When I visited England, I had the great pleasure of staying in a very nice place, the village of Pangbourne. It is off the A340 and A329 lies on a bend of the River Thames where it meets the River Pang. 5 miles (8 km) from Reading and 20 miles (32 km) from Oxford on the River Thames and is directly across the river from the smaller Oxfordshire village of Whitchurch-on-Thames.
Although a small village with a population of around 3000, it is very old and records mention it being around at least since 844CE.
Notable past residents include eighteenth century dramatist Thomas Morton, popular writer William Tufnell LeQeuex, actor George Arliss and of course author of Wind in the Willows Kenneth Grahame. Another notable resident was D.H.Lawrence, who with his wife stayed at a house in the Reading Road called The Myrtles.
Pangbourne's name is recorded from 844 as Anglo-Saxon Pegingaburnan (dative case), which means "the stream of the people of [a man called] Pæ-ga". This name was shortened to make the name of the River Pang.
Pangbourne Manor was given to the Abbey of Reading by King Henry I and the Abbots often used the manor house of Bere Court as a Summer get-away. The last of their line, Hugh Faringdon, was hiding in the mass of underground tunnels there when he was captured and sent to Reading for execution in 1539. The place later came into the hands of Sir John Davis, who had made his fortune capturing Cadiz with the Earl of Essex in 1596. His large effigial monument can also be seen in the parish church, which also houses the largest array of hatchments in the county, all to the Breedon family who were subsequent Lords of the Manor.
Pangbourne is a civil parish with an elected parish council. It falls within the area of the unitary authority of West Berkshire. Both the parish council and the unitary authority are responsible for different aspects of local government. Pangbourne forms part of the Reading West parliamentary constituency. It is twinned with Houdan in France.
Places To Eat
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Interactive Map of Pangbourne
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And if you get tired of the quiet life, there is a train that has a pretty good schedule which will get you to nearby Reading or London.
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