Lea is a village in Wiltshire, England, lying approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) east of Malmesbury.

The Woodbridge Brook flows east–west across the parish to join the Charlton Stream northwest of Lea village.

An early resident of Lea, in 1340, was Ralph of Combe[5] and his name survives in the name applied to the south west corner of the village of Lea, which is Combe Green (Ordnance Survey spelling),[6] sometimes misspelt as Coombe Green.

[7] The population of the parish peaked at 494 at the 1871 census, declined to 337 in 1931[1] and then increased as new housing was built, almost all in Lea village.

[8] The Domesday Book of 1068 recorded a settlement of 17 households at Gardone, and land held by Malmesbury Abbey.

[11] The manor passed by marriage to Sir Robert Shirley, later Earl Ferrers, in 1671; his grandson sold it to Paul Methuen in 1758, and in turn his grandson sold it in 1843 to Thomas Howard, Earl of Suffolk and Berkshire, who also owned the nearby Charlton estate.

[13] The church of St Giles, Lea, has a 15th-century west tower; the rest was rebuilt and enlarged during restoration in 1878.

[24] It is in the area of Wiltshire Council, a unitary authority, which is responsible for most local government functions.