Wiltshire · Local History

The History of Wilton

A place in Wiltshire with a history you can trace through the records: its entry in the 1086 Domesday Book, the archaeological finds and scheduled monuments around it, and the nearest Roman sites and battlefields. Everything below is drawn from the historical record.

In 1086, Wilton was held by King William.

The record

What the Domesday Book records for Wilton

When William the Conqueror's commissioners surveyed Wilton in 1086, they recorded 2 manors held by King William and Wilton (St Mary), abbey of. Before the Conquest, in the time of King Edward, the land was held by King Edward and Wilton (St Mary), abbey of.

The manors were valued at 60.87 pounds in 1086.

The record in full
Holdings
2 manors
Held in 1086 by
King William; Wilton (St Mary), abbey of
Held in 1066 by
King Edward; Wilton (St Mary), abbey of
Value in 1086
60.87 pounds

The Domesday Book was the great survey of England ordered by William the Conqueror in 1085 and completed in 1086, the oldest surviving public record in the country. How the survey worked →

Wilton was one of the settlements recorded in Wiltshire in the 1086 survey. Wiltshire in the Domesday survey →

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Everything a full report reveals about Wilton

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Wilton's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Domesday
The settlement's entry in the 1086 Domesday Book: who held it, what it was worth, and the people who worked the land.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
LiDAR
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks hidden under fields and woodland, with likely features flagged.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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Conflict

Battlefields near Wilton

Nationally registered historic battlefields within 25 miles of Wilton.

Battle of Roundway Down 1643
Registered battlefield · 1643 · ~21.6 miles
Archaeology

Archaeological finds near Wilton

563 recorded finds have been logged within about 5 miles of Wilton, reported by members of the public and entered in the national record of archaeological finds. They span these periods:

Roman: 236Medieval: 138Post medieval: 126Early medieval: 27Iron age: 15Bronze age: 9Palaeolithic: 2Greek and roman provincial: 1Neolithic: 1
Landscape

The ground beneath Wilton

The bedrock beneath Wilton is White Chalk Subgroup (Maastrichtian).

Common questions

Questions about Wilton

Was Wilton in the Domesday Book?+
Yes. Wilton was recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book as a settlement in the historic county of Wiltshire.
Who held Wilton in 1086?+
In 1086, Wilton was held by King William.
Who held Wilton before the Norman Conquest?+
Before the Conquest in 1066, Wilton was held by King Edward.
What was Wilton worth in the Domesday Book?+
In 1086, Wilton was valued at 50 pounds.
Where is Wilton today?+
Wilton is a settlement in the historic county of Wiltshire, England.
Aubrey Research

Discover Wilton's Complete Historical Record

Aubrey's full report for this location includes every Domesday manor, the complete record of medieval lordship, archaeological context, and the story of how this settlement evolved from 1086 to the present day.

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