Bremilham

Bremilham, also known as Cowage or Cowich, is a small settlement and former civil parish in north Wiltshire, England. It is near the hamlet of Foxley in the parish of Norton. The nearest town is Malmesbury, about 2 miles (3.2 km) away to the north east.[1]

"Cowage" redirects here. For the legume, see Mucuna pruriens.

Bremilham
Bremilham Church, Cowage Farm
Bremilham is located in Wiltshire
Bremilham
Bremilham
Location within Wiltshire
OS grid referenceST903860
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townMALMESBURY
Postcode districtSN16
PoliceWiltshire
FireDorset and Wiltshire
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament

The place-name 'Bremilham' is first attested in 1065, as 'Bremelham', and means 'village where brambles or blackberries grew'.[2] In 1831, the population of the parish was 33. On some present-day maps, only Cowage Farm is shown.[3]

Bremilham was a small ecclesiastical parish[4] until 1893 when it was united with Foxley.[5] In 1934 Foxley (with Bremilham) was transferred to the civil parish of Norton.

Church

There was probably a chapel at Bremilham in 1179, when Amesbury Priory was granted the tithes; by 1289 there was a rector.[4] In 1874 the benefice was united with Foxley,[6] and from 1951 Foxley with Bremilham was held in plurality with that of Corston with Rodbourne.[7] Today the parish is part of the Gauzebrook group of churches.[8]

Bremilham's tiny Church of England church claims to be the smallest in England, measuring ten feet by eleven feet. It is either the surviving part of a 15th-century church (Historic England)[9] or a mid-19th century rebuild on the site of the chancel of the demolished church, for use as a mortuary chapel (Victoria County History).[4] The building was recorded as Grade II listed in 1986.[9]

One service is held each year.[10] The church has no dedication and the parish registers go back only to 1813.[11]

On 26 or 27 February 2020 the church bell, which used to hang on an oak beam inside the church, was stolen.[12]

References
  1. Bremilham gazetteer at genuki.org.uk, accessed 6 January 2011
  2. Eilert Ekwall, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-names, p. 63.
  3. Bremilham at genuki.org.uk, accessed 6 January 2011
  4. "Victoria County History – Wiltshire – Vol 14 pp9–13 – Parishes: Bremilham". British History Online. University of London. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  5. "Norton". Wiltshire Community History. Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  6. "No. 24095". The London Gazette. 15 May 1874. pp. 2575–2576.
  7. "No. 39333". The London Gazette. 14 September 1951. p. 4826.
  8. "Foxley with Bremilham". The Gauzebrook Group of Churches. Archived from the original on 11 October 2020. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
  9. Historic England. "Former chancel of Bremilham church (1023220)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  10. "Foxley Parish Church, Foxley w Bremilham". A Church Near You. Church of England. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  11. "Bremilham Church, Norton". Wiltshire Community History. Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  12. Seaward, Tom (3 March 2020). "300-year-old bell stolen from Britain's smallest church in Wiltshire". Swindon Advertiser. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
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