Grundisburgh
Encyclopedia
Grundisburgh is a village
of more than 1,530 residents situated in the English
county
of Suffolk
. It is in the Suffolk Coastal
district, six miles north-east from Ipswich
and four miles north-west of Woodbridge
located on the B1079. Flowing through the village are the rivers Lark and Gull. The village is recorded in the Domesday Book
as "Grundesbur", "Grundesburg", "Grundesburh" or "Grundesburc".
The village has a primary school
, a Church of England
church and a Baptist
chapel
as well as one pub, the Dog. The Grundisburgh and District News is a newspaper
which is published by volunteers every two months and provides news for Grundisburgh and the surrounding villages and hamlets. There are two fords in the village. The village is the setting for A Wicked Deed by Susanna Gregory
.
Grundisburgh Primary School is a medium sized school with 131 pupils at the time of the last Ofsted
inspection. It is located in a modern building in Alice Driver Road which was built in 1989 after spending 115 years at the Old School next to St Mary's Church. The Old School building has now been converted into affordable housing, which was opened by John Gummer
MP in July 1994.
Bartholomew Gosnold
, the explorer and colonist who was considered to be instrumental in colonising Virginia
and in naming Martha's Vineyard
, was born in Grundisburgh.
, built around 1520 by salter Thomas Awall. The father of his wife, Alice, was the master cook to Edward IV and Henry VII.
St Mary's Church is the largest place of worship in the village and is of the Church of England
denomination. The earliest parts of St Mary's Church, which is a Grade I listed building
, date from approximately 1300 but as a building it was extended in the 15th century with the addition of a clerestory
. The second expansion of the church came in 1527 when Thomas Awall built - or renovated - the Lady Chapel
. The most iconic part of the church is the 18th century brick tower
built between 1731 and 1732 at the bequest of Robert Thinge, who has a commemorative plaque in the tower. The Tower also is the home of the Millennium Time Capsule that was sealed into the wall in 2000. It can be claimed that are three towers of St Mary's Church, the current 18th Century tower, the original 14th century flint tower and the 19th Century plan to clad the brickwork in flint and top the tower with a spire
. Within the church itself is a fine Suffolk hammerbeam roof and a rare mural of St Christopher dating from the 14th century, which is the largest of its type in the county.
Grundisburgh Baptist
Chapel was built in 1798 and is one of the earliest dissenting religious buildings in the area. It is situated on the edge of the village and has been widely refurbished over the last few years. This included replacing the historic wooden pew
s with seats.
Post Mill Gardens mark the location of a mill built in 1807 which worked until 1929. After part-demolition in 1930, the remains were made part of a house. Another mill, a miniature smock mill, stood a short distance north-west of the post mill until its demolition in about 1957.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
of more than 1,530 residents situated in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county
County
A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...
of Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
. It is in the Suffolk Coastal
Suffolk Coastal
Suffolk Coastal is a local government district in Suffolk, England. Its council is based in Woodbridge. Other towns include Felixstowe.The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, as a merger of the municipal borough of Aldeburgh, along with Felixstowe,...
district, six miles north-east from Ipswich
Ipswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
and four miles north-west of Woodbridge
Woodbridge, Suffolk
Woodbridge is a town in Suffolk, East Anglia, England. It is in the East of England, not far from the coast. It lies along the River Deben, with a population of about 7,480. The town is served by Woodbridge railway station on the Ipswich-Lowestoft East Suffolk Line. Woodbridge is twinned with...
located on the B1079. Flowing through the village are the rivers Lark and Gull. The village is recorded in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
as "Grundesbur", "Grundesburg", "Grundesburh" or "Grundesburc".
The village has a primary school
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
, a Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
church and a Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
as well as one pub, the Dog. The Grundisburgh and District News is a newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
which is published by volunteers every two months and provides news for Grundisburgh and the surrounding villages and hamlets. There are two fords in the village. The village is the setting for A Wicked Deed by Susanna Gregory
Susanna Gregory
Susanna Gregory is the pseudonym of Elizabeth Cruwys, a Cambridge academic who was previously a coroner's officer. She writes detective fiction, and is noted for her series of mediaeval mysteries featuring Matthew Bartholomew, a teacher of medicine and investigator of murders in 14th-century...
.
Grundisburgh Primary School is a medium sized school with 131 pupils at the time of the last Ofsted
Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
inspection. It is located in a modern building in Alice Driver Road which was built in 1989 after spending 115 years at the Old School next to St Mary's Church. The Old School building has now been converted into affordable housing, which was opened by John Gummer
John Gummer
John Selwyn Gummer, Baron Deben, PC is a British Conservative Party politician, formerly Member of Parliament for Suffolk Coastal, now a member of the House of Lords. He is Chairman of the environmental consultancy company Sancroft International and Chairman of Veolia Water...
MP in July 1994.
Bartholomew Gosnold
Bartholomew Gosnold
Bartholomew Gosnold was an English lawyer, explorer, and privateer, instrumental in founding the Virginia Company of London, and Jamestown, Virginia, United States...
, the explorer and colonist who was considered to be instrumental in colonising Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and in naming Martha's Vineyard
Martha's Vineyard
Martha's Vineyard is an island located south of Cape Cod in Massachusetts, known for being an affluent summer colony....
, was born in Grundisburgh.
Notable buildings
Basts, just to the east of the church, is a Tudor buildingTudor architecture
The Tudor architectural style is the final development of medieval architecture during the Tudor period and even beyond, for conservative college patrons...
, built around 1520 by salter Thomas Awall. The father of his wife, Alice, was the master cook to Edward IV and Henry VII.
St Mary's Church is the largest place of worship in the village and is of the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
denomination. The earliest parts of St Mary's Church, which is a Grade I listed building
Grade I listed buildings in Suffolk Coastal
There are 60 Grade I listed buildings in Suffolk Coastal, a non-metropolitan district in the county of Suffolk in England.In the United Kingdom, the term listed building refers to a building or other structure officially designated as being of "exceptional architectural or historic special...
, date from approximately 1300 but as a building it was extended in the 15th century with the addition of a clerestory
Clerestory
Clerestory is an architectural term that historically denoted an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. In modern usage, clerestory refers to any high windows...
. The second expansion of the church came in 1527 when Thomas Awall built - or renovated - the Lady Chapel
Lady chapel
A Lady chapel, also called Mary chapel or Marian chapel, is a traditional English term for a chapel inside a cathedral, basilica, or large church dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary...
. The most iconic part of the church is the 18th century brick tower
Tower
A tower is a tall structure, usually taller than it is wide, often by a significant margin. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires....
built between 1731 and 1732 at the bequest of Robert Thinge, who has a commemorative plaque in the tower. The Tower also is the home of the Millennium Time Capsule that was sealed into the wall in 2000. It can be claimed that are three towers of St Mary's Church, the current 18th Century tower, the original 14th century flint tower and the 19th Century plan to clad the brickwork in flint and top the tower with a spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
. Within the church itself is a fine Suffolk hammerbeam roof and a rare mural of St Christopher dating from the 14th century, which is the largest of its type in the county.
Grundisburgh Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
Chapel was built in 1798 and is one of the earliest dissenting religious buildings in the area. It is situated on the edge of the village and has been widely refurbished over the last few years. This included replacing the historic wooden pew
Pew
A pew is a long bench seat or enclosed box used for seating members of a congregation or choir in a church, or sometimes in a courtroom.-Overview:Churches were not commonly furnished with permanent pews before the Protestant Reformation...
s with seats.
Post Mill Gardens mark the location of a mill built in 1807 which worked until 1929. After part-demolition in 1930, the remains were made part of a house. Another mill, a miniature smock mill, stood a short distance north-west of the post mill until its demolition in about 1957.