Editing Hungerford

{{About|the town in England}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox UK place
|country =                 England
|type = [[Town]]
|official_name=             Hungerford
|static_image_name= Hungerford Town Hall.jpg
|static_image_caption= [[Hungerford Town Hall]]
|static_image_2_name	=Hungerford logo.jpg
|static_image_2_caption	= Town symbol 
|coordinates = {{coord|51.414|-1.515|type:city(5000)_region:GB|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
|population=5,869
|population_ref=(2021 Census)<ref name="census21">{{cite web |title=Hungerford |url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/uk/southeastengland/admin/west_berkshire/E04001177__hungerford/ |website=City population |access-date=25 October 2022}}</ref>
|area_total_km2=27.52
|civil_parish=  Hungerford
|unitary_england=          [[West Berkshire]]
|region=                  South East England
|lieutenancy_england=        [[Berkshire]]
|constituency_westminster=      [[Newbury (UK Parliament constituency)|Newbury]]
|post_town=        HUNGERFORD
|postcode_district =       RG17
|postcode_area=            RG
|dial_code=      01488
|os_grid_reference=     SU334681
|website = {{URL|https://www.hungerford-tc.gov.uk/|Town Council}}
}}
'''Hungerford''' is a historic [[market town]] and [[civil parish]] in [[Berkshire]], England, {{convert|8|mi}} west of [[Newbury, Berkshire|Newbury]], {{convert|9|mi}} east of [[Marlborough, Wiltshire|Marlborough]], and 60 miles (97&nbsp;km) west of London. The population of the parish at the 2021 census was 5,869.<ref name="census21" />

The [[Kennet and Avon Canal]] passes through the town alongside the [[River Dun (River Kennet)|River Dun]], a major tributary of the [[River Kennet]]. The confluence with the Kennet is to the north of the centre, whence canal and river both continue east. [[Hungerford railway station]] is a minor stop on the [[Reading to Taunton Line]].

== History ==
[[File:Hungerford, Kennet and Avon Canal - geograph.org.uk - 6289.jpg|thumb|Narrowboat on the [[Kennet and Avon Canal]]]]
[[File:Hungerford Common - geograph.org.uk - 6294.jpg|thumb|Hungerford Common]]
[[File:Johnofgaunt.jpg|thumb|upright|[[John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster|John of Gaunt]]]]

Hungerford is derived from an [[Old English language|Anglo-Saxon]] name meaning "[[Ford (crossing)|ford]] leading to poor land".<ref>{{cite book|last=Mills|first=A.D.|title=Dictionary of English Place-Names|location=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1991|isbn= 0-19-869156-4}}</ref> The town's symbol is the [[estoile]] and crescent moon.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hungerfordvirtualmuseum.co.uk/index.php/10-themes/272-crescent-and-star|title=Crescent and Star|publisher=Hungerford Virtual Museum|access-date=26 December 2020}}</ref> The place is not described in the [[Domesday Book]] of 1086 because four ancient manors each owned some property within Hungerford, a possession located at the extreme western edge of the royal manor of Kintbury,<ref name=HVMmh>[https://www.hungerfordvirtualmuseum.co.uk/?view=article&id=716:manorial-history&catid=10:themes Manorial History]. Hungerford Virtual Museum. Accessed 5 April 2023.</ref> in the ancient [[Hundred (county division)|hundred]] of [[List of hundreds of England|Kintbury]].<ref>[https://opendomesday.org/hundred/kintbury/ Open Domesday: Hundred of Kintbury]. Accessed 5 April 2023.</ref> The manor of Standen Hussey, described as Standen in Wiltshire in Domesday,<ref>[https://opendomesday.org/place/SU3053/standen/ Open Domesday: Standen (Land of Arnulf of Hesdin)]. Accessed 5 April 2023.</ref> was later in Hungerford parish.<ref name=BHOkh>[https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol16/pp3-7 Kinwardstone Hundred]. British History Online. Accessed 5 April 2023.</ref> The land was granted to [[Robert de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Leicester]]. When he died in 1118, he passed his English estates, including Hungerford, to his son Robert and his heirs who encouraged the town's growth over the next 70 years.<ref name=HVMmh/>

By 1241, Hungerford called itself a [[borough]].<ref name=":0">{{cite web|title='Parishes: Hungerford', in A History of the County of Berkshire|volume=4|first1=William |last1=Page |first2= P. H. |last2=Ditchfield |location=London|year= 1924|pages=183–200|publisher=British History Online |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/berks/vol4/pp183-200 |access-date= 26 December 2020}}</ref> In the late 14th century, [[John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster|John of Gaunt]] was [[lord of the manor]] and he granted the people the lucrative fishing rights on the River Kennet.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/property/advice/propertymarket/3337926/Live-like-common-people.html|title=Live Like Common People|publisher=The Telegraph|date=22 December 2004|access-date=26 December 2020}}</ref> The family of [[Walter Hungerford, 1st Baron Hungerford]] originated in the town (c. 1450), although after three generations the title passed to [[Thomas Hungerford of Rowden|Baroness Hungerford]] who married Sir [[Edward Hastings, 2nd Baron Hastings|Edward Hastings]] who became a Baron,<ref>{{Cite book |title = Testamenta Vetusta|last = Nicolas|first = Nicholas Harris|location = London|publisher = Nicholas and Son|year = 1826|volume = II|pages= 372, 431}}</ref> and the family seat moved to [[Heytesbury]], [[Wiltshire]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/Community/Index/115|title=Heytesbury|website=Wiltshire Community History|publisher=Wiltshire Council|access-date=24 March 2017}}</ref> In the 16th century, the parish of Hungerford was included in the formation of the hundred of Kintbury Eagle.<ref>[https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/berks/vol4/pp156-157 Kintbury Eagle hundred]. British History Online. Accessed 5 April 2023.</ref>

During the [[English Civil War|Civil War]], the [[Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex|Earl of Essex]] and his army spent the night here in June 1644. In October of the same year, the [[Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester|Earl of Manchester]]’s cavalry were quartered in the town. Then, in the November, [[Charles I of England|Charles I]]’s forces arrived in Hungerford on their way to [[Abingdon, Oxfordshire|Abingdon]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hungerfordvirtualmuseum.co.uk/index.php/links/9-events/21-1642-51-civil-war|title=1642-51 Civil War|publisher=Hungerford Virtual Museum|access-date=26 December 2020}}</ref> During the [[Glorious Revolution]] of 1688, [[William III of England|William of Orange]] was offered [[the Crown]] of [[England]] while staying at the Bear Inn in Hungerford.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.berkshirehistory.com/articles/reading_broadst.html|title=The Battle of Broad Street|publisher=Berkshire History|access-date=26 December 2020}}</ref> The Hungerford land south of the river Kennet was for centuries, until a widespread growth in cultivation in the area in the 18th century, in [[Savernake Forest]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://pennypost.org.uk/2020/05/a-brief-history-of-hungerford-park/|title=A Brief History of Hungerford Park|publisher=Penny Post|access-date=26 December 2020}}</ref>

===1987 Massacre===
{{main|Hungerford massacre}}
The Hungerford massacre occurred on 19 August 1987. A 27-year-old [[unemployment in the United Kingdom|unemployed]] local labourer, Michael Robert Ryan, armed with three weapons, a [[Type 56 assault rifle]], a [[Beretta]] [[pistol]] and an [[M1 carbine]], shot and killed 16 people in and around the town – including his mother – and wounded 15 others, then [[suicide in the United Kingdom|killed himself]] in a local school after being surrounded by armed police. All his victims were shot in the town or in nearby [[Savernake Forest]].<ref>''Mass Murderers'' {{ISBN|0-7835-0004-1}} p. 169</ref>

[[Home Secretary]] [[Douglas Hurd]] commissioned a report on the massacre from the Chief Constable of [[Thames Valley Police]], Colin Smith. The massacre was one of three significant firearms atrocities in the [[United Kingdom]] after the invention of rapid fire weapons such as the one involved, the other two being the [[Dunblane massacre]] and the [[Cumbria shootings]]. It led to the passing of the [[Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988]], which banned the ownership of [[semi-automatic rifle|semi-automatic]] centre-fire [[rifles]], and restricted the use of shotguns with a [[magazine (firearms)|magazine]] capacity of more than two rounds. The Hungerford Report confirmed that Ryan's collection of weapons was legally licensed.<ref>[http://members.aol.com/gunbancon/Frames/Hungerford.html The Hungerford Report – Shooting Incidents At Hungerford On 19 August 1987, Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police Colin Smith to Home Secretary Douglas Hurd]. Retrieved 24 August 2007. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050122075928/http://members.aol.com/gunbancon/Frames/Hungerford.html |date=22 January 2005 }}</ref>

== Government ==
Hungerford is a civil parish, covering the town of Hungerford and a surrounding rural area. Anciently, the parish was divided into four [[Tithing (country subdivision)|tithings]]: Hungerford or Town, Sanden Fee, [[Eddington, Berkshire|Eddington]] with Hidden and [[Hungerford Newtown|Newtown]], and Charnham Street. North and South Standen and Charnham Street were [[Detached part|detached parts]] of [[Wiltshire]] until transferred to Berkshire in 1895. Leverton and Calcot were transferred to Hungerford parish from [[Chilton Foliat]] in Wiltshire in 1894.<ref name=":0" />

[[Parish councils in England|Parish council]] responsibilities are undertaken by Hungerford Town Council, which consists of fifteen volunteer [[councillor]]s and committee members, supported by a full-time clerk; the [[mayor]] is elected from amongst their number.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Home - Hungerford Town Council |url=https://www.hungerford-tc.gov.uk/ |access-date=2025-02-07 |website=www.hungerford-tc.gov.uk}}</ref> Hungerford & Kintbury electoral ward, which includes eight rural parishes to the east,<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Election Maps: Great Britain |url=https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/election-maps/gb/ |access-date=7 February 2025 |website= |publisher=Ordnance Survey}}</ref> elects three members of [[West Berkshire Council]] (a [[Unitary authorities of England|unitary authority]]).<ref>{{Cite web |date= |title=Your Councillors |url=https://decisionmaking.westberks.gov.uk/mgMemberIndex.aspx?VW=TABLE&PIC=1&FN=ALPHA |access-date=2025-02-07 |website=West Berkshire Council}}</ref>

Hungerford is part of the [[Newbury (UK Parliament constituency)|Newbury]] [[parliamentary constituency]]. Hungerford participates in [[town twinning]] to foster good international relations:
*{{flagicon|FRA}} [[Ligueil]], [[Indre-et-Loire]], France.<ref name="Archant twinning">{{cite web|url=http://www.completefrance.com/language-culture/twin-towns |title=British towns twinned with French towns |access-date=11 July 2013 |work=Archant Community Media Ltd |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130705094933/http://www.completefrance.com/language-culture/twin-towns |archive-date=5 July 2013 }}</ref>

== Geography ==
Hungerford is on the [[River Dun (River Kennet)|River Dun]]. It is the westernmost town in Berkshire, on the border with Wiltshire. It is in the [[North Wessex Downs AONB|North Wessex Downs]]. The highest point in the entire [[South East England]] region is the {{cvt|297|m}} summit of [[Walbury Hill]], {{cvt|4|miles}} from the town centre.

The Kennet and Avon Canal separates Hungerford from what might be described as the town's only suburb, the village of [[Eddington, Berkshire|Eddington]]. Other settlements in the parish include [[Upper Eddington]], [[Leverton, Berkshire|Leverton]] and [[Hungerford Newtown]].<ref name=":1" />

The town has, as its western border, a county divide which also marks the border of the South East and [[South West England]] regions; it is {{cvt|60|miles}} west of London and {{cvt|55|miles}} east of [[Bristol]] on the [[A4 road (England)|A4]]. It is almost equidistant from the towns of Newbury and Marlborough. [[Freeman's Marsh]], on the western edge of the town, is a [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx?startTopic=Designations&activelayer=sssiIndex&query=HYPERLINK%3D%271001426%27 |title=Magic Map Application |publisher=Magic.defra.gov.uk |access-date=19 March 2017}}</ref>

== Transport ==
[[File:Trains at Hungerford Station - geograph.org.uk - 1353108.jpg|thumb|[[Hungerford railway station]]]]
Hungerford is situated on several transport routes, including the [[M4 motorway]] with access at Junction 14, the [[A4 road (Great Britain)|Old Bath Road (A4)]], and the Kennet and Avon Canal, the latter opened in 1811. {{rws|Hungerford}} railway station is on the [[Reading–Taunton line|Reading to Taunton line]]; a reasonable rail service to {{rws|Newbury}}, {{rws|Reading}} and {{rws|Paddington}} means that Hungerford has developed into something of a [[dormitory town]] which has been slowly expanding since the 1980s. Many residents commute to nearby towns such as Newbury, [[Swindon]], Marlborough, [[Thatcham]] and [[Reading, Berkshire|Reading]].{{citation needed|date=January 2022}}

==Church==
[[File:St Lawrence's Church, Hungerford.jpg|thumb|upright|St. Lawrence's church]]
The parish church of St. Lawrence stands next to the Kennet and Avon Canal. It was rebuilt in 1814–1816 by [[John Pinch the elder]] in the [[Gothic Revival architecture|Gothic Revival]] style.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.stlawrenceshungerford.org.uk/pdfs/buildings/Hungerford%20St%20Lawrence%20SoS%20v.1.2%20FINAL.pdf|title=Statement of Significance: Hungerford St Lawrence|date=1 May 2019|access-date=26 December 2020}}</ref> The east window contains stained glass by Lavers and Westlake. The church is a Grade II* [[listed building]].<ref>{{NHLE|grade=II*|desc=Church of St. Lawrence|num=1289541|date=6 February 1962}}</ref>

== Sport and leisure ==
Hungerford has a cricket team,<ref name="hungerford.uk.net">[http://www.hungerford.uk.net/sports.php Hungerford in West Berkshire – Sports]. Hungerford.uk.net. Retrieved on 17 July 2013.</ref> a football team, [[Hungerford Town F.C.]], that plays at the Bulpit Lane ground, a rugby team, Hungerford RFC.<ref>Boulton, Bob. (29 April 2013) [http://www.pitchero.com/clubs/hungerfordrfc/ Hungerford RFC]. Pitchero.com. Retrieved on 17 July 2013.</ref> and a netball club. Hungerford Archers, an archery club, uses the sports field of the [[John O'Gaunt School]] as its shooting ground.<ref name="hungerford.uk.net"/> Hungerford Hares Running Club was established in 2007.<ref name="hungerfordhares.co.uk">{{cite web|url=http://www.hungerfordhares.co.uk|title=Hungerford Hares|access-date=8 September 2017}}</ref>

== Hocktide ==
{{main|Hocktide}}
Hungerford is the only place in the country to have continuously celebrated [[Hocktide]] or Tutti Day (the second Tuesday after [[Easter]]).{{Citation needed|date=January 2022}} Today it marks the end of the town council's financial and administrative year, but in the past it was a more general celebration associated with the town's great patron, [[John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster|John of Gaunt]]. Its origins are thought to lie in celebrations following [[King Alfred]]'s expulsion of the [[Vikings]]. The "Bellman" (or [[Town Crier|town crier]]) summons the Commoners of the town to the Hocktide Court held at [[Hungerford Town Hall]], while two florally decorated "Tutti Men" and the "Orange Man" visit every house with commoners' rights (almost a hundred properties), accompanied by six Tutti Girls, drawn from the local school. Originally they collected "head pennies" to ensure fishing and [[grazing rights]]. Today, they largely collect kisses from each lady of the house. In the court, the town's officers are elected for the coming year and the accounts examined. The court manages the town hall, the John of Gaunt [[Inn]], the Common, [[Freeman's Marsh]], and fishing rights in the River Kennet and river Dun.{{Clarify|date=January 2022}}

== Legends ==
There is an old legend that "Hingwar the Dane", better known as [[Ivarr the Boneless]], was drowned accidentally while crossing the Kennet here, and that the town was named after him. This stems from the, probably mistaken, belief that the [[Battle of Ethandun]] took place at Eddington in Berkshire rather than [[Edington, Wiltshire]], or [[Edington, Somerset]].{{citation needed|date=January 2022}}

==Literature==
Hungerford is one of two places which arguably meet the criteria for Kennetbridge in [[Thomas Hardy]]'s novel ''[[Jude the Obscure]]'', being "a thriving town not more than a dozen miles south of Marygreen"<ref>{{cite web|title=Paragraph 4, Chapter VII, Part Fifth, ''Jude the Obscure''|author= [[Thomas Hardy]]|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/153/153-h/153-h.htm#5-7}}</ref> ([[Fawley, Berkshire|Fawley]]) and is between Melchester ([[Salisbury]]) and Christminster ([[Oxford]]).<ref>{{cite web|title=Paragraph 6, Chapter X, Part Third, ''Jude the Obscure'' |author=[[Thomas Hardy]] |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/153/153-h/153-h.htm#5-7}}</ref> The main road ([[A338 road|A338]]) from Oxford to Salisbury runs through Hungerford. The other contender is the larger town of Newbury.

==Notable people==
* [[Charlie Austin]], [[association football|footballer]]
* [[Adam Brown (actor)|Adam Brown]], actor, comedian and pantomime performer 
* [[Samuel Chandler]], [[Nonconformist (Protestantism)|Nonconformist]] [[theologian]] and preacher
* [[Christopher Derrick]], [[author]]
* [[Edward Duke (antiquary)|Edward Duke]] (1779–1852), [[antiquary]]
* [[Ralph Evans (footballer)|Ralph Evans]] (1915–1996), footballer
* [[John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster]], son of King [[Edward III of England|Edward III]]
* [[William Greatrakes]], connected with the authorship of the Letters of [[Junius (writer)|Junius]]
* [[Nicholas Monro]] (b. 1936), [[artist]], had a studio at Hungerford<ref name="Towers">Radio Birmingham interview with Munro, 11 May 1972, transcribed in part in {{cite journal|last=Towers|first=Alan|date=July–August 1972|title=Birmingham: Nicholas Munro|journal=Studio International|volume=184|issue=946|page=18}}</ref>
* [[George Pocock (inventor)|George Pocock]] (1774–1843), the founder of the Tent Methodist Society and inventor of the Charvolant
* [[Charles Portal, 1st Viscount Portal of Hungerford]], Chief of the Air Staff during most of [[World War II]] and [[Marshal of the Royal Air Force]]
* [[Reginald Portal]], admiral
* [[Harry Quelch|Henry "Harry" Quelch]] (1858–1913), one of the first British [[Marxists]]
* [[Edmund Roche, 5th Baron Fermoy]], maternal uncle of [[Diana, Princess of Wales]], died in Hungerford in 1984
* [[Robert Snooks]], last [[highwayman]] to be hanged in England, born in Hungerford in 1761
* [[James E. Talmage]], (1862–1933) [[LDS Church]] leader, writer and theologian. Author of ''[[Jesus the Christ (book)|Jesus the Christ]]''
* [[Jethro Tull (agriculturist)]], died in the town
* [[Will Young]], singer

==Demography==
{| class="wikitable"
|- 
|+ '''2011 Published Statistics: Population, home ownership and extracts from Physical Environment, surveyed in 2005<ref name=ons>{{Cite web |url=http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/ |title=Key Statistics: Dwellings; Quick Statistics: Population Density; Physical Environment: Land Use Survey 2005 |access-date=8 December 2014 |archive-date=11 February 2003 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030211201309/http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>'''
|-
!Output area||Homes owned outright||Owned with a loan||Socially rented||Privately rented||Other||km<sup>2</sup> roads||km<sup>2</sup> water||km<sup>2</sup> domestic gardens||Usual residents ||km<sup>2</sup>
|- align=center
|Civil parish||834||	858||	367	||482	||43||	0.500||	0.337||	0.789||	5767	||27.52
|}

==Freedom of the Town==
The following people and military units have received the [[Freedom of the City|Freedom of the Town]] of Hungerford.
{{Incomplete list|date=September 2022}}

===Individuals===
* Jennifer Bartter: 3 September 2022.<ref name=F22 />
* Martin Crane: 3 September 2022.<ref name=F22>{{cite web |url=https://www.newburytoday.co.uk/news/getting-the-freedom-of-hungerford-9272088/ |title=Revealed: This year's winners of the Freedom of the Town of Hungerford awards  |last=Garvey |first=John |date=3 September 2022 |website=The Newbury Weekly News |access-date=5 September 2022 }}</ref>
* Penny Locke: 3 September 2022.<ref name=F22 />

== See also ==
* [[List of places in Berkshire]]
* [[List of towns in England]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
*[https://www.hungerford-tc.gov.uk/ Hungerford Town Council]
*[https://www.hungerfordvirtualmuseum.co.uk/ Hungerford Virtual Museum]
*[https://www.hungerfordhistorical.org.uk/ Hungerford Historical Association]
*[https://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=3737277 Photos of Hungerford and surrounding area on geograph]
{{Berkshire}}
{{West Berkshire}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Hungerford| ]]
[[Category:Towns in Berkshire]]
[[Category:Market towns in Berkshire]]
[[Category:Civil parishes in Berkshire]]
[[Category:West Berkshire District]]
[[Category:Kennet and Avon Canal]]