| Yeovilton | |
|---|---|
.jpg) The Podymore Inn, Podimore | |
  Yeovilton Location withinSomerset | |
| Population | 1,226 (2011)[1] |
| OS grid reference | ST545229 |
| Civil parish | |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | YEOVIL |
| Postcode district | BA22 |
| Dialling code | 01935 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
| 51°00′13″N2°38′56″W / 51.0037°N 2.6488°W /51.0037; -2.6488 | |
Yeovilton/ˈjoʊvɪltən/ is a village inSomerset, England, 1 mile (1.6 km) east ofIlchester and 5 miles (8.0 km) north ofYeovil. It had apopulation of 1,226 in the 2011 census,[1] estimated at 1,418 in 2019.[2]
The village is part ofYeovilton and Districtcivil parish, which includesLimington,Podimore (also known as Puddimore or Milton Podimore) and the hamlets ofSpeckington andBridgehampton. The village includesRNAS Yeovilton (HMS Heron) and the associatedFleet Air Arm Museum.
Yeovilton is close to the route of theFosse Way, aRoman road that linkedExeter (Isca Dumnoniorum) inSouth West England toLincoln (Lindum Colonia) in theEast Midlands, viaIlchester (Lindinis),Bath (Aquae Sulis),Cirencester (Corinium),Leicester (Ratae Corieltauvorum) andNewark-on-Trent. There is evidence of aRomano-British farmstead under what is now an airfield.[3]
Between 899 and 925, an estate in Yeovilton was granted byKing Edward and between 955 and 959King Eadwig gave a further holding of five hides toBrihtric. The parish of Yeovilton was part of thehundred ofSomerton, while Podimore was part of theWhitley Hundred.[4]
In 1411 the lord of the manor was John Rogers, who also held the manor ofBarwick. By 1602, these had been inherited byHenry Lyte. The holding was purchased byG. D. W. Digby ofSherborne Castle inDorset in 1857 and remained with the Digby family until 1919.[5]
In 1939, the village was chosen as the site for the RNAS Yeovilton air base, which was used for engagements duringWorld War II. The associatedFleet Air Arm Museum, was opened on the site of the airfield in 1964. Since 1993 theFleet Air Arm’s Memorial Church has been theChurch of St Bartholomew in Yeovilton. The village was host to a stage start of theTour of Britain in 2007.
Yeovilton is part ofCastle Caryelectoral division, which elects two councillors toSomerset Council.Yeovilton and District parish, formed in 2022 when Yeovilton parish was merged withLimington parish, also has aparish council which has responsibility for some local issues.[6][7]
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 ofSouth Somerset (established under theLocal Government Act 1972). It was part ofYeovil Rural District before 1974.[8]
The village is part of theGlastonbury and Somerton constituency for elections to theHouse of Commons of theParliament of the United Kingdom.
The town lies on the north bank of theRiver Yeo, from which it gets its name, oppositeLimington.
The parish is largely flat, lying mostly between 50 feet (15.2 m) and 75 feet (22.9 m) above sea level, on the alluvium of the Yeo andCam valleys and partly on clay loam on the Lower Lias.
Average maximum and minimum temperatures, average rainfall, rain days and sunshine recorded in 1991–2020 at the YeoviltonMet Office weather station:
| Climate data for Yeovilton, 20 m asl (1991–2020 normals), extremes since 1973 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 16.1 (61.0) | 17.7 (63.9) | 21.3 (70.3) | 25.4 (77.7) | 27.5 (81.5) | 34.0 (93.2) | 35.0 (95.0) | 33.9 (93.0) | 29.3 (84.7) | 26.5 (79.7) | 18.5 (65.3) | 16.0 (60.8) | 35.0 (95.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 8.6 (47.5) | 9.0 (48.2) | 11.2 (52.2) | 13.9 (57.0) | 17.1 (62.8) | 19.9 (67.8) | 21.9 (71.4) | 21.6 (70.9) | 19.2 (66.6) | 15.3 (59.5) | 11.5 (52.7) | 9.0 (48.2) | 14.9 (58.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 5.3 (41.5) | 5.4 (41.7) | 7.1 (44.8) | 9.2 (48.6) | 12.3 (54.1) | 15.1 (59.2) | 17.1 (62.8) | 16.9 (62.4) | 14.6 (58.3) | 11.5 (52.7) | 8.0 (46.4) | 5.7 (42.3) | 10.7 (51.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 2.0 (35.6) | 1.8 (35.2) | 3.0 (37.4) | 4.5 (40.1) | 7.4 (45.3) | 10.3 (50.5) | 12.2 (54.0) | 12.2 (54.0) | 10.0 (50.0) | 7.6 (45.7) | 4.4 (39.9) | 2.3 (36.1) | 6.5 (43.7) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −16.1 (3.0) | −12.2 (10.0) | −8.5 (16.7) | −5.1 (22.8) | −4.0 (24.8) | 1.8 (35.2) | 4.0 (39.2) | 2.9 (37.2) | 0.0 (32.0) | −4.5 (23.9) | −11.7 (10.9) | −14.2 (6.4) | −16.1 (3.0) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 70.0 (2.76) | 50.9 (2.00) | 48.5 (1.91) | 51.5 (2.03) | 47.2 (1.86) | 57.1 (2.25) | 50.2 (1.98) | 60.7 (2.39) | 53.3 (2.10) | 80.9 (3.19) | 81.9 (3.22) | 77.4 (3.05) | 729.5 (28.72) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 12.2 | 10.4 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 9.2 | 8.7 | 8.3 | 9.8 | 9.1 | 12.0 | 13.2 | 12.9 | 125.8 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 59.5 | 79.5 | 121.6 | 170.5 | 202.2 | 199.8 | 205.3 | 185.5 | 149.2 | 107.6 | 71.6 | 53.5 | 1,605.7 |
| Source:Met Office[9] Infoclimat[10] | |||||||||||||
The village lies south of theA303trunk road, which connectsBasingstoke inHampshire withHoniton inDevon.
Yeovilton has a two-hourly service in each direction betweenTaunton and Yeovil, operated byThe Buses of Somerset. A coach service on the Taunton–London route, provided by Berry's Coaches, stops in the village twice a day in each direction.[11]
The nearest railway station isYeovil Junction, which is 9 miles (14 km) away.South Western Railway provides generally hourly services betweenLondon Waterloo andExeter St Davids.[12]
At Podimore theChurch of Saint Peter dates from the 14th century and has been designated byEnglish Heritage as a grade Ilisted building.[13]
TheChurch of St Bartholomew in Yeovilton dates from around 1300 century and is a grade II*listed building.[14] From 1642Richard Sterne held the rectory of Yeovilton before going on to becomeArchbishop of York. The rector between 1762 and 1805 wasDaniel Dumaresq after his period as an educational consultant toRussian andPolish monarchs. Since 1993 the church has been owned by theRoyal Navy, and it serves as the Memorial chapel for theFleet Air Arm.
Media related toYeovilton at Wikimedia Commons
