Bishops Cannings - Revision history

imported>Tassedethe: v2.05 - fix links - William Hunt (priest)

2025-12-06T17:57:45Z

v2.05 - fix links - William Hunt (priest)

← Previous revision		Revision as of 17:57, 6 December 2025
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	==History==		==History==
	Prehistoric remains include a [[long barrow]] called Kitchen Barrow on a slope in the north-east of the parish,<ref>{{National Heritage List for England\|num=1012519\|desc=Kitchen Barrow\|access-date=1 January 2022}}</ref> and a square earthwork enclosure of uncertain date on Morgan's Hill in the north-west.<ref>{{National Heritage List for England\|num=1014032\|desc=Square earthwork enclosure 450m north west of Baltic Farm on Morgan's Hill\|access-date=1 January 2022\|fewer-links=yes}}</ref> A section of the [[Wansdyke (earthwork)\|Wansdyke]] crosses the parish, west from [[Tan Hill, Wiltshire\|Tan Hill]] to Morgan's Hill.<ref>{{National Heritage List for England\|num=1017288\|desc=Section of Wansdyke and associated monuments from east of The Firs to the eastern side of Tan Hill\|access-date=1 January 2022\|fewer-links=yes}}</ref> The manor of Cannings was recorded in the 1086 [[Domesday Book]] as held by the [[Bishop of Salisbury]]; there was a substantial population of 127 households, with six mills.<ref name=":1">{{OpenDomesday\|SU0364\|bishops-cannings\|Bishops Cannings}}</ref><ref name="vch">{{Cite book \|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol7/pp187-197 \|series=[[Victoria County History]] \|title=A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 7 \|chapter=Parishes: Bishop's Cannings \|pages=187–197 \|editor1-first=R. B. \|editor1-last=Pugh \|editor1-link=Ralph Pugh \|editor2-first=Elizabeth \|editor2-last=Crittall \|author-first1=H. F. \|author-last1=Chettle \|author-first2=W. R. \|author-last2=Powell \|author-first3=P. A. \|author-last3=Spalding \|author-first4=P. M. \|author-last4=Tillott \|date=1953 \|via=British History Online \|publisher=University of London \|access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>		Prehistoric remains include a [[long barrow]] called Kitchen Barrow on a slope in the north-east of the parish,<ref>{{National Heritage List for England\|num=1012519\|desc=Kitchen Barrow\|access-date=1 January 2022}}</ref> and a square earthwork enclosure of uncertain date on Morgan's Hill in the north-west.<ref>{{National Heritage List for England\|num=1014032\|desc=Square earthwork enclosure 450m north west of Baltic Farm on Morgan's Hill\|access-date=1 January 2022\|fewer-links=yes}}</ref> A section of the [[Wansdyke (earthwork)\|Wansdyke]] crosses the parish, west from [[Tan Hill, Wiltshire\|Tan Hill]] to Morgan's Hill.<ref>{{National Heritage List for England\|num=1017288\|desc=Section of Wansdyke and associated monuments from east of The Firs to the eastern side of Tan Hill\|access-date=1 January 2022\|fewer-links=yes}}</ref>
			The name Cannings derives from the [[Old English]] ''Canaingas'' meaning 'Cana's people'.<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://kepn.nottingham.ac.uk/map/place/Wiltshire/Bishops%20Cannings\|title=Bishops Cannings \|website=Key to English Place-Names \|publisher=The Institute for Name-Studies \|access-date=26 November 2025}}</ref> The manor of Cannings was recorded in the 1086 [[Domesday Book]] as held by the [[Bishop of Salisbury]]; there was a substantial population of 127 households, with six mills.<ref name=":1">{{OpenDomesday\|SU0364\|bishops-cannings\|Bishops Cannings}}</ref><ref name="vch">{{Cite book \|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol7/pp187-197 \|series=[[Victoria County History]] \|title=A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 7 \|chapter=Parishes: Bishop's Cannings \|pages=187–197 \|editor1-first=R. B. \|editor1-last=Pugh \|editor1-link=Ralph Pugh \|editor2-first=Elizabeth \|editor2-last=Crittall \|author-first1=H. F. \|author-last1=Chettle \|author-first2=W. R. \|author-last2=Powell \|author-first3=P. A. \|author-last3=Spalding \|author-first4=P. M. \|author-last4=Tillott \|date=1953 \|via=British History Online \|publisher=University of London \|access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>

	Horton is first attested in 1158. The place-name is a common one in England and derives from [[Old English language\|Old English]] ''horu'' 'dirt' and ''tūn'' 'settlement, farm, estate', presumably meaning 'farm on muddy soil'.<ref>Victor Watts (ed.), ''The Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names, Based on the Collections of the English Place-Name Society'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), s.v. ''HORTON''.</ref>		Horton is first attested in 1158. The place-name is a common one in England and derives from [[Old English language\|Old English]] ''horu'' 'dirt' and ''tūn'' 'settlement, farm, estate', presumably meaning 'farm on muddy soil'.<ref>Victor Watts (ed.), ''The Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names, Based on the Collections of the English Place-Name Society'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), s.v. ''HORTON''.</ref>
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	== Notable people ==		== Notable people ==
	* Around 1613 [[George Ferebee]], vicar of Bishops Cannings, was appointed chaplain to [[James VI and I\|King James I]].<ref>{{cite DNB \|wstitle= Ferebe, George \|volume= 18 \|last= Middleton \|first= Louisa Mary \|author-link= \|page= 333 \|short= 1}}</ref>		* Around 1613 [[George Ferebee]], vicar of Bishops Cannings, was appointed chaplain to [[James VI and I\|King James I]].<ref>{{cite DNB \|wstitle= Ferebe, George \|volume= 18 \|last= Middleton \|first= Louisa Mary \|author-link= \|page= 333 \|short= 1}}</ref>
	* [[William Bayly (astronomer)\|William Bayly]] (1737–1810), the son of a Bishops Cannings farmer, was recognised for his mathematical prowess. He was employed by the [[Royal Observatory, Greenwich\|Royal Observatory]] and sailed as an astronomer on two of [[James Cook\|Cook]]'s voyages.<ref>{{cite DNB \|wstitle= Bayly, William \|volume= 03 \|last= Hunt \|first= William \|author-link= William Hunt (priest) \|page= 452 \|short= 1}}</ref> After completing his career as head-master of the [[Royal Naval Academy\|Royal Academy, Portsmouth]], in 1809 he paid for the organ in the parish church of his home village.<ref name="chlisting" />		* [[William Bayly (astronomer)\|William Bayly]] (1737–1810), the son of a Bishops Cannings farmer, was recognised for his mathematical prowess. He was employed by the [[Royal Observatory, Greenwich\|Royal Observatory]] and sailed as an astronomer on two of [[James Cook\|Cook]]'s voyages.<ref>{{cite DNB \|wstitle= Bayly, William \|volume= 03 \|last= Hunt \|first= William \|author-link= William Hunt (priest, born 1842) \|page= 452 \|short= 1}}</ref> After completing his career as head-master of the [[Royal Naval Academy\|Royal Academy, Portsmouth]], in 1809 he paid for the organ in the parish church of his home village.<ref name="chlisting" />

	==References==		==References==

imported>Keith D: Change {{EngvarB}} to {{use British English}}

2025-02-24T12:04:55Z

Change {{EngvarB}} to {{use British English}}

New page

{{Short description|Village in Wiltshire, England}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2016}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country = England
| static_image_name = Bishops Cannings, The Crown Inn - geograph.org.uk - 1406871.jpg
| static_image_caption = The Crown Inn, Bishops Cannings, with the church of St Mary the Virgin behind
| coordinates = {{coord|51.377|-1.947|type:city(2000)_region:GB-WIL|display=inline,title}}
| official_name = Bishops Cannings
| population = 3311
| population_ref = (in 2021)<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Bishops Cannings (parish): population statistics, 2021 Census |url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/uk/southwestengland/admin/wiltshire/E04012680__bishops_cannings/ |website=CityPopulation.de |date= |access-date=5 August 2024}}</ref>
| civil_parish = Bishops Cannings
| unitary_england = [[Wiltshire Council|Wiltshire]]
| lieutenancy_england = [[Wiltshire]]
| region = South West England
| constituency_westminster = [[Melksham and Devizes (UK Parliament constituency)|Melksham and Devizes]]
| post_town = Devizes
| postcode_district = SN10
| postcode_area = SN
| dial_code = 01380
| os_grid_reference = SU038642
| website = {{URL|https://www.bishopscanningsparishcouncil.gov.uk/|Parish Council}}
}}
'''Bishops Cannings''' is a village and [[Civil parishes in England|civil parish]] in the [[Vale of Pewsey]] in Wiltshire, England, {{convert|3|mi|km|0}} north-east of [[Devizes]].<ref>{{cite book |title=AA Book of British Villages |date=1980 |publisher=Drive Publications Limited |isbn=9780340254875 |page=67}}</ref> The parish includes the village of '''Coate''' (not to be confused with [[Coate, Swindon]]) and the hamlets of '''Bourton''', '''Horton''' and '''Little Horton'''.

== Geography ==
Etchilhampton Water, a minor tributary of the [[River Avon, Hampshire|Salisbury Avon]], rises from streams in the parish and flows south past [[Etchilhampton]] to [[Patney]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Hampshire Avon (West)|url=https://environment.data.gov.uk/catchment-planning/WaterBody/GB108043022370|access-date=9 December 2021|website=Catchment Data Explorer|publisher=Environment Agency}}</ref> The northern part of the parish lies on the [[Marlborough Downs]], including [[Morgan's Hill]] and part of Roundway Hill.

Bishops Cannings village is about {{Convert|0.5|mi|km}} south of the [[A361 road]] which links Devizes with [[Avebury (village)|Avebury]] and [[Swindon]].

==History==
Prehistoric remains include a [[long barrow]] called Kitchen Barrow on a slope in the north-east of the parish,<ref>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1012519|desc=Kitchen Barrow|access-date=1 January 2022}}</ref> and a square earthwork enclosure of uncertain date on Morgan's Hill in the north-west.<ref>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1014032|desc=Square earthwork enclosure 450m north west of Baltic Farm on Morgan's Hill|access-date=1 January 2022|fewer-links=yes}}</ref> A section of the [[Wansdyke (earthwork)|Wansdyke]] crosses the parish, west from [[Tan Hill, Wiltshire|Tan Hill]] to Morgan's Hill.<ref>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1017288|desc=Section of Wansdyke and associated monuments from east of The Firs to the eastern side of Tan Hill|access-date=1 January 2022|fewer-links=yes}}</ref> The manor of Cannings was recorded in the 1086 [[Domesday Book]] as held by the [[Bishop of Salisbury]]; there was a substantial population of 127 households, with six mills.<ref name=":1">{{OpenDomesday|SU0364|bishops-cannings|Bishops Cannings}}</ref><ref name="vch">{{Cite book |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol7/pp187-197 |series=[[Victoria County History]] |title=A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 7 |chapter=Parishes: Bishop's Cannings |pages=187–197 |editor1-first=R. B. |editor1-last=Pugh |editor1-link=Ralph Pugh |editor2-first=Elizabeth |editor2-last=Crittall |author-first1=H. F. |author-last1=Chettle |author-first2=W. R. |author-last2=Powell |author-first3=P. A. |author-last3=Spalding |author-first4=P. M. |author-last4=Tillott |date=1953 |via=British History Online |publisher=University of London |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>

Horton is first attested in 1158. The place-name is a common one in England and derives from [[Old English language|Old English]] ''horu'' 'dirt' and ''tūn'' 'settlement, farm, estate', presumably meaning 'farm on muddy soil'.<ref>Victor Watts (ed.), ''The Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names, Based on the Collections of the English Place-Name Society'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), s.v. ''HORTON''.</ref>

In the 16th and 17th centuries, Bourton manor was an estate of the [[Ernle]] family.<ref name="vch" /> The manor included the hamlet of '''Easton''' but today the name survives only at Easton Farm and Easton Down.

In the 1660s the lease of the manor of Cannings was bought by Paul Methuen (d. 1667) of [[Bradford-on-Avon]],<ref name="vch" /> reputedly the richest [[cloth merchant]] in England.<ref name=":0">{{cite DNB |wstitle= Methuen, John |volume= 37 |last= Barker |first= George Fisher Russell |author-link= |pages= 310-311 |short= 1}}</ref> His son [[John Methuen (diplomat)|John]] (c.1650–1706) was MP for [[Devizes (UK Parliament constituency)|Devizes]], and simultaneously [[Lord Chancellor of Ireland]] and [[List of ambassadors of the Kingdom of England to Portugal|ambassador to Portugal]].<ref name=":0" /> John's son [[Paul Methuen (diplomat)|Paul]] (c.1672–1757) deputised for his father at Lisbon, sat for Devizes and [[Brackley (UK Parliament constituency)|Brackley]] (Northamptonshire), became a government minister and held offices in the royal household;<ref>{{Cite web|last=McGrath|first=Ivar|title=METHUEN, Paul (1672-1757), of Bishops Cannings, Wilts.|url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/member/methuen-paul-1672-1757|access-date=9 December 2021|website=History of Parliament Online}}</ref> he sold the estate in 1720.<ref name="vch" />

The [[Wansdyke (earthwork)|Wansdyke]] medieval earthwork crosses the north of parish. The [[Kennet and Avon Canal]] (opened in 1810) was built through the parish, passing between Bishops Cannings and Horton.

On the 27 May 1941, a [[Royal Air Force]] [[De Havilland Dragon Rapide]] (R5929) was operating a training flight out of [[RAF Yatesbury]]. The aircraft stalled at low altitude and crashed near the village, killing all seven on board.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Crash of a De Havilland DH.89A Dragon Rapide in Bishops Cannings: 7 killed|url=https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-de-havilland-dh89a-dragon-rapide-bishops-cannings-7-killed|url-status=live|access-date=2021-11-12|website=Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211112150903/https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-de-havilland-dh89a-dragon-rapide-bishops-cannings-7-killed |archive-date=12 November 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=DH.89 Dragon Rapide|url=https://www.ab-ix.co.uk/pdfs/dh89.pdf|url-status=live|website=Air-Britain|page=22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619203001/http://www.ab-ix.co.uk:80/pdfs/dh89.pdf |archive-date=19 June 2018 }}</ref>

== Boundaries ==
Bishops Cannings was anciently part of the [[Hundred (county division)|hundred]] of Potterne and Cannings.<ref>{{Cite book|author-last1=Chettle|author-first1=H. F.|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol7/pp175-178|title=A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 7|author-last2=Powell|author-first2=W. R.|author-last3=Spalding|author-first3=P. A.|author-last4=Tillott|author-first4=P. M.|date=1953|publisher=University of London|editor1-last=Pugh|editor1-first=R. B.|editor1-link=Ralph Pugh|series=[[Victoria County History]]|pages=175–178|chapter=The hundred of Potterne and Cannings|access-date=29 December 2021|editor2-last=Crittall|editor2-first=Elizabeth|via=British History Online}}</ref> The parish is now the third largest in Wiltshire,<ref name="WCC" /> but was formerly larger, having lost a large area to the nearby town of Devizes in 1835<ref>{{Cite book|author-last1=Baggs|author-first1=A. P.|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol10/pp225-252|title=A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 10|author-last2=Crowley|author-first2=D. A.|author-last3=Pugh|author-first3=Ralph B.|author-last4=Stevenson|author-first4=Janet H.|author-last5=Tomlinson|author-first5=Margaret|date=1975|publisher=University of London|editor-last=Crittall|editor-first=Elizabeth|series=[[Victoria County History]]|pages=225–252|chapter=The borough of Devizes: Town, castle and estates|access-date=1 January 2022|via=British History Online}}</ref> and to the new parish of [[Roundway]] in 1894.<ref name="vch" />

Bishops Cannings parish had previously encircled Devizes to the north, east and south, and reached as far into the town as the Crammer, a large pond on the edge of the town centre. This may explain how Bishops Cannings comes to lay claim to being the place of origin of the legend of the [[Moonrakers]].<ref name="wgh">{{Cite web|url=http://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/gazettefeatures/nostalgia/display.var.1144188.0.smugglers_myth_lives.php|title=Smugglers myth lives|access-date=2 September 2009|work=Wiltshire Gazette and Herald|url-status=dead|archive-date=9 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070509000900/http://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/gazettefeatures/nostalgia/display.var.1144188.0.smugglers_myth_lives.php}}</ref><ref name="WCC">{{Cite web|url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/Community/Index/20|title=Bishops Cannings|work=Wiltshire Community History|publisher=[[Wiltshire Council]]|access-date=8 November 2010}}</ref> Next to the pond is the 15th-century church of St James,<ref name=":2">{{National Heritage List for England|num=1263715|desc=Church of St James, Devizes|access-date=16 October 2015|fewer-links=yes}}</ref> which was a [[chapelry]] of Bishops Cannings.<ref name="vch" />

Further expansion of the borough of Devizes in 1934 brought [[Wick, Devizes|Wick]] and the whole of St James's chapelry (sometimes called Southbroom,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Southbroom, Wiltshire|url=https://visionofbritain.org.uk/place/25785|access-date=29 December 2021|website=A Vision of Britain through Time|publisher=University of Portsmouth}}</ref> and including [[Southbroom House]]) into the town, while the Nursteed tithing became part of Roundway.<ref name="vch" /> In 2017 Roundway became a ward of Devizes.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web|date=22 December 2016|title=The Wiltshire Council (Reorganisation of Community Governance) Order 2016|url=http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/cgr_2016_order.pdf|access-date=25 April 2017|website=Wiltshire Council}}</ref> A north-eastern part of the Devizes built-up area known as Northfields, between the canal and Horton Road and including retailers Lidl and B&Q and the former [[Le Marchant Barracks]], remains within Bishops Cannings parish.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Election Maps: Great Britain|url=https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/election-maps/gb/|access-date=29 December 2021|website=|publisher=Ordnance Survey}}</ref>

==Local government==
Bishops Cannings is a civil parish with an elected [[Parish councils in England|parish council]]. It is in the area of [[Wiltshire Council]] [[Unitary authorities of England|unitary authority]], which is responsible for almost all significant local government functions.

==Religious sites==

=== Parish church ===

[[File:BISHOPS_CANNINGS_Wiltshire_-_geograph.org.uk_-_64390.jpg|thumb|upright|Church of St Mary the Virgin]]
The [[Church of England parish church]] of St Mary the Virgin is [[Listed building|Grade I listed]].<ref name="chlisting">{{National Heritage List for England|num=1193298|desc=Church of St Mary the Virgin, Bishops Cannings|access-date=1 January 2022}}</ref> Originating in the 12th or 13th century, with many [[English Gothic architecture|Early English]] features surviving, it was altered in the 14th and 15th centuries and restored in the 19th.<ref name="wch-church">{{cite web|title=Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Bishops Cannings|url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/Church/Details/953|access-date=1 January 2022|website=Wiltshire Community History|publisher=Wiltshire Council}}</ref> [[Nikolaus Pevsner|Pevsner]] writes that it has "uncommon size and nobility", through being part of a bishop's estate.<ref name="Pevsner">{{Cite book|last1=Orbach|first1=Julian|title=Wiltshire|last2=Pevsner|first2=Nikolaus|last3=Cherry|first3=Bridget|publisher=[[Yale University Press]]|year=2021|isbn=978-0-300-25120-3|series=The Buildings Of England|location=New Haven, US and London|pages=138–141|oclc=1201298091|authorlink2=Nikolaus Pevsner|authorlink3=Bridget Cherry}}</ref>

[[Domesday Book]] recorded a priest but did not mention a church.<ref name=":1" /> The earliest parts of the building are a damaged 12th-century scallop [[Capital (architecture)|capital]] in the chancel,<ref>{{Cite web|title=St Mary the Virgin, Bishops Cannings, Wiltshire|url=https://www.crsbi.ac.uk/view-item?i=14888|access-date=30 December 2021|website=The Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain and Ireland|publisher=King's College London}}</ref> and one of the chancel's west lancet windows which is from the late 12th century or early 13th. The three-bay chancel, mostly in rubble stone, is from the mid-13th century.<ref name="chlisting" />

The church has a cruciform plan and is in [[ashlar]] apart from the chancel and [[sacristy]]. The large central tower carries a spire, and the four-bay nave (which originally had a higher roof) has aisles and a south porch. A lady chapel – since 1563 the Ernle family chapel – is attached to the east of the south transept. The porch has a round-headed 13th-century arch to the inner doorway, while the outer parts are 15th-century. There is an unusual two-storey sacristy at the north-east corner, in stone and flint; the ground floor is 13th-century and the upper floor perhaps 15th. The spire was added in the 15th century and around the same time the crossing and parts of the transepts were rebuilt. The nave had a [[clerestory]] from an early date, and this was rebuilt at greater height in the same century. The nave roof carries a date of 1670.<ref name="chlisting" /><ref name="Pevsner" />
[[File:Bishops_Cannings_Church_Wiltshirearchaeo2318godd_0021.jpg|thumb|Ponting's plan of the church, 1880s]]
Restoration in the 19th century involved little major work. Orbach states that the Gothic stalls in the chancel are from [[Thomas Henry Wyatt|T.H. Wyatt]]'s restoration in 1860, and gives the same year for the richly decorated east window by [[William Wailes|Wailes]].<ref name="Pevsner" /> The chapel was rebuilt in 1862–3, with a new east window. Further restoration by the Wiltshire architect [[Charles Ponting|C.E. Ponting]] in 1883–4 included re-roofing of the aisles and transepts, and renewal of the pews in that area, with carving by [[Harry Hems]].<ref name="wch-church" /> Ponting's description of the church, with drawings, was published in the [[Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine]] in 1887.<ref name="ponting">[[iarchive:ponting-1887-wiltshirearchaeo-2318godd/page/325|Notes on the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Bishops Cannings: C. E. Ponting, Wiltshire Archaeology and Natural History Magazine Volume 23, 1887]] – via Internet Archive</ref>

Furnishings include a [[carrel desk]] (English Heritage)<ref name="chlisting" /> which Pevsner describes as a [[Penance|penitential]] seat and a "great oddity"; it is partly 15th-century.<ref name="Pevsner" /> The octagonal font is late 15th-century. [[George Ferebee]], vicar, arranged for an early organ to be installed around 1593, and in 1602 provided a peal of eight bells from the foundry of John Wallis.<ref name="wch-church" /> The present organ by [[George Pike England]] is from 1809. Four of Ferebee's bells remain in the tower, the others being recast or replaced in 1840 or later.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bishops Cannings|url=https://dove.cccbr.org.uk/detail.php?tower=16193|access-date=31 December 2021|website=Dove's Guide for Church Bell Ringers}}</ref> A 15th-century chest tomb in the churchyard is Grade II* listed.<ref>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1365975|desc=Unidentified monument in churchyard, 3m south of Lady Chapel, Church of St Mary|access-date=1 January 2022|fewer-links=yes}}</ref>

In 1091, [[Saint Osmund|Bishop Osmond]] gave Cannings church and its considerable income to the new cathedral at Salisbury. The rectory manor, known as Cannings Canonicorum, remained in the ownership of the cathedral's dean and chapter (but generally leased out) until they sold it at the beginning of the 19th century. The parish remained a [[Royal peculiar|peculiar]] until such jurisdictions were abolished in the 19th century.<ref name="vch" /> Today the parish comes under the Cannings and Redhorn Team Ministry, alongside seven others.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=St. Mary the Virgin, Bishops Cannings|url=https://www.canred.org/team-churches/bishops-cannings|access-date=30 December 2021|website=The Cannings & Redhorn Team}}</ref>

=== Others ===
The church of St James on the edge of Devizes (15th-century tower, rest rebuilt 1831–2)<ref name=":2" /> was a chapelry of St Mary's, although it had its own graveyard by 1505. In 1832 a parish (a [[Perpetual curate|perpetual curacy]]) was created for it, covering the tithings of Bedborough, Nursteed, Roundway, and Wick. Boundary changes in 1835 brought the church inside the municipal borough.<ref name="vch-borough">{{Cite book|author-last1=Baggs|author-first1=A. P.|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol10/pp285-314|title=A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 10|author-last2=Crowley|author-first2=D. A.|author-last3=Pugh|author-first3=Ralph B.|author-last4=Stevenson|author-first4=Janet H.|author-last5=Tomlinson|author-first5=Margaret|date=1975|publisher=University of London|editor-last=Crittall|editor-first=Elizabeth|series=[[Victoria County History]]|pages=285–314|chapter=The borough of Devizes: Religious and cultural history|access-date=1 January 2022|via=British History Online}}</ref>

The hamlet of [[Chittoe]], some {{Convert|5|mi|km|0}} to the north-west near Bromham, was a detached part of Bishops Cannings parish until a church was built there in 1845.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Church of St. Mary, Chittoe, Bromham |url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/Church/Details/775 |access-date=28 February 2022 |website=Wiltshire Community History |publisher=Wiltshire Council}}</ref><ref>{{London Gazette
| issue = 20610
| date = 2 June 1846
| pages = 2025-2026
}}</ref>

A [[Wesleyan Methodist Church (Great Britain)|Wesleyan Methodist]] chapel was opened at Horton in 1832 and closed in the second half of the 20th century.<ref>{{cite web|website=Wiltshire Community History|title=Horton Methodist Chapel, Bishops Cannings|url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/Church/Details/954|publisher=Wiltshire Council|access-date=17 October 2015}}</ref>

At Coate, a [[Plymouth Brethren|Brethren]] chapel was built in 1848 and closed in 1973.<ref>{{cite web|website=Wiltshire Community History|title=Coate Chapel, Bishops Cannings|url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/Church/Details/955|publisher=Wiltshire Council|access-date=17 October 2015}}</ref>

== Amenities ==
Bishops Cannings has a primary school which serves the parish and the eastern side of Devizes.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bishops Cannings Church of England (Aided) Primary School|url=http://www.bishopscannings.wilts.sch.uk/wilts/primary/bishopscannings|access-date=18 October 2015}}</ref> A [[National school (England and Wales)|National School]] was built in 1830 and transferred to the present site in 1907.<ref>{{cite web|website=Wiltshire Community History|title=Bishops Cannings C. of E. (Aided) Primary School|url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/School/Details/1071|publisher=Wiltshire Council|access-date=18 October 2015}}</ref> The chapel at Coate was used as a school from 1848 until 1876,<ref>{{cite web|title=Non-Conformist School, Coate, Bishops Cannings|url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/School/Details/1073|access-date=18 October 2015|website=Wiltshire Community History|publisher=Wiltshire Council}}</ref> when a new school was opened nearby; this school closed in 1929.<ref>{{cite web|website=Wiltshire Community History|title=National School, Coate, Bishops Cannings|url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/School/Details/1072|publisher=Wiltshire Council|access-date=18 October 2015}}</ref>

The parish has four [[pub]]s: the Crown Inn at Bishops Cannings, the Bridge Inn near Horton, the New Inn at Coate, and the Hourglass at Devizes Marina on the Kennet and Avon Canal. Part of North Wilts Golf Club, on the downs, is within the parish,<ref>{{cite web|title=North Wilts Golf Club|url=http://www.northwiltsgolf.com/|access-date=18 October 2015}}</ref> near the [[Morgan's Hill]] Site of Special Scientific Interest.

== Notable people ==
* Around 1613 [[George Ferebee]], vicar of Bishops Cannings, was appointed chaplain to [[James VI and I|King James I]].<ref>{{cite DNB |wstitle= Ferebe, George |volume= 18 |last= Middleton |first= Louisa Mary |author-link= |page= 333 |short= 1}}</ref>
* [[William Bayly (astronomer)|William Bayly]] (1737–1810), the son of a Bishops Cannings farmer, was recognised for his mathematical prowess. He was employed by the [[Royal Observatory, Greenwich|Royal Observatory]] and sailed as an astronomer on two of [[James Cook|Cook]]'s voyages.<ref>{{cite DNB |wstitle= Bayly, William |volume= 03 |last= Hunt |first= William |author-link= William Hunt (priest) |page= 452 |short= 1}}</ref> After completing his career as head-master of the [[Royal Naval Academy|Royal Academy, Portsmouth]], in 1809 he paid for the organ in the parish church of his home village.<ref name="chlisting" />

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category-inline}}
* [https://www.bishopscanningsparishcouncil.gov.uk/ Bishops Cannings Parish Council]
* {{cite book|first=Ida |last=Gandy |author-link=Ida Gandy |title=Round about the Little Steeple: The Story of a Wiltshire Parson, 1573–1623 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nuRVAAAAYAAJ |year=1989 |publisher=Sutton in collaboration with Wiltshire County Council Library & Museum Service |isbn=978-0-86299-593-5 }}

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[[Category:Villages in Wiltshire]]
[[Category:Civil parishes in Wiltshire]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents locations in England]]