Old Sodbury is a small village and former civil parish in the valley of the River Frome just below and to the west of the Cotswold escarpment and to the east of Chipping Sodbury and Yate, now in the parish of Sodbury, in the South Gloucestershire district, in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, England. It is situated in the Hundred of Grumbald's Ash. The village extends from Chipping Sodbury in the West to the Cotswold Edge in the East and is on the Cotswold Way. The Badminton Road (A432) winds eastwards towards Badminton, Gloucestershire through the village, up to the Cross Hands junction with the A46, which runs along the top of the Cotswold escarpment from Bath to Stroud. In 1931 the parish had a population of 837. On 1 April 1946 the parish was abolished to form Sodbury. The village lies on an old coaching route, and is much more ancient than its westerly neighbour, Chipping Sodbury: hence the name 'Old' Sodbury. Name and fort The name of the village is recorded in Anglo-Saxon (in the dative case) as Soppanbyrig = "Soppa's fort", and in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Sopeberie. The name may refer to the Iron Age hillfort just to the north-east of the village. The fort, perched on the edge of the Cotswold escarpment, is enclosed on three sides by two parallel earthworks, and is open to the west, commanding an impressive view of the Frome Valley, Severn Vale and the Welsh mountains. The earth walls enclose an area of , and are usually kept mown by the local farmer (the fort is in private hands, but accessible). The fort can be reached by footpath from the A46 road, and through the village from below via the Cotswold Way. The Romans strengthened the fort for use as a stronghold to support their western frontier. In AD 577 the Saxon army is thought to have used the fort as a camp before the Battle of Deorham, a few miles to the south. Bishop Milred (743–755) granted the land at Soppenbyrig to Eanbald, and he to Eastmund, on condition that there was a man in Holy Orders, and worthy of them, in their family, but if otherwise, the lands would pass back to the See of Worcester. In 888 the covenant failed; however, the land was granted to Eadnoth in perpetuity for the rent of 15 shillings,