95-404: Hendford may refer to: a neighbourhood of Yeovil , around Hendford Manor Hendford railway station West Hendford Cricket Ground See also [ edit ] Hennffordd , Welsh name for Hereford Headford Herford Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with
190-755: A Bronze Age golden torc (twisted collar) was found. Yeovil is on the main Roman road from Dorchester to the Fosse Way at Ilchester . The route of the old road is aligned with the A37 from Dorchester, Hendford Hill, Rustywell, across the Westland site, to Larkhill Road and Vagg Lane, rejoining the A37 at the Halfway House pub in the Ilchester Road. The Westland site has evidence of
285-754: A unitary authority established in April 2023. There are five electoral wards covering Yeovil. Yeovil is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . It elects one Member of Parliament (MP). It covers the Somerset towns of Yeovil, Chard , Crewkerne and Ilminster . Until 1983 Somerset was split into four constituencies and Yeovil constituency also covered Ilchester , Martock and Somerton , but these were moved into
380-475: A 25 metres (82 ft) swimming pool, a teaching pool, a gym, sauna, steam room, spectator area and workout studio. Preston Sports Centre has undergone an £800,000 refurbishment, which included adding a gym and dance studio. In late July 2007, South Somerset District Council plans were made public by the Western Gazette to build a £21-million Yeovil Sports Zone on Yeovil Recreation Ground, which has been
475-554: A Yeovil merchant. It is a Grade I listed building. Yeovil's two theatres are the Octagon, and the Swan, now a ten-screen cinema and 18-lane tenpin bowling alley. Somerset NHS Foundation Trust , including Yeovil Hospital , provides local health services. Yeovil Railway Centre is a small museum created in 1993 in response to British Rail 's decision to remove the turntable from Yeovil Junction. About 0.25 miles (400 m) of track along
570-573: A centre of the aircraft and defence industries continued into the 21st century, despite attempts to diversify and the creation of industrial estates. In January 1986 a proposed sale of Westland Helicopters to the US Sikorsky Aircraft group led to the Westland affair , a crisis in the Thatcher government, the resignation of Michael Heseltine as Secretary of State for Defence , and two weeks later
665-592: A feature of large 16th- and 17th-century houses and had many purposes, from entertaining to exercising during inclement weather; the Phelips children would lead their ponies up these stairs to ride in the gallery. Today, it is used by the National Portrait Gallery to display part of its collection. Various former bedrooms lead from the Long Gallery, and like the gallery are now hung with paintings on loan from
760-474: A fireplace and in stained glass within the house. The date 1601, engraved above a doorcase, is considered to be the date of completion. Sir Edward Phelips died in 1614, leaving his family wealthy and landed; he was succeeded by his son, Sir Robert Phelips , who represented various West Country constituencies in Parliament. Robert Phelips has the distinction of being arrested at Montacute. A staunch Protestant, he
855-508: A large entrance court and the two remaining pavilions flanked a large gatehouse which was later demolished. This entrance court and gatehouse were approached through an even larger outer court. The courts were however not fortified, but bordered by ornate balustrading which, with the ogee roofs of the pavilions, are in reality follies, an ornamental and domestic acknowledgement of the fortified courts and approaches found in earlier medieval English manors and castles. Montacute's Long Gallery ,
950-512: A new, more central, Yeovil Town railway station . In 1854, the town gained borough status and had its first mayor. In the early 20th century Yeovil had around 11,000 inhabitants and was dominated by the defence industry, making it a target of German raids during World War II . The worst bombing was in 1940 and continued until 1942. During that time 107 high-explosive bombs fell on the town, 49 people died, 68 houses were totally destroyed and 2,377 damaged. Industrial businesses developed around
1045-514: A plumbed bath hidden in a wardrobe, one of the few in the house. Further rooms on this floor include the Crimson Chamber, which together with its small adjoining dressing room formed one room accessed from the Great Chamber. Described in 1638 the "withdrawinge roome", it was used by the family to withdraw from the more public ceremonies held in the Great Chamber and also could be used to form
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#17328478852421140-464: A popular open green space with the local community for over 70 years. Residents fought to protect it, leading to rejection of the proposals in 2009, and further consultations in 2010. Montacute House Montacute House is a late Elizabethan mansion in Montacute , South Somerset , England. An example of English architecture created during a period that was moving from the medieval Gothic to
1235-430: A private residence again. It was offered for sale in 1929, and at a time when many country houses were being demolished was given a scrap value of £5,882. With the exception of the Phelips family portraits, the historic contents and furnishing were disposed of, and the house, an empty shell, remained on the market for two years. Finally, in 1931, the house was sold to the philanthropist Ernest Cook , who presented it to
1330-541: A room to receive and also for processions to commence to the grander rooms above. Leading off from the Great Hall are the family's private Drawing Room and Parlour. In the 16th and early 17th centuries, in a house such as Montacute, the Parlour was where the family would dine, possibly with some of their upper servants. It allowed them not only privacy from dining publicly in the hall but also less state and pomp than if dining in
1425-434: A service to London, but the service between there and Pen Mill, the two remaining stations, was also withdrawn from 5 May 1968. As a former centre of Britain's leather industry, the town is post-industrial in character. Journalist John Harris, for instance, described the towns Taunton, Yeovil and Bridgwater as a "post-industrial, hardscrabble place that contain[s] 19 of the council wards in the 20% of English areas classed as
1520-581: A small Roman town. There were several Roman villas (estates) in the area. Finds have been made at East Coker , West Coker and Lufton. Yeovil was first named in a Saxon charter dated 880 as Gifle. It derives from the Common Brittonic river-name gifl "forked river", an earlier name of the River Yeo . The estate was bequeathed in the will of King Alfred the Great to his youngest son Aethelweard . It
1615-530: A staircase in the bay window descends to the basement, became the servant's dining room at the beginning of the 18th century. Outside, the six Doric columns on the East Terrace originally had decorative finials, now replaced by lamps. The first floor contains one of the grandest rooms in the house, the Library. The room was formerly known as the Great Chamber; in a 16th-century mansion, such as Montacute, this room
1710-497: A suburb of Yeovil, contains the medieval manor of Brympton d'Evercy . Tintinhull , also close to Yeovil, features the National Trust-owned Tintinhull House and Gardens . Ninesprings Country Park is in the south-east near Penn Hill, linked by a cycle way along the route of the old railway to Riverside Walk, Wyndham Hill and Summerhouse Hill, forming the 40-hectare (99-acre) Yeovil Country Park. Like
1805-491: A suite with the neighbouring bedroom, the Hall Chamber, when eminent guests were entertained in the house. The Hall Chamber was another of the principal bedrooms; the adjoining Crimson Chamber originally served as the Hall Chamber's "withdrawinge roome." as the room was described in 1638. As a suite, the rooms were intended to be accessed by a now-blocked door in the Great Chamber. In this way, if an extremely high ranking guest
1900-529: A town council, which took over the functions of the Charter Trustees in 1982. It has responsibility for the management of recreational and leisure facilities, open spaces and play areas. In 2005, Yeovil Town Council became the first large council in Somerset to be awarded Quality Town Council status. Yeovil Town Council is based at the Town House . All other council services are provided by Somerset Council ,
1995-637: Is Bournemouth University , with University of the West of England offering some courses. Secondary education in Yeovil is provided by four schools: Westfield Academy on Stiby Road; Preston School , with actress Sarah Parish among its past pupils; and Bucklers Mead Academy with past pupils including Ian Botham . Local television coverage is provided by BBC West and ITV West Country . Radio stations are BBC Radio Somerset , Heart West , Greatest Hits Radio South West , and Radio Ninesprings. Local newspapers are
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#17328478852422090-522: Is 1 nautical mile (1.9 km) west of the town centre. British defence giant BAE Systems also runs a site producing high-integrity networked software, mainly for the armed forces. Screwfix , based in Houndstone, started life as Woodscrew Supply Company in 1979. It is now a subsidiary of Kingfisher plc . The company warehouse relocated to Stoke-on-Trent after failing to gain planning permission for expansion. Quedam Shopping Centre has some 45 shops:
2185-518: Is a mosque on Sherborne Road which was opened to worshippers in May 2017. The town's football team, Yeovil Town F.C. , plays in green and white livery at Huish Park , and currently competes in the National League . Known as the "Glovers" (referring to the town's glove-making past), it was founded in 1895 and won, as Football Conference (the then name of National League) champions in 2003, promotion to
2280-456: Is a town and civil parish in Somerset , England. The population of Yeovil at the last census (2021) was 49,698. It is close to Somerset's southern border with Dorset , 126 miles (203 km) west of London , 41.8 miles (67.3 km) south of Bristol , 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Sherborne and 27.6 miles (44.4 km) east of Taunton . The aircraft and defence industries which developed in
2375-570: Is listed at the next highest grade, II*. Other listed buildings on the estate, all designated Grade II, comprise: the New lodge and the Odcomb gate; the south-west and the north-west gates; the stables and the orangery adjacent to the house; and various architectural features in the gardens, including steps to the sunken garden, the pool and fountain in the North garden, a summer house restored by Lord Curzon,
2470-531: Is long gone, victims of Victorian prudery. During the 18th century the room was shut up and used as a store and permitted to decay; this explains why in the 19th century it was completely restored in "Elizabethan style." The strapwork ceiling, panelling and bookcases all date from this period. The only original features remaining are the heraldic stained glass in the windows and the Portland stone chimney-piece. The room contains an ornate carved wooden porch; installed in
2565-554: Is of 1894; Balfour's dated design is conserved in the library of the Royal Institute of British Architects . Mixed borders in the East court were replanted by Phyllis Reiss of Tintinhull in powerful hot colours when the earlier tender colour scheme laid down by Vita Sackville-West proved insipid to modern taste. There are around 106 hectares (260 acres) of parkland and 4 hectares (9.9 acres) of more formally laid out gardens. These are
2660-482: The Western Gazette , Somerset Guardian and Standard and SomersetLive . The Anglican Church of St John the Baptist dates from the late 14th century. Its 92 feet (28 m)-high tower is in four stages, with set-back offset corner buttresses. It is capped by openwork balustrading matching the 19th-century parapets. There are two-light late 14th-century windows on all sides at bell-ringing and bell-chamber levels,
2755-478: The Elizabethan era , Montacute had no corridors: the rooms led directly from one to another. This changed in 1787 when stonework from a nearby mansion at Clifton Maybank (which was being partly demolished) was purchased by Edward Phelips (1725–97) and used to rebuild Montacute's west front. This provided a corridor giving privacy to the ground-floor rooms and first-floor bedrooms. Now, with the new frontage in place,
2850-521: The English Football League for the first time in its history. It had achieved numerous FA Cup victories over Football League sides in the past 50 years, and since joining the League has won promotion again – as League Two champions in 2005 and League One play-off winners in 2013 . However, the stay in tier 2 of English football only lasted for a season. In women's football, Yeovil Town L.F.C.
2945-537: The English Renaissance style, the east front, the intended principal façade, is distinguished by its Dutch gables decorated with clambering stone monkeys and other animals. Architecture during the early English Renaissance was far less formal than that of mainland Europe and drew from a greater selection of motifs both ancient and modern, with less emphasis placed on the strict observance of rules derived from antique architecture. This has led to an argument that
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3040-652: The Palazzo degli Uffizi in Florence (1560–81), which at Montacute depict the Nine Worthies dressed as Roman soldiers; the bay windows have shallow segmented pediments – a very early and primitive occurrence of this motif in England ;– while beneath the bay windows are curious circular hollows, probably intended for the reception of terracotta medallions, again emulating the palazzi of Florence. Such medallions were one of
3135-609: The Second World War , Montacute was requisitioned by the army, and American soldiers were billeted in the surrounding parkland before the Normandy landings . The house became a Grade I Listed Building on 19 April 1961, and the grounds were entered into the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England on 1 June 1984. Built in what came to be considered
3230-663: The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings , and from that Society, it passed to the National Trust . It was one of the Trust's first great houses. The following year, in 1932, it opened to the public for the first time. Bare of furnishing and without sufficient funds to maintain it, James Lees-Milne , the secretary of the Trust's country house committee, described the mansion as an "empty and rather embarrassing white elephant". During
3325-439: The 14th century, the town had gained the right to elect a portreeve . The Black Death exacted a heavy toll, killing about half the population. In 1499 a major fire destroyed many wooden , thatch-roofed buildings in the town. Yeovil suffered further fires in 1620 and 1643. After the dissolution of the monasteries , the lord of the manor was the family of John Horsey of Clifton Maybank from 1538 to 1610, followed by
3420-526: The 18th century. The north-east and south-east corners of the former entrance forecourt have pavilions with ogee domed roofs, oriel windows and obelisks. The latter two are motifs of the house itself. The garden planting, laid out within the former forecourt and in the slightly sunken grassed parterre square, was the work of Mrs Ellen Phelips, who lived at Montacute from the 1840s to her death in 1911, and her gardener, Mr Pridham, who had worked for her at Coker Court . The avenue of clipped yews that reinforces
3515-474: The 20th century made it a target for bombing in the Second World War ; they are still major employers. Yeovil Country Park, which includes Ninesprings , is one of several open spaces with educational, cultural and sporting facilities. Religious sites include the 14th-century Church of St John the Baptist . The town is on the A30 and A37 roads and has two railway stations. Yeovil is in the south of Somerset, close to
3610-457: The Clifton Maybank corridor, built in the 18th century from stone obtained from another house then undergoing alteration, allowed the principal ground- and first-floor rooms to have some privacy from the servants' areas and linked the two staircases. It also allowed the house to be turned around by creating a new entrance façade facing west. The Great Hall, leading off from the corridor, was
3705-506: The Clifton Maybank spur is used for demonstration trains. Yeovil's bus services are operated by First West of England , First Hampshire & Dorset , South West Coaches , Stagecoach South West and Damory Coaches ; these are centred around the bus station. Routes connect the town centre with both railway stations, Taunton, Blandford Forum , Castle Cary , Chard , Martock and Wells . Coach services are operated by National Express , Berrys Coaches and South West Tours; services connect
3800-479: The Drawing Room in the mid-20th century. It is now furnished in 18th-century style. The room on the opposite side of the Clifton Maybank corridor from the Great Hall was originally two rooms comprising the " pannetry " ( sic ) and " buttery ." In a large household the buttery and "pannetry" were part of the offices pertaining to the kitchen, and as at Montacute they were generally close to the Great Hall. The buttery
3895-641: The Great Chamber above. Like its grander cousin above, the Parlour also had an adjoining principal bed chamber, now the Drawing Room, originally known as the White Chamber and later as the Round Parlour. As fashions and uses changed, and privacy from servants became desirable, like the later Baroque state apartments , these ground-floor rooms lost their original purpose and became a series of seemingly meaningless drawing rooms. The National Trust installed an incongruous 18th-century fireplace from Coleshill House in
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3990-549: The Hendford railway goods station to such a degree that a small Hendford Halt was opened on 2 May 1932 for passengers, but the growth of road transport and a desire to rationalise the rail network led to half of the railway stations in Yeovil being closed in 1964. First to go was Hendford Halt, closed on 15 June along with the line to Taunton, then Yeovil Town closed on 2 October. Long-distance trains from Pen Mill were withdrawn on 11 September 1961, leaving only Yeovil Junction with
4085-519: The Montacute area since at least 1460, first as yeomen farmers before rising in status. The site was bought from the Cluniac Montacute Priory by Thomas Phelips and passed to his grandson, also called Thomas, who started planning the house, but died before it was built and left the completion of the work to his son Edward. Edward Phelips was a lawyer who had been in Parliament since 1584. He
4180-657: The National Portrait Gallery. The attic floor above the second floor, which is not open to the public, contains some garret rooms that would always have been secondary bedchambers. It is likely that in the 16th and 17th centuries they would have been occupied by the senior servants; the lower servants would have slept in any vacant corner or space on the ground or basement floors. The gardens were well established by 1633, and by 1667 several walled gardens and courts had been added with established orchards. They were accompanied by stone gate lodges, which were removed in
4275-507: The North and East terraces, and two walled enclosures. During the last quarter of the 20th century the gardens and grounds were restored and replanted. In 1975, London's National Portrait Gallery formed the first of its regional partnerships, a partnership that marries empty large antique spaces with the many paintings the gallery has insufficient space to display. This has seen Montacute's Long Gallery redecorated and restored and hung with an important collection of historical portraits from
4370-659: The Phelips family until 1846, when it passed to the Harbins of Newton Surmaville . Babylon Hill across the River Yeo to the south east of the town was the site of a minor skirmish, the Battle of Babylon Hill , during the Civil War , which resulted in the Earl of Bedford 's Roundheads forcing back Sir Ralph Hopton 's Cavaliers to Sherborne . In the 1800s Yeovil was a glove-making centre, whose
4465-528: The Renaissance motifs introduced to English Gothic architecture when Henry VIII was rebuilding Hampton Court and supporting the claim that the English Renaissance was little more than Gothic architecture with Renaissance ornament. At Montacute, however, the Renaissance style is not confined to ornament, the house also has perfect symmetry. Paired stair towers stand in the angles between the main body of
4560-775: The border with Dorset , 130 miles (209 km) from London, 40 miles (64 km) south of Bristol and 30 miles (48 km) from Taunton . It lies in the centre of the Yeovil Scarplands , a natural region of England. The suburbs include Summerlands, Hollands, Houndstone, Preston Plucknett , Penn Mill, New Town, Hendford, Old Town, Forest Hill, Abbey Manor, Great Lyde. Outlying villages include East Coker , West Coker , Hardington Mandeville , Evershot , Halstock , Stoford , Barwick , Sutton Bingham , Mudford and Yetminster . Other nearby villages include Bradford Abbas , Thornford Corscombe , Montacute (with Montacute House ) and Pendomer . The village of Brympton , now almost
4655-471: The church. This peaceful existence was jolted when the estate was inherited by William Phelips (1823–89), who in his early days made many improvements and renovations to Montacute. He was responsible for the Base Court, a low service range adjoining the south side of the mansion. and the restoration of the Great Chamber, which he transformed into a library. Later, he was to become insane; an addicted gambler, he
4750-401: The entrance court and gatehouse were approached through a larger outer court. The courts were however not fortified, but bordered by ornate balustrading , which with the ogee roofs of the pavilions, which in reality were follies, were a purely ornamental and domestic acknowledgement of the fortified courts and approaches found in earlier medieval English manors and castles. As in all houses of
4845-464: The family and honoured guests. Over the centuries, the layout and use of rooms changed: drawing and dining rooms evolved on the ground floor. The original approach to the house would have been far more impressive than the picturesque approach today. The east front was then the entrance façade and faced onto a large entrance court. The two remaining pavilions flanked a large gatehouse; this long-demolished structure contained secondary lodgings. In turn,
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#17328478852424940-423: The house and the wings that project forward, a sign of modern symmetry in the plan of the house as well as its elevation, and a symptom of the times, in that the hall no longer had a "high end" of greater state. Montacute, like many Elizabethan mansions , is built in an 'E' shape, a much-used plan in this era. On the ground floor was the great hall , kitchens and pantries, on the upper floors, retiring rooms for
5035-413: The house came empty of its contents, and without the endowment the Trust subsequently required, its then secretary, James Lees-Milne describing it as an "empty and rather embarrassing white elephant". The east front of the house, the intended principal façade, is distinguished by its Dutch gables . The original approach would have been far more impressive than is seen today; the east façade faced onto
5130-432: The house is the 172-foot (52 m) second-floor Long Gallery, spanning the entire top floor of the house; it is the longest surviving long gallery in England. The gallery is lit by a continuous wall of glass on its eastern side while its length is extended by oriel windows at each end, which from the exterior appear to cling perilously to the wall, supported only by a small corbel to the masonry. Long galleries were
5225-413: The house until the early 20th century. For a brief period, the house was let to tenants, one of whom was Lord Curzon , who lived at the house with his mistress, the novelist Elinor Glyn . The house narrowly escaped demolition in the early 20th century, when it was valued for scrap at just under £6,000. In 1931, Montacute was acquired by the National Trust . One of the earliest of the Trust's acquisitions,
5320-432: The house was virtually turned around: the "Clifton Maybank" façade became the front entrance, and the impressive former front elevation now overlooked a lawn surrounded by flower borders, rather than the original entrance courtyard . The small pavilions with ogee domed roofs that flanked the demolished gatehouse remain. They may have been intended as banqueting houses, but by the 1630s were used as bedrooms. The addition of
5415-462: The inevitable by a few years, but in 1911 the family were forced to let the house, for an annual sum of £650, and move out. The Phelipses never returned. By 1915, the original tenant, Robert Davidson, had departed and the house was let to George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston . A later tenant was the American writer Henry Lane Eno , who died at the house in 1928. The house was never to be
5510-658: The latter having fine pierced stonework grilles. There is a stair turret to the north-west corner, with a weather vane termination. The church is a Grade I listed building . Yeovil has a Roman Catholic Holy Ghost Church, three Methodist churches (Preston Road, St Marks, Chelston Avenue and Vicarage Street), a Baptist church in South Street, the Salvation Army , Elim Pentecostal Church , Yeovil Community Church (Evangelical, based at The GateWay), Yeovil Family Church (New Frontiers) and several other Anglican churches. There
5605-462: The library in the 1830s, it was originally in the parlour below. At the head of the principal staircase, an Anteroom divides the former Great Chamber from what would have been the main bedroom. During the 19th century, this room was furnished as an armoury. The adjoining bedroom, the Garden Chamber, was used as a bedroom by Lord Curzon during the early 20th century, and as such was equipped with
5700-413: The longest in England, serves as an outpost of the National Portrait Gallery displaying a range of historical portraits. The house and its gardens have been a filming location for several films and a setting for television costume dramas and literary adaptations. It was visited by over 183,000 people in 2019-2020. Montacute House was built in about 1598 by Sir Edward Phelips , whose family had lived in
5795-558: The mason William Arnold , the three-storey mansion, constructed of the local Ham Hill stone, was built in about 1598 for Sir Edward Phelips , a lawyer and politician who was Speaker of the House of Commons from 1604 until 1611, and subsequently Master of the Rolls from 1611 until his death in 1614. He was the prosecutor in the trial of the Gunpowder Plotters . Phelips' descendants occupied
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#17328478852425890-449: The mason William Arnold , who was responsible for the designs of Cranborne Manor and Wadham College, Oxford , and had worked at Dunster Castle , also in Somerset. Dunster has architectural motifs similar to those found at Montacute. Phelips chose as the site for his new mansion a spot close by the existing house, built by his father. The date work commenced is undocumented, but is generally thought to be c. 1598/9, based on dates on
5985-461: The more classically -inspired Renaissance style, Montacute is one of the few prodigy houses to have survived almost unchanged from the Elizabethan era. The house has been designated as a Grade I listed building , and its gardens are also listed at the highest grade on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England . Designed by an unknown architect, possibly
6080-438: The most deprived." Officially designated as Yeovil Municipal Borough in 1854, the town continued to lend its name to the area with the creation of the local government district of Yeovil on 1 April 1974, with the merging several neighbouring rural and urban districts, which later became South Somerset , a now-defunct district. Some suburbs fall within the civil parishes of Yeovil Without and Brympton . Yeovil still has
6175-417: The most important communal eating and living room, but by the time Montacute was completed the traditional Great Hall was largely an anachronism. Such halls continued to be built, however, albeit as at Montacute on a smaller scale. For the first few years after its completion, the servants continued to dine in the hall, but the family and honoured guests now ate in the Great Chamber above. The hall now served as
6270-505: The new constituency of Somerton and Frome . From the 2010 general election , Yeovil constituency regained Ilchester, to equalise the constituency populations. The Boundary Commission for England estimated the electorate of Yeovil constituency after the boundary changes to be 77,049. The current MP is Adam Dance of the Liberal Democrats , who was elected in July 2024. At the 2011 census,
6365-455: The original line from Taunton connected with this. The LSWR route from London reached Hendford on 1 June 1860, but a month later the town was by-passed by an extension of the LSWR to Exeter . A new station at Yeovil Junction was provided south of the town from where passengers could catch a connecting service to Hendford. On 1 June 1861 passenger trains were withdrawn from Hendford and transferred to
6460-484: The pantry. This layout was a medieval concept and later, as custom dictated that servants withdraw from the principal areas of the house, these rooms became used by the family as reception and private dining rooms. Eventually, in the early 20th century, Lord Curzon amalgamated the two rooms to create the grand, and socially necessary, dining room, which Montacute had lacked since the Great Chamber had been abandoned more than 100 years earlier. The Servant's Hall, from which
6555-600: The population expanded fast. In the mid-19th century it became linked to the rest of Britain by a complex of railway lines, with competition between the 7 ft ( 2,134 mm ) broad gauge lines of the Great Western Railway (GWR) and the 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 1,435 mm ) standard gauge lines of the London and South Western Railway (LSWR). In 1853 the Great Western Railway line
6650-406: The population of the built-up area (which extends beyond Yeovil civil parish to include the urban parts of Yeovil Without and Brympton parishes) was 45,784, forming 28% of the population of South Somerset district. Leonardo manufactures helicopters in Yeovil, and Honeywell Aerospace , formerly Normalair Garratt , builder of aircraft oxygen systems, is also based there. Yeovil's role as
6745-686: The principal façade is built entirely of glass; a similar fenestration was employed at Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire . However, despite the Dutch gables, a feature of the English Renaissance acquired as the style spread from France across the Low Countries to England, and the Gothic elements, much of the architectural influence is Italian. The windows of the second-floor Long Gallery are divided by niches containing statues, an Italian Renaissance feature exemplified at
6840-426: The rain that falls in the south-west is from that source. Average rainfall is about 725 millimetres (28.5 in). November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, with June to August having the lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west. Archaeological surveys have yielded Palaeolithic burial and settlement sites mainly to the south of the modern town, particularly in Hendford, where
6935-474: The reign of Henry VIII to that of Charles I . The house and grounds are open to the public. In 2019-2020, the National Trust recorded over 183,000 visitors. The house and village have often featured as locations for films. Several scenes of the 1995 film version of Jane Austen 's novel Sense and Sensibility were filmed at Montacute, as were scenes from the 2004 film The Libertine . The house
7030-404: The remains of the 121 hectares (300 acres) of parkland that previously surrounded the house. The gardens and parkland surrounding Montacute are listed, Grade I, on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England . The house itself is also listed at this, the highest, grade, as are the two pavilions and the gateway flanking the East forecourt. The South lodge
7125-443: The resignation of Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Leon Brittan , who admitted leaking a governmental law officer's letter harshly critical of Heseltine. Leonardo, formerly AgustaWestland, created through the acquisition of Westland by Finmeccanica in 2000, remains the main employer in Yeovil. Yeovil Aerodrome ( ICAO : EGHG ), (sometimes known as Yeovil/Westland "Judwin" to avoid confusion with nearby RNAS Yeovilton ),
7220-409: The rest of South West England , Yeovil has a temperate climate generally wetter and milder than the rest of the country. The annual mean temperature is about 10 °C (50.0 °F) and shows seasonal and diurnal variation, but the sea has a modifying effect. January is the coldest month, with mean minimum temperatures between 1 °C (33.8 °F) and 2 °C (35.6 °F). July and August are
7315-433: The slightly gappy mature avenue of trees stretching away from the outer walls of the former forecourt to end in fields, and the clipped yews that outline the grassed parterre date from that time, though the famous "melted" shape of the giant hedge was inspired by the effects of a freak snowfall in 1947. The sunken parterre garden design, with its Jacobean-style central fountain, designed by Robert Shekelton Balfour (1869–1942),
7410-400: The style was an evolution of Gothic rather than an innovation imported from Europe. This argument is evident at Montacute, where Gothic pinnacles , albeit obelisk in form, are combined with Renaissance gables, pediments, classical statuary, ogee roofs and windows appearing as bands of glass. This profusion of large, mullioned windows, an innovation of their day, gives the appearance that
7505-480: The title Hendford . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hendford&oldid=1237355126 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Yeovil Yeovil ( / ˈ j oʊ v ɪ l / )
7600-585: The town with Taunton and London. North Dorset Community Accessible Transport (NORDCAT) provides a bookable service to places without other forms of public transport. The town has two railway stations, which are on separate lines: The town is on the A30 ; it was the main route between London and the South West until it was supplanted by the A303 to its north. Junction 25 of the M5 motorway lies around 20 miles (32 km) to
7695-537: The usual high-street chains, several independents, and a multi-storey car park with about 650 spaces. In 2015, leather manufacturer Pittards bought back its 1964 purpose-built tannery in Sherborne Road, Yeovil. In September 2023, the company went into administration. One symbol of Yeovil is "Jack the Treacle Eater", a folly consisting of a small archway topped by a turret with a statue on top. This stands in
7790-422: The village of Barwick , just to the south of the town. The hamstone Abbey Farm House was built about 1420 by John Stourton II, known as Jenkyn, as was Abbey Barn . Hendford Manor in the town centre was built about 1720 and has since been converted into offices. It is a Grade II* listed building . Newton Surmaville is a small park and house also known as Newton House, built in 1608–1612 for Robert Harbin,
7885-658: The warmest months, with mean daily maxima around 22 °C (71.60 °F). The south-west of England is in a favoured location for the Azores high pressure zone, when it extends north-eastwards towards the UK, particularly in summer. However, convective cloud often forms inland, especially near hills, reducing the number of hours of sunshine, whose annual average annual is about 1,700 hours. Rainfall tends to be associated with Atlantic depressions or with convection. The Atlantic depressions are more vigorous in autumn and winter, when most of
7980-524: The west, near Taunton , giving access to Bristol and the Midlands. Yeovil is also on the mainly single-carriageway A37 north–south road between Bristol and Weymouth . Further education in Yeovil is mainly offered by Yeovil College , with land-based studies available at a Yeovil centre of Bridgwater College , and some provision through private providers. The town also has a higher education centre, University Centre Yeovil, whose main degree-awarding body
8075-613: Was Eric Berry, who came 6th in the 1973 European Juniors in the hammer event. Olympians who started with the club include Max Robertson and Gary Jennings , both 400-metre hurdlers. Yeovil is home to Ivel Barbarians Rugby Club, formed in 1995 by a merger of the Yeovil and Westlands clubs. South Somerset Warriors formed in 2010 and played in the South West Division of the Rugby League Conference until it folded in 2011. The Goldenstones Pool and Leisure Centre provides
8170-506: Was being entertained, they would then take over the entire suite including the Great Chamber. Although Montacute was equipped for a visiting sovereign, by the time it was completed Elizabeth I was dead and the family's prominence was waning. The floor has numerous other smaller rooms. As elsewhere in the house their usage frequently changed according to the requirements of the mansion's occupants, and room names therefore often changed according to their use and decoration. A notable feature of
8265-466: Was eventually incarcerated for his own good. Sadly for his family, this was after he had gambled away the family fortune and vast tracts of the Montacute Estate. In 1875, when his son William Phelips (1846–1919) took control of the estate, agricultural rents from what remained of the mortgaged estate were low, and the house was a drain on limited resources. Selling the family silver and artworks delayed
8360-547: Was founded in 1990 and won promotion to England's highest tier, the FA Women's Super League , in 2016, before merging with Bridgwater United W.F.C. in 2021. Yeovil Town W.F.C. was then re-formed in January 2023. Other football teams in the town include Westland's Sports F.C. , which plays at Alvington Lane, and Pen Mill Athletic. Yeovil Olympiads Athletics Club , founded in 1969, has produced many international athletes. The first
8455-427: Was knighted in 1603 and a year later became Speaker of the House. James I appointed him Master of the Rolls and Chancellor to his son and heir Henry, Prince of Wales . Phelips remained at the hub of English political life, and his legal skills were employed when he became opening prosecutor during the trial of the Gunpowder Plotters . Sir Edward's choice of architect is unknown, although it has been attributed to
8550-569: Was opened between Taunton and Yeovil. The town's first railway was a branch line from the Bristol and Exeter Railway near Taunton to a terminus at Hendford on the western side of the town, which opened on 1 October 1853. As an associate of the GWR, this was a broad-gauge line. The GWR itself opened Yeovil Pen Mill railway station on the east side of the town as part of its route from London on 1 September 1856, extended to Weymouth on 1 January 1857), and
8645-619: Was recorded in the Domesday Book as Givele , a thriving market community. The parish of Yeovil was part of the Stone Hundred . After the Norman Conquest , the manor, later known as Hendford, was granted to the Count of Eu and his tenant Hugh Maltravers, whose descendants became Earls of Arundel and held the lordship until 1561. In 1205 it was granted a charter by King John . By
8740-503: Was subsequently imprisoned in the Tower of London as a result of his opposition to the " Spanish Match " between the Prince of Wales and a Catholic Spanish Infanta. The family's fame and notoriety were to be short-lived. Subsequent generations settled down in Somerset to live the lives of county gentry , representing Somerset in Parliament and when necessary following occupations in the army and
8835-453: Was the epicentre of all ceremony and state: hence, its position at the head of the principal staircase, making it the finale of a processional route. Here, the most important guests would have been received, and where the Phelips dined formally with their guests and where musical entertainment and dancing would take place. The Great Chamber at Montacute contains the finest chimney-piece in the house; however, its classical statuary depicting nudes
8930-420: Was traditionally the place from which the yeoman of the buttery served beer and candles to those lower members of the household not entitled to drink wine. Montacute's buttery is typical, as it had a staircase to the beer cellar below. The "pannetry" was the room from which the yeoman of the pantry served bread. By the time of Montacute's completion, upper servants often dined and entertained visiting servants in
9025-519: Was used as Baskerville Hall for a version of The Hound of the Baskervilles filmed in 2000 for Canadian television. In May–June 2014 the house was used as one of the locations for the BBC 's adaption of Hilary Mantel 's novel, Wolf Hall . The Wallace and Gromit short film for 2012 is set at a house that seems to be based on Montacute House. The short was created in celebration of the National Trust and
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