All Cannings

History

The following is the text from the Church information bulletin.

"All Cannings is one of the ancient villages of the Pewsey Vale. It is thought to originate from a Saxon settlement, and is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as 'Caninge'. From at least until the Reformation, the manor of All Cannings was held by the Abbey of St. Mary, at Winchester.

At the Reformation, in 1536, Henry VIII presented 'the valuable manor of Allecanynges' to Edward Seymour, who later became the Duke of Somerset. His family retained the estate until the late 17th century.

The estate then passed through various hands, and remained intact until 1909, when, at a sale at the Bear Hotel in Devizes, the estate was broken up into smaller farms and properties.

All Saints or St. Annes? There has been uncertainty as to the dedication of the church. Today it is All Saints, but in the last century, and early this century, there are records indicating Saint Anne. There is a fifteenth century reference to 'Cannings All Saints.'

All Cannings or Old Cannings? The name 'All Cannings' is thought either to derive from 'Old Cannings' to differentiate the village from nearby Bishops Cannings, or else to be a shortened form of 'All Saints Cannings' referring to the dedication of the church. The name 'Cannings' is thought to derive from the name of the Saxon tribe which settled in the area."

1610 Map of All Cannings and surrounding area in Wiltshire
(click on map to view larger image.)

Thanks to My Hitchcock Heritage: pictures

Posted by timdaw at January 1, 2006 01:11 PM