Slindon

Slindon

Slindon post office
Slindon
 Slindon shown within West Sussex
Area  12.87 km2 (4.97 sq mi)
Population 595 (Civil Parish.2011)[1]
    density  46/km2 (120/sq mi)
OS grid referenceSU961084
    London  49 miles (79 km) NNE 
Civil parishSlindon
DistrictArun
Shire countyWest Sussex
RegionSouth East
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post town ARUNDEL
Postcode district BN18
Dialling code 01243
Police Sussex
Fire West Sussex
Ambulance South East Coast
EU Parliament South East England
UK ParliamentArundel and South Downs
List of places
UK
England
West Sussex

Coordinates: 50°52′03″N 0°38′07″W / 50.86739°N 0.63515°W / 50.86739; -0.63515

Slindon is a mostly rural village and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England, containing a developed nucleus amid woodland. Much of Slindon's woodland belongs to the National Trust on the southern edge of the escarpment of the South Downs National Park. Slindon is centred 6 miles (9.7 km) north-east of Chichester.

History

The village is listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Eslindone", the name having the probable meaning in Old English of "sloping hill".[2]

St Mary's 12th-century parish church contains a memorial to Stephen Langton (c11501228), the Archbishop of Canterbury who attended the signing of Magna Carta. In the Middle Ages Slindon House (now Slindon College) was the site of one of the Archbishop's residences. In 1330 Thomas de Natindon, who was a legal representative of the Pope, was sent there to serve a writ on the archbishop. His party were not well received by the archbishop's servants who stripped and bound them, then threw cold water over them, apparently with the archbishop's consent. Natindon escaped revenge and was pursued over the hills to Petworth where he was caught and held in prison for three days.[3]

The writer Hilaire Belloc (18701953) lived in the village.

In the mid-18th century, Slindon Cricket Club achieved fame through the excellence of its team which featured Richard Newland (171891), whose memorial is also in the church.

Amenities

In May 2012, the process began of renovating and converting the old village forge into a shop, cafe and information centre; this opened on 16 October 2012.[4]

The village has been called the "pumpkin capital of Britain", and an annual display of pumpkins attracts tourists to the village.[5]

A short walk from the village is Nore Folly (aka Slindon Folly), a structure built during the 18th Century by the Newburgh Family whose seat was at Slindon. The Folly resembles a gateway but leads to nowhere.[6]

Former amenities

Slindon post office closed in 2008.[n 1]. No pub remains.[5][7]

Notes and references

Notes
  1. The nearest post office is at Walberton
References
  1. Key Statistics; Quick Statistics: Population Density United Kingdom Census 2011 Office for National Statistics Retrieved 10 May 2014
  2. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place Names (Oxford 1991, revised 1996)
  3. Peter Jerrome, Petworth. From the beginnings to 1660. The Window Press 2002 p31-32
  4. http://www.slindonforge.co.uk/
  5. 1 2 Wintle, Angela (11 October 2008). "The pumpkin king's crowning glory". Telegraph.co.uk. Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 11 October 2008.
  6. "The Folly and Trig Point, Nore Hill". Geograph site - sponsored by Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 20 March 2012.
  7. "Decisions On The Future Of Post Office Branches In Sussex". Royal Mail. 29 January 2008. Retrieved 11 October 2008.

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