Chippenham: Wiltshire Market Town on the Avon with Saxon Origins
Chippenham sits on the River Avon in north Wiltshire, roughly midway between Bath and Swindon. The town was a royal vill in Saxon times; King Alfred is recorded as having spent Christmas here in AD 878, shortly before the Viking army forced him to retreat to the Somerset marshes. The market charter dates to 1245. The population is around 45,000, making Chippenham one of the larger towns in Wiltshire. The Yelde Hall, a fifteenth-century half-timbered building in the Market Place, is one of the oldest surviving structures in the town.
Chippenham railway station is on the Great Western Main Line, with direct services to London Paddington (about 75 minutes) and Bristol Temple Meads (20 minutes). The M4 passes to the north, accessed at Junction 17. Wiltshire College has a campus in the town. Chippenham has experienced significant residential growth since the 1990s, with large housing estates extending to the south and east. The Marden Valley, to the south, remains open countryside. Lacock, the National Trust village used as a film location, is three miles to the south. Adult companionship falls under English criminal law.
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Chippenham sits on the River Avon in north Wiltshire, roughly midway between Bath and Swindon. The town was a royal vill in Saxon times; King Alfred is recorded as having spent Christmas here in AD 878, shortly before the Viking army forced him to retreat to the Somerset marshes. The market charter dates to 1245. The population is around 45,000, making Chippenham one of the larger towns in Wiltshire. The Yelde Hall, a fifteenth-century half-timbered building in the Market Place, is one of the oldest surviving structures in the town.
Chippenham railway station is on the Great Western Main Line, with direct services to London Paddington (about 75 minutes) and Bristol Temple Meads (20 minutes). The M4 passes to the north, accessed at Junction 17. Wiltshire College has a campus in the town. Chippenham has experienced significant residential growth since the 1990s, with large housing estates extending to the south and east. The Marden Valley, to the south, remains open countryside. Lacock, the National Trust village used as a film location, is three miles to the south. Adult companionship falls under English criminal law.
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