Buckinghamshire Places (15) : Cheddington

Cheddington is a village at the eastern edge of the county, north east of Aylesbury. The village is listed in the Domesday Book as Cetendone which means Cetta's Hill in Old English. There has been settlement in the area since at least the Iron Age with the remains of a fort found near the village.

Cheddington has remained a small-ish village in a mainly agricultural area. The parish church of St Giles has Norman origins. Cheddington railway station opened in 1838 on what is now known as the West Coast Main Line. 

In more recent times Cheddington has become known due to crime. Cheddington was close to the location of the Great Train Robbery in 1963. A couple of decades later in 1984, Cheddington was the location of the first attack by the violent rapist known as The Fox. In happier news, in more recent times Cheddington has won awards for the best kept village in Buckinghamshire!

Buckinghamshire Places (14) : Woburn Sands

The town of Woburn Sands is near Milton Keynes and is also on the county's border with Bedfordshire. The name is derived from nearby Woburn in Bedfordshire and local sandy soil in the area. This name is a fairly recent change though as the original name of the village was Hogsty End but by Victorian times the name was considered inappropriate!

Settlement has been in the area since the Iron Age at least, remains of a fort from about 500BC having been found nearby. The settlement grew very slowly, and was not mentioned in the Domesday Book. For most of Woburn Sands' history the mining of Fullers earth was the major industry in the area.

Woburn Sands (or rather Hogsty End) was a hamlet of nearby Wavendon and became a separate parish in 1867. It became a town in the early 1970s. The church of St Michael is over the county border in the area known as Aspley Heath and was consecreted in 1868. Woburn Sands railway station was opened in 1846.

Buckinghamshire Places (13) : Saunderton

The village of Saunderton is near to Princes Risborough, though also occupies an area a few miles away where Saunderton railway station is located. The village was listed in the Domesday Book as Santesdune which may mean the name is derived from the Old English for Saint's Hill. The oldest settlements in the area date from the Iron Age such as on Lodge Hill. Traces of a Roman villa have also been discovered near to the parish church.

The oldest building in the village is the parish church which dates from 1227. The church was dedicated to St Mary with a second parish church dedicated to St Nicholas. The other church fell into decay and was demolished in 1452, St Mary's was rededicated to St Mary and St Nicholas.

A workhouse was established in Saunderton in the 18th century, this became the main workhouse for the Union of High Wycombe in Victorian times.

Saunderton railway station was opened in 1901. It was opened over two miles away from the centre of the village, housing has now been built around the station. The station's main building was burned down by the Suffragettes in 1913.

Buckinghamshire Places (12) : Bow Brickhill

Bow Brickhill is a village in the east of the county and also an outlying part of Milton Keynes. Bow Brickhill is much older though, it's name derived from the Brythonic and Old English for hill (breg hill), the Bow is Saxon and derived from the name Bolla.

The village's name has changed over the centuries, the earliest records from the 11th century list it as Brichelle and Bolbryghyll in the 15th. The oldest building in the village is the parish church All Saints which stands on a steep hill which overlooks the village, the church dates from the 12th century. A somewhat newer building in the outskirts of the village is the Red Bull Formula 1 team's headquarters!

The village is served by a railway station on the Marston Vale Line.

Buckinghamshire Places (11) : Gerrards Cross

In the south of the county is the fairly modern town of Gerrards Cross. In 1859 a new ecclesiastical parish was created from three existing parishes and called Gerrards Cross. The name comes from the Gerrard family who owned a manor in the area in the 17th century. Gerrards Cross officially became a town in 2016.

There was settlement in the area before the mid-19th century though, indeed remains of an Iron Age hill fort have been found in the area. Most people in the parish at the time of it's creation were farmers or agricultural workers, nowadays many people in Gerrards Cross are commuters into London, using Gerrards Cross railway station or the nearby M25 and M40 motorways.

The parish church, dedicated to St James, was built in 1861 and had a Byzantine dome and an Italianate bell tower. The churchyard is the resting place of the famous actress Margaret Rutherford.

Buckinghamshire Places (10) : High Wycombe

High Wycombe is a market town in the South of the county. The settlement first appears as a Saxon village known as Wicumum in 970, though the remains of a Roman villa in what is now the town have been found. The town was granted a market charter in 1222 and became a mill town with with paper, linen and lace produced in the town.

In the 19th century the furniture making industry took off in High Wycombe sparking an expansion in factories and housing for their workers. The town became well known for it's chair making, the Wycombe Museum includes a number of chairs made in the town.

In the 20th century the slums were cleared and replaced by new housing, the city centre redeveloped after the Second World War. The parish church of All Saints dates from the 13th century. High Wycombe railway station opened in 1854.

Buckinghamshire Places (9) : Seer Green

Seer Green is a village in the South of the county. It's name is derived from the Norman French for a dry or arid place. It was known as La Sere in the 13th century, Green being added to the name at a later stage. Seer Green was a hamlet of the parish of Farnham Royal but became it's own parish in 1866. The church of the Holy Trinity, which was first built in 1846 therefore then became the parish church.

The land around Seer Green was agricultural with the area known for it's cherry orchards. Seer Green is known as the cherry pie village and a cherry pie fair is held annually. Much of the nearby land is nowadays taken up by Beaconsfield Golf Course. Next to the golf course is Seer Green & Jordans railway station which opened in 1915.

Buckinghamshire Places (8) : Princes Risborough

The market town of Princes Risborough is in the West of the county. The town has Saxon origins and for hundreds of years was held by royalty, early on being held by Edward the Confessor. William the Conqueror granted the manor (then known as Great Risborough) to one of his loyal companions Walter Giffard. In the 12th century the manor reverted back to crown ownership. King Charles I finally sold the manor to the City of London in 1628 to repay some of his debts. The most notable royal owner of the manor was the Black Prince, Edward the son of Edward III. The manor gained it's name Princes Risborough during his time.

Princes Risborough was granted a market charter in 1523 by King Henry VIII. Princes Risborough became a centre for a number of industries including bed and furniture manufacturing in the last century with some manufacturers still in the town. 

St Mary's church dates from the 12th century though much of the surviving church is from later centuries.

Nowadays many of the inhabitants are commuters to London, the railway station opening in 1862.

Buckinghamshire Places (7) : Denham Green

Denham Green is part of the village of Denham in Buckinghamshire. Denham has existed since Saxon times and was listed in the Domesday Book. Denham Green is a more recent part of the village, having grown up around Denham railway station which opened in 1906.

Denham Green was the location of Alexander Korda's Denham Film Studios which operated from 1936 to 1952. Films made at the studio included Brief Encounter. After 1952 the studio was used for recording film scores for many films including Star Wars. The studio was finally demolished in 1981, the site is now used for housing.

Buckinghamshire Places (6) : Great Kimble

Great Kimble is a village between Princes Risborough and Aylesbury. The village has Saxon origins though there have been people living in the area since Roman times (there may be the remains of a Roman villa next to the parish church) and beforehand. The village was known as Chenebelle at the time of the Domesday Book and was owned by Walter Giffard, a Norman lord. Later it was granted to Hugh of Bolbec.

In later centuries Great Kimble became known for being where John Hampden refused to pay his ship money (a tax raised without parliament) to Charles I. Although others also refused to pay, John Hampden was chosen to be sued as a test case. The King won the case though not by a unanimous judgement which has been seen as a moral defeat for the King and a weakening of his authority.

The parish church of St Nicholas dates from the 12th century. The nearest station is in the adjacent village of Little Kimble and was opened in 1872.

Buckinghamshire Places (5) : Chesham

Chesham is a town in the Chiltern hills South East of Aylesbury. Although Chesham is listed in the Domesday Book the area has been inhabited for thousands of years with flint tools from the Mesolithic having being found, followed by Neolithic farms, Iron Age and then Roman settlements in the area.

In the Domesday Book Chesham is listed as three manors which were later collectively known as Great Chesham. The oldest buildings in the current town of Chesham, apart from the parish church of St Mary, date from the fifteenth century. Parts of the church date from the twelth century though most of the surviving church dates from later centuries.

Chesham was known for boot and brush manufacture as well as brewing though these days the population work in local small medium enterprises and in London. Chesham tube station is the furthest point on the tube map from Central London and the most Western and Northern tube station.

Buckinghamshire Places (4) : Beaconsfield

Beaconsfield is a market town in South Buckinghamshire close to High Wycombe and Amersham. The earliest record of Beaconsfield dates from the late twelfth century where it was known as Bekensfeld (Beeches Field). In the mid-thirteenth century the town received it's charter allowing it to have a yearly market (on May 10th) which the town continues to have to the current day. In latter years Beaconsfield was a stop for stagecoaches travelling between London and Oxford. Nowadays Beaconsfield is very affluent, indeed it was named Britain's richest town in 2008!

Beaconsfield consists of the Old Town and the New Town which was a result of the railways reaching the town at the start of the twentieth century with new settlement being built up around Beaconsfield railway station. An example of one of the buildings of the New Town is the Church of St Michael and All Angels.

A notable attraction of the town is Bekonscot, the first model village in the world. The town also has film studios with the town often appearing in films and TV productions such as Thunderball and Inspector Morse.

Buckinghamshire Places (3) : Haddenham

Haddenham is a Buckinghamshire village close to the Oxfordshire border and the village of Thame which is about three kilometres away. The village was recorded in the Domesday Book as Hedreham and may have been founded by members of the Anglo-Saxon Hadding tribe from Haddenham, Cambridgeshire.

For a few years (1294-1301) Haddenham had a charter to be a market town but lost it due to the proximity of Thame which objected to the competition. Agriculture was the main occupation of Haddenham's inhabitants, the village was known for duck and poultry breeding [1]. The village also had a brick works.

The village has a rather unusual plan, stretching over one and half kilometres. The village was devastated by two fires in the eighteenth century which destroyed a large number of buildings, especially near the church [2].

The parish church, situated on the green, is dedicated to St. Mary and dates back to before the thirteenth century at least and maybe even has remnants from Saxon times. The chancel is thirteenth century with other additions in later centuries. The church was rebuilt in Victorian times [3].

The village is served by Haddenham & Thame Parkway railway station.

[1] "Parishes: Haddenham." A History of the County of Buckingham: Volume 2. Ed. William Page. London: Victoria County History, 1908. 281-286. British History Online. Web. 16 February 2019. http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/bucks/vol2/pp281-286.
[2]" Haddenham." An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Buckinghamshire, Volume 1, South. London: His Majesty's Stationery Office, 1912. 176-184. British History Online. Web. 16 February 2019. http://www.british-history.ac.uk/rchme/bucks/vol1/pp176-184.
[3] Nikolaus Pevsner, Buckinghamshire (Penguin, 1960) p. 149