- Braunton
300px|right|thumb|Braunton village centre:the old village railway station, now a newsagents. The large tree in the centre of the square has grown since the line was demolished in the mid-1970s. The line of the tracks passed under the tree and crossed the road where a pelican crossing can now be seen.Braunton is situated 5 miles west of
Barnstaple in theNorth Devon district, and is claimed to be thelargest village in England , with a population in 2001 of 7510. It is home to the nearby Braunton Great Field, andBraunton Burrows , a National Nature andUNESCO Biosphere Reserve .The village boasts a number of
pubs which include the " [http://www.lanternfm.co.uk/Article.asp?id=526890&spid=20870 Agricultural Inn] " on "East Street"; the " [http://www.diningindevon.com/Braunton-restaurant-4.htm Williams Arms] " in Wrafton; the "Mariners Arms" on "South Street"; and the "Black Horse" on "Church Street". There are also a number ofchurches of various denominations with St. Brannock's being the parish church. The village holds a carnival each year near the end of May.The tower of St. Brannock's Church is over 700 years old. Inside the church, the similarly old
chancel has an arch and three lancets. The sixteenth-century benches are richly carved. The fifteenth-century south chapel has a curious brasspalimpsest , hinged so that both sides are visible. There is a chest that may have come to England with theSpanish Armada .Local Schools include Caen Street Primary School, Kingsacre Primary School, [http://www.southmead.devon.sch.uk Southmead] Primary School and
Braunton Community College , the local secondary school.The village had a railway station on the now closed
Ilfracombe Branch Line .The
South West Coast Path National Trail links to the village, and gives access to walks along the spectacular North Devon coast. TheTarka Trail also passes through the village. The nearbyBraunton Burrows marsh has been designated as abiosphere reserve , the first place in the country to gain this status. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/outdoors/nature/braunton_burrows.shtml]The coastal part of the Parish lies within the
North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty .History
The village took its name from St. Brannock, who came from South
Wales as a missionary and converted the native Britons to theChristian faith in AD 550. Brannock was a priest in the household of Brychan,King of Brencknock . He married one of the King's daughters, but the family troubles were a great incentive for leaving his royal home. At that time the Welsh Britons often raided theirDumnoni neighbours on the opposite side of the Bristol channel.In all probability Brannock came to North Devon with such a raid and is said to have landed on
Saunton Sands at the mouth of the River Taw. At the time of his arrival the estuary of the Taw and Torridge rivers was wooded, as was a portion ofBraunton Burrows . Brannock settled among a tribe of local Britons, soon establishing a strong Christian community. A Christian church, the first in North Devon, was built at a spot near where the Caen stream began to spread its waters on the alluvial lands around the River Taw. Brannockstood, the township that grew up around this church, later became Brauntona, and at the end of the nineteenth century, Braunton.urfing
In recent years, the village has become a hub for
surfing as it sits at the gateway to NorthDevon 's surf beaches ofSaunton ,Croyde andWoolacombe . A number of major surf brands were created in the village including Tiki, Loose Fit and Salt Rock.Twin towns
*flagicon|France
Plouescat ,France .Fact|date=September 2008External links
* [http://www.braunton.net Braunton Web site]
* [http://www.braunton.org.uk/ more information]
* [http://www.brauntontic.co.uk Tourist Information Centre]
* [http://www.everythingexmoor.org.uk/_B/Braunton.php Everything Exmoor]
* [http://www.shipoffools.com/Mystery/2004/877.html Christ Church]
* [http://genuki.cs.ncl.ac.uk/DEV/Braunton/ Braunton at GENUKI]
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