Editing Combe Florey

{{Short description|Village and civil parish in Somerset, England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2012}}
{{Infobox UK place
|country =                 England
|coordinates = {{coord|51.0765|-3.2075|display=inline,title}}
|official_name=            Combe Florey
| population = 261
| population_ref = (2011)<ref name="popn">{{cite web|title=Statistics for Wards, LSOAs and Parishes&nbsp;— SUMMARY Profiles|url=http://www.somersetintelligence.org.uk/files/Somerset%20Census%20Key%20Statistics%20-%20Summary%20Profiles.xls|publisher=Somerset Intelligence|accessdate=4 January 2014|format=Excel}}</ref>
| unitary_england = [[Somerset Council]]
| lieutenancy_england = [[Somerset]]
|region=                  South West England
|constituency_westminster=     [[Tiverton and Minehead (UK Parliament constituency)|Tiverton and Minehead]]
|post_town=        TAUNTON
|postcode_district = TA4
|postcode_area=            TA
|dial_code=      01823
|os_grid_reference=     ST155315
|static_image_name = Combe Florey - village street - geograph.org.uk - 56115.jpg
|static_image_alt=Street scene with houses and trees separated from the road by a stone wall.
|static_image_caption = Village street
|static_image_2_name = Combe Florey - near the Old Manor House - geograph.org.uk - 904793.jpg
|static_image_2_caption = Near the Old Manor House
}}
'''Combe Florey''' is a village and [[civil parishes in England|civil parish]] in [[Somerset]], England, situated {{convert|6|mi|km|1}} northwest of [[Taunton]], on the [[West Somerset Railway]].  The village has a [[population]] of 261.<ref name="popn"/> The parish includes the hamlet of '''Eastcombe''' which is a linear settlement along the A358 Taunton-Wiliton Road.

The village [[public house]] is ''The Farmer's Arms''.

==History==

The first part of the name Combe Florey comes from ''cwm'' meaning valley, and the second part from Hugh de Fleuri who was lord of the manor around 1166.<ref name="bush">{{cite book|last=Bush|first=Robin|title=Somerset: The Complete Guide|publisher=Dovecote Press|year=1994|pages=[https://archive.org/details/somersetcomplete0000bush/page/69 69]|isbn=1-874336-26-1|url=https://archive.org/details/somersetcomplete0000bush/page/69}}</ref>

At the time of the [[Domesday Book]] in 1086 the village was part of the [[Bishop of Winchester]]'s estate of Taunton Deane.<ref name="bush"/>
The parish of Combe Florey was part of the [[Taunton Deane (hundred)|Taunton Deane]] [[Hundred (county subdivision)|Hundred]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Somerset Hundreds|url=http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/SOM/Miscellaneous/|publisher=GENUKI|accessdate=21 October 2011}}</ref>

==Governance==

The [[Parish councils of England|parish council]] has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council's operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and [[Neighbourhood Watch (UK)|neighbourhood watch]] groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council.

For [[local government in England|local government]] purposes, since 1 April 2023, the village comes under the [[Unitary authorities of England|unitary authority]] of [[Somerset Council]]. Prior to this, it was part of the [[non-metropolitan district]] of [[Somerset West and Taunton]] (formed on 1 April 2019) and, before this, the district of [[Taunton Deane]] (established under the [[Local Government Act 1972]]). From 1894-1974, for local government purposes, Combe Florey was part of [[Taunton Rural District]].<ref name=tauntonrd>{{cite web|title=Taunton RD|url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10166688|work=A vision of Britain Through Time|publisher=University of Portsmouth|accessdate=5 January 2014}}</ref> 

It is also part of the [[Tiverton and Minehead (UK Parliament constituency)|Tiverton and Minehead]] [[county constituency]] represented in the [[British House of Commons|House of Commons]] of the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]]. It elects one [[Member of Parliament|Member of Parliament (MP)]] by the [[first past the post]] system of election, and was part of the [[South West England (European Parliament constituency)|South West England constituency]] of the [[European Parliament]] prior to [[Brexit|Britain leaving the European Union]] in January 2020, which elected seven [[Members of the European Parliament|MEPs]] using the [[d'Hondt method]] of [[party-list proportional representation]].

==Religious sites==

The [[Church of St Peter & St Paul, Combe Florey|Church of St Peter and St Paul]] has some remains from the 13th century but is mostly from the 15th century and is designated as a Grade I [[listed building]].<ref>{{NHLE|num=1175444|desc=Church of St Peter and St Paul|accessdate=2008-10-17}}</ref>

==Notable residents==
[[Sydney Smith]] was rector of the parish of Combe Florey from 1829 until his death in 1845.<ref>Alan Bell, ''Sydney Smith: A Biography'' (Oxford: Oxford UP, 1980), p. 147 ff.</ref>
[[Combe Florey House]] was the home of the novelist [[Evelyn Waugh]], and later of his son, [[Auberon Waugh|Auberon]]. Auberon Waugh is buried in St Peter and Paul's churchyard. Evelyn Waugh is buried in a private plot of land next to the churchyard.  The writers [[Daisy Waugh]] and [[Alexander Waugh]] both grew up at Combe Florey House, but their mother, Auberon Waugh's widow, sold the house in 2008.<ref>Daisy Waugh, ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20080907133059/http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/property/buying_and_selling/article3734643.ece Waugh home up for sale]'' in ''[[The Sunday Times]]'' dated 13 April 2008, online</ref>

<gallery>
Image:Combe Florey - West Somerset Railway - geograph.org.uk - 142833.jpg|West Somerset Railway
Image:Cemetery, Combe Florey - geograph.org.uk - 472431.jpg|Cemetery
Image:Auberon Waugh's grave, Combe Florey - geograph.org.uk - 1065906.jpg|[[Auberon Waugh]]'s grave
Image:Church of StPeter and StPaul.jpg|Church of St Peter and St Paul
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Combe Florey}}
*[http://www.quantockonline.co.uk/quantocks/villages/combe_florey/combe_florey01.html Combe Florey page from The Quantock Online Community]

{{Taunton Deane}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Villages in Taunton Deane]]
[[Category:Civil parishes in Somerset]]