 Legend has it that men of Baltonsborough joined King Arthur in his wars against the Saxons in the 6th century, although the earliest written evidence is from a deed dated 744AD, in which ten hides of land in Baltunesberghe was given to the Abbot of Glastonbury.Other variations of the name include Baltenesbergh (c1250) and Balsborowe (1536), The abbreviated Balsbury appears at intervals in later records, mostly of a more casual nature.In 1989 there was an attempt to adopt this, mostly in order to shorten the length of the village nameplates, a movement which attracted the attention of the national press but very little enthusiasm from the villagers.