Silchester

Coordinates: 51°21′11″N 1°06′04″W / 51.353°N 1.101°W / 51.353; -1.101

Silchester is a village and civil parish about 5 miles (8 km) north of Basingstoke in Hampshire. It is adjacent to the county boundary with Berkshire and about 9 miles (14 km) south-west of Reading.

Silchester is most notable for the archaeological site and Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum, which was first occupied by the Romans in about AD 45 and includes what is considered the best-preserved Roman wall in Great Britain.

Location

The present village is centred on Silchester Common. It is about 1 mile (1.6 km) west of the Church of England parish church and former manor house (now Manor Farm), which are in the eastern part of the former Roman town.

Local government

Silchester is a civil parish with an elected parish council. Silchester parish is in the ward of Pamber and Sichester, part of Basingstoke and Deane District Council and of Hampshire County Council and all three councils are responsible for different aspects of local government. The ward returns two councillors to the borough council. The 2001 census recorded a parish population of 918.