Ludgershall, Wiltshire

At the beginning of the 20th century, a local MP, Walter Faber, began building to the east of the town on land in Hampshire. This settlement became known as Faberstown. By 1970 Ludgershall and Faberstown were in essence a single village, and in 1992 a boundary change brought Faberstown into Wiltshire.[8][9]

Biddesden is a hamlet to the east of Ludgershall, reached via Faberstown along Biddesden Lane. It is on the Hampshire/Wiltshire border and while most of Biddesden is in Wiltshire, Biddesden Bottom, the site of the Ludgershall Roman Villa, and the public footpath sign thereto,[10] are in Hampshire.

In 1141 the Empress Maud took refuge in Ludgershall Castle as she fled from King Stephen's army. She was accompanied by Milo Fitzwalter and escaped disguised as a corpse to Vies (Devizes) and thence to Gloucester. Some 600 years later a seal was found by a ploughman, bearing a knight in armour and holding a lance shield with the inscription "Sigillum Millonis De Glocestria". It is thought Fitzwalter threw away the seal to avoid identification when he escaped as a beggar. During succeeding centuries the castle was occupied by many distinguished persons and royalty frequently resided there. The village grew around the castle.

The building was turned into a hunting lodge by King Henry III but fell into disuse by the 15th century. The property is now under the care of English Heritage. Three large walls and extensive earthworks remain, although a large section of the original plot is now a private residence.

The preaching cross in Ludgershall

The remains of a Medieval preaching cross known as Ludgershall Cross are situated in the town centre and the cross dates to the 14th century, likely during the reign of Edward III (r.1327-77). This is also under the care of English Heritage.[11] It was re-erected some time in the early 19th century in the area that formed the old market place, near the present Queen's Head pub at the end of High Street. It is some 12 feet in height and in 1897, to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria, an ornamental iron fence was erected around the cross. The cross has carved representations on four sides but they are badly eroded. It is thought the original sculptured panels represented:

• North side – The Ascension of Jesus
• South side – The Three Marys
• East side – The Crucifixion of Jesus
• West side – The Command to Saint Paul

The railings were designed by A. H. Huth and bear a crown in each corner. A local Masonic lodge, The Border Lodge no.3129, consecrated in 1905 and meeting at the old Prince of Wales House hotel building, uses the preaching cross as its emblem.

St James' Church

There has been a church at Ludgershall since the 12th century; it was granted to Amesbury Priory in 1228 and united with Biddesden in 1446.[5] Faberstown was added to the ecclesiastical parish in 1945, and since 1979 the name of the parish is Ludgershall and Faberstown.[12]

The parish church of St James has a blocked doorway and a north window from the 12th century.[13] The chancel was rebuilt in the early 13th century and the transepts and north chapel were added in the 14th. The tower was rebuilt or extensively repaired in 1675.[14] Wiltshire Museum, Devizes, has an 1805 watercolour of the church by John Buckler.[15] In restoration of 1873 by J.L. Pearson the roofs were replaced, the tower heightened and the south porch added.[16]

The tower has six bells, two from the 17th century.[17] The building was designated as Grade I listed in 1964.[16]

The font is probably from the 15th century.[16] There is a large monument to Richard Brydges (1500–1588), his wife Jane Spencer and their family, described by Pevsner as "one of the most important of its date in England".[18] Also buried in the church is John Webb (1667–1724).[19] The organ was built by Walker in 1853.[19]

Biddesden House, now a Grade I listed house[20] and home to an Arabian Horse stud farm, is described in the Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870–72)[21] as being the chief residence of the parish of Ludgershall. The previous building was built before 1693 and the present building was built between 1711 and 1712.

During the Second World War, Army depots were built to the north and south of Tidworth Road. The War Office transferred the Army Medical Store to a site west of the railway station. The US Army prepared vehicles for the invasion of Europe at the depot in 1943.[8] The barracks were home to 26 Engineer Regiment, Royal Engineers[22] prior to 2015, when they were demolished to make way for military housing.[23][24]