Frilsham is a village and civil parish from Newbury, in the English county of Berkshire.
Geography
Frilsham is near the Berkshire Downs, with the M4 to the north. The nucleated village is on a hill, with the parish church of St Widefride at its centre, surrounded by woods and meadows. The village overlooks the small valley formed by the upper Pang (or Pang Bourne) which runs from north to south through the parish. One of the woods, Coombe Wood is listed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
History
Manor
The manor was held of Edward the Confessor by two free men, two decades later on the Domesday Survey it was owned by Henry de Ferrers. His son was elevated to an earl, Earl Ferrers, and the overlordship continued in the hands of his descendants until the 13th century. it is recorded as held of the fee of the Earl of Derby's eldest son, Earl Ferrers. The rebel Robert de Ferrers led an insurrection in 1263 and was three years later deprived of his earldom and estates, which were then granted to Edmund Crouchback, the king's son. In consequence this overlordship followed the descent of the earldom and duchy of Lancaster. Manorial court rolls for the year 1440–1 are in the archives of the Duchy. His daughter-in-law sold it, in 1903, to Henry Frederick George Weber, previously of Bucklebury, It was then sold, in 1907, to Sir Cameron Gull, of Frilsham House, the other major home and estate in the parish, who thus enhanced his local monopoly on the parish's agriculture land.
The presence of a watermill is mentioned in the Domesday Book. The current mill building is now converted into private accommodation.
Landmarks
thumb|St Frideswide's Well
- St Frideswide church dates back to the 12th century with additions in the 15th and 17th century. The tower was added in 1837. The church is a Grade II* listed building.
- St Frideswide's Well. Just off one of the footpaths in the woods, formerly the common.
- The Club Room with a football pitch and children's playground.
- Telephone box, now housing the village defibrillator.
- Three farmhouses in the parish are Grade II listed buildings, Birch Farm, which dates to the late 16th century; Parsonage Farm, which dates to the 17th century; and Magpie Farm, which dates to the early 16th century.
Demography
{| class="wikitable"
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|+ 2011 Published Statistics: Population, home ownership and extracts from Physical Environment, surveyed in 2005