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ON-LINE GUIDE TO CAMBRIDGESHIRE
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This brief guide provides
summary information on towns, villages and places to visit
in Cambridgeshire as well as some interesting
facts and anecdotes on the local area. To find a specific
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The southeast of the county is dominated by the county town, Cambridge, one of the
leading academic centres of the world and a place
that needs plenty of time to explore. The surrounding countryside is fairly flat and
ideal for walking or cycling; it contains a
surprising variety of habitats along with stately homes
and windmills - a particular feature of East Anglia.
Extending over much of the county from The Wash are the flat fields of The Fens
that contain some of the richest soil in England. Here, too, villages and small towns such as
Ely were originally island settlements in the days when this was a misty landscape of marshes
and bogs. The massive project of draining this
land has spanned the centuries, starting with the Romans, who were the first to
construct embankments and drains to lessen the
frequency of flooding. Throughout the Middle Ages
large areas of marsh and bog were reclaimed, and after the Civil War, the New Bedford River
was cut to provide more drainage. First windmills and then steam and finally electric
pumping engines have been used to remove the water from the fields. The Fens offer
unlimited opportunities for exploration on foot, by car,
by bicycle or by boat.
The old county of Huntingdonshire lies at the heartland of the rural heritage
of Cambridgeshire and the former county town, Huntingdon, is famous as the birthplace
and home of Oliver Cromwell. Places associated with the great Parliamentarian abound but
there are also many ancient market towns and
villages to discover along with numerous nature
reserves and prehistoric sites.
Cambridge
One of the world's leading university cities, Cambridge was
an important market town centuries before the scholars arrived, as
it stood at the point where the forest met the fenlands, at the
lowest fording point of the River Cam. The oldest college is
Peterhouse, founded by the Bishop of Ely in 1284, and in the next century
Clare, Pembroke, Gonville and Caius, Trinity Hall and Corpus
Christi followed.
The colleges reflect a variety of architectural styles but the
grandest and most beautiful is undoubtedly King's
College. Among the many university and college buildings
to explore there are some that simply should not be missed,
including King's College Chapel, with its glorious stained glass and
Rubens' Adoration of the Magi; Pepys
Library in Magdalene College; and Trinity's wonderful Great Court.
A trip by punt along the Backs of the River Cam gives a unique view
to many of the colleges and the waterway also passes under
six bridges including the Bridge of Sighs and the
extraordinary Mathematical Bridge.
Apart from the colleges, Cambridge has plenty of
other grand buildings and some of the country's leading
museums, including the Fitzwilliam Museum, renowned for its
art collection and ancient world antiquities. One of the
city's greatest treasures is the University
Library, one of the world's greatest
research libraries, with six million books, a million maps and
350,000 manuscripts. For many, the most interesting place to visit is
the Botanic Gardens, not really a museum, but a wonderful
collection of plants that rivals the gardens at Kew and Edinburgh
Among the city's many fine churches is the Church of
the Holy Sepulchre, always known as the Round Church, one of
only four surviving round churches in England.
The village of Grantchester, where Rupert Brooke lived for
two happy years at The Orchards, can be reached by a pleasant walk
from the city or a leisurely punt along the River Cam.
Around Cambridge
Lode
6 miles NE of Cambridge off the B1102
This attractive and peaceful village is home to
Anglesey Abbey, an early 17th century mansion
house that was built on the site of an Augustinian priory. It holds
Lord Fairhaven's magnificent collection of paintings, furnishings,
tapestries and clocks, and its garden is a charming place for a peaceful stroll.
To the south is the village of Bottisham, whose Holy
Trinity Church was described by John Betjeman as `perhaps the best
in the county'.
Further afield, to the north, is Denny
Abbey, which was founded in the 12th century by
the Benedictine order but has also been
the home of the Knights Templar, Franciscan nuns and the
Countess of Pembroke. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries
the abbey became a farmhouse and is now home to the
Farmland Museum.
Burwell
10 miles NE of Cambridge on the B1102
A sad sight in the churchyard of St Mary's is a gravestone that
marks the burial place of some 78 people of Burwell who all died in a
barn fire while watching a travelling Punch and Judy Show. The
Devil's Dyke, thought to have been built to keep out Danish invaders,
runs through Burwell on its route from Reach to Woodditton.
To the southwest lies Swaffham Prior where there
are two churches in the same graveyard and two fine old windmills, one
of which, an 1850 tower mill, has been restored and still produces flour.
Duxford
8 miles S of Cambridge off the A505
To the west of the village lies Duxford
Aviation Museum, now part of the Imperial War Museum, with
an outstanding collection of over 150 historic aircraft.
Between Duxford and Cambridge, close to
Stapleford, there is some great walking, in parkland, where
there are traces of an Iron Age hill fort, and on Magog Downs. To the
west, near the village of Shepreth, is the
Shepreth L Moor Nature Reserve, an important area of
wet meadowland that is home to birds and many rare plants.
Arrington
10 miles SW of Cambridge off the A1198
This village is home to the spectacular Wimpole
Hall, one of the best examples of an 18th century country mansion
in England. The lovely interiors contain fine collections of
furniture and paintings, while the magnificent, formal gardens
include a Victorian parterre and a rose garden.
Madingley
2 miles W of Cambridge off the A1303
Madingley is home to one of the most peaceful and evocative places in the region, the
American Cemetery. A place of pilgrimage for the families of
American service men who operated from the many wartime bases in the
county, the cemetery commemorates 3,800 dead and 5,000 missing in action
in World War II.
Ely
The jewel in the crown of the Fens, the city owes its existence to
St Etheldreda, Queen of Northumbria, who founded a monastery on the Isle of Ely in
AD 673. However, it was not until 1081 that work on the
present Cathedral began and it was completed more than a
century later. The most outstanding feature is the Octagon, built to replace
the original Norman tower that collapsed in 1322, but there
are many other delights, including the 14th century Lady Chapel,
the Prior's Door and St Ovin's Cross, the only piece of Saxon
stonework in the building. Ely's Tourist Information Centre is housed in
a pretty black and white timbered building that is the only
known surviving house, apart from Hampton Court, where
Cromwell and his family are known to have lived.
Around Ely
Soham
5½ miles SE of Ely off the A142
Downfield Windmill was built in 1726 as a smock mill and
then
rebuilt as a tower mill in 1890 after it had been destroyed by gales.
To the southwest lies Wicken Fen, the oldest nature reserve in the
country, famous for its rich variety of plant, insect and bird life.
Haddenham
6 miles SW of Ely on the A1123
At 120 feet above sea level, Haddenham is the highest village
in the Fens and, not surprisingly, it too has a windmill -
Haddenham Great Mill which was built in 1803, has four sails and three
sets of grinding stones. Last worked commercially in 1946, it
was restored in the 1990s.
To the north, at Sutton, is a great family attraction, the
Mepal Outdoor Centre that includes a children's play park, an
adventure play area and boats for hire. Providing a unique insight
into Fenland history and industrial archaeology, the
Stretham Old Engine, at Stretham, is a
fine example of a land drainage steam engine.
Somersham
11 miles W of Ely on the B1050
Once the site of a palace for the Bishops of Ely, Somersham is
now home to the Raptor Foundation where owls and other birds of
prey find refuge. This is a very popular attraction, with regular flying
and falconry displays.
March
13 miles NW of Ely on the B1101
This settlement once occupied the
second largest island in the great level of the Fens, and as the
land was drained March grew as a trading and religious centre
and, later, as a market town and hub of the railway. The
March and District Museum tells the story
of the people and history of the town and surrounding area.
Meanwhile, St Wendreda's uniquely dedicated church was described by
John Betjeman as "worth cycling 40 miles into a headwind to see."
Its roof, adorned with over 100 carved angels, is certainly a stirring sight
Wisbech
19 miles NW of Ely on the A1101
This town also lies at the centre of a thriving agricultural region
and the 18th century saw many fine buildings constructed along
the river. The finest of these is undoubtedly Peckover
House, built in 1722 and bought at the end of the 18th century
by Jonathan Peckover, a member of the Quaker banking family.
Behind its elegant façade are charming panelled rooms and ornate
plaster decorations.
The town was the birthplace in 1838 of Octavia Hill,
co-founder of the National Trust, and the house in which she was born
is now the Octavia Hill Museum where her work is commemorated.
The Wisbech and Fenland Museum is one of the
oldest purpose-built museums in the country, and its numerous
displays include the manuscript of Charles Dickens'
Great Expectations and Napoleon's Sèvres breakfast
set
captured at Waterloo.
Huntingdon
First settled by the Romans and the former county town
of Huntingdonshire, Huntingdon was the birthplace, in 1599, of
Oliver Cromwell. He attended Huntingdon Grammar
School, where Samuel Pepys was also a pupil, before becoming the MP
for Huntingdon in the Parliament of 1629. His school is now
the Cromwell Museum and it houses the only public collection
relating specifically to him. Opposite the museum stands
All Saints' Church which contains the Cromwell
burial vault. On the Market Square, the 16th century
Falcon Inn was Cromwell's headquarters during
the Civil War.
Cowper House, with its impressive early 18th
century frontage, was the home of the poet William Cowper from 1765
to 1767, and a former coaching inn, The George Hotel, is reputed
to have been used by the highwayman Dick Turpin.
At nearby Hemingford Abbots stands Hemingford
Grey, a manor that is one of the oldest continuously inhabited houses
in England - it was built in around 1130.
Linked to Huntingdon by a 14th century bridge across
the River Ouse, Godmanchester was a Roman settlement and
has continued in importance down the centuries. There are several
grand houses here including Island Hall,
a mid 18th century mansion that was built for John Jackson,
the Receiver General for Huntingdon. A footpath leads from the
famous Chinese Bridge (1827) to Port Holme
Meadow, one of the largest meadows in England
and the site of Roman remains as well as being home to a huge
diversity of botanical and bird species.
Around Huntingdon
Ramsey
7 miles N of Huntingdon on the B1040
It was in this pleasant market town in AD 969 that Earl
Ailwyn founded Ramsey Abbey, which by the 12th century had become
one of the most important in England. However, after the Dissolution
the Abbey and its lands were sold to Sir Richard Williams,
great-grandfather of Oliver Cromwell. Most of the buildings were demolished and,
in 1938, the house was converted for use as a school - which it
remains today.
Housed in an 18th century farm building and several barns
is the Ramsey Rural Museum, where the exhibits include
restored farm and traditional craftsmen's equipment.
To the southwest of Ramsey is the scattered village of
Upwood and Woodwalton Fen Nature
Reserve.
Whittlesey
15 miles N of Huntingdon on the A605
This market town, where brick-
making was a local industry, was the birthplace of the writer LP
Hartley, author of The Go-Between, and of the soldier Sir Harry Smith, a
hero of many 19th century Indian campaigns. The highlight of
the year here is the ancient Straw Bear
Procession when a man clad in a suit of straw dances through
streets during a four-day January festival.
To the southeast lies Flag Fen Bronze Age
Excavation, comprising massive 3,000-year-old timbers that were part of a
major settlement and have been preserved in the peaty ground. A
Roman road, re-creations of a Bronze Age settlement, a museum of
artefacts and rare breed animals can also be seen here.
To the north is Thorney Abbey, though what stands today
is only a small part of this once great Benedictine Abbey.
St Ives
4 miles E of Huntingdon on the A1123
Oliver Cromwell lived in St Ives in the 1630s and a statue of
him stands on Market Hill - the statue was erected here in 1901 after
it was rejected by Huntingdon. Other notable townsfolk include
Sir Clive Sinclair, who developed his pocket calculators in the town,
and the Victorian rower John Goldie, whose name is remembered by
the second Cambridge boat.
St Neots
8½ miles SW of Huntingdon on the B1428
The first bridge over the River Great Ouse was built in 1180 in
the town, which takes its name from
the Cornish saint whose remains were interred in the priory
before the Norman Conquest. The priory was demolished with
the Dissolution of the Monasteries and in the early 17th century the
old bridge was replaced by a stone one which became the scene of a
battle during the Civil War.
Grafham
5 miles SW of Huntingdon off the B661
Created in the 1960s as a reservoir, Grafham
Water offers a wide range of sports facilities in its
1,500 acres. The area is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and a
nature reserve at the western edge is run jointly by Anglian Water and
the Wildlife Trust.
To the west lies Kimbolton, a place with plenty of history
and
several interesting buildings, including
Kimbolton Castle where parts of the
original Tudor building can still be seen.
Peterborough
15 miles NW of Huntingdon on the A1339
Cambridgeshire's second city, Peterborough has a long
and interesting history that dates back to the Bronze Age. In 1967 it
was designated a New Town, and modern development
and expansion have increased its facilities without,
thankfully, destroying its historic heart. Henry VIII elevated the 12th
century church to a Cathedral and his first wife Catherine of Aragon is
buried here as, for a while, was Mary, Queen of Scots after her
execution at Fotheringhay. Railway enthusiasts are in their
element here with the twin attractions of Railworld, a hands-on exhibition dealing with modern rail
travel, and the wonderful Nene Valley
Railway, which operates between the city and its Museum
at Wansford. Close by is the Thorpe Meadows Sculpture
Park, one of several open spaces in and around the city.
Also on the outskirts of the city are Longthorpe
Tower, part of a fortified manor house which is graced by some very fine
14th century domestic wall paintings, and Peakirk Waterfowl
Gardens, home to hundreds of birds.
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