Inkpen is a village and civil parish in West Berkshire, southeast of Hungerford, most of the land of which is cultivated fields with scattered woodland once part of a former forest of Savernake. Inkpen has boundaries with Wiltshire and Hampshire, including parts of Walbury Hill, the highest point in South East England, and Inkpen Hill.
History
thumb|right|350px|Will of Wulfgar, AD 931–939, granting land in Inkpen to the "holy place" (halgan stowe) at Kintbury (Cynetanbyrig)
thumb|right|Crocus field in March
The earliest record of Inkpen is in the Cotton Charter viii, dated between AD 931 and 939. This includes the will of a Saxon thegn named Wulfgar, whose name means "wolf-spear". Wulfgar owned "land at inche penne" which he "had from Wulfric, who had it from Wulfhere who first owned it", his father and grandfather respectively. Wulfgar left this to be divided amongst named heirs: three quarters to his wife, Aeffe, the other quarter to "the servants of God" at the holy place in Kintbury. Following Aeffe's death, her share was also to go to the holy place at Kintbury "for the souls of Wulfgar, Wulfric and Wulfhere".
Evolution of the name
Below is a selection of subsequent spellings of a dictated Inkpen over a period of some three hundred years by various scribes:
- Ingepenne 935.]]
There is little evidence of Roman activity in Inkpen. Some of the hill trail trade was diverted down to the Ermin Way and Romanized Britons certainly lived in the area. In 1984 archaeological finds were discovered near Lower Green suggesting the presence of a Roman dwelling of some kind, possibly not unlike the Roman villas found at nearby Kintbury and Littlecote. During building work near Combe in 2003, a Roman burial was found.
Saxon
The Roman army withdrew from Britain in around AD 410 and the settlement of Anglo-Saxons from Denmark and Northern Germany followed soon afterward. At the foot of Inkpen Beacon is, what some believe to be, the eastern end of the Wansdyke, a long ditch and bank or linear defensive earthwork, built sometime between 400 and 700. Current theory suggests a date around 470 when some hill forts were being refortified by the Romano-Britons. It runs east–west between Inkpen Beacon and Portishead near Bristol. Although its eastern end is generally thought to be just south of Marlborough, this small section is named "Wansdyke" on Inkpen's enclosure award map of 1733. Its construction clearly points to danger from the north, perhaps from the first Saxons of what is now Berkshire, who settled around Abingdon. Early Saxon coins, known as sceattas, have been found on the Downs.
Amenities and landmarks
thumb|right|St. Michael's parish church
The parish church of Saint Michael is 13th century. The east window of the chancel and west window of the nave were added in the 15th century. The church's new reredos, altar tables, rood and rood screen, pulpit, lectern and much new seating were carved for Rolfe by Harry Hems of Exeter. The church is a Grade II* listed building.
Near the centre of the village, just off Post Office Road, is Inkpen Crocus Fields a large field of saffron crocuses, one of only two in the United Kingdom. According to the information plaque, the plants are believed to have been brought here by the Knights Templar in the Middle Ages for the production of saffron. It is currently owned by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Inkpen House, the old rectory, was built in 1695 and is a Grade II* listed building. Behind is a remarkable miniature Versailles garden inspired by the great French landscape architect, André Le Notre. Kirby House, a Grade II* listed building, was built in 1733 and West Court House, Grade II listed, in two stages in the 18th century. There are several listed cottages around the village.
alt=Inkpen Village Hall|right|thumb|Inkpen Village Hall
Inkpen Village Hall, near the village pond, was built in 1924 and holds social, sports, hobbies and events for the whole village. The hall has a monthly farmers' market. Inkpen primary school, designed by G.E. Street and built in 1850, Inkpen had two public houses, the Crown & Garter and the Swan Inn, the latter closed in April 2018 and was for sale as of December 2018. Both were hotels and had restaurants.
Half of the crest of Walbury Hill is in the parish, south of the village nucleus. The whole of the parish accordingly is in the North Wessex Downs area of outstanding natural beauty. At its summit, above sea-level, is Walbury Camp Iron Age hill fort, the start of the Test Way and the Wayfarers Walk. On the adjacent Gallows Down, but just within the parish of Combe, are Combe Gibbet and Inkpen long barrow.
Demography
{| class="wikitable"
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|+ 2011 Published Statistics: Population, home ownership and extracts from Physical Environment, surveyed in 2005