| Winchcombe | |
|---|---|
 Gloucester Street, Winchcombe | |
  Winchcombe Location withinGloucestershire | |
| Population | 5,121 (2021 Census)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SP025285 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CHELTENHAM |
| Postcode district | GL54 |
| Dialling code | 01242 |
| Police | Gloucestershire |
| Fire | Gloucestershire |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
| |
Winchcombe (/ˈwɪntʃkəm/) is amarket town andcivil parish in theBorough of Tewkesbury in the county ofGloucestershire, England, it is 6 miles (10 km) north-east ofCheltenham. The population was recorded as 4,538 in the2011 census and estimated at 5,347 in 2019.[2] The town is located in theCotswolds and has many features and buildings dating back tomedieval times. In 2021 it was the primary strike site of the eponymousWinchcombe meteorite.
TheBelas KnapNeolithiclong barrow onCleeve Hill above Winchcombe, dates from about 3000 BCE.[3] InAnglo-Saxon times, Winchcombe was a major community in Mercia, favoured by KingCoenwulf of Mercia, the others beingLichfield andTamworth. In the 11th century, the town was briefly thecounty town ofWinchcombeshire.[4] The Anglo-SaxonSt Kenelm, said to be a son of Coenwulf, is believed to be buried here.[5]
Duringthe Anarchy of the 12th century, amotte-and-bailey castle was built in the early 1140s forEmpress Matilda, byRoger Fitzmiles, 2nd Earl of Hereford, but its exact site is unknown.[6]
Inthe Restoration period, Winchcombe was noted for cattle rustling and other lawlessness, attributed in part to poverty. Local people seeking a living took to growing tobacco as a cash crop, although the practice had been outlawed since theCommonwealth period. Soldiers were sent in at least once to destroy the illegal crop.[7]
Fragments of the Winchcombe Meteorite originating from the asteroid belt betweenMars andJupiter, fell on a house driveway on 28 February 2021.[8] The meteorite is a rarecarbonaceous chondrite, offering pristine material from the beginnings of theSolar System 4.6 billion years ago. This was preserved by its prompt collection by a local resident about 12 hours after falling to Earth.[9] Another fragment was found by researchers on a local farm.[10] Some of the meteorite fragments were put on display at the town museum.[11]
Winchcombe started life as a Roman hamlet, rising to prominence as anAnglo-Saxon walled town containingWinchcombe Abbey, where aMercian king and his saintly son were buried. Although the town wall has long vanished, Winchcombe retains much of its medieval layout, with a mixture oftimber-framed and Cotswold limestone buildings along its High Street, some dating back to the 15th century.[12]
Winchcombe's position on theCotswold Way keeps it popular with walkers and history fans. Frequent visits are made to the heritageGWRsteam railway that links it with Broadway andCheltenham Racecourse, and withSudeley Castle, the burial place ofQueen Catherine Parr, which lies on the outskirts.
Winchcombe and vicinity containSudeley Castle and the remains ofHailes Abbey, once a main place ofpilgrimage, due to a phial said by the monks possessing it to contain theBlood of Christ.[13] Nothing remains ofWinchcombe Abbey.St Peter's Church in the centre of the town is noted for itsgrotesques.
Several buildings around Sudeley Hill are Grade II listed.[14]
Winchcombe is crossed by seven long-distance footpaths: TheCotswold Way, theGloucestershire Way, theWychavon Way,St Kenelm's Trail, St Kenelm's Way,[15] the Warden's Way and the Windrush Way. Winchcombe became a member of theWalkers are Welcome network of towns in July 2009 and now holds a walking festival every May.
The town has bus services toCheltenham,Broadway andWillersey.[16]
Winchcombe had a railway opened in 1906 by theGreat Western Railway fromStratford-upon-Avon toCheltenham as part of a main line fromBirmingham to the South West andSouth Wales.Winchcombe railway station and most others on the section closed in March 1960.[17] Through passenger trains continued until March 1968 and goods until 1976, when a derailment caused damage and it was decided to close the section.[18] By the early 1980s it had been dismantled. The length betweenToddington andCheltenham Racecourse via Winchcombe has been reconstructed as the heritageGloucestershire Warwickshire Railway.[19] It was extended to Broadway in spring 2018. The new station building that opened at Winchcombe on its original site was brought from the formerMonmouth Troy railway station.[20] Nearby is the 693-yard (634 m) Greet Tunnel, the second longest on a British preserved line.
Anelectoral ward in the same name stretches fromAlderton in the north toHawling in the south. Its total population at the 2011 census was 6,295.[21]Winchcombe Town Hall is now host to Winchcombe Folk and Police Museum.[22]
Winchcombe has asecondary school –Winchcombe School in Greet Road, east of the town centre. Winchcombe Abbey Church of EnglandPrimary School lies near the town centre in Back Lane, next to Winchcombe Library and Cowl Lane.
Local news and television programmes are provided byBBC West Midlands andITV Central. Television signals are received from theSutton Coldfield and local relay TV transmitters.[23][24]
Local radio stations areBBC Radio Gloucestershire on 104.7 FM,Heart West on 102.4 FM,Greatest Hits Radio South West on 107.5 FM, andRadio Winchcombe, a community based radio station which broadcast to the town on 107.1 FM.[25]
The town is served by the local newspaper:Gloucestershire Echo.[26]
The community stationRadio Winchcombe began broadcasting in April 2005 for 20 days a year.[27] Full-time broadcasting was approved in December 2011 and began on 18 May 2012.[28]
Winchcombe has aMichelin selected restaurant at5 North Street. From 2004 to 2017, it held a one star rating.[29][30] There are several other frequented eating places.[31]
Winchcombe Town F.C. plays in theGloucestershire Northern Senior League.[32]
In birth order:
| Following theCotswold Way | |
|---|---|
| Towards Bath | Towards Chipping Campden |
| 13.5 km (8.4 mi) to Cheltenham | 19 km (12 mi) to Broadway |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
