 On John Speed's map of Wiltshire (1611), the town's name is spelt both "Amesbury" (for the hundred) and "Ambersbury" (for the town itself).After the dissolution of the monasteries, Amesbury became a secular estate and was given to Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford by the crown.The Seymour family held Amesbury estate until 1675 and had several grand homes built, including Kent and Diana houses, and a new mansion in 1660.