DOWDESWELL, a parish in the hundred of
BRADLEY, county of GLOUCESTER, 4 miles (S.E.by E.)
from Cheltenham, containing 181 inhabitants. The liv-,
ing is a rectory, rated in the king's books at £ 13.6.8.,
in the peculiar jurisdiction of the Rector of Withington,
who does not however exercise any authority. Miss Rogers
was patroness in 1826. The church, dedicated to St. Michael,
is a cruciform structure, built in 1577, with a
tower and spire rising from the intersection. There
are remains of several ancient fortifications, and some
leaden, coffins have been found within the parish. Near
Andover's Ford a battle was fought between Charles I.
and the parliamentary forces.