Tolpuddle

{{Short description|Village in Dorset, England}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}} {{Use British English|date=June 2025}} {{Infobox UK place |static_image_name = The Church of St John the Evangelist, Tolpuddle - geograph.org.uk - 1592503.jpg |static_image_caption = [[Church of Saint John, Tolpuddle|Parish Church of St John the Evangelist]] |country = England |official_name = Tolpuddle |coordinates = {{coord|50.7495|-2.2962|display=inline,title}} |map_type = Dorset |population = 420 |population_ref = (2023 estimate) <ref name=dcc>{{cite web|url=https://www.dorsetforyou.com/344882|title=Parish Population Data|date=20 January 2015|publisher=Dorset County Council|accessdate=11 March 2015}}</ref> |civil_parish = [[Burleston and Tolpuddle]] | unitary_england= [[Dorset (district)|Dorset]] | lieutenancy_england= [[Dorset]] |region = South West England |post_town = Dorchester |postcode_area = DT |postcode_district = DT2 |constituency_westminster = [[North Dorset (UK Parliament constituency)|North Dorset]] |os_grid_reference = SY792944 }}

'''Tolpuddle''' ({{IPAc-en|pron|ˈ|t|ɒ|l|p|ʌ|d|əl}}) is a village in the [[civil parish]] of [[Burleston and Tolpuddle]], in [[Dorset]], England, on the [[River Piddle]] from which it takes its name, {{convert|8|mi|km}} east of [[Dorchester, Dorset|Dorchester]], the county town, and {{convert|12|mi|km}} west of [[Poole]]. The estimated population of the parish in 2013 was 420.<ref name=dcc/>

==Etymology== Tolpuddle originally bore the name 'Tolpiddle'.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.opcdorset.org/TolpuddleFiles/1841Tolpuddle.htm |title=Tolpuddle Census 1841 }}</ref> The entry for Tolpuddle in the Key to English Place-Names reads: {{Blockquote|text='Tola's River Piddle farm/settlement'. Tola was the widow of [[Edward the Confessor|Edward the Confessor's]] [[Housecarl|house-carl]], Urc. She was given permission to give her lands to [[Abbotsbury Abbey|Abbotsbury abbey]] between 1058 and 1066.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kepn.nottingham.ac.uk/map/place/Dorset/Tolpuddle |website=Key to English Place-Names |access-date=2025-06-16 |title=Key to English Place-names }}</ref>}}

==Tolpuddle Martyrs== [[File:The Green at Tolpuddle - geograph.org.uk - 1592486.jpg|thumb|left|The Green at Tolpuddle. It is believed that whilst sitting under this sycamore tree, the six [[Tolpuddle Martyrs]] agreed to form a trade union]] The village is well known as the home of the [[Tolpuddle Martyrs]], six men who were sentenced to be [[penal transportation|transported]] to [[Australia]] after they formed a [[friendly society]] in 1833. A row of cottages, housing agricultural workers and a museum, and a row of seated statues commemorate the martyrs. The annual [[Tolpuddle Martyrs festival]] is held in the village on the third weekend of July. An ancient [[Acer pseudoplatanus|sycamore tree]] on the village green, known as the [[Acer pseudoplatanus#Tolpuddle Martyrs' Tree|Martyrs' Tree]], is said to be the place where the Martyrs swore their oath. It is cared for by the [[National Trust]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-dorset-29948177 |title=Tolpuddle Martyrs village tree pruning carried out |last1= |first1= |last2= |first2= |date=7 November 2014 |website=news.bbc.co.uk |publisher=BBC News |accessdate=27 November 2014 }}</ref>

The Martyrs Inn [[public house]] is owned by nearby [[Athelhampton House]], a [[tudor period|Tudor]] house open to the public approximately {{convert|1|mi|km}} to the west.

==Landmarks== St John the Evangelist's Parish Church dates from the 13th century.<ref>{{cite book|title=West Dorset Holiday and Tourist Guide|publisher=West Dorset District Council|date=c. 1983|page=21}}</ref>

In 1999, the [[A35 road|A35]] [[trunk road]] through south Dorset, was moved to bypass both Tolpuddle and nearby [[Puddletown]].<ref>{{cite web|title=A30 Exeter to Bere Regis|url=http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/projects/3505.aspx|publisher=Highways Agency|access-date=7 January 2013|archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20120810121037/http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/projects/3505.aspx|archive-date=10 August 2012}}</ref>

==Governance== At the local government level, Tolpuddle is in the [[Puddletown]] Area parish council and the [[Dorset (district)|Dorset unitary authority]] area.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.puddletownareaparishcouncil.co.uk/|title=Home - Puddletown Area Parish Council|website=www.puddletownareaparishcouncil.co.uk}}</ref> For elections to [[Dorset Council (UK)|Dorset Council]] is part of the [[Puddletown and Lower Winterborne (ward)|Puddletown and Lower Winterborne]] electoral ward.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://gi.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/insights/AreaProfiles/Ward/puddletown-and-lower-winterborne | title=Area profile for Puddletown & Lower Winterborne - Dorset Council }}</ref> On 1 April 2024 the parish was abolished and merged with [[Burleston]] to form "Burleston and Tolpuddle".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ukbmd.org.uk/reg/districts/dorset.html|title=Dorset Registration District|publisher=UKBMD|accessdate=4 August 2024}}</ref>

Historically, Tolpuddle was in [[Puddletown Hundred]]. It was part of [[Dorchester Rural District]] from 1894 to 1974,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.werelate.org/wiki/Place:Dorchester_Rural,_Dorset,_England|title=Place:Dorchester Rural, Dorset, England - Genealogy|website=www.werelate.org}}</ref> and [[West Dorset]] district from 1974 to 2019.

In the UK national parliament, Tolpuddle is within the [[North Dorset (UK Parliament constituency)|North Dorset parliamentary constituency]], having been moved from [[West Dorset (UK Parliament constituency)|West Dorset]] in 2024.

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== * {{cite book |last=Pitt-Rivers |first=Michael |year=1969 |title=Dorset |location=London |publisher=Faber & Faber }}

==External links== *[https://www.tolpuddlevillage.co.uk/home Website]

[[Category:Villages in Dorset]] [[Category:Former civil parishes in Dorset]]