Tidmarsh

Tidmarsh is a village and civil parish in West Berkshire England. Its development is mainly residential or agricultural and centred on the A340 road between Pangbourne and Theale. Its rural area is bounded by the M4 motorway to the south. It is centred 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south of Pangbourne, 5.5 miles (8.9 km) west of Reading and 40 miles (64 km) west of London. Though marsh is in its name, most of the parish is elevated more than 5 metres above the level of the Pang.

For people with the surname Tidmarsh, see Tidmarsh (surname).

Tidmarsh

The Tithe Barn
Tidmarsh
Location within Berkshire
Area7.02 km2 (2.71 sq mi)
Population501 (2011 census including Sulham)[1]
• Density71/km2 (180/sq mi)
OS grid referenceSU6374
Civil parish
  • Tidmarsh
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townREADING
Postcode districtRG8
Dialling code0118
PoliceThames Valley
FireRoyal Berkshire
AmbulanceSouth Central
UK Parliament

Geography

Its civil parish council is unusually in this district shared and is Tidmarsh with Sulham. Further east, Sulham Woods separate the villages from Tilehurst, the western suburb of Reading.

Its elevation ranges between 42m (north-east) and 85m (western projection) AOD. The vast majority of the parish (more than 90%) is at more than five metres above the Pang. Much of the main street is between 1 and 10 metres above the large stream's level.

Woodland covers less than a tenth of its total area but about a quarter of the western or south-western projection which has the highest parts.[2]

The River Pang flows north through the village on its way to join the River Thames at Pangbourne. The river flows through the Moor Copse Nature Reserve, in December 2006 doubled in size, to about 140 acres (0.57 km2).[3] The Tidmarsh and Sulham circular walk, of length about 2.5 miles, passes through the reserve and both villages.

Its 21st century development has included housing at the north end of the village, Strachey Close.

History

The Tidmarsh section of the A340 is thought to follow the Roman road from the Roman Town of Calleva Atrebatum in Silchester parish (about 7 mi or 11 km south), either to Dorchester-on-Thames (about 10 mi or 16 km north) or a river-crossing at Pangbourne.

Tidmarsh has two main listed buildings by age. The most conspicuous is the 13th century half-timbered Greyhound Pub, now reopened following a serious fire in 2005.[4]

The other is the much-rebuilt 12th Century church is dedicated to St Laurence. The Norman doorway of the church of the date of its construction is particularly noted in its listing as is a "very rare 13th century polygonal apse". It includes 13th century lancet windows to left and right.[5] It has a listing entry in the highest category under the statutory grading, Grade I.

The old rectory dates from 1856.

Notable residents

These include author Lytton Strachey (1880-1932) and the painter Dora Carrington (1893-1932). Carrington painted the Greyhound Pub sign in the village. Rex Partridge, renamed Ralph by the Bloomsbury set, also settled at Tidmarsh and formed a very "Bloomsbury" trio with Lytton and Dora.[6]

The Round House

Demography
2011 Published Statistics: Population, home ownership and extracts from Physical Environment, surveyed in 2005[1]
Output areaHomes owned outrightOwned with a loanSocially rentedPrivately rentedOtherkm² roadskm² waterkm² domestic gardensUsual residentskm²
Civil parish838123550.1300.0710.1715017.02

Footnotes
  1. Key Statistics: Dwellings; Quick Statistics: Population Density; Physical Environment: Land Use Survey 2005
  2. Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1289074)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  3. Natural World Spring 2007 p10: "Ratty's Paradise joins eight new reserves"
  4. [former 16th century watermill "The Greyhound, Tidmarsh"] Check |url= value (help). Fullers.
  5. Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1287940)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  6. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/property/period-property/7827396/The-Mill-at-Tidmarsh-bohemian-days-leave-a-rich-legacy.html


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