| Wellington | |
|---|---|
 Wellington from Chelmsine | |
  Wellington Location withinSomerset | |
| Population | 16,669 (2021 Census)[1] |
| OS grid reference | ST140203 |
| Civil parish |
|
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | WELLINGTON |
| Postcode district | TA21 |
| Dialling code | 01823 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
| 50°58′32″N3°13′27″W / 50.9755°N 3.2243°W /50.9755; -3.2243 | |
Wellington is a market town inSomerset, England. It is situated 7 miles (11 km) south west ofTaunton, near the border withDevon, which runs along theBlackdown Hills to the south of the town. The town had apopulation of 16,669, which includes the residents of the parish ofWellington Without,[3] and the villages ofTone andTonedale.
Known asWeolingtun in theAnglo-Saxon period, its name had changed toWalintone by the time of theDomesday Book of 1086. Wellington became a town under a royal charter of 1215 and during theMiddle Ages it grew as a centre for trade on the road fromBristol toExeter. Major rebuilding took place following a fire in the town in 1731, after which it became a centre for cloth-making. It is possible that the fire referred to here was actually in Tiverton, Devon which has details of a major fire in the same year. Further information on a major fire in Wellington at this time cannot be found.
In 1809, the Crown referenced Wellington when creating a viscountcy for the eventualDuke of Wellington,Arthur Wellesley, after his victory at theBattle of Talavera in thePeninsular War. When the title's name was being considered, Arthur's brother,Richard Wellesley, Earl of Mornington, found an available manor in the parish of Wellington, a name close to the family name. Richard oversaw the manor's purchase while Arthur commanded the army in Spain against the French. TheWellington Monument south of Wellington commemorates Arthur.
TheGrand Western Canal reached the town in 1835 and then theBristol and Exeter Railway in 1843. The town'sown railway station survived until 1964. Wellington was home ofFox, Fowler and Company, which was the last commercial bank permitted to print their ownsterlingbanknotes in England and Wales. In the 20th century closer links with Taunton meant that many of the residents of Wellington commuted there for work, and theM5 motorway enabled car journeys to be made more easily.
Local industries, which now include anaerosol factory and the Relyon bed manufacturers, are celebrated at theWellington Museum in Fore street. Wellington is home to the independentWellington School, and state-fundedCourt Fields School. It is also home to a range of cultural, sporting and religious sites including the 15th centuryChurch of St John the Baptist.
Thecapital city ofNew Zealand is named afterArthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, being recognised as having some influence in the company that founded the New Zealand town. The New Zealand capital therefore takes its name ultimately from the English town of Wellington in Somerset.
In a grant of between 899 and 909Edward the Elder gave the land then known asWeolingtun toBishop Asser, along withWest Buckland andBishops Lydeard. This was in exchange for the monastery ofPlympton inDevon.[4] The name may mean "the settlement in the temple clearing".[5] By the time of theDomesday Book of 1086, the name had changed toWalintone[4] and the estate was owned byGisa, Bishop of Wells.[5] The parish of Wellington was part of theKilmersdonHundred,[6]
A site atLongforth Farm near Tonedale has been identified as havingBronze Age occupation and, during excavations prior to the building of new homes, found to have been occupied by a 12th-14th century building with decorated floor tiles covering 0.4 hectares (0.99 acres).[7][8][9]
A royal charter of 1215 gave Wellington its status as a town, and during themedieval period it grew as a centre for trade on the road fromBristol toExeter, being laid out with the church at the east end of town, in a similar manner to other towns of this era.[5] In 1548, the manor was sold toEdward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, but reverted to the control of the bishops after his execution. By the end of the 16th century it had come under the protection ofJohn Popham (judge) and his descendants who built a manor house which was destroyed during theEnglish Civil War.[5]
Major rebuilding took place in the town following a fire in 1731.[10] After this the town's importance grew as it became a centre for clothmaking across Somerset andDevon, its importance as trade centre enhanced by fires inTaunton andTiverton.[5] By the 1831 census, 258 people were recorded as cloth workers in Wellington.[11]
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Arthur Wellesley took the title of his Marquessate in 1809 from this town of Wellington. Nearby Wellington Hill boasts a large, spotlit obelisk to his honour. TheWellington Monument is a floodlit 175 feet (53 m) high triangular tower designated byEnglish Heritage as a grade II*listed building.[12] It was erected to celebrate the Duke of Wellington's victory at theBattle of Waterloo. The foundation stone was laid in 1817 on land belonging to the Duke but, owing to funding problems, the monument was not completed until 1854. It is now owned by theNational Trust who announced plans to reclad the monument at a cost of £4 million in 2009.[13]Wellington Town Hall, originally built as a market hall, was completed in 1833.[14]
In the 18th century turnpikes arrived in the area and then in the 19th communications improved with theGrand Western Canal reaching the town in 1835.[5] Wellington station was opened when theBristol and Exeter Railway reached the town on 1 May 1843. It was a typicalBrunel design but was rebuilt in 1932 when two loop lines were put in. This entailed the platforms being moved back to accommodate the widened lines. These platforms are clearly visible and agoods shed still stands on the east side of the line at the Taunton end of the station, although the station closed on 5 October 1964. Wellington was an important station as it stood at the foot of a steep incline.Banking locomotives were kept here, ready to assist heavy westbound trains up to Whiteball Tunnel.
In the 20th century closer links with Taunton meant that many of the residents of Wellington commuted there for work, and theM5 motorway, which opened in sections in the 1960s and 1970s,[15] enabled car journeys to be made more easily.[5]
Thomas Fox started theFox, Fowler and Company bank in Wellington which rapidly expanded and ran successfully, until it merged withLloyds Bank in 1927. It was the last private bank in England to issue its own notes and they were legal tender until 1964. There are nine notes left in circulation. TheBritish Museum have another example on display. The bank established its Head Office at the old family house in Fore Street, Wellington (today the Lloyds Bank branch) – they opened branches atTaunton,Bridgwater,Weston-super-Mare,Torrington,Bideford,Barnstaple,Ilfracombe andSouth Molton.[16]
The original £5 note is on display atTone Dale House – one of the last nine and possible the only one left uncancelled.[citation needed]
Wellington has two tiers of local government: theparish andunitary authority level. The present system dates from 1 April 2023 whenSomerset Council came into existence and thenon-metropolitan district ofSomerset West and Taunton, which had been established in 2019, was abolished.
The lower tier is Wellington Town Council, formed as asuccessor parish to WellingtonUrban District Council in 1974. The town council has 15 councillors, and is headed by a town mayor. For elections of town councillors, the town is divided into four wards: Wellington East (returning 4 councillors), Wellington North (4),Rockwell Green (3) and Wellington West (4).[17] The political composition of the council in November 2009 wasLiberal Democrats 7,Conservative Party 5 andLabour Party 3.[18] The town council provides purely local services. An area to the south of the town falls within thecivil parish ofWellington Without.
The upper tier isSomerset Council. Based in Taunton, the council has 110 councillors, two elected for each of its 55 electoral divisions.[19] Most of the town comprises the Wellington electoral division and, since 2022, is represented by one Labour and one Conservative councillor.[20]Somerset Council is responsible for running all local services such aseducation,social services, thelibrary, roads,public transport,trading standards,waste disposal and strategic planning, although fire, police and ambulance services are provided jointly with other authorities through theDevon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service,Avon and Somerset Constabulary and theSouth Western Ambulance Service.
For elections to theHouse of Commons of theParliament of the United Kingdom, Wellington forms part of theTaunton and Wellington constituency. The constituency elects oneMember of Parliament (MP) by thefirst past the post system of election.
The town has several dependent villages includingWest Buckland,Langford Budville,Nynehead,Sampford Arundel and Sampford Moor. The formerly independent village ofRockwell Green, to the west of the town, has been incorporated into Wellington parish although there is still agreen wedge of land between them. Bagley Green, just south of Rockwell Green, is also within the parish.[21]
Wellington Park was a gift from theQuaker Fox family to the town in 1903 as a memorial to the coronation of KingEdward VII.[22] The 4.9 acres (2.0 ha) gardens were laid out by F.W. Meyer, who included a rock garden which used 80 tons oflimestone from Westleigh quarry nearBurlescombe.[23] It is Grade II listed on theEnglish Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England.[24] It was restored in around 2010 at a cost of £412,827 which included a grant of £296,500 from theHeritage Lottery Fund Public Parks Initiative.[25]
There areLocal Nature Reserves at Wellington Basins on the western fringe of the town.[26] It includes a small pond and boardwalk with a variety of wildlife habitats. The grassland, hedges and woodland are home to a varied flora and fauna including birds such as thegrey wagtail,white-throated dipper andreed bunting. Five separate bat species have been recorded at the site.[27] Swains Pond in the south of Wellington is another Local Nature Reserve,[28] which used to be the site of orchards. It now includes a pond which provides a home for amphibians including thegreat crested newt,palmate newt andtoads.[29]
Wellington has anoceanic climate (Köppen climate classificationCfb).
| Climate data for Wellington | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 8 (46) | 8 (46) | 10 (50) | 12 (54) | 16 (61) | 18 (64) | 21 (70) | 21 (70) | 18 (64) | 14 (57) | 11 (52) | 9 (48) | 14 (57) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 2 (36) | 2 (36) | 3 (37) | 4 (39) | 6 (43) | 9 (48) | 11 (52) | 11 (52) | 9 (48) | 7 (45) | 4 (39) | 3 (37) | 6 (43) |
| Source: Weather Channel[30] | |||||||||||||
Along with the rest ofSouth West England, Wellington has a temperate climate which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of the country.[31] The annual mean temperature 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.[31] In the summer theAzores high pressure affects the south-west of England, howeverconvective 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.[31] In December 1998 there were 20 days without sun recorded at Yeovilton. Most of the rainfall in the south-west is caused byAtlantic depressions or byconvection. Most of 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 have the lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west.[31]
The town has apopulation of 14,696.[3] Large growth occurred during the 1970s when housing developments were built on the south side of the town. These were largely prompted by Wellington's proximity to Junction 26 of theM5 motorway.
Wellington's main industry was wool-making and in November 2009,Deborah Meaden, best known fromDragons' Den aBBC television programme, invested in theFox Brothers' Mill which produces wool cloth forSavile Row, designers and clients around the world.[32] The Fox family established the mill in 1772. TheTonedale mill complex includes two listed buildings,[33][34] some of which were still being used until 2000.The Prince's Regeneration Trust have been supporting the Tone Mill Regeneration Partnership in attempting to preserve and regenerate the area with a mixed development for commercial and residential use.[35] It is included in theHeritage at Risk Register produced byEnglish Heritage.[36]
The last Fox family house in WellingtonTone Dale House is still owned by Ben and Victoria Fox, Ben is the great-great-great-great-grandson of Thomas Fox.[37] Tone Dale House (since 1996) is also now run as an events and hire venue, for house parties, anniversaries, weddings and corporate events.[38]
Local industries are celebrated at theWellington Museum in Fore Street. Wellington was home ofFox, Fowler and Company, which was the last commercial bank permitted to print their ownsterlingbanknotes in England and Wales.[39][40]
The town is still largely dependent on industry, along with the neighbouring towns Taunton and Bridgwater with manufacturing industries identified within the county economic strategy as key centres for further economic development, due to good transport links.[41] Swallowfield plc benefited from the growth of own-brand products during the 1970s and now producesaerosol, cosmetic and toiletry products. It was founded in 1876 as Walter Gregory & Co Ltd who manufactured animal husbandry products. The company diversified and in 1950 produced the first commercial aerosols in the UK which were basically farm products, air fresheners and insecticides.[42][43] Bed manufacturers Relyon employ some 400 people. The company started in 1858 as a wool merchant, Price Brothers and Co., but the business soon moved into manufacturing beds and in 1935 changed its name to Relyon Ltd. In 2001 it was acquired bySteinhoff International Holdings Ltd., a quoted South African group.[44]
The town was served byWellington railway station on theBristol and Exeter Railway from 1 May 1843 until 5 October 1964.[5] It was here that extra locomotives were attached to heavy trains to help them up the incline toWhiteball Tunnel on their way south. Therailway from Penzance to London, and also toBristol and the North, continue to pass through the town, but no trains stop. The nearest railway stations areTaunton[45] andTiverton Parkway. A campaign was started to reopen the railway station in 2009.[46] The government approved a new train station being opened in the town in October 2023,[47] but withdrew the funding for this in July 2024.[48]
The town is close to junction 26 of theM5 motorway, which spent a year in the 1970s as a temporary terminal junction, whilst the motorway between junctions 26 and 27 was finished. TheA38 is still a very important link toTaunton. Wellington is served twice daily byBerrys Coaches 'Superfast' service to and from London.[49]
Wellington is home to apublic school,Wellington School. It was founded in 1837[50] as an all-boys school. A solitary day girl was allowed to join the Sixth Form in 1972 and the following year Wellington became co-educational. The school opened a new junior school in 2000, having previously only catered for pupils aged 10 and over. In December 2007, the school commissioned its new multi-purpose examination hall and English Department adjacent to its Sports Centre.[51] Notable alumni of Wellington School include actorDavid Suchet,[52] chefKeith Floyd[53] and peerLord Archer.[54]
The mainsecondary school in the town isCourt Fields School. The 11–16 school includes a sports complex, completed in early 2008.[55]
Despite its small size, Wellington has historically been notable for its profusion ofchurches of many different denominations, including aQuaker meeting house,[56] the Grade Ilisted, 15th centuryChurch of St John the Baptist,[57] which includes a monument toJohn Popham,[58] and theRoman Catholic Church of St John Fisher which was built in 1606 as Popham's Almshouses and converted into a Roman Catholic church in 1936.[59] There was a Presbyterian Independent Church.
Wellington has its own amateur dramatic group, formed in the 1960s, called Wellington Arts Association, which holds productions both at Wellington Arts Centre and at the Wellesley Theatre. It includes the Genesis Youth Theatre Group, Operatic Society, Pantomime Group, Civic Players, Arcadians and the Spectrum Arts And Crafts.[60] The Wellesley Cinema was built in 1937, in theArt Deco style. The auditorium seats 400 people on two levels and is run as an independent cinema.[61]
Wellington and District Camera Club meets in the New Science Block, Wellington School.[62] The club is affiliated to the Western Counties Photographic Federation (W.C.P.F.)[63] and also to Wellington Arts Association (W.A.A.).
The town has its own weekly newspaper, theWellington Weekly News, which was first published in 1860.[64] There is also a community website providing news and views about the town, Around Wellington.
The town is home to Wellington Silver Band, a four section brass band.[65] The band can trace its origins to 1887, when it was formed from the volunteer band of the 2nd Battalion, Prince Albert'sSomersetshire Light Infantry.[66]
Wellington is twinned to the town ofImmenstadt inGermany, the town ofLillebonne inFrance[67] andTorres Vedras inPortugal.[68]
WellingtonCricket Club have a ground off Courtland Road, and have two teams in theSomerset Cricket League.[69]Wellington A.F.C. football Club was formed in 1892 and now play in theWestern Football League.[70]
Wellington Bowmen is anarchery club formed in 2001. It uses facilities at the rugby club and at Court Fields School.[71] TheRugby club itself was founded in 1874.[72] The first team plays in the Western Counties West League.
TheGrand National winning horse,Miinnehoma was prepared for his victory in the1994 race byMartin Pipe at his Pond House Stables in the town.[73]
The following people and military units have received theFreedom of the Town of Wellington.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
