Aston Clinton is a historic village and civil parish in the Vale of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, England. The village is at the foot of the Chiltern Hills, 2 miles from Weston Turville, 4 miles from Aylesbury and is bisected both at the northern end of the parish by the Aylesbury Arm and in the centre of the parish by the Wendover Arm stretch of the Grand Union Canal. The village lies between the market towns of Tring and Wendover.
Early history
It is believed that the village started at the crossing of two Roman roads, Akeman Street and Icknield Way, both of which are still main roads in the village. After the fall of the Roman Empire, it became a Saxon settlement and remains of a Saxon cemetery were found during the construction of the Aston Clinton Bypass. Before the Norman conquest of England in 1066 the settlement was probably held under patronage of King Edward the Confessor. The village is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 where in Old English it was called Estone, which means "eastern estate". The manor, later to be known as Aston Clinton, was for a short period after 1100 under the control of Edward de Salisbury, who was King Henry I's standard-bearer. In 1217 King Henry III gave it to Sir William de Farendon. However, by 1237 the manor was owned by the de Clinton family, hence the name at that time of Aston de Clinton. William de Clinton separated out from Aston Clinton to a new manor called Chivery as a dowry for his daughter Alice. Sometime after 1239, King Edward I granted the estates to the Montacutes, who were the ancestors of the Earls of Salisbury. Their descendant the Countess of Salisbury was beheaded by King Henry VIII in 1541. Successive families have owned the manor, passing by marriage from the Hastings to the Barringtons, Gerards, and then to Lord Lake of Aston Clinton later to become Gerard Lake, 1st Viscount Lake. Composer and lutenist Daniel Bacheler was born in the village in 1572.
Air accident
On 22 September 1934, a twin-engined biplane named Youth of New Zealand of Sir Alan Cobham's National Aviation Displays, crashed into a field near the canal at Aston Clinton. The Youth of New Zealand had just departed from Heston Aerodrome after being refuelled when it crashed, killing all four crew. The probable cause was the failure of a bolt through metal fatigue.
Today
The modern parish of Aston Clinton was created in 1934. Of the other medieval manors:- Dundridge; Chivery; St Leonards and Vaches, historically all closely associated with Aston Clinton, only Chivery and Vaches have remained distinct parts of Aston Clinton, which now forms part of Aylesbury Vale District. Dundridge manor became part of the ecclesiastical parish of St Leonards which has itself since 1934 become part of the parish of Cholesbury-cum-St Leonards. Aston Clinton Civil Parish is bordered by other civil parishes to the:
St. Michael and All Angelsparish church dates from the 13th and 14th centuries. The car manufacturer Aston Martin took one part of its name from the village combining it with that of its co-founder Lionel Martin. It had great success in the Aston Clinton Hillclimb competition up nearby Aston Hill. A plaque now marks the site. There are many historic buildings with listed status in Aston Clinton including Anthony Hall, a concert hall situated in the centre of the village which was donated to the community by the widow of Anthony Nathan de Rothschild. To the south-east of the village in Green Park was the former Aston Clinton House. Aston Clinton School is a primary school that takes pupils between the ages of 4 and 11. The school has approximately 275 pupils. The school badge includes the five arrows from the Rothschildcoat of arms, because the family built the first schools in the village. The village is home to the picturesque Chiltern Forest Golf Club, and nearby to Weston Turville Golf Club. The village was used as a filming location for the 1962 film Lolita. The TV programme Hotel Babylon was filmed in Aston Clinton. Rock band Marillion were originally formed in the village in 1979 as Silmarillion. Australian Formula One driver Mark Webber lists Aston Clinton as his home in England where he lives with his partner Ann Neal. The BAFTA and Oscar winningspecial effects make-up artistDavid Malinowski lives in the village. Aston Clinton Household Recycling Centre opened in 2009 and was built to the north of the village off the A41 Aston Clinton bypass. In 2011 a new industrial park opened in Aston Clinton called Halton Brook Business Park, designed and developed by Horstonbridge Development Management which replaced an old dairy, demolished in 2006, that once stood in the same location. Two companies currently occupy Halton Brook, Zethon & DeSoutter Medical.
Demographics
According to the 2001 census there are 1,402 households in Aston Clinton with a Population of 3,542: 1,725 males and 1,817 females. In accordance with the government plans to boost housing supply, due to the rising population, there has been an increase in new housing developments in Aston Clinton: The Burnhams, Stratford Close, 28 flats near the surgery, four detached houses to the south of London Road Pavilion Gardens and The Willows.
Geography
Aston Clinton is located at the northern edge of the Chiltern Hills, Buckinghamshire, to the east of Aylesbury.
Transport
The A41 Aston Clinton bypass opened on the 3 October 2003. Several bus routes serve the village with connections to Aylesbury, Watford, Leighton Buzzard and Luton operated by Arriva, Redline Buses and Red Kite Buses.
