Dauntsey

"DAUNTSEY, a parish in the hundred of Malmesbury, in the county of Wilts, 4½ miles S.E. of Malmesbury, and 6 W. of Wootton-Bassett station. It is situated on the river Avon, and comprises some of the richest meadow-land in England. At the Norman Conquest, Dauntsey belonged to Malmesbury Abbey, whence it came to the Dauntseys, Straddlings, and Danvers families, and through the crown to the great Earl of Peterborough. The living is a rectory* in the diocese of Gloucester and Bristol, value £344, in the patronage of the Rev. W. E. Elwell. The church is dedicated to St. James. The interior is handsomely embellished with richly-carved oak and some curious remains of ancient stained glass. It contains some old brasses and several monuments-one to the Earl of Peterborough and one to the Earl of Danby. There is an almshouse, endowed with £50 per annum by the Earl of Danby in 1667. The other charities amount to £21 per annum. It gave the title of baron to the son of James II."

[Description(s) from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868) - Transcribed by Colin Hinson ©2003]