Littledean
| Littledean | |
| Gloucestershire | |
|---|---|
| |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SO672130 |
| Location: | 51°48’53"N, 2°28’38"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 1,296 (2011[1]) |
| Post town: | Cinderford |
| Postcode: | GL14 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Forest of Dean |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Forest of Dean |
Littledean is a village in the Forest of Dean, west Gloucestershire. The village has a long history and formerly had the status of a town. Littledean Hall was originally a Saxon hall, although it has been rebuilt and the current house dates back to 1612. The remains of a Roman temple are situated in the grounds. Neither the hall or Roman remains are open to the public.
Collectively, the villages and the surrounding wood (Forest of Dean) were mentioned in the Domesday Book as Dene, and appear as Dena in 1130.[2]
==Parish church
The parish church is named St Ethelbert's, after the martyred King Æthelberht II of the East Anglians. It has been observed:
The church is mostly 600 years old with a 15th century tower and chapel. There are two scratch dials on the porch. The chancel arch is 13th century but has massive Norman pillars whose capitals are decorated with shamrock. The old roodloft has gone, but its existence is suggested by an outside window. Above the tower arch is an opening for the bellringer to see into the nave to ring the bell warning the congregation in pre-Reformation days to kneel at the elevation of the Host. The old oak roofs have carved bosses of roses.—Arthur Mee: Gloucestershire
The church has an unusual error on its clockface: the clock has Roman numerals all round as is traditional but the numeral 'IX' appears in both the 9 and 11 positions.[3]
About the village
Littledean Hall is a grand country house in the village.
The former prison in Littledean, is now a crime museum.[4][5]
Littledean Camp is the remains of a Norman motte-and-bailey castle overlooking the village, previously thought to be a Roman camp.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Littledean) |
- Pictures of Littledean and the area on Geograph.co.uk
- Information on Littledean from GENUKI
- Beehive - Littledean Parish
- The BBC webcan from Littledean hill
References
- ↑ "Parish population 2011.Retrieved 27 March 2015". https://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=11125772&c=Littledean&d=16&e=62&g=6427276&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1427466552062&enc=1.
- ↑ Ekwall, Eilert, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 4th edition, 1960. p. 140 ISBN 0198691033
- ↑ St Ethelbert's Church, Littledean: Church Database
- ↑ Littledean Jail
- ↑ Forest of Dean
- A History of the County of Gloucester - Volume 5 pp 159-173: Littledean (Victoria County History)