Tilshead

Tilshead ( ) is a village and civil parish in the county of Wiltshire in Southern England, about northwest of the town of Amesbury. It is close to the geographical centre of Salisbury Plain, on the A360 road approximately midway between the villages of Shrewton and West Lavington and is near the source of the River Till. Its population in 2011 was 358, down from a peak of 989 inhabitants¹ in 1951.

Tilshead ( ) is a village and civil parish in the county of Wiltshire in Southern England, about northwest of the town of Amesbury. It is close to the geographical centre of Salisbury Plain, on the A360 road approximately midway between the villages of Shrewton and West Lavington and is near the source of the River Till. Its population in 2011 was 358, down from a peak of 989 inhabitants in 1951.

History

Salisbury Plain has much evidence of prehistoric activity. One kilometre south of Tilshead village, under the ridge of Copehill Down, is the White Barrow, a large Neolithic long barrow. To the southwest and southeast are ancient boundary ditches, partly followed by the parish boundary; the ditch in the southeast has a long barrow next to it. The name of the settlement derives from "Theodwulf's hide". In 1086, Tydolveshyde or Tidolthide was a borough and large royal estate, with a relatively large population of 164 households and nine mills. The tithing of South Tilshead was a manor of Romsey Abbey until the dissolution of the monasteries, and came to be a detached part of the hundred of Whorwellsdown. The name Tilshead came into use in the 16th century. The river was called the Winterbourne until around the start of the 20th century, when the name River Till began to be used on Ordnance Survey maps. The village has houses from the 17th and 18th centuries, some thatched. Tilshead House, on the High Street, is a three-storey house of the early 19th century, in red brick. Tilshead Lodge was built in the early 18th century to the southwest of the village, then rebuilt c. 1800. The estate was used for racehorse training in the early 19th and early 20th centuries, then was sold to the War Office in 1911 and 1933. The house was demolished sometime after 1957.

Local government

The civil parish elects a parish council. It is in the area of Wiltshire Council, a unitary authority which is responsible for all significant local government functions.

Religious sites

Military land

Much of Salisbury Plain is used by the Ministry of Defence for military training. Westdown Camp, to the east of the village, is an accommodation centre for the Salisbury Plain Training Area. RAF Tilshead, to the southwest of the village, was in use from 1925 to 1941. Its land is currently used as part of Salisbury Plain Training Area.

References

External links

Parish website

Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1344295350 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.