Bishops Caundle

Bishop's Caundle is a small village and civil parish in the West Dorset district of Dorset in South West England; situated 6mi south-east of Sherborne. The local travel links are located 4mi from the village to Sherborne railway station and 28mi to Bournemouth International Airport. The main road running through the village is the A3030, connecting Bishop's Caundle to Sherborne. Dorset County Council's 2013 mid-year estimate of the population of the civil parish is 390.HistoryOlder documents sometimes refer to the village as Caundle Bishop, although the origin of the name is unclear.The original settlements that are still present within Bishop's Caundle parish are Bishop's Caundle and Wake Caundle. Until 1886 the parish contained parts of the neighbouring parish of Caundle Marsh, and there were parts of Bishop's Caundle parish within Caundle Marsh and Folke parishes.Cornford Bridge over Caundle Brook dates from around 1480 and is one of less than 200 medieval multi-span bridges to survive in England.According to Douglas Adams' humorous 1983 dictionary "The Meaning of Liff", a Bishop's Caundle is "An opening gambit before a game of chess whereby the missing pieces are replaced by small ornaments from the mantelpiece."