Visit Durston Places

Welcome to Visit Durston Places
The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Durston

  

Durston Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Durston

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Durston history

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The place-name derives from the Anglo-Saxon word ‘deór-tún’, being a combination of the word for a wild animal, a deer (deór,) and the word for a fenced enclosure (tún). The most likely interpretation is ‘deer park’. Alwig (a Saxon; also written Alwi) held DURSTON manor from King Edward the Confessor before the Norman Conquest. Durston appeared in the Domesday Book in 1086 as follows: Richard holds of Roger Arundel, DURSTON. Alwig held it TRE and it paid geld for 2 hides and 3 virgates of land. There is land for 4 ploughs. In demesne is 1 plough and 4 slaves; and 4 villans and 5 bordars and 4 cottars with 3 ploughs. There are 15 acres of meadow, and 20 acres of pasture and 20 acres of woodland. It was and is worth 40s.. John of Erleigh, a Norman knight, later (after 1133) received the Hundred of North Petherton (including Durston) from William the Conqueror’s son Henry I. John died in 1165. John was succeeded by his son William de Erlegh who founded Buckland Priory at Durston a priory of regular canons of St. Augustine, about 1167. Soon after their institution, these canons behaved in a very riotous and disorderly manner, especially in killing their steward. Therefore, in 1180, the King removed them to other monasteries, at Taunton and elsewhere, and gave their priory to the sister Hospitallers of the order of St. John of Jerusalem. A Preceptory of the Knights Hospitaller of St. John was built nearby. The site was and is still known as Buckland. Several historical documents give tantalizing glimpses of the lives of these Sisters, who originally cared for sick pilgrims and crusaders in Jerusalem. For whatever reason, the royal grant stipulated that this be the only Hospitallers’ house in England that could receive Sisters of that order. It was later written that ′′in all respects the sisters were looked on only as servants, and as not capable of receiving or holding anything other than from the supreme powers of the order. In 1229 they were granted the right to a cart-load of dead wood and three cart-loads of faggots per week from the park of Newton. In 1234 the king ordered that each Sister be given a tunic and a pair of slippers every year. In 1398 the Grand Master of the Order of Knights Hospitallers urged that a preceptor be named ′′whose age and character should prevent any scandal arising from his association with the nuns′′. Disputes with the Knights Hospitallers at Buckland, whose Preceptor had authority over the Sisters, occurred from time to time. Around 1267 the prior of the Hospitallers in England, attending a conflict between the priory and the precept, ordered that the Sisters have their own Steward. Again, in 1338, the Preceptor of the Knights complained that the Sisters were more of a burden than a help. In 1500, however, this Preceptory was closed, while the Sisters´ Priory remained. Finally, in 1539, after the creation of the Church of England, the Sisters surrendered their house to King Henry VIII. as occurred with many monasteries and convents in that time. Around 1565 two of the former Sisters were married, one to Thomas Speed and the other to the Vicar of Lyng. Around 1200 William’s daughter Mabel married Philip Arbalistarius, who was given the manor of Mansel (Maunsel House, a mile and a half NE of Durston). Philip had to give William two young pigs every Whitsun, ″at his court of Durston″. A deer park existed in 1223, a little north of the Durston manor house. These deer were brought from Blackmore forest, in Dorset. In the 14th century, buildings at North Petherton were constructed of wood from some of the park´s trees. In 1434 the park included 200 acres of wood and 60 acres of meadow. A later John of Erleigh, born in 1322,left the manor of Durston and woods to his daughter Margaret, who married Sir Walter Sandy. The property passed through several other families, including such surnames as St. Maur (or Seymour), Stawell and Portman. In 1391 there were several craftsmen at Durston, such as a tanner, a smith, a skinner, and a barber, outside the gates of the priory. A spring north of Durston fed fishponds established in the later 12th century and supplied the priory with water. The water supply was channeled from a conduit by the 1260s. These fishponds were filled in by 1725. Cogload Farm is on the site of a hamlet established by the later 13th century. Lodge Farmhouse dates from the 15th century and may once have been an ecclesiastical residence. It has been designated as a grade II* listed building. The Buckland inn was in use in the 17th and 18th centuries. In 1752 the Taunton-Glastonbury road became a turnpike. The Durston inn was opened by 1841.

You can visit Durston places with Walkfo Durston to hear history at Durston’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Durston has 16 places to visit in our interactive Durston map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Durston, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Durston places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Durston & the surrounding areas.

“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 16 audio facts unique to Durston places in an interactive Durston map you can explore.”

Walkfo: Visit Durston Places Map
16 tourist, history, culture & geography spots

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Durston historic spots	Durston tourist destinations	Durston plaques	Durston geographic features
Walkfo Durston tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Durston

  

Best Durston places to visit

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Durston has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Durston’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Durston’s information audio spots:

Maunsel House Maunsel House in Somerset was built in the late 14th or early 15th century. It is the family seat of the Slade baronets and is a Grade II* listed building.

Church of St Peter, North Newton The Anglican Church of St Peter in North Newton within the English county of Somerset has a tower believed to date from Saxon times. It is a Grade II* listed building.

Church of St Giles, Thurloxton Norman Anglican Church of St Giles in Thurloxton dates from the 14th century. It is predominantly from the 15th century with 19th-century restoration including the addition of the north aisle in 1868. English Heritage has designated it as a Grade II* listed building.

Visit Durston plaques