| Porlock | |
|---|---|
 High Street | |
  Porlock Location withinSomerset | |
| Population | 1,440 (2011)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SS886467 |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | MINEHEAD |
| Postcode district | TA24 |
| Dialling code | 01643 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | Website |
| 51°12′32″N3°35′44″W / 51.208796°N 3.595557°W /51.208796; -3.595557 | |
Porlock is a coastal village inSomerset, England, 5 miles (8 km) west ofMinehead. At the 2011 census, the village had a population of 1,440.[1]
In 2017, Porlock had the highest percentage of elderly population in England,[2] with over 40% being of pensionable age as of 2010.[3]
East of the village isBury Castle, anIron Agehill fort.
There is evidence for 10th or 11th century origin for the name Porlock as Portloc or Portloca meaning enclosure by the harbour, from the Old Englishport andloca,[4] and in theDomesday Book the village was known as "Portloc".[5] In 914 the Vikings plundered Porlock.[6]
Porlock was part of thehundred ofCarhampton.[7]
The area has links with several Romantic poets, andR. D. Blackmore, the author ofLorna Doone, and is popular with visitors. The visitor centre has exhibits and displays about the local area. Also on display are the bones of anaurochs, discovered on Porlock beach in 1999.[8]
Theparish council has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council's operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, andneighbourhood watch groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council.
Forlocal government purposes, since 1 April 2023, the parish comes under theunitary authority ofSomerset Council. Prior to this, it was part of thenon-metropolitan district ofSomerset West and Taunton (formed on 1 April 2019) and, before this, the district ofWest Somerset (established under theLocal Government Act 1972). It was part ofWilliton Rural District before 1974.[9]
As Porlock falls within theExmoor National Park some functions normally administered by district or county councils have, since 1997, fallen under the Exmoor National Park Authority, which is known as a 'single purpose' authority, which aims to "conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the National Parks" and "promote opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of the Parks by the public",[10] including responsibility for the conservation of the historic environment.[11]
Porlock has anelectoral ward called 'Porlock and District' which stretches westwards to theDevon boundary, eastwards toMinehead and south toWootton Courtenay. The total population of the ward at the2011 census was 2,338.[12]
It is also part of theTiverton and Mineheadcounty constituency represented in theHouse of Commons of theParliament of the United Kingdom. It elects oneMember of Parliament (MP) by thefirst past the post system of election. Prior toBrexit in 2020 it was part of theSouth West England constituency of theEuropean Parliament.
The village adjoins thePorlock Ridge and Saltmarsh nature reserve, created from the lowland behind a high shingle embankment which was breached by the sea in the 1990s, which has now been designated as aSite of Special Scientific Interest.Copses of white dead trees remind the visitor of when this was freshwater pasture.
A stream flows down a woodedcombe called Hawkcombe leads about three miles (5 km) from the village up to high open moorland. The stream, called "Hawkcombe Waters", runs past a Victorian hunting lodge, called The Cleeve, then underground beneath the Overstream Hotel in the centre of the village.
TheSouth West Coast Path goes through Porlock, many walkers stopping rather than continuing the long walk toLynton. There is also a 'Coleridge Way' walk.
Culbone Church is said to be the smallest church in England.[13] The main structure is 12th century. Services are still held there, despite the lack of road access –Culbone is a two-mile (3 km) walk fromPorlock Weir, and some 3–4 miles (about 6 km) from Porlock itself.
Atoll road bypasses the 1 in 4 gradient onPorlock Hill. There is the prehistoricPorlock Stone Circle on the hill.[14]
At low tide the remains of asubmerged forest can be seen on Porlock Beach. The area was several miles inland until the sea level in the Bristol Channel rose about 7000 to 8000 years ago.[15]
TheChurch of St Dubricius dates from the 13th century. The spire was damaged in a storm of 1703.[5] The church has been designated as a grade Ilisted building.[16] Within the church is a 15th-century tomb of John Harrington who fought alongsideHenry V inFrance in 1417.[17]
 | This sectionneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.(August 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
In 1797, poetSamuel Taylor Coleridge, who lived nearby atNether Stowey (betweenBridgwater andMinehead), but — due to illness — had "retired to a lonely farm house between Porlock andLynton",[18] was interrupted during composition of his poemKubla Khan by "aperson on business from Porlock", and claimed he found afterwards he could not remember what had come to him in a dream.
Coleridge andWilliam Wordsworth (who lived nearby atAlfoxden) would often roam the hills and coast on long night walks, leading to local gossip that they were 'spies' for theFrench. The Government sent an agent to investigate, but found they were "mere poets". Their walks are celebrated by theColeridge Way which ends in Porlock. Their friendRobert Southey published a poem titled "Porlock" in 1798.
Legend has it that the area beyondCulbone towardsLynmouth whereGlenthorne is now situated is whereJesus may have alighted on a trip withJoseph of Arimathea. This is said to have inspired a passage fromWilliam Blake's famous poemMilton: A Poem in Two Books:
And did those feet in ancient time
Walk upon England’s mountains green?
And was the Holy Lamb of God
On England’s pleasant pastures seen?
And did the countenance divine
Shine forth upon our clouded hills?
And was Jerusalem builded here
Among these dark satanic mills?— Milton, William Blake
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
