76-591: The Wellow Brook is a small river in Somerset , England . It rises near Ston Easton Park in the village of Ston Easton and flows east to Midsomer Norton . West of Radstock , it is joined by the River Somer and a tributary from Kilmersdon (formed itself from Snails Brook and Kilmersdon Brook) to the south. It then flows through Wellow before joining the Cam Brook at Midford to form Midford Brook , before joining
152-565: A national park in 1954, under the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act . The highest point in Somerset is Dunkery Beacon on Exmoor, with a maximum elevation of 519 metres (1,703 feet). Over 100 sites in Somerset have been designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest . The 64 km (40 mi) coastline of the Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary forms part of
228-446: A WECA meeting with the mayor, which meant over £50 million of spending decisions could not be made. In November 2021, after taking new legal advice, Norris agreed not to claim veto powers on decisions involving North Somerset. In September 2024, North Somerset Council submitted an expression of interest in formally joining the West of England Combined Authority. The mayor is a member of
304-572: A long history of settlement, and are known to have been settled by Mesolithic hunters. Travel in the area was facilitated by the construction of one of the world's oldest known engineered roadways, the Sweet Track , which dates from 3807 BCE or 3806 BCE. The exact age of the henge monument at Stanton Drew stone circles is unknown, but it is believed to be Neolithic . There are numerous Iron Age hill forts , some of which, like Cadbury Castle and Ham Hill , were later reoccupied in
380-399: A monitoring watchlist, so if there is not improvement this could result in a "best value" improvement panel being imposed or government best value inspectors taking over control of WECA. In 2018, Mayor Tim Bowles voiced hope that North Somerset would join the combined authority, saying: "We work closely on a regular basis with Nigel [Ashton, then leader of the council] and his officers on
456-602: A number of things. Personally I hope they do, and there are lots of people in North Somerset who hope they do too". In October 2020 there were discussions around North Somerset joining the WECA in time for the May 2021 election; however Marvin Rees , mayor of Bristol, voted down this proposal in early 2021. He rejected it on the basis that there should be a financial offer from the government for
532-461: A population of 965,424. After Bath (101,557), the largest settlements are Weston-super-Mare (82,418), Taunton (60,479), and Yeovil (49,698). Wells (12,000) is a city, the second-smallest by population in England. For local government purposes the county comprises three unitary authority areas: Bath and North East Somerset , North Somerset , and Somerset . Bath and North East Somerset Council
608-410: A unitary authority for the non-metropolitan county, with the powers of both a district and county council, renamed Somerset Council . The two existing unitary authorities were not altered. A previous attempt to reorganise the county as a unitary authority 2007 was rejected following local opposition. Somerset's local government records date to 1617, longer than those of any other county; a meeting of
684-519: Is a ceremonial county in South West England . It is bordered by the Bristol Channel , Gloucestershire , and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east and the north-east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. The largest settlement is the city of Bath , and the county town is Taunton . Somerset is a predominantly rural county, especially to the south and west, with an area of 4,171 km (1,610 sq mi) and
760-748: Is a member of the West of England Combined Authority . The centre of Somerset is dominated by the Levels , a coastal plain and wetland. The north-east contains part of the Cotswolds uplands and all of the Mendip Hills , which are both national landscapes ; the west contains the Quantock Hills and part of the Blackdown Hills , which are also national landscapes, and most of Exmoor , a national park . The major rivers of
836-462: Is approximately 10 °C (50.0 °F). Seasonal temperature variation is less extreme than most of the United Kingdom because of the adjacent sea temperatures. The summer months of July and August are the warmest with mean daily maxima of approximately 21 °C (69.8 °F). In winter mean minimum temperatures of 1 °C (33.8 °F) or 2 °C (35.6 °F) are common. In the summer
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#1732844838519912-473: Is as follows. Former South Gloucestershire Council leader Matthew Riddle was chosen to be interim chair of the combined authority until the first elected mayor took office on 8 May 2017, and Marvin Rees was chosen to be vice-chair. As of April 2019 the authority employed 84, including the staff of the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership and the 'Invest in Bristol and Bath' team. In 2021 there
988-709: Is drained by the River Parrett while land to the north is drained by the River Axe and the River Brue. The total area of the Levels amounts to about 647.5 square kilometres (160,000 acres) and broadly corresponds to the administrative district of Sedgemoor but also includes the south west of Mendip district . Approximately 70% of the area is grassland and 30% is arable. Stretching about 32 kilometres (20 mi) inland, this expanse of flat land barely rises above sea level. Before it
1064-467: Is in the law code of King Ine who was the Saxon King of Wessex from 688 to 726 CE, making Somerset along with Hampshire , Wiltshire and Dorset one of the oldest extant units of local government in the world. An alternative suggestion is the name derives from Seo-mere-saetan meaning "settlers by the sea lakes". The same ending can also be seen in the neighbouring Dorset . The Old English name
1140-651: Is part of a larger coalfield which stretches into Gloucestershire . To the north of the Mendip hills is the Chew Valley and to the south, on the clay substrate, are broad valleys which support dairy farming and drain into the Somerset Levels. There is an extensive network of caves , including Wookey Hole, underground rivers, and gorges , including the Cheddar Gorge and Ebbor Gorge . The county has many rivers, including
1216-510: Is suitable for the area, but he would monitor how well franchising works in Manchester when rolled out from 2023 though WECA was not carrying out any detailed analysis of this option. In 2018–19 the authority's income was £26.3m, of which £13m was from levies on the local authorities for WECA's transport functions and £7m came in grants. Expenditure was £25.3m, of which £12.8m was spent on concessionary fares and £1.7m on community transport; £2.6m
1292-454: Is the chief settlement of the county's only extant borough ). The largest urban areas in terms of population are Bath, Weston-super-Mare , Taunton, Yeovil and Bridgwater . Many settlements developed because of their strategic importance in relation to geographical features, such as river crossings or valleys in ranges of hills. Examples include Axbridge on the River Axe , Castle Cary on
1368-704: Is used in the motto of the county, Sumorsǣte ealle , meaning "all the people of Somerset". Adopted as the motto in 1911, the phrase is taken from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle . Somerset was a shire of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex , and the phrase refers to the wholehearted support the people of Somerset gave to King Alfred in his struggle to save Wessex from Viking invaders. Somerset settlement names are mostly Anglo-Saxon in origin (for example, Bath , Somerton , Wells and Keynsham ), but numerous place names include British Celtic elements, such as
1444-460: The Azores high pressure affects the south-west of England, but convective cloud sometimes forms inland, reducing the number of hours of sunshine. Annual sunshine rates are slightly less than the regional average of 1,600 hours. In December 1998 there were 20 days without sun recorded at Yeovilton. Most of the rainfall in the south-west is caused by Atlantic depressions or by convection. Most of
1520-505: The Bath and West of England Society for the Encouragement of Agriculture, Arts, Manufactures and Commerce was founded in 1777 to improve farming methods. Despite this, two decades later agriculturist John Billingsley conducted a survey of the county's agriculture in 1795 and found that agricultural methods could still be improved. Coal mining was an important industry in north Somerset during
1596-604: The Battle of Sedgemoor at Westonzoyland , the last pitched battle fought in England. Arthur Wellesley took his title, Duke of Wellington from the town of Wellington ; he is commemorated on a nearby hill by a large, spotlit obelisk , known as the Wellington Monument . The Industrial Revolution in the Midlands and Northern England spelled the end for most of Somerset's cottage industries. Farming continued to flourish, and
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#17328448385191672-804: The Early Middle Ages . On the authority of the future emperor Vespasian , as part of the ongoing expansion of the Roman presence in Britain, the Second Legion Augusta invaded Somerset from the south-east in 47 CE. The county remained part of the Roman Empire until around 409 CE, when the Roman occupation of Britain came to an end. A variety of Roman remains have been found, including Pagans Hill Roman temple in Chew Stoke , Low Ham Roman Villa and
1748-640: The European Parliament . West of England Combined Authority The West of England Combined Authority (WECA) is a combined authority within the West of England area, consisting of the local authorities of Bristol , South Gloucestershire , and Bath and North East Somerset . The body has its headquarters in the Redcliffe area of Bristol, and is led by the Mayor of the West of England . The most recent election for this post took place on 6 May 2021, when
1824-542: The GHQ Line to defend against an expected German invasion . The area is of interest to the Cam Valley Wildlife Group . Somerset Somerset ( / ˈ s ʌ m ər s ɪ t , - s ɛ t / SUM -ər-sit , -set ), archaically Somersetshire ( / ˈ s ʌ m ər s ɪ t . ʃ ɪər , - s ɛ t -, - ʃ ər / SUM -ər-sit-sheer , -set- , -shər )
1900-586: The Labour candidate Dan Norris was elected on a turnout of 36%. Devolution of certain powers to the West of England was announced by the UK government in the 2016 budget . The government's vision was to create a "Western Powerhouse" analogous to the Northern Powerhouse concept. It is claimed that the proposal could bring nearly £1 billion of investment to the region over thirty years. The original proposal
1976-637: The Mayoral Council for England and the Council of the Nations and Regions . In 2022, WECA moved from offices near Bristol Temple Meads railway station , to larger offices in a four-storey building in nearby Redcliffe . In May 2022, WECA's external auditors, Grant Thornton , initiated an investigation into strained relationships within WECA, after identifying a consequent "risk of significant weakness" in value-for-money arrangements. Grant Thornton also examined
2052-583: The Palaeolithic period, and contain extensive archaeological sites such as those at Cheddar Gorge . Bones from Gough's Cave have been dated to 12,000 BCE, and a complete skeleton, known as Cheddar Man , dates from 7150 BCE . Examples of cave art have been found in Aveline's Hole . Some caves continued to be occupied until modern times, including Wookey Hole . The Somerset Levels —specifically dry points at Glastonbury and Brent Knoll —also have
2128-894: The River Avon close to the Dundas Aqueduct . The Environment Agency does not recognise the Midford Brook, instead identifying the Wellow Brook as continuing to the Avon. On this basis the length of the Wellow Brook, from Radstock to the Avon, is 17.8 km (11.1 mi). Alongside the brook are remains of the Somerset Coal Canal which served the Somerset Coalfield in the 19th century. The valley sides are rounded and undulating through erosion. There are several springs dotted along
2204-629: The River Cary , North Petherton on the River Parrett , and Ilminster , where there was a crossing point on the River Isle . Midsomer Norton lies on the River Somer ; while the Wellow Brook and the Fosse Way Roman road run through Radstock. Chard is the most southerly town in Somerset and one of the highest, though at an altitude of 126 m (413 ft) Wiveliscombe is the highest town in
2280-501: The Roman Baths that gave their name to the city of Bath . After the Romans left, Britain was invaded by Anglo-Saxon peoples. By 600 CE they had established control over much of what is now England, but Somerset was still in native British hands. The British held back Saxon advance into the south-west for some time longer, but by the early eighth century King Ine of Wessex had pushed
2356-661: The Second World War the county was a base for troops preparing for the D-Day landings . Some of the hospitals which were built for the casualties of the war remain in use. The Taunton Stop Line was set up to repel a potential German invasion. The remains of its pill boxes can still be seen along the coast, and south through Ilminster and Chard . A number of decoy towns were constructed in Somerset in World War ;II to protect Bristol and other towns. They were designed to mimic
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2432-525: The 18th and 19th centuries, and by 1800 it was prominent in Radstock . The Somerset Coalfield reached its peak production by the 1920s. All the pits have now been closed, the last in 1973. Most of the surface buildings have been removed, and apart from a winding wheel outside Radstock Museum , little evidence of their former existence remains. Further west, the Brendon Hills were mined for iron ore in
2508-546: The 69 subsidised bus routes were expected to be withdrawn due to reductions in the local transport levy, but a new on-call minibus "demand-responsive transport" service would be launched using new government funding which could only be spent on "new and innovative" services. The mayor said he was not yet convinced that using the new bus franchising model introduced by the Bus Services Act 2017 , similar to arrangements in London ,
2584-554: The Axe, Brue , Cary, Parrett, Sheppey , Tone and Yeo . These both feed and drain the flat levels and moors of mid and west Somerset. In the north of the county the River Chew flows into the Bristol Avon . The Parrett is tidal almost to Langport , where there is evidence of two Roman wharfs. At the same site during the reign of King Charles I , river tolls were levied on boats to pay for
2660-603: The Mendips, covers a smaller geographical area than the Somerset Levels; and forms a coastal area around Avonmouth . It too was reclaimed by draining. It is mirrored, across the Severn Estuary , in Wales, by a similar low-lying area: the Caldicot and Wentloog Levels . In the far west of the county, running into Devon, is Exmoor , a high Devonian sandstone moor , which was designated as
2736-663: The Quarter Sessions held at Wells in that year decided that a room should be provided "for the safe keeping of the records of the Sessions". As of 2024 , following the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies , the ceremonial county of Somerset is divided into 11 parliamentary constituencies , each returning one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons . Conservative Labour Liberal Democrat From 1984 to 1994, Somerset
2812-486: The Severn Estuary. In the mid and north of the county the coastline is low as the level wetlands of the levels meet the sea. In the west, the coastline is high and dramatic where the plateau of Exmoor meets the sea, with high cliffs and waterfalls. Along with the rest of South West England , Somerset has a temperate climate which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of the country. The annual mean temperature
2888-652: The West of England Joint Local Transport Plan, which includes the MetroBus network and the MetroWest rail project. The fourth iteration of the plan was published in March 2020. A Key Route Network of local authority roads is managed and maintained by the combined authority on behalf of the Mayor. Travelwest is a transport information and advice service promoted by the WECA authorities as well as North Somerset. In early 2023, about 40 of
2964-466: The authority published a 207-page constitution which includes terms of reference for the body and its committees. An updated constitution was agreed on 15 July 2019 and 9 June 2020. Responsibilities include: The mayor and combined authority are responsible for a consolidated, devolved local transport budget, with a multi-year settlement. They can franchise bus services, subject to necessary legislation and local consultation. The authority promotes
3040-724: The boundaries of the West Saxon kingdom far enough west to include Somerset. The Saxon royal palace in Cheddar was used several times in the 10th century to host the Witenagemot . The nature of the relations between the Britons and the Saxons in Somerset is not entirely clear. Ine's laws demonstrate that the Britons were considered to be a significant enough population in Wessex to merit provisions; however,
3116-442: The combined authority renamed the "Bristol and Bath City Region", saying "Even when I stood for Bristol mayor back in 2012 I said I would prefer that we had a metro mayor. But a directly elected mayor for Bristol is what we had on offer from the government at the time". Local transport funding in England faces possible cuts that could disrupt bus and train improvements, prompting regional mayors to advocate for budget protection amid
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3192-485: The combined authority took place on 1 March with an interim chair, followed by the first mayoral election in May. The region covered by the combined authority had a population estimated at 950,000 in 2020. The authority also works closely with North Somerset Council; the joint area had a population in 2020 of 1,165,600. The authority's functions, as specified by the West of England Combined Authority Order, mostly cover planning, skills and local transport. In April 2017
3268-447: The council's inclusion, and stated that he would like to see North Somerset joining in the future. In 2020, North Somerset Council leader Don Davies said he regretted the decision not to join. In 2021, Dan Norris the newly elected mayor showed his interest in North Somerset council joining but also the rest of Somerset. George Ferguson , Mayor of Bristol from 2012 to 2016, suggested in 2019 that his former role should be abolished and
3344-453: The counties of Gloucester and Somerset ... and that it should be a county by itself ". The present-day northern border of Somerset (adjoining the counties of Bristol and Gloucestershire) runs along the southern bank of the Avon from the Bristol Channel, then follows around the southern edge of the Bristol built-up area, before continuing upstream along the Avon and then diverges from the river to include Bath and its historic hinterland to
3420-424: The county are the Avon , which flows through Bath and then Bristol, and the Axe , Brue , and Parrett , which drain the Levels. There is evidence of Paleolithic human occupation in Somerset, and the area was subsequently settled by the Celts , Romans and Anglo-Saxons . The county played a significant part in Alfred the Great 's rise to power, and later the English Civil War and the Monmouth Rebellion . In
3496-399: The county. The county contains several-miles-wide sections of the Avon green belt area, which is primarily in place to prevent urban sprawl from the Bristol and Bath built up areas encroaching into the rural areas of North Somerset, Bath and North East Somerset, and Mendip districts in the county, as well as maintaining surrounding countryside. It stretches from the coastline between
3572-490: The crown, with fortifications such as Dunster Castle used for control and defence. Somerset came under the political influence of several different nobles during the Middle Ages. During the Wars of the Roses, an important magnate was Humphrey Stafford, earl of Devon whose wider influence stretched from Cornwall to Wiltshire. After 1485, one of the county's most influential figures was Henry VII's chamberlain Giles Daubeney . Somerset contains HM Prison Shepton Mallet , which
3648-725: The issue of senior staff leaving, which they considered could be "highly problematic". WECA's draft 2021/2022 accounts show it spent nearly £9 million on staff salaries, £892,000 over budget. The auditors' report became available to the public in November 2022. It criticised WECA leaders for having a "poor state of professional relationships", and found five "significant weaknesses" in value-for-money arrangements. It made three legally-binding "statutory recommendations", two "key recommendations" and four "implementation recommendations". Grant Thornton issued such recommendations in only 3% of local authority reports it made that year. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities placed WECA on
3724-414: The landscape of Somerset falls into types determined by the underlying geology. These landscapes are the limestone karst and lias of the north, the clay vales and wetlands of the centre, the oolites of the east and south, and the Devonian sandstone of the west. To the north-east of the Somerset Levels, the Mendip Hills are moderately high limestone hills. The central and western Mendip Hills
3800-446: The late 19th century; this was taken by the West Somerset Mineral Railway to Watchet Harbour for shipment to the furnaces at Ebbw Vale . Many Somerset soldiers died during the First World War , with the Somerset Light Infantry suffering nearly 5,000 casualties. War memorials were put up in most of the county's towns and villages; only nine, described as the Thankful Villages , had none of their residents killed. During
3876-614: The later medieval period its wealth allowed its monasteries and parish churches to be rebuilt in grand style; Glastonbury Abbey was particularly important, and claimed to house the tomb of King Arthur and Guinevere . The city of Bath is famous for its Georgian architecture, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site . The county is also the location of Glastonbury Festival , one of the UK's major music festivals. Somerset's name derives from Old English Sumorsǣte , short for Sumortūnsǣte , meaning "the people living at or dependent on Sumortūn ( Somerton )". The first known use of Somersæte
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#17328448385193952-408: The laws also suggest that Britons could not attain the same social standing as the Saxons, and that many were slaves. In light of such policies, many Britons might have chosen to emigrate to places such as Brittany while those who remained would have had incentives to adopt Anglo-Saxon culture. After the Norman Conquest , the county was divided into 700 fiefs , and large areas were owned by
4028-423: The lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west. The ceremonial county of Somerset is currently governed by three unitary authorities : Bath and North East Somerset Council (B&NES), North Somerset Council , and Somerset Council . B&NES is also part of the West of England Combined Authority . Modern local government in Somerset began in 1889, when an administrative county
4104-403: The maintenance of the bridge. The Somerset Levels (or Somerset Levels and Moors as they are less commonly but more correctly known) are a sparsely populated wetland area of central Somerset, between the Quantock and Mendip hills. They consist of marine clay levels along the coast, and the inland (often peat based) moors. The Levels are divided into two by the Polden Hills . Land to the south
4180-407: The mayor requested £17.6 million for 2023–24, increased largely to deliver new projects from the additional government transport funding and to cover strategic transport planning responsibility transferred to WECA from constituent councils. After negotiations with council leaders in January 2023, £800,000 of the proposed increase was withheld. The membership of the combined authority cabinet
4256-454: The nighttime geometry of "blacked out" streets, railway lines, and Bristol Temple Meads railway station , to encourage German bombers away from these targets. One, on the German radio navigation beam flight path to Bristol, was constructed on Beacon Batch . It was laid out by Shepperton Studios , based on aerial photographs of the city's railway marshalling yards . The decoys were fitted with dim red lights, simulating activities such as
4332-445: The north of the Avon, before meeting Wiltshire at the Three Shire Stones on the Fosse Way at Batheaston . Somerton took over from Ilchester as the county town in the late thirteenth century, but it declined in importance and the status of county town transferred to Taunton about 1366. The county has two cities , Bath and Wells , and 30 towns (including the county town of Taunton, which has no town council but instead
4408-414: The north, where the River Avon formed the border with Gloucestershire, except that the hundred of Bath Forum , which straddles the Avon, formed part of Somerset. Bristol began as a town on the Gloucestershire side of the Avon, but as it grew it extended across the river into Somerset. In 1373 Edward III proclaimed "that the town of Bristol with its suburbs and precincts shall henceforth be separate from
4484-456: The northern border of Somerset. The Bristol Channel has the second largest tidal range in the world. At Burnham-on-Sea , for example, the tidal range of a spring tide is more than 12 metres (39 feet). Proposals for the construction of a Severn Barrage aim to harness this energy. The island of Steep Holm in the Bristol Channel is within the ceremonial county and is now administered by North Somerset Council. The main coastal towns are, from
4560-411: The rainfall in autumn and winter is caused by the Atlantic depressions, which is when they are most active. In summer, a large proportion of the rainfall is caused by sun heating the ground leading to convection and to showers and thunderstorms. Average rainfall is around 700 mm (28 in). About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, and June to August
4636-422: The rivers Frome and Avon, and names of hills. For example, an Anglo-Saxon charter of 682 refers to Creechborough Hill as "the hill the British call Cructan and the Anglo-Saxons call Crychbeorh ". Some modern names are wholly Brittonic in origin, like Tarnock , Priddy , and Chard , while others have both Saxon and Brittonic elements, such as Pen Hill . The caves of the Mendip Hills were settled during
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#17328448385194712-453: The stoking of steam locomotives . Burning bales of straw soaked in creosote were used to simulate the effects of incendiary bombs dropped by the first wave of Pathfinder night bombers; meanwhile, incendiary bombs dropped on the correct location were quickly smothered, wherever possible. Drums of oil were also ignited to simulate the effect of a blazing city or town, with the aim of fooling subsequent waves of bombers into dropping their bombs on
4788-429: The towns of Portishead and Clevedon , extending eastwards past Nailsea , around the Bristol conurbation, and through to the city of Bath. The green belt border intersects with the Mendip Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) along its south boundary, and meets the Cotswolds AONB by its eastern extent along the Wiltshire county border, creating an extended area protected from inappropriate development. Much of
4864-412: The two districts and non-metropolitan county became part of the new ceremonial county of Somerset. On 1 September 2019 the non-metropolitan districts of West Somerset and Taunton Deane merged, with the new district being called Somerset West and Taunton . In 2023, the non-metropolitan county was reorganised by abolishing the four districts and their councils and reconstituting Somerset County Council as
4940-468: The valley sides and the resultant streams are often lined with trees. The junction of the valley sides with the base is usually gentle and rounded and the valley floors are narrow but flat with the brooks meandering freely across their flood plain. The brook is quite deep in places and frequently has steep sides. This was taken advantage of in making anti-tank defences during World War II when many concrete bunkers known as pillboxes were built as part of
5016-412: The west to the north-east, Minehead , Watchet, Burnham-on-Sea, Weston-super-Mare, Clevedon and Portishead . The coastal area between Minehead and the eastern extreme of the administrative county's coastline at Brean Down is known as Bridgwater Bay , and is a National Nature Reserve . North of that, the coast forms Weston Bay and Sand Bay whose northern tip, Sand Point , marks the lower limit of
5092-444: The wrong location. The Chew Magna decoy town was hit by half a dozen bombs on 2 December 1940, and over a thousand incendiaries on 3 January 1941. The following night the Uphill decoy town, protecting the airfield at Weston-super-Mare , was bombed; a herd of dairy cows was hit, killing some and severely injuring others. The boundaries of Somerset are largely unaltered from medieval times. The main change has been in
5168-457: Was England's oldest prison still in use prior to its closure in 2013, having opened in 1610. During the English Civil War , Somerset was largely Parliamentarian , with key engagements being the Sieges of Taunton and the Battle of Langport . In 1685, the Monmouth Rebellion was played out in Somerset and neighbouring Dorset. The rebels landed at Lyme Regis and travelled north, hoping to capture Bristol and Bath, but they were defeated in
5244-399: Was a dispute between the members and the Mayor of the West of England over the mayor's powers, in particular a power to veto alternative proposals to the joint committee including North Somerset Council . The four local authorities’ monitoring officers, who give legal advice, stated the veto could arguably amount to maladministration. On 15 October 2021, the four council leaders did not attend
5320-414: Was created and Somerset County Council was established; Bath was administered separately as a county borough . In 1974, the county and council were abolished and replaced by two two-tier non-metropolitan counties , Somerset and Avon . Somerset was governed by a reconstituted county council and five districts : Mendip , Sedgemoor , South Somerset , Taunton Deane and West Somerset . Taunton Deane
5396-497: Was designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1972 and covers 198 km (76 sq mi). The main habitat on these hills is calcareous grassland , with some arable agriculture. To the south-west of the Somerset Levels are the Quantock Hills which was England's first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty designated in 1956 which is covered in heathland, oak woodlands, ancient parklands with plantations of conifer and covers 99 square kilometres. The Somerset Coalfield
5472-730: Was drained, much of the land was under a shallow brackish sea in winter and was marsh land in summer. Drainage began with the Romans, and was restarted at various times: by the Anglo-Saxons ; in the Middle Ages by the Glastonbury Abbey , during 1400–1770; and during the Second World War, with the construction of the Huntspill River . Pumping and management of water levels still continues. The North Somerset Levels basin, north of
5548-461: Was granted borough status that same year. Avon consisted of six districts, of which three were created from areas formerly part of Somerset: Woodspring , Wansdyke , and Bath . In 1996, Avon was abolished and its districts were renamed and reorganised into unitary authorities . Woodspring was renamed 'North Somerset' and Wansydyke and Bath were abolished and a new district covering the same area created, named 'Bath and North East Somerset'. In 1997
5624-430: Was represented by Conservative Margaret Daly as part of the Somerset and Dorset West constituency for elections to the European Parliament . From 1994 to 1999, Somerset was represented by Liberal Democrat Graham Watson as part of the Somerset and North Devon constituency for elections to the European Parliament . From 1999 to 2020, Somerset was part of the South West England constituency for elections to
5700-544: Was to cover the same area as the County of Avon which came into formal existence on 1 April 1974 and was abolished in 1996. However, in June 2016 North Somerset council rejected the proposal. Bristol, Bath and North East Somerset and South Gloucestershire councils agreed to proceed without them. The devolution deal , via the West of England Combined Authority Order 2017, came into force on 9 February 2017. The first public meeting of
5776-659: Was transferred to reserves and £2.9m was contributed to the Mayoral Fund. From this fund, which also received £17.6m from business rates , the mayor spent £12m on highways and £7m on transport, as well as £0.7m on the Joint Spatial Plan. In the October 2021 budget the UK government allocated £540 million to WECA over a five-year period for public transport improvements, to be predominantly spent on improving bus services. WECA spent £9.6 million on staffing in 2022–23 and
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