LIFE In Elizabethan Dorset came under the spotlight at a well attended talk hosted by a local history buff.

Neil Mattingly of Charmouth shed life upon life in the west Dorset village of Charmouth during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558 – 1603).

It was a very different place back then, Mr Mattingly informed attendees,  with the church in the centre surrounded by a number of cottages.

The beacons on the hills above the village were for early warning of invasion. 

Mr Mattingly's talk was based on a survey taken in 1564, six years into the reign of Queen Elizabeth. It is held at the Devon Record Office. 

The research also uncovers that Charmouth used to be owned by Forde Abbey in Chard.

Mr Mattingly said: "It is a wonderful record of the village after its nearly 300 years of possession by Forde Abbey and its transition to ownership by the wealthy Sir William Petre, who was Secretary of State to Queen Elizabeth in that year."

READ: Talk on west Dorset village life during reign of Elizabeth I

Sir William paid £25 for the village and took in a total rent of £27 per annum – not a bad rate of return.

The wealthy land owner had accrued more than 36,000 acres in Devon, including the town of Axminster. 

Mr Mattingly said the estate survey 'had been a revelation'.

He has also gone back to the very early history of Charmouth. In 1300, the Abbot transformed the village into a Borough.

Each villager would have a burgage plot of 1/2 acre on either side of the Street stretching back to a bank in the south and high wall in the north.

There are still vestiges of these today to be seen after 700 years. The boundary wall has stood up well and has only been pierced in a few places since then.

Charmouth's 13th century wall Charmouth's 13th century wall (Image: Neil Mattingly) Here, you can see the wall today and the section along Barr's Lane.

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This 1841 Tithe map shows the 13th century wall unbroken parallel to The Street and signs of the former bank on the southern side of it. It clearly shows how important The Street was with few buildings between it and the beach.

1841 Tithe Map1841 Tithe Map (Image: Supplied)

The latest Ordnance Survey Map of the village still shows the 13th century wall almost complete to the north of the Street, Mr Mattingly points out.

There are still a number of the original boundary walls of the burgage plots leading up to the wall still surviving.

READ: Men evacuated to Dorset harbour after ship torpedoed

Charmouth in 2024Charmouth in 2024 (Image: Supplied) As well as the 1564 survey there are three other important lists of villagers that reveal a thriving village supporting a population estimated by K.J. Penn in his Historic Towns in Dorset as being over 200.

This was a high number considering the population had only reached 369 by 1801.

The prominent family in all the lists are the Limbreys.  In 1574 Edward Lymbrey purchased a number of properties , including The Elms (Manns) and Charmouth House (Fountain) from Sir John Petre.