Wangford was a hundred 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...

, consisting of 34679 acres (140.3 km²).

Wangford Hundred was an area of around twelve miles (19 km) from west to east and five across. The River Waveney

River Waveney

The Waveney is a river which forms the border between Suffolk and Norfolk, England, for much of its length within The Broads.-Course:The source of the River Waveney is a ditch on the east side of the B1113 road between the villages of Redgrave, Suffolk and South Lopham, Norfolk...

 formed its northern border separating it from Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

. To the east lay Mutford and Lothingland Hundred

Mutford and Lothingland (hundred)

Mutford and Lothingland was a hundred of Suffolk, with an area of . Lowestoft Ness, the most easterly point of Great Britain fell within its bounds.Мutford and Lothingland Hundred formed the north-eastern corner of Suffolk...

, to the south Blything Hundred

Blything (hundred)

Blything was a hundred of eastern Suffolk, and with an area of was the largest of Suffolk's 21 hundreds.The origins of the hundred centre around the ancient royal estate of Blythburgh, whose hall housed the hundred's central meeting place....

 and to the west Hoxne Hundred

Hoxne (hundred)

Hoxne was a hundred of Suffolk, with an area of .Hoxne Hundred was a fertile district averaging about nine miles in length and breadth. It was bounded on the north by the River Waveney which separates it from Norfolk, on the east by Wangford and Blything Hundreds, on the south by Plomegate, Loes...

.

It is a fertile district, particularly in the broad vale of the Waveney with its rich marshes for feeding cattle. On the south side of the vale the land becomes hilly with an agricultural region of predominantly loam

Loam

Loam is soil composed of sand, silt, and clay in relatively even concentration . Loam soils generally contain more nutrients and humus than sandy soils, have better infiltration and drainage than silty soils, and are easier to till than clay soils...

 soil. The towns of Bungay

Bungay

Bungay is a town in Suffolk, East Anglia, England.Bungay may also refer to:* Bungay railway station* Frank Bungay , former professional footballer* Stephen Bungay , British management consultant, historian and author...

 and Beccles

Beccles

Beccles is a market town and civil parish in the Waveney District of the English county of Suffolk. The town is shown on the milestone as from London via the A145 Blythburgh and A12 road, northeast of London as the crow flies, southeast of Norwich, and north northeast of the county town of...

 are the largest settlements in the former hundred. The hundred also contained the thirteen parishes (Ilketshall, South Elmham, Flixton and Homersfield) collectively known as The Saints

The Saints, Suffolk

The Saints are a group of villages in Suffolk, England, between the rivers Blyth and Waveney near to the border with Norfolk. The villages are all named after a saint , and either South Elmham or Ilketshall named after the 'hall of Alfkethill'...

.

Listed as Wanneforda (inter alia) 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...

, the name is believed to derive from an alternative name for the Waveney and thus to mean "ford across the Waveney". A total of 24 places with a population of around 1025 households are mentioned in the Domesday Book. It is not to be confused with the two other Wangfords in Suffolk.

Parishes

Wangford Hundred consisted of the following 27 parishes:

Parish	Area (acres)
Barsham Barsham, Suffolk Barsham is a village and civil parish in the Waveney district of Suffolk, England. It is about two miles west of Beccles in the district of Waveney, and is on the edge of The Broads...	1871
Beccles Beccles Beccles is a market town and civil parish in the Waveney District of the English county of Suffolk. The town is shown on the milestone as from London via the A145 Blythburgh and A12 road, northeast of London as the crow flies, southeast of Norwich, and north northeast of the county town of...	1994
Bungay Bungay, Suffolk Bungay is a market town in the English county of Suffolk. It lies in the Waveney valley, west of Beccles on the edge of The Broads, and at the neck of a meander of the River Waveney.-Early history:...	2090
Ellough Ellough Ellough is a parish in the English county of Suffolk located approximately south-east of Beccles. The area is sparsely populated with a mid-2005 population estimate of 40. Neighbouring villages include North Cove, Weston, Sotterley and Henstead...	1074
Flixton	1762
Homersfield Homersfield South Elmham St Mary, known as Homersfield, is a small village and civil parish located on the banks of the River Waveney in Suffolk, UK, on the border with Norfolk. It is one of The Saints. It is the home of the oldest surviving concrete bridge in Britain, a 50-foot span built in 1870 by the...	981
Ilketshall St Andrew	1696
Ilketshall St John	743
Ilketshall St Lawrence	988
Ilketshall St Margaret	2093
Mettingham Mettingham Mettingham is a village in Suffolk, England, close to the border with Norfolk.Its church, All Saints, is one of 38 existing round-tower churches in Suffolk, UK....	1706
North Cove North Cove North Cove is on the A146, in between Beccles and Lowestoft in Suffolk. The local church is called St. Boltoph and contains medieval wall paintings....	1082
Redisham Redisham Redisham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk. It is located 3½ miles south-west of Beccles and 4⅓ miles north-east of Halesworth in Waveney district. The mid-2005 population estimate for Redisham parish was 110...	733
Ringsfield Ringsfield Ringsfield is a village and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk located approximately 2 miles south-west of Beccles in the District of Waveney. The mid-2005 population estimate for Ringsfield parish was 340. The modern village is concentrated around Ringsfield Corner crossroads, about...	1700
Shadingfield Shadingfield Shadingfield is a village in the English county of Suffolk located approximately 4 miles south of Beccles along the A145. The village is joined with Willingham St Mary and 1½ miles west of Sotterley. The mid-2005 population estimate for Shadingfield parish was 170...	1370
Shipmeadow Shipmeadow Shipmeadow is a small village located on the Beccles to Bungay road. Shipmeadow has no shop or even a church because it was made redundant in 1980.- History :...	800
Sotterley Sotterley Sotterley, originally Southern-lea from its situation south of the river, is a parish in the English county of Suffolk, located approximately south-east of Beccles and east of Willingham St Mary and Shadingfield. The parish is primarily agricultural with a dispersed population of 110...	1594
South Elmham, All Saints All Saints South Elmham All Saints South Elmham belongs to The Saints, Suffolk, a group of villages near the border with Norfolk.- Church :All Saints Church is one of 38 existing round-tower churches in Suffolk.- External links :*, a round-tower church...	1150
South Elmham, St Cross	1301
South Elmham, St James	1302
South Elmham, St Margaret	589
South Elmham, St Michael	816
South Elmham, St Nicholas	500
South Elmham, St Peter	576
Weston Weston, Suffolk Weston is a village and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk located approximately south of Beccles in the District of Waveney. The parish lies either side of the A145 and is crossed by the Ipswich to Lowestoft railway line. Neighbouring villages include Ellough, Ringsfield, Willingham St...	1551
Willingham St Mary Willingham St Mary Willingham St Mary is a village and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk located about south of Beccles along the A145 in the District of Waveney. The village is joined with Shadingfield and west of Sotterley. At the 2001 census the parish had a population of 155...	890
Worlingham Worlingham Worlingham is a village and civil parish in the Waveney district of Suffolk, England about east of Beccles. As of 2008 it is effectively a suburb of Beccles...	1727

See also

• Hundreds of Suffolk
  Hundreds of Suffolk
  The county of Suffolk was divided into hundreds between Saxon times and the 19th century, when they were replaced for administrative purposes by districts.In 1831 the county was subdivided into twenty-one hundreds and three municipal boroughs...