Brockworth

Brockworth is a village and parish in the Borough of Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England, situated on the old Roman road that connects the City of Gloucester with Barnwood. It is located southeast of central Gloucester, southwest of Cheltenham and north of Stroud. The population taken at the 2011 census was 7,387. The population increased to 9,422 at the 2021 Census. Since the mid-20th century, Brockworth has been known locally for the annual rolling of Double Gloucester cheese down Cooper's Hill. During World War II the nearby village of Hucclecote at the Gloster Aircraft Company produced the famous Hawker Hurricane fighter, and following the war it gained renewed fame for producing several notable aircraft, including Britain's first jet aircraft, which was test flown here. Brockworth is also the birthplace of actor, comedian and writer Simon Pegg. An electoral ward of the same name exists in Tewkesbury Borough. The population and area of this ward are identical to that shown above. Brockworth has a parish council. The name Brockworth is derived from the Saxon "wurthin" for enclosure and "broc" for brook. Settlement is believed to have occurred around 600 AD, after the defeat of the Gloucester-based Romano British at the Battle of Dyrham in 577 AD. Older, Roman remains have been found locally but they indicate an estate rather than a village. Also, the Saxon-derived name suggests that the first settlers were Saxons. The oldest surviving building in the village is the Grade I listed building St George's Church, which dates back to 1142. The present structure has elements from then until the nineteenth century. Adjacent to this is the Tudor manor house Brockworth Court, a Grade II* listed building, that was built between 1534 and 1539 for Richard Hart, the last prior of Llanthony Priory. Brockworth was the third in a series of rural villages located along an old Roman road following a more-or-less straight line to the inland port city of Gloucester.