The Church of St. John the Baptist in the village of Carhampton, West Somerset.

The red sandstone Church of St. John the Baptist stands not far from Dunster on the northern side of the A39 in the village of Carhampton, West Somerset.  Mentioned in the Domesday Book, Carhampton takes its name from the Old English car, ham and ton which means ‘A grief stricken home and enclosure’.  The original village church was dedicated to St. Carantoc, a Welsh monk of the fifth century.    

The Church of St. John the Baptist in the West Somerset village of Carhampton..

Carhampton is one of only two villages in Somerset, the other being Norton Fitzwarren, where the ancient  custom of wassailing the apple-trees takes place on Old Twelfth Night, which is 16 January.  The ceremony involves toasting bread on farm pitchforks over a blazing bonfire.  When ready the toast is dipped in mugs of cider and eaten.  A Wassail Queen is carried to the best tree in the orchard where she places some of the toast in its branches.  She then takes a drink of cider from an earthenware pitcher and pours the remains over the trunk and roots of the tree.  The Wassailing Song is then sung followed by cheers and the firing of old muzzle-loading guns through the branches of the tree.*

Carhampton’s Church of St. John the Baptist is noted for its interior which has a beautifully coloured rood screen.  The churchyard is reputed to be the largest in Somerset!

*Source: Somerset, Ralph Whitlock (B.T.Batsford Ltd, 1975).