The name 'Buckland' originates from Anglo-Saxon 'Boc-land', meaning land assigned under a charter, as distinct from the 'Folc-land' which bases its ownership on folk-testimony. The Charter in this case dates to 709AD, when Coenred of Mercia gave the land to St Peter's Abbey, Gloucester. The abbey had been founded 30 years before, and in 709 Coenred made this gift to the Church, gave up being King of the Mercians and went on pilgrimage to Rome, where he died. Buckland (which may be the manor described as Bibladene in the original charter), having come into the possession of Gloucester Abbey, remained so until the reformation, in around 1546. When the Normans took over, Abbot Serlo was put in charge of Gloucester Abbey, and under his stewardship Buckland, along with many of the Abbey's lands, increased in prosperity. By 1190 it had a church, although possibly this was at Laverton, within the parish, rather than in Buckland. The present Church, St. Michael's, has fabric dating back to the 13th century, and its rectory dates in part to the 14th century.