Bletchingley
Encyclopedia
Bletchingley is a village in Surrey
, England
. It is on the A25 road
to the east of Redhill
and to the west of Godstone
.
administrative division of Tandridge
hundred
.
The settlement appears in the Domesday Book
as Blachingelei. It was held by Richard de Tonebrige. Its Domesday Assets were: 3 hide
s; 14 plough
s, 17 acres (68,796.6 m²) of meadow
, woodland
worth 58 hogs. Also 7 houses in London
and Southwark
. It rendered (in total): £15 13s 4d.
In 1225 there is mention of Bletchingley as a borough. In the Middle Ages a borough was created either by the King or one of the Lords as a potentially profitable element in the development of their estates.
It appears that after the 14th century Bletchingley began to lose its importance as a borough, perhaps losing out to the market town of Reigate. At one point it gained the status of a rotten borough
. Parliamentary elections were held in what is now the White Hart.
A number of public footpaths and bridleways can be found both to the north and south of the village which not only allow access to the countryside but also provide the opportunity to stumble across some other interesting buildings.
The house at Place Farm formed the gatehouse of Blechingley Place: a great Tudor house, which Anne of Cleves
occupied after her marriage to Henry VIII
was annulled. Anne of Cleves originated from a small town called Kleve
, in what is now Germany.
This long history means that it is still possible to see several buildings that date back to around 1500 in the High Street area. Also to the north can be found Brewer Street Farm (15th century) and the Old Rectory (1786).
The village was formerly a parliamentary borough
and elected two members to the unreformed House of Commons
.
, is about 3 km or 2 miles (3.2 km) away in South Nutfield
.
Bletchingley today still manages to keep in touch with its medieval roots and strives to maintain the character of the village. The central part of the village is a conservation area and is set in a designated area of outstanding natural beauty.
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, 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...
. It is on the A25 road
A25 road
The A25 road is one of the three cross-country two-digit numbered roads in the southeast of England, the others being the A26 from Newhaven to Maidstone and the A27 along the south coast. It carries traffic from Guildford in Surrey through Dorking, and thence eastward along the southern edge of the...
to the east of Redhill
Redhill, Surrey
Redhill is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead, Surrey, England and is part of the London commuter belt. Redhill and the adjacent town of Reigate form a single urban area.-History:...
and to the west of Godstone
Godstone
Godstone is a village in the county of Surrey, England. It is located approximately six miles east of Reigate at the junction of the A22 and A25 major roads, and near the M25 motorway.-History:...
.
History
The village lay within the Anglo-SaxonAnglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
administrative division of Tandridge
Tandridge (hundred)
Tandridge was a hundred in what is now Surrey, England. It includes the borough of Tandridge.It includes the parishes of Bletchingley, Caterham, Chelsham, Crowhurst, Farleigh, Godstone, Horne, Limpsfield, Lingfield, Oxted, Tandridge, Tatsfield, Titsey, Warlingham and Woldingham.The hundred has...
hundred
Hundred (division)
A hundred is a geographic division formerly used in England, Wales, Denmark, South Australia, some parts of the United States, Germany , Sweden, Finland and Norway, which historically was used to divide a larger region into smaller administrative divisions...
.
The settlement appears 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 Blachingelei. It was held by Richard de Tonebrige. Its Domesday Assets were: 3 hide
Hide (unit)
The hide was originally an amount of land sufficient to support a household, but later in Anglo-Saxon England became a unit used in assessing land for liability to "geld", or land tax. The geld would be collected at a stated rate per hide...
s; 14 plough
Plough
The plough or plow is a tool used in farming for initial cultivation of soil in preparation for sowing seed or planting. It has been a basic instrument for most of recorded history, and represents one of the major advances in agriculture...
s, 17 acres (68,796.6 m²) of meadow
Meadow
A meadow is a field vegetated primarily by grass and other non-woody plants . The term is from Old English mædwe. In agriculture a meadow is grassland which is not grazed by domestic livestock but rather allowed to grow unchecked in order to make hay...
, woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
worth 58 hogs. Also 7 houses in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Southwark
Southwark
Southwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
. It rendered (in total): £15 13s 4d.
In 1225 there is mention of Bletchingley as a borough. In the Middle Ages a borough was created either by the King or one of the Lords as a potentially profitable element in the development of their estates.
It appears that after the 14th century Bletchingley began to lose its importance as a borough, perhaps losing out to the market town of Reigate. At one point it gained the status of a rotten borough
Rotten borough
A "rotten", "decayed" or pocket borough was a parliamentary borough or constituency in the United Kingdom that had a very small electorate and could be used by a patron to gain undue and unrepresentative influence within Parliament....
. Parliamentary elections were held in what is now the White Hart.
A number of public footpaths and bridleways can be found both to the north and south of the village which not only allow access to the countryside but also provide the opportunity to stumble across some other interesting buildings.
The house at Place Farm formed the gatehouse of Blechingley Place: a great Tudor house, which Anne of Cleves
Anne of Cleves
Anne of Cleves was a German noblewoman and the fourth wife of Henry VIII of England and as such she was Queen of England from 6 January 1540 to 9 July 1540. The marriage was never consummated, and she was not crowned queen consort...
occupied after her marriage to Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
was annulled. Anne of Cleves originated from a small town called Kleve
Kleve
Kleve , is a town in the Lower Rhine region of northwestern Germany near the Dutch border and the River Rhine. From the 11th century onwards, Kleve was capital of a county and later a duchy...
, in what is now Germany.
This long history means that it is still possible to see several buildings that date back to around 1500 in the High Street area. Also to the north can be found Brewer Street Farm (15th century) and the Old Rectory (1786).
The village was formerly a parliamentary borough
Parliamentary borough
Parliamentary boroughs are a type of administrative division, usually covering urban areas, that are entitled to representation in a Parliament...
and elected two members to the unreformed House of Commons
Unreformed House of Commons
The unreformed House of Commons is the name generally given to the British House of Commons as it existed before the Reform Act 1832.Until the Act of Union of 1707 joining the Kingdoms of Scotland and England , Scotland had its own Parliament, and the term refers to the House of Commons of England...
.
Today
The nearest railway station, NutfieldNutfield railway station
Nutfield railway station is on the Redhill to Tonbridge Line and serves Nutfield, Surrey. It is about a mile south of Nutfield in South Nutfield, a settlement which was non-existent before the coming of the railway...
, is about 3 km or 2 miles (3.2 km) away in South Nutfield
Nutfield, Surrey
Nutfield is a village and civil parish in the Tandridge district of Surrey. It has a population of 2,728The village lay within the Reigate hundred....
.
Bletchingley today still manages to keep in touch with its medieval roots and strives to maintain the character of the village. The central part of the village is a conservation area and is set in a designated area of outstanding natural beauty.