Highclere

Highclere is a village and civil parish in the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Hampshire, England, in the northern part of the county, near the Berkshire border. It is famous as the location of Highclere Castle, a Victorian house of the Earl of Carnarvon, and the setting for films and TV series including Downton Abbey.

History and buildings

The parish church of St Michael and All Angels sits between Highclere Castle and the main part of the village. This 'new' church replaced a much older church sited adjacent to Highclere Castle, and parish records go back to pre-Norman times.
There is a pub, the Red House, a flourishing village hall and a private junior school, Thorngrove. The church parish is part of the North West Hampshire Benefice. The civil parish of Highclere has two wards, Highclere and Penwood.
"Highclere Holly" was first identified here and still flourishes in local woodlands.
According to local legend there used to be a grampus living in a yew tree in the churchyard of the Highclere Estate Chapel.
On 22 August 1213, King John stayed at Peter des Roches the Bishop of Winchester's manor at Highclere, then called Bishop's Clere. An itinerary of King Edward II lists him as spending 2 September 1320 there.