Swaffham Bulbeck
Encyclopedia
Swaffham Bulbeck is a village in East Cambridgeshire
, England
.
Swaffham Bulbeck is located about 8 miles (13 km) from the city of Cambridge
, and 6 miles (10 km) from the famous racing town of Newmarket. The parish of Swaffham Bulbeck is part of the Diocese of Ely
and the Deanery of Fordham and Quy. The benefice consists of five parishes, Swaffham Bulbeck, Swaffham Prior
, Bottisham
, Lode
and Quy
.
Children initially attend primary school in the village and usually then go on to Bottisham Village College
.
(from Burwell).
The nave was constructed in the first half of the 13th century. It consists of four uniform bays with six octagonal piers supporting the clerestory
which was added in the 15th century. The north aisle was built in about 1300 and the south aisle a few years later.
Apart from some fragments of 14th and 15th century stained glass in the north aisle, all the 10 windows in the aisles and 8 in the celestorey are of plain leaded glass. The nave is some 57 feet (17 m) long by 21 feet (6 m) wide and the aisles are 11 feet (3 m) wide. The church can seat about 200 people at full capacity.
The churchyard contains many interesting gravestones — there are six tomb chests, the earliest dating from 1742, and about 35 headstones with shaped tops dating from 1703 onwards.
As regards the vicarage, in the late 1970s it was decided by the parish that the village no longer required a vicarage of its own. It was sold to the public, and now provides bed and breakfast accommodation. It is erroneously now called The Old Rectory.
, a man-made waterway which connects with the River Cam
. The Hamlet of Commercial End, at the northern edge of the village, was an important inland port from medieval times, although the waterway had been in use since Roman times. Principal buildings include the late 17th century Merchants House, which had a counting house added in the mid 18th century. Workers' cottages and warehouses were added to the street by Thomas Bowyer, after he acquired the house in 1805. River trade declined once the railways reached the area, and the house and contents were sold after 1877. The street retains its 18th and early 19th century character, although the lode is now only navigable as far as Slade Farm, some 2 miles (3.2 km) away.
winner Frederick Sanger
. Also, Paul Voorheis, the renowned biochemist who is good friends with Sanger.
Swaffham Bulbeck was the residence of the Lyell Medal
winner and world renowned angler Barrie Rickards
.
Swaffam Bulbeck was the residence of Sir Bryan Harold Cabot Matthews
CBE FRS. He was Professor of Physiology at Kings College, Cambridge 1952 - 1973 and lived in the Grade II listed Priest's House at 99 High Street.
East Cambridgeshire
East Cambridgeshire is a local government district in Cambridgeshire, England. Its council is based in Ely....
, England
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...
.
Swaffham Bulbeck is located about 8 miles (13 km) from the city of Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, and 6 miles (10 km) from the famous racing town of Newmarket. The parish of Swaffham Bulbeck is part of the Diocese of Ely
Diocese of Ely
The Diocese of Ely is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury. It is headed by the Bishop of Ely, who sits at Ely Cathedral in Ely. There is one suffragan bishop, the Bishop of Huntingdon. The diocese now covers Cambridgeshire and western Norfolk...
and the Deanery of Fordham and Quy. The benefice consists of five parishes, Swaffham Bulbeck, Swaffham Prior
Swaffham Prior
Swaffham Prior is a village in East Cambridgeshire, England.Lying 5 miles west of Newmarket, and two miles south west of Burwell, the village is often paired with its neighbour Swaffham Bulbeck, and are collectively referred to as 'The Swaffhams'. Swaffham Prior was often known as Great Swaffham in...
, Bottisham
Bottisham
Bottisham is a village and civil parish in the East Cambridgeshire district of Cambridgeshire, England, about east of Cambridge, halfway to Newmarket. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 1,983.-Church:...
, Lode
Lode, Cambridgeshire
Lode is a small village in East Cambridgeshire on the southern edge of The Fens. It lies just north of the B1102 between Quy and Swaffham Bulbeck, to the north east of Cambridge....
and Quy
Stow cum Quy
Stow cum Quy , commonly referred to as Quy, is a parish in Cambridgeshire, England. Situated around 4 miles north east of Cambridge on the medieval Cambridge to Newmarket road, it covers an area of ....
.
Children initially attend primary school in the village and usually then go on to Bottisham Village College
Bottisham Village College
Bottisham Village College is a comprehensive secondary school located in Cambridgeshire, England. The school opened in 1937 as the second village college in part of the Local Director of Education Henry Morris' vision for providing a good quality education for local people in the countryside around...
.
Culture and community
Every year the village summer theatre company produces and performs one of Gilbert and Sullivan's operas. Established in 1982 the company has run every year since, first at the Long Barn to the south of the village until its redevelopment in 1988 and then to a much more capacious setting in a barn central to the village by kind permission of the owner. This venue too has now come up for redevelopment and the production is now based at Downing Farm by kind permission of the Turner family.Church
The church is dedicated to St Mary the Virgin. The west tower was built in the early 13th century and is the most ancient part of a very ancient building. The tower is 12.5 feet (4 m) square with three storeys and is supported by eight buttresses. It is built of locally quarried clunchClunch
Clunch is a term for traditional building material used mainly in eastern England and Normandy. It is a term which encompasses a wide variety of materials, often locally variable....
(from Burwell).
The nave was constructed in the first half of the 13th century. It consists of four uniform bays with six octagonal piers supporting the 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...
which was added in the 15th century. The north aisle was built in about 1300 and the south aisle a few years later.
Apart from some fragments of 14th and 15th century stained glass in the north aisle, all the 10 windows in the aisles and 8 in the celestorey are of plain leaded glass. The nave is some 57 feet (17 m) long by 21 feet (6 m) wide and the aisles are 11 feet (3 m) wide. The church can seat about 200 people at full capacity.
The churchyard contains many interesting gravestones — there are six tomb chests, the earliest dating from 1742, and about 35 headstones with shaped tops dating from 1703 onwards.
As regards the vicarage, in the late 1970s it was decided by the parish that the village no longer required a vicarage of its own. It was sold to the public, and now provides bed and breakfast accommodation. It is erroneously now called The Old Rectory.
Trade
The village is located just beyond the end of Swaffham Bulbeck LodeCambridgeshire Lodes
The Cambridgeshire Lodes are a series of man-made waterways, believed to be Roman in origin, located in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. Bottisham, Swaffham Bulbeck, Reach, Burwell, Wicken and Monks Lodes all connect to the River Cam, while Soham Lode connects to the River Great Ouse. All...
, a man-made waterway which connects with the River Cam
River Cam
The River Cam is a tributary of the River Great Ouse in the east of England. The two rivers join to the south of Ely at Pope's Corner. The Great Ouse connects the Cam to England's canal system and to the North Sea at King's Lynn...
. The Hamlet of Commercial End, at the northern edge of the village, was an important inland port from medieval times, although the waterway had been in use since Roman times. Principal buildings include the late 17th century Merchants House, which had a counting house added in the mid 18th century. Workers' cottages and warehouses were added to the street by Thomas Bowyer, after he acquired the house in 1805. River trade declined once the railways reached the area, and the house and contents were sold after 1877. The street retains its 18th and early 19th century character, although the lode is now only navigable as far as Slade Farm, some 2 miles (3.2 km) away.
Notable citizens
Swaffam Bulbeck is the residence of the twice Nobel prizeNobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winner Frederick Sanger
Frederick Sanger
Frederick Sanger, OM, CH, CBE, FRS is an English biochemist and a two-time Nobel laureate in chemistry, the only person to have been so. In 1958 he was awarded a Nobel prize in chemistry "for his work on the structure of proteins, especially that of insulin"...
. Also, Paul Voorheis, the renowned biochemist who is good friends with Sanger.
Swaffham Bulbeck was the residence of the Lyell Medal
Lyell Medal
The Lyell Medal is a prestigious annual scientific medal given by the Geological Society of London, equal in status to the Murchison Medal, awarded on the basis of research to an Earth Scientist of exceptional quality...
winner and world renowned angler Barrie Rickards
Barrie Rickards
Professor Richard Barrie Rickards, , was Emeritus Professor in Palaeontology and Biostratigraphy at the Department of Earth Sciences, Cambridge University and Life Fellow of Emmanuel College. He was best known for his work on Graptolites...
.
Swaffam Bulbeck was the residence of Sir Bryan Harold Cabot Matthews
Bryan Matthews
Sir Bryan Harold Cabot Matthews CBE FRS was Professor of Physiology, Cambridge University 1952-1973, Emeritus professor thereafter and Life Fellow of King's College, Cambridge.His elder brother was Leonard Harrison Matthews....
CBE FRS. He was Professor of Physiology at Kings College, Cambridge 1952 - 1973 and lived in the Grade II listed Priest's House at 99 High Street.
External links
- http://www.swaffhambulbeckpc.org.uk/
- http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/CAM/SwaffhamBulbeck/index.html
- http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=18870e
- http://www.sbstgands.co.uk/