Why is it called Upper Slaughter?

The same reason as Lower Slaughter, and nothing to do with killing. The name comes from an old English word for a wet, muddy place, a slough, describing the ground by the River Eye. Upper Slaughter is simply the higher of the two villages up the valley.

What is a doubly thankful village?

A village that lost no one serving in either the First or the Second World War. Those that lost no one in the first war are called thankful; the very few that lost no one in either are doubly thankful. Upper Slaughter is one of around fourteen in England and Wales.

Is Upper Slaughter worth visiting?

Yes, if you value quiet over sights. It is the most peaceful of the show villages, with the ford, the church and the rare doubly thankful history, and it is best taken as the far, quiet end of a walk through both Slaughters.

Is Upper Slaughter free to visit?

Yes. The village is free to walk around, and there is nothing to buy a ticket for. The only cost is a meal or a room at Lords of the Manor, or whatever parking you can find.

Things to Do in Upper Slaughter, Cotswolds: A Local Field Guide

Upper Slaughter is the elder and quieter of the two Slaughters, a mile up the River Eye from its neighbour and far less visited, with a ford, a green and one rare distinction. Here is what is worth doing in Upper Slaughter, when to come, and why so few people make it this far up the valley.

At a glance

Where: Upper Slaughter, Gloucestershire, on the River Eye, a mile up the valley from Lower Slaughter and about four miles from Stow.
Best time to visit: Almost any time; it is the quietest village in this guide. Weekends are busier only by the modest standards of the valley.
How long to spend: Twenty minutes to half an hour, almost always walked with Lower Slaughter and Bourton.
Parking: A few spaces near the village square and no car park; the lanes are narrow and residential. Many walk up from Lower Slaughter or Bourton instead.
Getting there: Nearest station Moreton-in-Marsh, direct from London Paddington in around ninety minutes, then a taxi. By car, off the A429 Fosse Way.
Dog friendly: Yes. The ford, the green and the Warden's Way all take dogs.
Family friendly: Yes for the ford and a short walk, though there is nothing here laid on for visitors, and that is the appeal.

Things to do in Upper Slaughter

The ford

The River Eye crosses the lane in the middle of the village as a ford, with a stone footbridge alongside for dry feet. It is shallow enough to paddle in on a summer day and is the heart of the village picture.

St Peter's Church

The parish church has twelfth-century origins and was restored in 1877. It stands on its rise above the cottages and is the quiet centre of a quiet place.

The doubly thankful village

Upper Slaughter is one of a small handful of doubly thankful villages in England and Wales: places that lost no one in either world war. Twenty-four men and a woman served in the first war and thirty-six men in the second, and every one of them came home. A plaque in the village records it. On a February night in 1944 a German bomber dropped a load of incendiaries here and still nobody was hurt.

The Lutyens cottages

Several of the cottages around the village square were remodelled in 1906 by the young Edwin Lutyens, an early work by the architect who went on to design the Cenotaph and much of New Delhi. Almost nothing has been built in the village since, which is a fair part of why it feels untouched.

Visiting Upper Slaughter: parking, getting there, when to go

Upper Slaughter sits a mile up the River Eye from Lower Slaughter, off the A429 between Bourton and Stow. It is very small, with no shop and no pub, and the visit is a slow walk around the ford, the green and the church and little more.

There is no car park. A few spaces sit near the village square, on narrow residential lanes, so most people walk up from Lower Slaughter, a mile down the Warden's Way, or from Bourton, two and a half miles, rather than drive in.

The Warden's Way is the way to do all three villages: Upper Slaughter to Lower Slaughter is about a mile, and on to Bourton another mile and a half, an easy waymarked path the whole way.

Without a car, the nearest station is Moreton-in-Marsh, with direct trains from London Paddington in around ninety minutes, then a taxi to the valley.

Where to eat, drink & stay

There is one place, and it is a good one. Lords of the Manor is a country-house hotel in a former rectory dating from 1649, set in some acres of gardens at the edge of the village, with a well-regarded restaurant.

Beyond it Upper Slaughter has no shop and no pub, so for anything else you walk down to Lower Slaughter or on to Bourton.

Upper Slaughter questions, answered

Why is it called Upper Slaughter?: The same reason as Lower Slaughter, and nothing to do with killing. The name comes from an old English word for a wet, muddy place, a slough, describing the ground by the River Eye. Upper Slaughter is simply the higher of the two villages up the valley.
What is a doubly thankful village?: A village that lost no one serving in either the First or the Second World War. Those that lost no one in the first war are called thankful; the very few that lost no one in either are doubly thankful. Upper Slaughter is one of around fourteen in England and Wales.
Is Upper Slaughter worth visiting?: Yes, if you value quiet over sights. It is the most peaceful of the show villages, with the ford, the church and the rare doubly thankful history, and it is best taken as the far, quiet end of a walk through both Slaughters.
Is Upper Slaughter free to visit?: Yes. The village is free to walk around, and there is nothing to buy a ticket for. The only cost is a meal or a room at Lords of the Manor, or whatever parking you can find.

Walkers pass through on the Warden's Way, and most visitors to the valley never come this far up.

Upper Slaughter does not perform. It is simply lived in, well and privately, and it would rather you walked on through.

The story moves through this world. Begin Chapter One →