The origins of the town are lost in the mists of time. Some speculate that it was founded by Dunwallo, a British king who ruled before the Romans invaded Britain.
A settlement certainly existed in Roman times. Roman finds were recorded in the Southbroom area in the late 1600s, 20 bronze statuettes and Roman coins were found on The Green in 1714 and workmen digging the foundations for Southbroom Junior School in 1960 uncovered a Romano-British cemetery.
The Saxons who succeeded the Romans, were, in their turn, ousted by the Normans in the 11th century. It was at this time, around 1080, that the first Devizes castle was built by Osmund, Bishop of Salisbury. For hundreds of years after, the castle was to be one of the main landmarks of the area.
The castle is said to have been built on the boundary line between the ancient manors of Bishop Cannings, Rowde and Potterne. The Latin for ‘at the boundaries’ is ‘ad devisas’, hence the town’s name Devizes.
The original wooden castle burnt down soon after it was completed, but it was rebuilt in stone in 1120 by Roger, Bishop of Salisbury. Evidently an accomplished castle builder, Bishop Roger erected others at Malmesbury, Sherborne and Old Sarum as well as enlarging Salisbury cathedral in his spare time.
When Henry I, third son of William the Conqueror, died in 1135, Devizes witnessed the power struggle for the crown of England. On one side was Matilda, daughter of Henry and rightful heir to the throne; on the other stood Stephen the usurper, son of a French count but raised by Henry. As Roger sided with Stephen, it was inevitable that Devizes castle would figure prominently in the war that followed.
In 1141 the citizens of Devizes lay siege to the castle and successfully claimed it for Matilda. She showed her gratitude by granting the town its first royal charter. The status of ‘borough’ conferred by Matilda was to last for 833 years, until the local government reorganisation in 1974. The town grew to be of considerable importance and Devizes sent two members to Edward I’s Parliament in 1295. In 1302 John Cray was appointed its first Mayor.
The castle remained the property of the Crown until the next major upheaval - the English Civil War, when, for a brief period, Devizes was once again at the centre of historic events.
In July 1643, following a battle just outside Bath, the Parliamentarians, under Sir William Waller, chased a defeated Royalist army to Devizes where it occupied the castle and barricaded the streets. Waller laid siege and a few days later was warned that a Royalist relief force was on its way from Oxford with 2,000 men. He prepared for battle and marched out to face the enemy. The two armies met on Roundway Down.
Unable to withstand the Royalist Cavalry charges, the Roundhead cavalry fled west towards Oliver's Castle. Here they were forced over the steep scarp slope. Many men and horses broke their necks as they plunged over the precipice; others were killed by the newly arrived Royalist infantry who marched from the no-longer besieged Devizes. The victory was complete when the Royalist cavalry turned on the Roundhead infantry which broke and fled; many being cut down as it did so. The Battle of Roundway was a vital victory for the Royalists because it left no Parliamentary forces in the South-West of England. Appropriately, the scarp which caused so many deaths is now known as ‘Bloody Ditch’.
The castle and town remained in Royalist hands until finally, in September 1645, Cromwell arrived with a large Parliamentarian force and heavy artillery. He invaded the town and laid siege to the castle, which surrendered, following a savage bombardment from the Market Place. If you look closely at the tower of St. James’ church, you will see the scars of that bombardment clearly visible.
The town had benefited from backing the winner in the 12th century, but this time it had to pay the price of supporting the loser. In May 1646, Parliament ordered it to be dismantled. So today all that remains of the once splendid fortress is the original mound, the outline of the moat, part of the keep and traces of the foundations of the great hall. Standing on the site instead is a Victorian building built by the Leach family and now divided into privately-owned apartments. It is not open to the public.
Although Bishop Roger’s original castle has long since vanished, its influence remains in the layout of the town’s streets which follow the lines of fortifications, making a “D” shape. The Brittox, now a shopping precinct, is believed to have been the main approach to the castle, taking its name from the Bretesque, a wooden stockade that flanked the way to the stronghold. Plundered stone from the old castle can also be found in many buildings in the surrounding area.
Religious controversy has dogged Devizes throughout its history. John Bent, a tailor of Urchfont, was burned to death in the Market Place in 1523 for denying transubstantiation (the belief that the bread and wine used in the sacrament are converted into the body and blood of Christ). John Maundrell of Rowde was burnt at Salisbury for Protestantism in 1557 and William Prior of Devizes was burnt at the stake in Salisbury for following the Lollard sect, which attacked the Church for its worldliness and corruption.
Devizes was quick to embrace non-conformism, despite the persecution it often brought. The Quakers were particularly strong and in 1661many townspeople were committed to prison for attending their meetings. By 1715 twenty-two percent of those registered to vote in the town were “dissenters”. Later in 1748, when Charles Wesley visited the town he was besieged for two days by an angry mob and badly mauled by dogs as he made his escape. All this time, the mob was being encouraged by none other than the Curate of St John’s! Fortunately today our churches work together and we welcome everyone.
In the 18th Century Devizes became famous for cloth manufacture. John Anstie was one of the first to discontinue the established practice of weavers working in their cottages when he built his factory on the corner of New Park and Snuff Streets to house over 300 looms. His fine cloth was in great demand and at one time many of the crown heads of Europe wore Devizes cashmere.
There is much more to be told of our history and if you would like to discover more, why not pay a visit to the Wiltshire Heritage Museum?
Privacy Policy Notice
The policy: This privacy policy notice is for this website; www.devizes.org.uk and served by
Devizes Development Partnership Ltd
Registered Office
C/o J S Weekes & Co
10 Market Place
Devizes
Wiltshire SN10 1BL
Telephone number 07768 311584
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and governs the privacy of those who use it.
The purpose of this policy is to explain to you how we control, process, handle and protect your personal information while browsing or using this website, including your rights under current laws and regulations. If you do not agree to the following policy, you may wish to cease viewing / using this website.
Policy key definitions:
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- "you", "the user" refer to the person(s) using this website.
- GDPR means General Data Protection Act.
- PECR means Privacy & Electronic Communications Regulation.
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Under the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) we control and / or process any personal information about you electronically using the following lawful bases.
We are registered with the ICO under the Data Protection Register.
Organisation name: Devizes Development Partnership (Trading) Ltd
Reference: Z101195X
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The reason we use this basis: to contact you with updates on projects and related tourism and/or business matters, surveys and consultations.
We process your information in the following ways: Stored in our internal database.
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Sharing your information: We may share your information with third parties. We may share survey information on an anonymous basis. If you provide us with contact details these will not be shared with 3rd parties but may be used to provide you with more information such as a newsletter. - Lawful basis: Criminal offence data
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We process your information in the following ways: Digitally recorded CCTV video images stored on a secure server.
Data retention period: For as long as it legitimately needed, at least 31 days.
Sharing your information: We share your information with the Police, Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), properly constituted local authorities, utility companies and any other organisation as permitted under the General Data Protection Regulations. There is a separate GDPR policy covering CCTV.
If, as determined by us, the lawful basis upon which we process your personal information changes, we will notify you about the change and any new lawful basis to be used if required. We shall stop processing your personal information if the lawful basis used is no longer relevant.
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Under the GDPR your rights are as follows. You can read more about your rights in details here;
- the right to be informed;
- the right of access;
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- the right to erasure;
- the right to restrict processing;
- the right to data portability;
- the right to object; and
- the right not to be subject to automated decision-making including profiling.
You also have the right to complain to the ICO [www.ico.org.uk] if you feel there is a problem with the way we are handling your data.
We handle subject access requests in accordance with the GDPR.
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Data security and protection
We ensure the security of any personal information we hold by using secure data storage technologies and precise procedures in how we store, access, and manage that information. Our methods meet the GDPR compliance requirement.
Transparent Privacy Explanations
We have provided some further explanations about user privacy and the way we use this website to help promote a transparent and honest user privacy methodology.
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This site is run under the auspices of the Devizes Development Partnership (DDP). A not for profit organisation. It works with the Devizes Area Tourism Partnership (also run by volunteers) and Devizes Town Council to provide information for the benefit of residents of Devizes and Tourist Information for visitors to the area.
Devizes, "Wiltshire's hidden gem", is a medieval market town in the centre of Wiltshire just north of Salisbury Plain, 16 miles from Stonehenge, 8 miles from Avebury.
The building of a castle in Norman times dictated the layout of the town which is still visible in the ‘D’ shape plan today, now containing over 250 shops, 50 Heritage Plaques, 50+ eating places and tea shops, 14 traditional pubs, 5 pedestrian only shopping precincts, 3 ancient churches, 2 museums, including the awarding winning Wiltshire Museum, the Kennet & Avon Canal Trust, the “Caen flight” of canal locks and world famous Wadworth brewery.
In 1141 the borough received a royal charter permitting regular markets, which are still held weekly in the open Market Place, one of the largest in the West Country.
The Town centre is a bustling hive of activity with over 500 listed buildings, a frequent Gold winner of South West in Bloom and holds Coach Friendly Town status.
Conveniently centrally located in the county, it is an ideal base from which to explore the surrounding countryside either on foot, cycle, car or water. Devizes Major retail centres are close at hand and attractions for all ages and tastes.
Devizes is seen as the focal hub for the surrounding villages of All Cannings, Bishops Cannings, Bromham, Cheverell Magna, Cheverell Parva, Easterton, Erlestoke, Etchilhampton, Market Lavington, Marston, Potterne, Roundway, Rowde, Stert, Urchfont, West Lavington and Worton
Throughout the year there are a series of festivals and street activities, many of which are free. The most notable are the Devizes Carnival in the summer and the Lantern Parade & Christmas Festival on the last Saturday in November.
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