Key facts
OS grid ref: SU093264
What3words: ///midwinter.preparing.returns
Postcode: SP5
Post town: Salisbury
Unitary Authority: Wiltshire
Parliamentary Constituency: Wiltshire
Stratford Tony
The River Ebble flows through the pretty hamlet of Stratford Tony which sits about four miles south west of Salisbury in the Cranborne Chase AONB (National Landscape). Sometimes the hamlet is spelt Stratford Toney and has also been known as Stratford St Anthony and Toney Stratford.
The cathedral city of Salisbury, with its shops, restaurants, pubs, culture, heritage and facilities is less than a 20-minute drive away – around six miles. From the city, the Exeter to London line takes you to Waterloo in less than 90 minutes. The bustling village of Broad Chalke, which has lots of facilities, is less than a 10-minute drive away.
Stratford Tony is surrounded by stunning, high chalk downlands, and Salisbury Racecourse sits on its boundary. To the south is Stratford Toney Down, a Site of Special Scientific Interest for rich, chalk grassland, and the Salisbury and South Wilts Golf Course is nearby.
The River Ebble is a chalk stream, a rare form of river created as it rises from springs in landscapes with a chalk bedrock – a fly fisherman’s dream. If you walk along it be sure to look for brown trout, water voles, kingfishers and even otters.
In the north the parish is the Shaftesbury Drove – now a byway. This was formerly used to drive cattle and other livestock from Shaftesbury to markets at Salisbury and beyond.
Salisbury Reds operates a bus route here.
History
Stratford Tony is close to the famous ancient Roman Road, Icknield Street, and also to the Shaftesbury Drove which, historically, was used to drive cattle and livestock from Shaftesbury to the markets at Salisbury.
The village has a Grade I listed medieval church, The Church of St Mary and St Lawrence, which can only be reached through a narrow lane, across a stream, and up a bank!
Walking and cycling
The area around Stratford Tony is stunning. If you’d like to explore it on foot, All Trails has an eight-mile, little known, ‘moderate’ walk which is apparently great for hiking, birding and cycling. It takes you through farmlands and open fields around Throope Down and Stratford Tony and to the church of St Mary and St Lawrence.