36-600: Bagshot is a large village in the Surrey Heath borough of Surrey , England, approximately 27 miles (43 km) southwest of central London. In the past, Bagshot served as an important staging post between London, Southampton and the West Country , evidenced by the original coaching inns still present in the village today. Much of the land surrounding Bagshot is owned by the Ministry of Defence . The village
72-609: A Royal forest . It had a Royal hunting lodge certainly through Stuart and Tudor times, now called Bagshot Park , which is now the residence of Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh . In Elizabethan times (late 16th century) Bagshot prospered due to its position on the main London to the West Country road (The Great South West Road, now classified as the A30). As with many villages on main coaching routes, Bagshot developed services, inns for
108-590: A modern plantation of Scots Pines , the area was once part of Windsor Forest . Swinley Forest includes Crowthorne Woods around Caesar's Camp between the Nine Mile Ride and Crowthorne; Swinley Park between Forest Park and the B3017 ; Bagshot Heath just west of Bagshot; and Swinley Woods around Kings Ride between the B3017 and South Ascot . Much of the woods cover what used to be moorland as indicated by
144-464: A number of late 18th century redoubts scattered throughout the forest. These defensive earth fortifications were built here not as working defences but as training grounds to carry out military exercises in the buildup to the Napoleonic Wars . In May 2011 forest fires broke out throughout the forest; the cause is believed to be a mixture of the unseasonably dry conditions and arson. Although
180-483: A permit since the introduction of the three marked trails (Green, Blue and Red) and walking is free. Swinley Woods was originally submitted as the proposed venue for the mountain biking event of the 2012 Summer Olympics , however, the distance from the main Olympic Park was considered too great and the heavy forestation along most of the suggested routes would have resulted in poor camera access and views. The event
216-562: Is a bell tower with a peal of eight bells. It is a grade II listed building and is situated in a conservation area . Bagshot has two multi-purpose sports fields and a cricket field. Curley Park Rangers, the youth football club, meet regularly and play on pitches in both Lightwater and Bagshot. The CPR clubhouse is located at the Bagshot pitch. White Hart Royals, the football team of the White Hart pub in Bagshot village, compete in
252-653: Is a large expanse of Crown Estate woodland managed by Forestry England mainly within the civil parishes of Windlesham in Surrey and Winkfield and Crowthorne in Berkshire , England. Situated to the south-west of Windsor Great Park , the forest stretches from Bracknell , in the north, to Bagshot , in the south. It is owned and managed by the Crown Estate and comprises over 2,600 acres (11 km ) of woodland across gently undulating hills. Although now mostly
288-536: Is adjacent to junction 3 of the M3 motorway . Bagshot railway station is on the line between Ascot and Aldershot and train services are run by South Western Railway Bagshot is part of the civil parish of Windlesham, which has a population of 17,000 and also includes the neighbouring village of Lightwater . The place-name 'Bagshot' is first attested in the Pipe Rolls of 1165, where it appears as Bagsheta . It
324-574: Is also a short distance from The National Clay Shooting Centre and the Bisley shooting ranges. Bagshot Village Community Library is situated on the High Street and in addition to the usual library services provides Story and 'Rhymetimes' for the local toddler community. Lightwater Country Park was accessible by crossing the M3 footbridge- this has since been demolished. Pennyhill Park Hotel located at
360-545: Is free. Swinley Woods was considered as a venue for the mountain biking event of the 2012 Summer Olympics. Other clubs and organisations include Bagshot Concert Band, the Surrey Heath Archaeology and Heritage Trust, Bagshot Gymnastics Club, Camberley and Bagshot Metal Detecting Club and local branches of the Scouts , Royal Air Forces Association , Women's Institute and Camberley Rifle & Pistol Club. It
396-564: Is instead provided by the leader of the council . The leaders since 1996 have been: Following the 2023 election (including a postponed election in one ward) and a subsequent change of allegiance in July 2024, the composition of the council was: Three of the four independent councillors sit together as "The Community Group". The next election is due in 2027. The council is based at Surrey Heath House on Knoll Road in Camberley. The building
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#1732776421954432-417: Is made up of naturally wet, very acid sandy and loamy soil, which is just 1.9% of English soil and 0.2% of Welsh soil, which gives rise to pines and coniferous landscapes, such as pioneered at Wentworth and Foxhills estate (now spa, hotel, restaurant and golf club) by pro-American independence statesman Charles James Fox . In geology it gives rise to the name, Bagshot Formation . The western section of
468-515: Is not only poor, but even quite steril [ sic ], given up to barrenness, horrid and frightful to look on [...] much of it is a sandy desert [...] This sand indeed is checked by the heath, or heather, which grows in it [...] but the ground is otherwise so poor and barren that the product of it feeds no creatures, but some very small sheep, who feed chiefly on the said heather [...] nor are there any villages, worth mentioning, and but few houses or people for many miles far and wide". There are
504-628: The Broadmoor to Bagshot Woods and Heaths SSI, one of the largest SSIs in Berkshire. As well as the extensive commercial conifer plantations and mixed woodland the nationally rare lowland heath present means Swinley Forest forms part of the Thames Basin Heaths , a designated Special Protection Area (SPA), due to the rare ground nesting birds including wood lark , Dartford warbler and European nightjar which nest in open parts of
540-649: The Surrey Heath constituency . The constituency is slightly larger than the borough, including the Normandy and Pirbright ward of Guildford Borough Council . In 2014, the British Election Study named Surrey Heath as the most right-wing constituency in the country. Surrey Heath is twinned with Sucy-en-Brie , France, and Bietigheim-Bissingen , Germany. 51°20′22″N 0°44′36″W / 51.3395°N 0.7433°W / 51.3395; -0.7433 Swinley Forest Swinley Forest
576-715: The borough there are five Sites of Special Scientific Interest , four of which are part of the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area of European Importance as a habitat for certain endangered bird species; these make up some of the six Wildlife Reserves managed by Surrey Wildlife Trust in Surrey Heath. Since the last boundary changes in 2019 the council has comprised 35 Councillors representing 14 wards , with each ward electing two or three Councillors. Elections are held every four years. The whole borough lies within
612-894: The Camberley & District Sunday Football League. Bagshot Cricket Club runs a number of adult and under 16 teams and complete in the Thames Valley League, the Three Counties League and the West Surrey Youth League. Bagshot Tennis Club has four floodlit courts and fields teams in the Woking League. Swinley Forest , which borders Bagshot to the north, provides some of the best mountain biking in South-East England, with many off-road ' single-track ' trails available as well as plenty of fire roads. Mountain biking and walking
648-463: The King); Methodist , Evangelical (Brook Church). St Anne's Church was built in 1884 in a Gothic Revival style under the patronage of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught who lived in the nearby Bagshot Park . It is a building in red brick with stone detail under a slate roof. The east window was dedicated in memory of Prince Arthur's youngest brother Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany (d. 1884). There
684-703: The Liberal Democrats who gained a majority of 5640 over the Conservatives. Surrey Heath Surrey Heath is a local government district with borough status in Surrey , England. Its council is based in Camberley . Much of the area is within the Metropolitan Green Belt . The neighbouring districts are Runnymede , Woking , Guildford , Rushmoor , Hart , Bracknell Forest , and Windsor and Maidenhead . The district
720-408: The council had been led by Conservatives from its creation in 1974. The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows: The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Surrey Heath. Political leadership
756-565: The debts the council had incurred in buying it. In 2020 the council's chief executive, Karen Whelan, resigned after an independent investigation found that a 30% increase in her remuneration during 2018–19 compared to the year before had been unlawfully approved by the former leader of the council, Moira Gibson. The area forms the heart of the heath that spans Esher , Oxshott , Weybridge , Wisley , all around Woking , Brookwood , Deepcut , Pirbright , Frimley , Lightwater , Camberley , Chobham Common , Virginia Water and Ottershaw . It
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#1732776421954792-447: The district is largely urbanised, with heaths nonetheless providing substantial green buffer around Camberley , Lightwater , Deepcut , Frimley , Frimley Green and Mytchett . The east of the district is less urbanized, and contains Surrey Heath's four civil parishes: The former Frimley and Camberley Urban District covering the west of the borough is an unparished area , governed directly by Surrey Heath Borough Council. Within
828-524: The far western edge of Bagshot is where the England rugby team train. Bagshot Park , home of Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh is located on the northern edge of the village. The A30 leaving Bagshot to the southwest for Camberley has a large roundabout on it called the Jolly Farmer after a public house that used to stand in its centre, now used as a Golfing Store. The local borough, Surrey Heath ,
864-551: The fires were stated at the time by the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service to have been the most extensive fires ever tackled by the service, the extent of the damage to the forest was relatively limited. The woods provide some of the best mountain biking in South-East England , with many off-road 'single-track' trails available as well as plenty of fire roads. Mountain biking no longer requires
900-592: The first century AD from a coin discovered in the interior. Soon after, the Romans invaded England; after this time, there is no evidence that Caesar's Camp continued to exist as an inhabited community. A road from its south entrance was later built, connecting it to the Devil's Highway (Roman Britain) . There is a small Roman settlement about halfway along this road, known as Wickham Bushes, which has yielded pottery and other Roman artifacts. A redoubt roughly 40 m across in
936-466: The fort is thought to be part of a defence line built in 1792 in preparation for the Napoleonic Wars. In 2007, a Go Ape facility was opened to the public, featuring a series of tree-top rope bridges and climbs. Swinley Park and Brick Pits is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and has protected areas for the birds that live there. Some parts of Swinley Forest are also covered by
972-689: The names of some of the hills, such as Broadmoor , Owlsmoor , Wishmoor, Gormoor, Whitmoor and Englemoor (now Englemere ). Swinley Park once surrounded Swinley Lodge where the King kept the Royal Staghounds in Georgian times . It was at the centre of Swinley Walke , one of the sub-divisions of Windsor Forest. In the 18th century Daniel Defoe - writing in the fashion of the time of regarding uncultivated land as wild and forbidding - described Bagshot Heath as "a vast tract of land [...] which
1008-582: The self-guided walks and bike trails start and end at the centre. Adjoining the Look Out is an Iron Age hill fort known as Caesar's Camp . It is the only one in East Berkshire. It has not been excavated but Iron Age coins have been found there. The name only dates from the 18th century. Caesar's Camp appears to have fallen under the rule of Cunobelin , king of the Catuvellauni tribe in
1044-487: The stagecoach passengers, and stables to provide the coaches with fresh horses. Ann Nelson 's "Exeter Telegraph" would stop for 20 minutes at Bagshot on its 17 hour journey to Devon. The prosperity of the Great South West Road created its share of highwaymen , one of the most notorious being William Davis, a local farmer who lived near what is known locally as the Jolly Farmer roundabout in Camberley. He
1080-641: Was eventually caught at the White Hart Inn in Bagshot and later was hanged at the gallows in Gibbets Lane in Camberley. Not one to avoid suspicion, he always paid his debts in gold! It was after him that the pub was called the Golden Farmer. The Golden Farmer (now Jolly Farmer), was eventually sold to American Golf Discount Store, who still use the old building. Bagshot has four churches: Church of England (St. Anne's); Roman Catholic (Christ
1116-531: Was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 . The new district covered the area of two former districts, which were both abolished at the same time: The new district was named "Surrey Heath" in recognition of the extensive areas of heathland it contains, including Chobham Common and Lightwater Country Park, which form part of the wider Thames Basin Heaths . The new district
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1152-463: Was granted borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor. Surrey Heath Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Surrey County Council . The eastern part of the borough is also covered by civil parishes , which form a third tier of local government. Since the 2023 election the council has been under Liberal Democrat majority control. Prior to 2023
1188-400: Was instead located at Hadleigh Farm near Hadleigh , Essex . At Gormoor on the Nine Mile Ride , on the northern edge of Crowthorne Woods , is The Look Out Discovery Centre , operated by Bracknell Forest Borough Council. This is a hands-on science exhibition and nature discovery centre, which also acts as a visitor centre for the forest, providing maps, car parking and bike hire. Most of
1224-417: Was mainly a Conservative area, and the council had been led by the Conservatives from its founding in 1974 until the Liberal Democrats captured a majority in the 2023 local election . Bagshot itself is, however, represented by one Liberal Democrat and two Conservative borough councillors. At the 2024 General election, the [Surrey Heath UK Parliamentary constituency] also voted for Professor [Al Pinkerton] of
1260-422: Was purpose-built for the council for £4.25m and was completed in 1987. The building was formally opened by Valerian Wellesley, Duke of Wellington on 17 July 1987. In 2016 the council bought The Square, the main shopping centre in the centre of Camberley, for £109 million. By early 2023 the centre was reportedly valued at only £30 million, and the rents being received did not cover the interest payments on
1296-416: Was the name of a wood, and may have meant 'Bacga's wood'. Recent excavations have shown that settlements of Bagshot date back as far as pre-Roman; before these excavations it was thought that the earliest settlements in Bagshot were late Saxon. Late Bronze Age settlements have been identified in the area, and iron smelting appears to have been a major 'industry' in the locality. Bagshot at one time included
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