[4] In 1237 the king granted Henry de l'Orti a licence to empark his woods in Curry Rivel, separating it from the control of the foresters of Castle Neroche.

[6][7] Earnshill House was built in 1725 by John Strachan for Henry Combe, a prominent Bristol merchant.

[10] The grounds were laid out in the mid 18th century by Lancelot Brown and William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, and include early-20th-century formal gardens designed by Harold Peto.

[15] The former South Somerset district council was responsible for local planning and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health, markets and fairs, refuse collection and recycling, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism.

The parish is part of the Glastonbury and Somerton county constituency, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

The Anglican parish Church of St Andrew dates from the 13th century and is designated as a Grade I listed building.