far from the madding crowd

...this afternoon, we took advantage of being near Dorchester to take a short walk along the river Piddle between Tolpuddle and Puddletown. Between the two, lies the settlement of Athelhampton.

At the time of Domesday, the Bishop of Salisbury held the Manor of Pidele, which covered the parishes of present-day Athelhampton, Tolpuddle and Briantspuddle. The part that is now Athelhampton was, at that time, tenanted by Odbold, but it was not until the 13th century that the name Aethelhelm first appeared, when the estate belonged to the Loundres family. In 1350, the Pydele (Pidele) heiress married Richard Martyn. It was their descendant, Sir William Martyn (Lord Mayor of London in 1492) who built the Hall in about 1485 and obtained a licence to enclose 160 acres and fortify his manor.

Sir William had the Great Hall that we see today built in 1493 and the property remained in the family for four generations, after which it was left jointly to four daughters. It was only in 1848 that the divided shares were re-united.

In 1891, Alfred Cart de Lafontaine purchased the house and started the task of restoring it and creating the wonderful formal gardens that are one of its main attractions today.

In 1957, Robert Victor Cooke purchased the estate, which he gave to his son, Sir Robert Cooke MP in 1966. Sir Robert's son and his wife are the present owners and continue to improve and protect the House and Gardens for future generations.

The pretty village of Puddletown (formerly Piddletown) lies just a little further along the river Piddle and was the location for Thomas Hardy's Weatherbury in Far from the Madding Crowd. Hardy had relatives in the real village, some of whom were character studies for the same book. Puddletown had a reputation for hard drinking and, at that time, the pub was called The Cat. Hardy described the village with the following ditty:

Into Church,
Out of Church,
Into Cat,
Out of Cat,
Into Piddle.

The village is also home to the wonderfully historic manor of Ilsington, but the 17th century house, which was once owned by Horace Walpole, is not visible from any public place.

For Thomas Cromwell fans, the village was granted a licence by Henry VIII, through Thomas Cromwell, to hold its annual fair on the 29 October.

For wildlife and Natural History Museum fans, one year before it was even known in the United States, the first specimen of an American Bittern ever recorded was 'shot by Mr Cunningham near Piddletown in this county in the autumn of 1804'. It is now in the collection of the NHM, where it was listed as being both smaller and different when compared to the European Bittern.

At this time of the year, Athelhampton House and Gardens are open on Sundays so, weather permitting, we may return this weekend to capture some images of the impressive gardens...