North Petherton is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, lying on the edge of the eastern foothills of the Quantocks, about 2.5 miles (4 km) south of Bridgwater; in the east, the parish extends into the Somerset Levels. The parish includes the villages of North Newton and Huntworth, and the hamlets of Northmoor Green (also called Moorland), Shearston and Woolmersdon. The parish population at the 2021 census was 10,050, an increase from the 6,730 recorded in 2011. Dating from at least the 10th century and an important settlement in Saxon times, North Petherton became a town only in the late 20th century, until then claiming to be the largest village in England. A former market and administrative centre, North Petherton is now largely a dormitory town for workers in Bridgwater and Taunton. The centre of the town is designated an area of archaeological potential, and a number of buildings have been given listed building status.
Toponymy The Domesday Book of 1086 recorded a settlement called Nortperet with 65 households. The name derives from the area's position to the north side of the River Parrett, and from the Old English nor tun.
History Long before the Norman Conquest, during Saxon times North Petherton was at the centre of a large royal estate, located on one of the historic communication routes through Somerset, and was both an important centre and the meeting place for the Hundred of North Petherton although the Petherton limit tithing of North Petherton was in the Hundred of Andersfield from the 1670s. At the time of the Norman invasion the Hundred covered a large area corresponding, today, roughly to a north–south corridor along the M5 motorway from Junction 25 near Taunton, to north of Junction 23 at Stretcholt, and east–west from Athelney to Goathurst. The Parish of North Petherton continues to be one of the largest in Somerset to this day.
North Petherton Park King Henry II expanded the royal estate into the royal forest (hunting ground) of Petherton Park, which continued to exist until the 17th century. Geoffrey Chaucer (~1343–1400), author of The Canterbury Tales, was appointed Deputy Forester of the royal forest of North Petherton towards the end of his life. The royal forest was probably similar in area to the Saxon Hundred of North Petherton. According to the late 13th century Hundred Rolls, King Henry II of England (died 1189) gave William of Wrotham lands at North Petherton. Between 1513 and 1535 Sir William Courtenay (d.1535) of Powderham, Devon was the keeper of North Petherton Park.
Other The town itself it thought to have developed around the minster which, it is supposed, was on the same site as the current church. There is archaeological evidence indicating that there were timber buildings to the west of the church in the late Saxon period, and it is suspected that the remains of the Saxon settlement may continue to lie beneath the town centre. Excavations to the west of the church, on what is now the Community Centre site, revealed a 14th-century cemetery, which may have been used for victims of the plague, as well as indicating that the area was redeveloped in the late Middle Ages. It is thought that there may have been a mint in the town during the 10th or 11th century, and a charter to hold a market was granted in 1318, although it is thought that the market predated this. A shire hall, courthouse and guildhall are known to have exited and were probably located north of the church. A minor skirmish of the English Civil War took place in August 1644 outside what was then the cornhill, now the area of Fore Street between the Community Centre and the former George Inn. The Alfred Jewel, an object about 2.5-inch (64 mm) long, made of filigree gold, cloisonné-enamelled and with a rock crystal covering, was found in 1693 at Petherton Park, North Petherton. Believed to have been commissioned by Alfred the Great, it is thought to have been the handle for a pointer that would have fitted into the hole at its base, and been used while reading a book out loud. It is inscribed, "AELFRED MEC HEHT GEWYRCAN," ("Alfred had me made"). It may be one of the "aestels" Alfred had sent to each bishopric with a copy of his translation of Pope Gregory the Great's book Pastoral Care. A replica of the jewel can be found in the church of St Mary.
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