The Sebastopol Inn is a charming little village pub with an unusual name: there is only one other Sebastopol Inn in England.

A local legend has it that a soldier returned from the Crimean War (1853-6), got drunk at the pub, and drowned in a dyke as he made his way home. An inquest was held in the pub (as was often the case), and the establishment didn’t have a name, so for the purpose of record-keeping it was hastily named in honour of the British troops taking part in the Siege of Sebastopol.

This might not all be true, and no extant records confirm it. However, it is known that the inn was unnamed in the 1830s, and the 1861 Census lists the proprietor living at the Sebastopol Inn – so it seems there is at least that grain of verifiable truth to it.

A sign on the wall in the pub outlines the story.

Words by RORY WATERMAN