It is situated in the Vale of Montgomery,[1] close to the Wales–England border (1.1 miles (1.8 km) at its nearest), which is to its north, west and south.

[3] The placename was recorded in 915 as Ċyriċbyrig in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, and as Ċireberie in the Domesday Book of 1086, and means "the fort with a church".

Some French linguists have theorised that the name of Chirbury shares a common etymology with the city of Cherbourg (Chiersburg, Chierisburch around 1070, Chirburg 1377, Chirburgh 14th century).

The 8th-century Offa's Dyke runs to the west of the village and marked the frontier of the Mercian kingdom.

Even today, a lengthy section of the dyke to the southwest of the village forms the English border with Wales.

An Anglo-Saxon fort, built in 915 by Æthelflæd, Lady of the Mercians, was located just outside the village on what is now the Montgomery Road.

[5] Chirbury was once a hundred, formed out of an earlier, and larger, hundred (of which Chirbury was the chief settlement)[6] called Witentreu[4] or Wittery[7] (a placename that continues to this day in Whittery Wood, near to the village) which included places now in Wales.

[11] Originally an Anglo-Saxon church, founded in 915 (with the building of the fort) or possibly earlier, the current building largely dates to the late 12th century with the tower constructed around 1300, and a short chancel added in 1733.

[13] Remnants of the former priory can be seen in the churchyard[16] and some stonework was also incorporated into the adjacent Chirbury Hall.

Built in the 18th century in red brick (painted white) it was originally called The Cross,[20] and is Grade II Listed.

The civil parish of Chirbury with Brompton covers 5,311 hectares (13,120 acres)[23] and includes a number of other (smaller) settlements, including: It is not possible to reach Brompton or Pentreheyling by a public road without passing through Wales; they are however not true exclaves and can be reached (without going through Wales) by public footpaths.

[24] Agriculture in the vicinity is mainly arable nearer the village, with pasture further away in the more upland terrain.

[34] The population density of Chirbury with Brompton at the 2001 census was recorded at 0.17 people per hectare.