The origins of Westbury-on-Trym predate those of Bristol itself. In the 6th century Westbury was in the territory of
Hwicce, which became part of
Mercia in the 7th century. The earliest record of Westbury, in the form
Uuestburg, was in a charter dated between 793 and 796.
-burg or
-bury was from the
Old English burh, which usually meant a fort but could also mean a fortified house or a
minster. The name may refer to a minster already present on the site of the
parish church in the 8th century. It is not clear why the burh was "west". It possibly referred to the westernmost minster in the territory of Hwicce. At the end of the 8th century, King
Offa of Mercia granted land at Westbury to his minister,
Aethelmund. Early in the 9th century land at Westbury passed to the
Bishop of Worcester. Later there was a
monastery at Westbury, probably initially a secular one, with married clergy. This changed towards the end of the 10th century when
Oswald of Worcester, in whose
diocese the monastery lay, sent a party of 12 monks to follow more stringent rules at the Westbury monastery. The architect Ednoth constructed a new church and other buildings. The monastery became a college with a
dean and
canons at the end of the 13th century. It was rebuilt in the mid-15th century to resemble a miniature
castle with turrets and a gatehouse. Westbury College was
dissolved in 1544 and became a private house. The
Royalist Prince Rupert of the Rhine used it as his quarters during the
English Civil War. When he left, in 1643, he ordered it to be set on fire so that the
Parliamentarians could not make use of it. In the 20th century some of the college buildings were restored.
Westbury College Gatehouse passed into the hands of the
National Trust and the grounds were adapted for housing
elderly people. The current
Church of the Holy Trinity dates from 1194 (although there has been a place of worship on the site since 717), with an early 13th century nave and aisles, and 15th century chancel, chapels and tower. It is a grade I
listed building. In the 18th century, the area was associated with highway robbery. The churchyard contains the grave of coachman Richard Ruddle (), who is reputed to be the last man in England killed by a
highwayman while driving Sir Robert Cann across
Durdham Down. Local legend suggests this event may be connected to the tradition of the "White Tree" on Westbury Road, originally painted white to guide coachmen home in the dark. The ancient parish of Westbury-on-Trym was a large one. It included
Stoke Bishop,
Redland, a large
exclave comprising
Shirehampton and
Avonmouth, and several smaller exclaves in the parish of
Henbury. When the
civil parish was created in 1866, Shirehampton was separated to form its own civil parish, and in 1894 Redland also became a separate civil parish. On 1 October 1904 the civil parish was abolished and absorbed into Bristol. In 1901 the parish had a population of 6063. Redland remained in the
ecclesiastical parish of Westbury until 1942. Historically, the area was known for the manufacture of
clay pipes. Residents of Chock Lane, where the industry was centred, have reported unearthing remnants of these pipes in their gardens. Development of the village into a large suburb of Bristol was started in the 1920s and was well underway by the 30s. Many detached and semi-detached villas were built in this period. Apart from during
World War II, major house building did not cease until the 60s. Falcondale Road was constructed during the 1930s to act as a bypass to the narrow twisting streets of the old village. With the opening of the
Filton Bypass in the late 30s, Falcondale Road acted as a major conduit for A38 holiday traffic going to and from the South West. However, when the Filton Bypass was split into two by the construction of the Brabazon Runway in the late 40s, A38 traffic had to be directed to the original route through Filton. Westbury-on-Trym became a conservation area in 1971, one of the earliest in Bristol, the boundaries were expanded in 2015 to include the Southfield Road environs and Elmfield Lodge. ==Amenities==