who worked five ploughteams and a mill. Thus the total population of the modern civil parish was around 180 people. Later the manors were held in part by Roger de Mortimer, and also by Hugo. It then passed through the Mortimer family in the 13th century to the Cliffords and then the influential Gore family. The Montagu family of Lackham held the manor until 1827, when Joseph Neeld bought Alderton. He was from Hendon, Middlesex, and went on to own many estates in North Wiltshire, including nearby Grittleton. The estate was sold in 1966 and most was bought by the Duke of Beaufort.

The village of Luckington has a clear connection to pre-Norman times; a house standing on the site of what is now Luckington Court is said to have been used by King Harold as a hunting box. Because Harold was King, if only for a short time, Luckington technically became a Royal manor, so was entitled to use the title “court”, at Luckington Court, which was an important part of the village.

It is found to the west of the church and is a Queen Anne style house. An earlier house on the site was referred to as “Peach House”. The present building is made from Cotswold stone and became famous when it starred as Longbourne, the home of the Bennett family, in the BBC's seminal production of “Pride and Prejudice”. Within the grounds of grade II listed Luckington Court are two cedar trees that are said to be 400 years old. There are many other listed buildings in the parish, both in Luckington and Alderton. These include the Old Bakehouse, The Forge House, and Manor Farmhouse in Alderton, and Whitehouse Farmhouse, North End House, Wick Farmhouse, and The Old Rectory in Luckington.

Luckington has the distinction of containing the springs that are the source of the Bristol Avon and these are found in the south of the parish. The Avon, from Luckington, passes through Malmesbury and Chippenham, towards Melksham and Bradford-on-Avon, leading to Bath and Bristol. The prolific and influential writer John Aubrey of the 17th century was probably referring to one of these springs when he wrote: “Hancock's Well at Luckington is so extremely cold that in summer one cannot long endure one's hand in it. It does much good to the eies. It cures the itch.”

Luckington's most famous residents were probably John Thaw and Sheila Hancock, who lived in the village on a semi-permanent basis until Thaw's death from oesophageal cancer in 2002. Sheila Hancock and her family are still sometimes resident there.
When Thaw was diagnosed with cancer in 2001, the realities of celebrity life arrived with a bang in Luckington. In “My Life with John Thaw”, Sheila Hancock writes: “Today at the Post Office two photographers started snapping at us. John was feeling peaky and just sighed but I was like a wild animal. Luckington has never seen such an unseemly display.”