East Bergholt
Encyclopedia
East Bergholt is a village in the south of Suffolk
, England
, just north of the Essex
border. It is "twinned" with the village of Barbizon
, France
.
East Bergholt and Hadleigh are the largest villages in the Stour Valley, a region historically known for its manufacture of linen
s The nearest town and railway station, a few miles away, is Manningtree
, Essex. East Bergholt is situated 10 miles north of Colchester and 8 miles south of Ipswich. Schools include East Bergholt High School
, a comprehensive for children aged 11-16, and a primary school.
During the 16th century, its inhabitants became well known for Protestant radicalism A few of its citizens were martyr
ed during the reign of Queen Mary I
, and the Protestant martyrologist John Foxe
recorded their stories in his famous work Acts and Monuments (also known as Foxe's Book of Martyrs
).
East Bergholt is the birthplace of the painter John Constable
. Flatford
and Dedham, Essex
, both made famous by John Constable, are within walking distance of East Bergholt.
The bells are exceptional in that they are not rung from below by ropes attached to wheels, as is usual in change ringing
, but the headstock
is manipulated by hand by ringers standing right beside the bells.
The bells themselves are believed to be the heaviest five (A, G, F#, E, and D) that are rung in England today, with a weight of 4¼ tons.
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...
, 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...
, just north of the 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...
border. It is "twinned" with the village of Barbizon
Barbizon
Barbizon is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in north-central France. It is located near the Fontainebleau Forest.-Art history:The Barbizon school of painters is named after the village; Théodore Rousseau and Jean-François Millet, leaders of the school, made their homes and died in the...
, France
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...
.
East Bergholt and Hadleigh are the largest villages in the Stour Valley, a region historically known for its manufacture of linen
Linen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
s The nearest town and railway station, a few miles away, is Manningtree
Manningtree
Manningtree is a town and civil parish in the Tendring district of Essex, England, which lies on the River Stour. It adjoins built-up areas of Lawford to the west and Mistley to the east and the three parishes together are sometimes referred to as "Manningtree".Manningtree is a claimant for the...
, Essex. East Bergholt is situated 10 miles north of Colchester and 8 miles south of Ipswich. Schools include East Bergholt High School
East Bergholt High School
East Bergholt High School and Science College is in Heath Road, East Bergholt, Suffolk, north of Colchester, Essex, and nine miles south of Ipswich, Suffolk. It has 880 students. The current headteacher is Mr Colin Turner.-History:...
, a comprehensive for children aged 11-16, and a primary school.
During the 16th century, its inhabitants became well known for Protestant radicalism A few of its citizens were martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
ed during the reign of Queen Mary I
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
, and the Protestant martyrologist John Foxe
John Foxe
John Foxe was an English historian and martyrologist, the author of what is popularly known as Foxe's Book of Martyrs, , an account of Christian martyrs throughout Western history but emphasizing the sufferings of English Protestants and proto-Protestants from the fourteenth century through the...
recorded their stories in his famous work Acts and Monuments (also known as Foxe's Book of Martyrs
Foxe's Book of Martyrs
The Book of Martyrs, by John Foxe, more accurately Acts and Monuments, is an account from a Protestant point of view of Christian church history and martyrology...
).
East Bergholt is the birthplace of the painter John Constable
John Constable
John Constable was an English Romantic painter. Born in Suffolk, he is known principally for his landscape paintings of Dedham Vale, the area surrounding his home—now known as "Constable Country"—which he invested with an intensity of affection...
. Flatford
Flatford
Flatford is a small hamlet close to East Bergholt in Suffolk. It is most famous for Flatford Mill, Willy Lott's Cottage and Bridge Cottage, immortalised in the paintings of John Constable.-Access by Road:...
and Dedham, Essex
Dedham, Essex
Dedham is a village within the borough of Colchester in northeast Essex, England, situated on the River Stour and on the border of Essex and Suffolk...
, both made famous by John Constable, are within walking distance of East Bergholt.
St. Mary's Church and its famous bell cage
The Church of St. Mary the Virgin was built in the 15th and 16th centuries, but is well known for the absence of a tower or spire to house the bells. Work had begun on a tower in 1525, but Cardinal Wolsey's fall from grace in 1530 brought construction to a halt and the following year a temporary wooden bell cage had to be erected in the churchyard for the bells. However, this temporary structure still exists some 500 years or so later, although not in its original position. It was moved from the south to the north side of the church in the seventeenth century because the then occupant of Old Hall objected to the noise of the bells.The bells are exceptional in that they are not rung from below by ropes attached to wheels, as is usual in change ringing
Change ringing
Change ringing is the art of ringing a set of tuned bells in a series of mathematical patterns called "changes". It differs from many other forms of campanology in that no attempt is made to produce a conventional melody....
, but the headstock
Headstock
Headstock or peghead is a part of guitar or similar stringed instrument. The main function of a headstock is holding the instrument's strings. Strings go from the bridge past the nut and are usually fixed on machine heads on headstock...
is manipulated by hand by ringers standing right beside the bells.
The bells themselves are believed to be the heaviest five (A, G, F#, E, and D) that are rung in England today, with a weight of 4¼ tons.
Other important buildings
As well as the church, the following buildings are also to be found in East Bergholt:- Old Hall (a former nunnery, later friary, which now houses the Old Hall Community, a single household of about 60 people who are drawn together by their desire to live co-operatively and farm organically)
- Stour House (once the home of Randolph ChurchillRandolph ChurchillMajor Randolph Frederick Edward Spencer-Churchill, MBE was the son of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his wife Clementine. He was a Conservative Member of Parliament for Preston from 1940 to 1945....
) - East Bergholt Place (home of the Eley family and "The Place for Plants" garden centre, noted for its cameliaCamelia-Awards:* Anugerah Industri Muzik 1998** Best New Artist**Best Vocal Performance in an Album for "Camelia"-Personal life:She was married to Mohd Ehsan Tun Ahmad Zaidi Adruce until their divorce in 1999. She then married a prominent local developer who is a Datuk in 2010. This makes her formal...
s) - Lambe School (the former schoolrooms now used for public and private functions)
- Bridge CottageBridge CottageBridge Cottage is a 16th-century thatched cottage in Flatford, East Bergholt, Suffolk, England. It has been a National Trust property since 1943. The National Trust market the property under the name "Flatford: Bridge Cottage"....
, a 16th Century cottage, used as a location by John ConstableJohn ConstableJohn Constable was an English Romantic painter. Born in Suffolk, he is known principally for his landscape paintings of Dedham Vale, the area surrounding his home—now known as "Constable Country"—which he invested with an intensity of affection...
.