Braintree, Essex
Encyclopedia
Braintree is a town
of about 42,000 people and the principal settlement of the Braintree district of Essex
in the East of England
. It is 10 miles (16.1 km) northeast of Chelmsford and 15 miles (24.1 km) west of Colchester
on the River Blackwater
, A120 road
and a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line
.
Braintree has grown contiguous with several surrounding settlements: Braintree proper lies to the south of Stane Street, and Bocking lies to the north. The two together can be referred to as Braintree and Bocking, although many people refer to them together as "Braintree" .
Braintree is twinned with the French
town of Pierrefitte-sur-Seine
.
Braintree, Massachusetts
, United States
, was named after the town in 1640.
times. Braintree, Essex was also called Brantry and Branchetreu in the Domesday Book
and this means "town by the river". It has been clearly established that the Brain is not associated with any Brid. Britain has been established to be named after Brit or the word origin of Brutus a legendary founder of London. The River Braint is another possible origin. "Tree" comes from the Saxon suffix, more usually spelt "try", denoting a big village. In many early American Colonial documents, it is referred to as Branktry. The name "Braint" is well attested as a river name in Britain, there is a river of that name in Anglesey, and it may be conjectured that it was name of the blackwater in pre Saxon times, although there is an even likely Celtic name in "Bran" also used widely for rivers, derived from the British word for a Crow and usually thought to refer to the dark or crow-black appearance of such a river, making it a good fit for a river now called "blackwater". Here again, the reference to a river would indicate that Braintree literally means "town (or village) by the river". The Suffix to either Braint or Bran is the common Britonnic "Tre" widely found in Wales and Cornwall, but also noted in towns such as Daventree, with the meaning of initially a farm or settlement later a town.
; a settlement developed at the junction of these two roads but was later abandoned when the Romans left Britain. The town was recorded in the Domesday Book
of 1085 when it was called Branchetreu and consisted of 30 acres (121,405.8 m²) in the possession of Richard, son of Count Gilbert. Pilgrims used the town as a stop-over, the size of the town increased and the Bishop of London
obtained a market charter for the town in 1190. The town prospered from the 17th century when Flemish
immigrants made the town famous for its wool cloth trade. In 1665, the Great Plague killed 865 of the population of just 2,300 people. The wool trade died out in the early 19th century and Braintree became a centre for silk manufacturing when George Courtauld
opened a silk mill in the town. By the mid 19th century, Braintree was a thriving agricultural and textile town, and benefited from a railway connection to London. The wealthy Courtauld family had a strong influence on the town, supporting plans for many of the town's public buildings such as the town hall and public gardens established in 1888.
, with factories and housing to the south and rural areas to the north, where arable
crops are grown. It lies about 150 feet (45.7 m) above sea level
http://www.daysoff.co.uk/essex/braintree/braintree-history.html. Essex is rather flat on the whole, and the Braintree area is no exception; however, there is a general downward trend in the height of the ground from the northwest towards the coast to the southeast. Two rivers flow through Braintree in this direction. Pod's Brook approaches the western side of the town, forms a natural boundary between Braintree and the neighbouring village of Rayne
about two miles (3 km) to the west. Pod's Brook becomes the River Brain
as it passes under the Roman road, before running through the southern part of Braintree. The River Pant (or Blackwater
) runs roughly parallel to it, through the north of Bocking
and away to the east of the town. The Brain eventually flows into the Blackwater several miles away, near Witham
.
as champions of the Isthmian League in 2006. The 2006–2007 season saw them just miss out on a second successive promotion to the Conference National
. Having finished in third place, they went down 1-0 in the Conference South play-off final. Braintree continued their good form during season 2007-2008. After a slow start and a change of first team manager, they took 60 points from their last 30 games to finally secure fifth place and another tilt at the play-offs.
Braintree has its own museum
, which contains displays relating to the history of the town. It is named after John Ray
and has a number of relatively famous patrons, including the Essex-born artist, Jennifer Walter and Lesley Killin, an influential member of Essex Council of Education (the ECE).
There is a cinema
on the outskirts of the town. Opposite the cinema, there is also a bowling alley and various restaurants, together with numerous public house
s and bars in the town centre.
Braintree's local newspapers are the Braintree and Witham Times, Essex Chronicle
and Evening Gazette.
The Braintree and Bocking Carnival takes place each June. The event starts with a procession of floats through the town centre, finishing at Meadowside. Events, including a fair and sideshows, continue throughout the afternoon at Meadowside until around 10pm.
Braintree Musical Society perform two shows a year (in April and October) at The Institute at Bocking End.
The world famous recording artists, The Prodigy
, originated in Braintree.
A new community radio
licence for east Braintree has been awarded to Carolina FM. The station commenced broadcasting on 10th July 2009.
Humanities College, Notley High School
Technology College (which is also the location of the Braintree Sixth Form
) and Tabor Science College
. Post 16 education is provided by Braintree College
and Braintree Sixth Form
Freeport also has its own railway station, namely Braintree Freeport railway station
, which is the first stop on the journey from Braintree to London Liverpool Street via Witham.
s depart from Braintree station to Witham, where the Braintree branch line
joins the Great Eastern Main Line to London Liverpool Street
. Service frequency is approximately once an hour during the daytime. Nowadays the track terminates at Braintree. However, it used to continue westwards, as the Bishop's Stortford-Braintree Branch Line
, through the village of Rayne, to Great Dunmow
, but this section of the route was closed and has been disused for decades (although has now become part of a country walk and cycle route, known as Flitch Way).
, White Notley
, Great Notley Garden Village
(a recent construction), Cressing, Felsted
, Rayne
and Panfield.
H. G. Wells
, in his What Is Coming? A European Forecast (1916), in the fourth chapter, "Braintree, Bocking, and the Future of the World," uses the differences between Bocking and Braintree, divided, he says, by a single road, to explain the difficulties he expects in establishing World Peace through a World State.
Efficiency, perhaps the supreme virtue for Wells (and others in the Fabian Society
), meant someone in authority preventing waste and inefficiency at every level from water mains to wars. The difficulty of establishing it at the local level was a reflection of the difficulty of establishing it at the global level. In that same chapter he mentions his friend but ideological foe, G. K. Chesterton
, who would have been delighted by those same local differences (particularly if it included the beer in the pubs) and whose 1904 novel, The Napoleon of Notting Hill
, praises them. Wells wanted to end war by establishing an authority that could ban any difference between people that might lead to disagreements and perhaps war. Chesterton wanted to reduce the likelihood of war by reminding people that a healthy love for your country meant respecting the love others have for their country. In the December 31, 1910 issue of Illustrated London News
he wrote:
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
of about 42,000 people and the principal settlement of the Braintree district of Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
in the East of England
East of England
The East of England is one of the nine official regions of England. It was created in 1994 and was adopted for statistics from 1999. It includes the ceremonial counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Essex has the highest population in the region.Its...
. It is 10 miles (16.1 km) northeast of Chelmsford and 15 miles (24.1 km) west of Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
on the River Blackwater
River Blackwater, Essex
The River Blackwater is a river in England. It rises in the northwest of Essex as the River Pant and flows to Bocking, near Braintree, from where its name changes to the Blackwater. Its course takes it near Stisted, and then via Bradwell Juxta Coggeshall and Coggeshall and near Witham where it is...
, A120 road
A120 road
The A120 is an important trunk road in southern England. It follows the course of Stane Street, a Roman road from Standon, Hertfordshire at its western terminus to Colchester...
and a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line
Great Eastern Main Line
The Great Eastern Main Line is a 212 Kilometre major railway line of the British railway system, which connects Liverpool Street in the City of London with destinations in east London and the East of England, including Chelmsford, Colchester, Ipswich, Norwich and several coastal resorts such as...
.
Braintree has grown contiguous with several surrounding settlements: Braintree proper lies to the south of Stane Street, and Bocking lies to the north. The two together can be referred to as Braintree and Bocking, although many people refer to them together as "Braintree" .
Braintree is twinned with the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
town of Pierrefitte-sur-Seine
Pierrefitte-sur-Seine
Pierrefitte-sur-Seine is a commune in the Seine-Saint-Denis department and Île-de-France region of France. Today forming part of the northern suburbs of Paris, Pierrefitte lies from the centre of the French capital.- Heraldry :-Transport:...
.
Braintree, Massachusetts
Braintree, Massachusetts
The Town of Braintree is a suburban city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Although officially known as a town, Braintree adopted a municipal charter, effective 2008, with a mayor-council form of government and is considered a city under Massachusetts law. The population was 35,744...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, was named after the town in 1640.
Origin of the name
The origin of the name Braintree is obscure. One theory is that Braintree was originally Branoc's tree, Branoc apparently being an old personal name. Another theory is that the name is derived from that of Rayne, which was actually a more important settlement in NormanNormans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
times. Braintree, Essex was also called Brantry and Branchetreu 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...
and this means "town by the river". It has been clearly established that the Brain is not associated with any Brid. Britain has been established to be named after Brit or the word origin of Brutus a legendary founder of London. The River Braint is another possible origin. "Tree" comes from the Saxon suffix, more usually spelt "try", denoting a big village. In many early American Colonial documents, it is referred to as Branktry. The name "Braint" is well attested as a river name in Britain, there is a river of that name in Anglesey, and it may be conjectured that it was name of the blackwater in pre Saxon times, although there is an even likely Celtic name in "Bran" also used widely for rivers, derived from the British word for a Crow and usually thought to refer to the dark or crow-black appearance of such a river, making it a good fit for a river now called "blackwater". Here again, the reference to a river would indicate that Braintree literally means "town (or village) by the river". The Suffix to either Braint or Bran is the common Britonnic "Tre" widely found in Wales and Cornwall, but also noted in towns such as Daventree, with the meaning of initially a farm or settlement later a town.
History
Braintree dates back over 4,000 years when it was just a small village. When the Romans invaded, they built two roadsRoman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
; a settlement developed at the junction of these two roads but was later abandoned when the Romans left Britain. The town was 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...
of 1085 when it was called Branchetreu and consisted of 30 acres (121,405.8 m²) in the possession of Richard, son of Count Gilbert. Pilgrims used the town as a stop-over, the size of the town increased and the Bishop of London
Bishop of London
The Bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 458 km² of 17 boroughs of Greater London north of the River Thames and a small part of the County of Surrey...
obtained a market charter for the town in 1190. The town prospered from the 17th century when Flemish
Flemish people
The Flemings or Flemish are the Dutch-speaking inhabitants of Belgium, where they are mostly found in the northern region of Flanders. They are one of two principal cultural-linguistic groups in Belgium, the other being the French-speaking Walloons...
immigrants made the town famous for its wool cloth trade. In 1665, the Great Plague killed 865 of the population of just 2,300 people. The wool trade died out in the early 19th century and Braintree became a centre for silk manufacturing when George Courtauld
Courtaulds
Courtaulds was a United Kingdom-based manufacturer of fabric, clothing, artificial fibres, and chemicals.-Foundation:The Company was founded by George Courtauld and his cousin Peter Taylor in 1794 as a silk, crepe and textile business at Pebmarsh in north Essex trading as George Courtauld & Co...
opened a silk mill in the town. By the mid 19th century, Braintree was a thriving agricultural and textile town, and benefited from a railway connection to London. The wealthy Courtauld family had a strong influence on the town, supporting plans for many of the town's public buildings such as the town hall and public gardens established in 1888.
Geography
Braintree lies in north Essex, about 40 miles (64.4 km) from LondonLondon
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...
, with factories and housing to the south and rural areas to the north, where arable
Agronomy
Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants for food, fuel, feed, fiber, and reclamation. Agronomy encompasses work in the areas of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and soil science. Agronomy is the application of a combination of sciences like biology,...
crops are grown. It lies about 150 feet (45.7 m) above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
http://www.daysoff.co.uk/essex/braintree/braintree-history.html. Essex is rather flat on the whole, and the Braintree area is no exception; however, there is a general downward trend in the height of the ground from the northwest towards the coast to the southeast. Two rivers flow through Braintree in this direction. Pod's Brook approaches the western side of the town, forms a natural boundary between Braintree and the neighbouring village of Rayne
Rayne, Essex
Rayne is a village of about 3,000 residents in the Braintree district of Essex in the East of England.It lies on the Roman road called Stane Street, about two miles to the west of Braintree, which is the nearest town....
about two miles (3 km) to the west. Pod's Brook becomes the River Brain
River Brain
The River Brain is a river in Essex, England that gives its name to the town of Braintree, though in fact Braintree lies on a low ridge between the Brain and the River Blackwater. Above Braintree it is known as Pods Brook. The brook rises near the village of Bardfield Saling...
as it passes under the Roman road, before running through the southern part of Braintree. The River Pant (or Blackwater
River Blackwater, Essex
The River Blackwater is a river in England. It rises in the northwest of Essex as the River Pant and flows to Bocking, near Braintree, from where its name changes to the Blackwater. Its course takes it near Stisted, and then via Bradwell Juxta Coggeshall and Coggeshall and near Witham where it is...
) runs roughly parallel to it, through the north of Bocking
Bocking
Bocking can refer to:*Bocking, a village near Braintree, Essex*Bocking 14, a cultivated strain of the plant Comfrey*Powerbocking, the use of powered stilts patented by Alexander Böck...
and away to the east of the town. The Brain eventually flows into the Blackwater several miles away, near Witham
Witham
Witham is a town in the county of Essex, in the south east of England with a population of 22,500. It is part of the District of Braintree and is twinned with the town of Waldbröl, Germany. Witham stands between the larger towns of Chelmsford and Colchester...
.
Culture, media and sport
Braintree Town Football Club, known as "The Iron", have made much progress in recent years and were promoted to the Conference SouthConference South
Conference South is one of the second divisions of the Football Conference in England, taking its place immediately below the Conference National...
as champions of the Isthmian League in 2006. The 2006–2007 season saw them just miss out on a second successive promotion to the Conference National
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
. Having finished in third place, they went down 1-0 in the Conference South play-off final. Braintree continued their good form during season 2007-2008. After a slow start and a change of first team manager, they took 60 points from their last 30 games to finally secure fifth place and another tilt at the play-offs.
Braintree has its own museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
, which contains displays relating to the history of the town. It is named after John Ray
John Ray
John Ray was an English naturalist, sometimes referred to as the father of English natural history. Until 1670, he wrote his name as John Wray. From then on, he used 'Ray', after "having ascertained that such had been the practice of his family before him".He published important works on botany,...
and has a number of relatively famous patrons, including the Essex-born artist, Jennifer Walter and Lesley Killin, an influential member of Essex Council of Education (the ECE).
There is a cinema
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
on the outskirts of the town. Opposite the cinema, there is also a bowling alley and various restaurants, together with numerous public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
s and bars in the town centre.
Braintree's local newspapers are the Braintree and Witham Times, Essex Chronicle
Essex Chronicle
The Essex Chronicle, published in Westway, Chelmsford, Essex, United Kingdom, is a general news, weekly paper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust....
and Evening Gazette.
The Braintree and Bocking Carnival takes place each June. The event starts with a procession of floats through the town centre, finishing at Meadowside. Events, including a fair and sideshows, continue throughout the afternoon at Meadowside until around 10pm.
Braintree Musical Society perform two shows a year (in April and October) at The Institute at Bocking End.
The world famous recording artists, The Prodigy
The Prodigy
The Prodigy are an English electronic dance music group formed by Liam Howlett in 1990 in Braintree, Essex. Along with Fatboy Slim, The Chemical Brothers, and other acts, The Prodigy have been credited as pioneers of the big beat genre, which achieved mainstream popularity in the 1990s and 2000s...
, originated in Braintree.
A new community radio
Community radio
Community radio is a type of radio service, that offers a third model of radio broadcasting beyond commercial broadcasting and public broadcasting. Community stations can serve geographic communities and communities of interest...
licence for east Braintree has been awarded to Carolina FM. The station commenced broadcasting on 10th July 2009.
Education and schools
Braintree has three secondary schools: Alec Hunter Humanities CollegeAlec Hunter Humanities College
Alec Hunter Humanities College, formerly Alec Hunter School and Alec Hunter High School, is situated in Braintree, Essex. It is a comprehensive school for 11–16 year olds, and has Humanities specialist status.-History:...
Humanities College, Notley High School
Notley High School
Notley High School is situated in Braintree in Essex, England. It is for 11–16 year olds. There is currently a lack of places available to children who live outside of the catchment area....
Technology College (which is also the location of the Braintree Sixth Form
Braintree Sixth Form
Braintree Sixth Form is a school Sixth Form centre for educating 16-18 year olds in Braintree, Essex, England. It is located approximately 15 miles east of Stansted Airport in north Essex....
) and Tabor Science College
Tabor Science College
Tabor Science College is a specialist status high school located in Braintree, Essex, England. Its Headmaster, Steven T. Clark, was one of the youngest Heads in Britain.-History:...
. Post 16 education is provided by Braintree College
Braintree College
Braintree College now known as The College at Braintree is a further education college based in Braintree, Essex. It is a constituent college of the Colchester Institute....
and Braintree Sixth Form
Braintree Sixth Form
Braintree Sixth Form is a school Sixth Form centre for educating 16-18 year olds in Braintree, Essex, England. It is located approximately 15 miles east of Stansted Airport in north Essex....
Economy, industry and commerce
Freeport is a shopping area on the outskirts of Braintree, described as a "designer outlet village". It has approximately 90 departments where designer brands sell surplus stock for lower than the recommended retail price.Freeport also has its own railway station, namely Braintree Freeport railway station
Braintree Freeport railway station
Braintree Freeport railway station serves the large Freeport out-of-town outlet shopping centre on the southern outskirts of Braintree, Essex. The unstaffed single platform station is located on the Witham/Braintree Branch Line north east of London Liverpool Street railway station and has a...
, which is the first stop on the journey from Braintree to London Liverpool Street via Witham.
Transport
Braintree has two railway stations, and next to the Freeport shopping area. TrainTrain
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
s depart from Braintree station to Witham, where the Braintree branch line
Braintree Branch Line
The Braintree Branch Line is a branch line from Witham to Braintree in Essex, England.The line diverges from the Great Eastern Main Line at Witham. Passenger services are currently operated by National Express East Anglia...
joins the Great Eastern Main Line to London Liverpool Street
Liverpool Street station
Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street, is both a central London railway terminus and a connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, England...
. Service frequency is approximately once an hour during the daytime. Nowadays the track terminates at Braintree. However, it used to continue westwards, as the Bishop's Stortford-Braintree Branch Line
Bishop's Stortford-Braintree Branch Line
The Bishop's Stortford-Braintree Branch Line was a long line connecting the towns of Bishop's Stortford, Dunmow and Braintree.-History:Originally proposed to Eastern Counties Railway in 1859, the line from Bishop's Stortford, Dunmow and Braintree was eventually built by Great Eastern Railway who...
, through the village of Rayne, to Great Dunmow
Great Dunmow
Great Dunmow is an ancient market town in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England in which the great Shannon Gray, also known as Hazzah Potter, lives...
, but this section of the route was closed and has been disused for decades (although has now become part of a country walk and cycle route, known as Flitch Way).
Neighbouring villages
Villages in the Braintree area include Black NotleyBlack Notley
Black Notley is a village and civil parish in Essex, England. It is located approximately south of Braintree and is north-northeast from the county town of Chelmsford. The village is in the district and parliamentary constituency of Braintree...
, White Notley
White Notley
White Notley is a parish in Essex, England. The settlement lies equidistant between the towns of Witham and Braintree amongst arable farmland, 4 miles in each direction...
, Great Notley Garden Village
Great Notley Garden Village
Great Notley Garden Village, or simply Great Notley is a suburban development, mostly by Countryside Properties on the fringe of Braintree, Essex in England with an approximate population of 5,500...
(a recent construction), Cressing, Felsted
Felsted
Felsted is linked to Little Dunmow by the Flitch Way Country Park, a former railway line. The village has links to Lord Riche who founded the public school, The Felsted School, in 1564, and is buried in Holy Cross Church. Lord Riche was an important benefactor of the Felsted church. The school also...
, Rayne
Rayne, Essex
Rayne is a village of about 3,000 residents in the Braintree district of Essex in the East of England.It lies on the Roman road called Stane Street, about two miles to the west of Braintree, which is the nearest town....
and Panfield.
Notable residents
- Louie SpenceLouie SpenceLouie Spence is a dance expert, choreographer and television personality who is currently the artistic director at the London Pineapple Dance Studios...
- flamboyant dance teacher from Pineapple Dance Studios, was born and raised in Braintree. - Rupert EverettRupert EverettRupert James Hector Everett is an English actor. He first came to public attention in 1981, when he was cast in Julian Mitchell's play and subsequent film Another Country as an openly gay student at an English public school, set in the 1930s...
- British actor born in Norfolk, 1959, spent a short time as a child in Braintree and frequented the former Embassy Cinema (now closed and occupied by Wetherspoons). - Malcolm McFee, (1949–2001), British actor born in Forest GateForest GateForest Gate is a residential area in the London Borough of Newham, 7 miles northeast of Charing Cross. It is bordered by Manor Park to the east and and to the west lies Stratford town centre. The northern half of the busy Green Street runs through it.-History:...
, NewhamLondon Borough of NewhamThe London Borough of Newham is a London borough formed from the towns of West Ham and East Ham, within East London.It is situated east of the City of London, and is north of the River Thames. According to 2006 estimates, Newham has one of the highest ethnic minority populations of all the...
, played Peter Craven in Please Sir!Please Sir!Please Sir! was a London Weekend Television produced situation comedy, created by writers John Esmonde and Bob Larbey and featured the actors John Alderton, Deryck Guyler, Joan Sanderson, Noel Howlett, Erik Chitty and Richard Davies...
1968-1971 and The Fenn Street Gang 1972-1973. Also was landlord of the Wagon & Horses, South St.for a while in the '90s. - Lawrence D. Hills founded the Henry Doubleday Research Association headquarters and test site at Bocking, and also developed the Bocking 14 strain of comfreyComfreyComfrey is an important herb in organic gardening. It is used as a fertilizer and also has many purported medicinal uses...
, which has properties of particular interest to organic gardeners. - John RayJohn RayJohn Ray was an English naturalist, sometimes referred to as the father of English natural history. Until 1670, he wrote his name as John Wray. From then on, he used 'Ray', after "having ascertained that such had been the practice of his family before him".He published important works on botany,...
(1627–1705) - naturalist, born in nearby Black Notley, is perhaps the most talked about local person, among historians. - The Courtauld familySamuel Courtauld (industrialist)Samuel Courtauld was an industrialist and Unitarian, chiefly remembered as the driving force behind the rapid growth of the Courtauld textile business in Britain....
was one of the most prominent families of Braintree and Bocking during the 19th century. Their highly successful silk business made them very rich, and provided much employment in the area. They were very major benefactors to Braintree & Bocking, e.g. Town Hall, Corner House, Leahurst Hostel, William Julien Courtauld Hospital, land and buildings for the High School, Public Gardens... - Sir Evelyn Wood, (1838–1919) - British Field MarshalField MarshalField Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...
, Victoria CrossVictoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
recipient. - Katherine Parnell - younger sister of Sir Evelyn Wood, and wife and downfall of Irish Nationalist leader, Charles ParnellCharles Stewart ParnellCharles Stewart Parnell was an Irish landowner, nationalist political leader, land reform agitator, and the founder and leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party...
. - The ProdigyThe ProdigyThe Prodigy are an English electronic dance music group formed by Liam Howlett in 1990 in Braintree, Essex. Along with Fatboy Slim, The Chemical Brothers, and other acts, The Prodigy have been credited as pioneers of the big beat genre, which achieved mainstream popularity in the 1990s and 2000s...
- famous dance music group, are probably Braintree's best known export in recent years. The band's leader Liam HowlettLiam HowlettLiam Paris Howlett known as Liam Howlett , is a member of the English band The Prodigy, occasional DJ, and a music producer.-Life and career:...
was not only educated at Alec Hunter Humanities CollegeAlec Hunter Humanities CollegeAlec Hunter Humanities College, formerly Alec Hunter School and Alec Hunter High School, is situated in Braintree, Essex. It is a comprehensive school for 11–16 year olds, and has Humanities specialist status.-History:...
, but was also the cause of much indignation among some residents when he criticised the town in an interview for the music magazine QQ (magazine)Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
. He reportedly used "an abusive term" (see http://www.prodigycenter.com/?iviews8.html). He and fellow band member Keith FlintKeith FlintKeith Charles Flint is a dancer and vocalist of the British Electronica band The Prodigy.- Early life :Flint was born in Redbridge, London, England, to Clive & Yvonne Flint and initially raised in East London; in the mid-1970s his parents moved out to Springfield, Essex, but due to his parents'...
moved out of the town around 1998, to live in seclusion in a small village five or six miles (10 km) to the west. Now living just outside of Harlow, Essex. - Barry Douglas LambBarry Douglas Lamb-Musical career:He has released a number of solo albums which are avant-garde / electronic / industrial in nature. The album "Dusk" is perhaps his best known solo work . During his most prolific period, Lamb had regular correspondence with fellow contemporaries Bryn Jones of Muslimgauze, members of...
- avant-garde/experimental composer and musician, lived in Braintree following the demise of the insane picnicThe insane picnicIn the early 1980s, English band The Insane Picnic were one of the pioneering D.I.Y. cassette bands, composed of members Peter Ashby, Barry Douglas Lamb and Owen Turley. They recorded several releases for the English independent record label Falling A Records...
from 1989–1993. Although this appears to have been a period of very little musical output on his part, there is an unofficial recording from the period called "Braintree - the concubine harvester". - Steve HarleySteve HarleySteve Harley is an English singer and songwriter, best known for his work with the 1970s rock group Cockney Rebel, with whom he still occasionally tours .-Biography:As a child, Harley suffered from polio, spending four years in hospital up to the...
- singer/composer and founder of Cockney RebelSteve Harley & Cockney RebelSteve Harley & Cockney Rebel are an English rock band from the early 1970s. Their music covers a range of styles from pop to progressive rock. Over the years they have had five albums in the UK Albums Chart and twelve singles in the UK Singles Chart.-Career:...
, lived in Bradford Street, Braintree, from 1969 to 1971. He worked as a reporter for the Braintree and Witham Times under his real name Stephen Nice. The novelist Jay Merrick, author of Horse Latitudes, worked on the newspaper at the same time under his real name John Thompson. - Andrew Phillips, Baron Phillips of SudburyAndrew Phillips, Baron Phillips of SudburyAndrew Wyndham Phillips, Baron Phillips of Sudbury, OBE is a solicitor and Liberal Democrat politician.-Education and Law Practice:...
, noted politician and lawyer in the field of civil liberties lived in Bradford Street, Braintree for much of the 1980s - Giles LongGiles LongGiles Bruce Long MBE , is a retired British swimmer.Long's international swimming career highlights began when he won gold in the 100 m butterfly event at the 1994 World Championships, setting a world record in the process, in the S8 disability category...
MBE - triple Paralympic Gold medallist and former World Record holder in the 100m Butterfly lived in Braintree from 1979 to 1994, briefly returning in 2007. He swam for Braintree and Bocking Swimming Club 1986 to 1996. - Next of KinNext of Kin (band)Next of Kin are an English boy band from Braintree, Essex, comprising brothers Nathan , Mark and Kieran Bass .-History:...
- pop group who had two top 40UK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
hits in 1999. - The ancestors of US Founding FatherFounding Fathers of the United StatesThe Founding Fathers of the United States of America were political leaders and statesmen who participated in the American Revolution by signing the United States Declaration of Independence, taking part in the American Revolutionary War, establishing the United States Constitution, or by some...
John AdamsJohn AdamsJohn Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
emigrated to the Massachusetts Bay ColonyMassachusetts Bay ColonyThe Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...
from Braintree. - James ChallisJames ChallisJames Challis FRS was an English clergyman, physicist and astronomer. Plumian Professor and director of the Cambridge Observatory, he investigated a wide range of physical phenomena though made few lasting contributions outside astronomy...
- astronomer, was born in Braintree 12 December 1803.
Source materials on Bocking
Hoffman, Ann. (1976) Bocking Deanery: The Story of an Essex Peculiar.H. G. Wells
H. G. Wells
Herbert George Wells was an English author, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary, even writing text books and rules for war games...
, in his What Is Coming? A European Forecast (1916), in the fourth chapter, "Braintree, Bocking, and the Future of the World," uses the differences between Bocking and Braintree, divided, he says, by a single road, to explain the difficulties he expects in establishing World Peace through a World State.
Efficiency, perhaps the supreme virtue for Wells (and others in the Fabian Society
Fabian Society
The Fabian Society is a British socialist movement, whose purpose is to advance the principles of democratic socialism via gradualist and reformist, rather than revolutionary, means. It is best known for its initial ground-breaking work beginning late in the 19th century and continuing up to World...
), meant someone in authority preventing waste and inefficiency at every level from water mains to wars. The difficulty of establishing it at the local level was a reflection of the difficulty of establishing it at the global level. In that same chapter he mentions his friend but ideological foe, G. K. Chesterton
G. K. Chesterton
Gilbert Keith Chesterton, KC*SG was an English writer. His prolific and diverse output included philosophy, ontology, poetry, plays, journalism, public lectures and debates, literary and art criticism, biography, Christian apologetics, and fiction, including fantasy and detective fiction....
, who would have been delighted by those same local differences (particularly if it included the beer in the pubs) and whose 1904 novel, The Napoleon of Notting Hill
The Napoleon of Notting Hill
The Napoleon of Notting Hill is a novel written by G. K. Chesterton in 1904, set in a nearly unchanged London in 1984.Although the novel is set in the future, it is, in effect, set in an 'alternate reality' of Chesterton's own period, with no advances in technology or changes in the class system or...
, praises them. Wells wanted to end war by establishing an authority that could ban any difference between people that might lead to disagreements and perhaps war. Chesterton wanted to reduce the likelihood of war by reminding people that a healthy love for your country meant respecting the love others have for their country. In the December 31, 1910 issue of Illustrated London News
Illustrated London News
The Illustrated London News was the world's first illustrated weekly newspaper; the first issue appeared on Saturday 14 May 1842. It was published weekly until 1971 and then increasingly less frequently until publication ceased in 2003.-History:...
he wrote:
Further reading
Published histories of Braintree & Bocking include:- May Cunnington & Stephen Warner:'Braintree & Bocking'(1906);
- W. F. Quinn: A History of Braintree & Bocking (Lavenham Press, 1981);
- Michael Baker: The Book of Braintree & Bocking (Barracuda Books, 1981, Baron Books 1992);
- John Marriage: Braintree & Bocking A Pictorial History (Phillimore, 1994).
External links
- Activ Braintree online guide for the Braintree Area
- Blackwater Valley Action Group
- Braintree & Bocking 2nd Scout Group
- Braintree and Bocking Carnival
- Braintree, Whitham and Halstead Care Trust
- braintree arts theatre
- Braintree Bowmen Archery Club
- Braintree District Council
- Braintree Rivers Rotary Club
- Braintree Sixth Form
- Braintree Theatre School
- Braintree Town Football Club
- Braintree Town Netball Club
- Enjoy Braintree District; places to stay, arts, museum, culture events
- Freeport Braintree website
- Friends of Bocking Blackwater group
- Lions Club of Braintree
- Notley High School
- Tabor Science College website
- The College at Braintree, Colchester Institute
- The daysoff Guide to Braintree
- Thisisessex
- Transport Strategy for North Essex
- Weather Forecast for Braintree