East Cambridgeshire
Encyclopedia
East Cambridgeshire is a local government district
in Cambridgeshire
, England
. Its council is based in Ely
.
The district was formed on 1 April 1974 with the merger of Ely Urban District
, Ely Rural District
and Newmarket Rural District
.
According to a report by the Halifax bank in 2004, East Cambridgeshire has the fastest population growth rate of any British local authority other than the City of London
.
finds mentions an enumeration of findings made between 1884 and 1994 in the region to the north of Devil's Dyke
and Cambridge
, from the Stone Age
, the Bronze Age
and the Iron Age
(the region south of Devil's Dyke is not yet included in the survey). By far the greatest quantities of bronze objects found in England were discovered in East Cambridgeshire.
The most important Bronze Age finds were discovered in Isleham
(more than 6500 pieces), Stuntney
, Soham
, Wicken
, Chippenham
, Coveney
, Mepal
and Wilburton
. These findings include sword
s, spear
-heads, arrows
, axes
, palstaves
, knives, daggers, rapiers, armour
, decorative equipment (in particular for horses) and many fragments of sheet bronze
. The greater part of these objects have been entrusted to the Moyse's Hall Museum in Bury St Edmunds while other items are in the University of Cambridge Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge
. Other finds include traces of cremation
s and barrows
, golden torques, an extensive ditch system and a wooden track-way between Fordey Farm (Barway) and Little Thetford
. Bronze razors have also been found and it is well known that Celts shaved their cheeks.
Non-metropolitan district
Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially shire districts, are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties in a so-called "two-tier" arrangement...
in Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
, 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...
. Its council is based in Ely
Ely, Cambridgeshire
Ely is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about by road from London. It is built on a Lower Greensand island, which at a maximum elevation of is the highest land in the Fens...
.
The district was formed on 1 April 1974 with the merger of Ely Urban District
Ely Urban District
Ely Urban District was a local government district from 1894 to 1974 around the city of Ely in England.It was created in 1894 as an urban district of the Isle of Ely and was transferred to Cambridgeshire and the Isle of Ely in 1965....
, Ely Rural District
Ely Rural District
Ely was a rural district in England from 1894 to 1974. It was named after Ely, and surrounded it to the west and north. The district was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894 from the Ely rural sanitary district...
and Newmarket Rural District
Newmarket Rural District
Newmarket was a rural district in Cambridgeshire, England from 1894 to 1974. It surrounded the town of Newmarket, in Suffolk, on the north, west and south sides....
.
According to a report by the Halifax bank in 2004, East Cambridgeshire has the fastest population growth rate of any British local authority other than the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
.
Archaeology
The recent Fenland survey of archaeologicalArchaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
finds mentions an enumeration of findings made between 1884 and 1994 in the region to the north of Devil's Dyke
Devil's Dyke, Cambridgeshire
The Devil's Dyke is an earthwork in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It consists of a long bank and ditch that runs in a south-east direction from the small village of Reach to nearby Woodditton...
and 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...
, from the Stone Age
Stone Age
The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...
, the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
and the Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
(the region south of Devil's Dyke is not yet included in the survey). By far the greatest quantities of bronze objects found in England were discovered in East Cambridgeshire.
The most important Bronze Age finds were discovered in Isleham
Isleham Hoard
The Isleham Hoard is a hoard of more than 6,500 pieces of worked and unworked bronze found in 1959 at Isleham near Ely in the English county of Cambridgeshire and dating from the Bronze Age....
(more than 6500 pieces), Stuntney
Stuntney
-Location:Stuntney is located between Ely and Soham. It is just off the main road going from Newmarket to Ely, the A142.-Archaeology:The region between Devil's Dyke and the line between Littleport and Shippea Hill shows a remarkable amount of archaeological findings of the Stone Age, the Bronze Age...
, Soham
Soham
Soham is a small town in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It lies just off the A142 between Ely and Newmarket . Its population is 9,102 , and it is within the district of East Cambridgeshire.-Archaeology:...
, Wicken
Wicken, Cambridgeshire
Wicken is a small village on the edge of the fens near Soham in East Cambridgeshire, 10 miles north east of Cambridge and 5 miles south of Ely. It is the site of Wicken Fen National Nature Reserve.-History:...
, Chippenham
Chippenham, Cambridgeshire
Chippenham is a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England, part of East Cambridgeshire district around north-east of Newmarket and north-east of Cambridge.-History:The parish of Chippenham covers at the eastern end of Cambridgeshire...
, Coveney
Coveney, Cambridgeshire
Coveney is a village north of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire. Several bronze axes have been found here, shields and a few swords, all dating from the late Bronze Age. Coveney is on a small 'island' rising to above sea level, some west of Ely city as the crow flies, but nearly twice that distance by...
, Mepal
Mepal
Mepal is a village in Cambridgeshire, England. Mepal is part of the East Cambridgeshire district, and is located just north of the A142 road between Ely and Chatteris.-History:...
and Wilburton
Wilburton
Wilburton is a small village of just over 1,000 inhabitants, situated in Cambridgeshire, England. It is 6 miles south west of Ely.While nominally an agricultural village, many of the inhabitants work in Cambridge, Ely or London.-History:...
. These findings include sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
s, spear
Spear
A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head.The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastened to the shaft, such as flint, obsidian, iron, steel or...
-heads, arrows
Arrows
Arrows Grand Prix International was a British Formula One team active from to . For a period of time, it was also known as Footwork.-Origins :...
, axes
Axes
Axes may refer to:* Axes, woodworking hand tools* The plural of axis* Axes , a 2005 rock album by the British band Electrelane* X and Y axes, or X, Y, and Z axes, perpendicular lines used in the Cartesian coordinate system...
, palstaves
Axe
The axe, or ax, is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood; to harvest timber; as a weapon; and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol...
, knives, daggers, rapiers, armour
Armour
Armour or armor is protective covering used to prevent damage from being inflicted to an object, individual or a vehicle through use of direct contact weapons or projectiles, usually during combat, or from damage caused by a potentially dangerous environment or action...
, decorative equipment (in particular for horses) and many fragments of sheet bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
. The greater part of these objects have been entrusted to the Moyse's Hall Museum in Bury St Edmunds while other items are in the University of Cambridge Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in 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...
. Other finds include traces of cremation
Cremation
Cremation is the process of reducing bodies to basic chemical compounds such as gasses and bone fragments. This is accomplished through high-temperature burning, vaporization and oxidation....
s and barrows
Tumulus
A tumulus is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, Hügelgrab or kurgans, and can be found throughout much of the world. A tumulus composed largely or entirely of stones is usually referred to as a cairn...
, golden torques, an extensive ditch system and a wooden track-way between Fordey Farm (Barway) and Little Thetford
Little Thetford
Little Thetford is a small village and civil parish south of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England, about by road from London. The village is built on a boulder clay island surrounded by flat fenland countryside, typical of settlements in this part of the East of England...
. Bronze razors have also been found and it is well known that Celts shaved their cheeks.
Settlements in East Cambridgeshire
- AldrethAldrethAldreth is a hamlet in Cambridgeshire with about 260 residents . It is located near the larger village of Haddenham and falls under the same Parish council. Aldreth is surrounded by fenland on all sides and the River Great Ouse, or the Old West as the locals call it, runs close by...
- AshleyAshley, CambridgeshireAshley is a village and civil parish in the East Cambridgeshire district of Cambridgeshire, England, about four miles east of Newmarket in Suffolk....
- BarwayBarwayBarway is a small village in Cambridgeshire, England, about three miles south of Ely. It is on Soham Lode, which flows into the River Cam....
- BottishamBottishamBottisham 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:...
- BrinkleyBrinkley, CambridgeshireBrinkley is a small village in Cambridgeshire, England. It is situated about 15 miles east of Cambridge and 5 miles south of Newmarket, the horse racing centre. It features a pub, The Red Lion, but its Post Office closed down in the 1990s. Children go to school in the neighbouring village, Burrough...
- BurwellBurwell, CambridgeshireBurwell is a large fen-edge village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England, about 10 miles north east of Cambridge. It is situated on the south-eastern edge of The Fens, a large area of relatively flat former marshland which lies close to sea level and covers the majority of Cambridgeshire...
- ChettishamChettishamChettisham a very small village in East Cambridgeshire between Ely and Littleport. The main claim to fame is the level crossing along the A10, the few houses in the layby and the old signal box where there was once a Chettisham railway station on the line between Ely and March.There are some...
- CheveleyCheveleyThe village of Cheveley is situated in the county of Cambridgeshire and lies about four miles east-south-east of the market town of Newmarket. Cheveley falls within the local government district of East Cambridgeshire. Geographically, Cheveley stands on the third highest point in Cambridgeshire at ...
- ChippenhamChippenham, CambridgeshireChippenham is a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England, part of East Cambridgeshire district around north-east of Newmarket and north-east of Cambridge.-History:The parish of Chippenham covers at the eastern end of Cambridgeshire...
- CoveneyCoveney, CambridgeshireCoveney is a village north of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire. Several bronze axes have been found here, shields and a few swords, all dating from the late Bronze Age. Coveney is on a small 'island' rising to above sea level, some west of Ely city as the crow flies, but nearly twice that distance by...
- DullinghamDullinghamDullingham is a village and civil parish in East Cambridgeshire, England. It is situated south of Newmarket and east of Cambridge.-History:...
- ElyEly, CambridgeshireEly is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about by road from London. It is built on a Lower Greensand island, which at a maximum elevation of is the highest land in the Fens...
(City) - FordhamFordham, CambridgeshireFordham is a village in rural Cambridgeshire, England. Fordham is part of the East Cambridgeshire district. It is four miles north of Newmarket, as well as being close to the settlements of Soham, Burwell, Isleham, Mildenhall and Chippenham.-History:...
- HaddenhamHaddenham, CambridgeshireHaddenham is a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England. In the 2001 census the parish had a population of 3,228.It has several shops and a regular bus service to the cathedral city of Ely, which is about north-east of the village....
- IslehamIslehamIsleham is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It is part of the Fens.-Geography:Isleham is located in the Fens of south-east Cambridgeshire. The western parish boundary is formed by the Crooked Ditch, the eastern boundary largely by the Lea Brook and the north...
- Little DownhamLittle DownhamSituated in the east of Cambridgeshire, the village of Little Downham is located just north of the city of Ely. The Parish of Little Downham comprises Little Downham and Pymoor...
- Little ThetfordLittle ThetfordLittle Thetford is a small village and civil parish south of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England, about by road from London. The village is built on a boulder clay island surrounded by flat fenland countryside, typical of settlements in this part of the East of England...
- LittleportLittleport, CambridgeshireLittleport is the largest village in East Cambridgeshire, England, approximately north of Ely and south-east of Welney. It lies on the Bedford Level South section of the River Great Ouse, close to Burnt Fen and Mare Fen...
- LodeLode, CambridgeshireLode 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....
- LongmeadowLong Meadow, CambridgeshireLong Meadow is a small hamlet, twinned but physically separate from the neighbouring village of Lode and part of the same village parish. Lode is 1/2 mile to the west of Long Meadow. Swaffham Bulbeck is about the same to the east....
- MepalMepalMepal is a village in Cambridgeshire, England. Mepal is part of the East Cambridgeshire district, and is located just north of the A142 road between Ely and Chatteris.-History:...
- PrickwillowPrickwillowOriginally a small hamlet on the banks of the River Great Ouse, but now on the banks of the River Lark since re-organisation of the river system, the village of Prickwillow has an estimated mid-2005 population of 440...
- Pymoor
- Queen AdelaideQueen Adelaide, CambridgeshireQueen Adelaide, Cambridgeshire, England, is a hamlet in the Fens about northeast of Ely. The River Great Ouse passes through it.Close to the village is the junction of the Fen, Breckland and Ely to Peterborough railway lines...
- ReachReach, CambridgeshireReach is a small village and civil parish on the edge of the fenland in East Cambridgeshire, England.Reach is located at the north end of Devil's Dyke, about west of Burwell. The dyke split the settlement in two until part of it was refilled to create the current Fair Green in the 18th century...
- SohamSohamSoham is a small town in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It lies just off the A142 between Ely and Newmarket . Its population is 9,102 , and it is within the district of East Cambridgeshire.-Archaeology:...
(Town) - StetchworthStetchworthStetchworth is a small village and civil parish in East Cambridgeshire, England, to the south of the horse-racing centre of Newmarket and around east of Cambridge.-History:...
- StrethamStrethamStretham is a small village and civil parish south-south-west of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England, about by road from London. Its main attraction is Stretham Old Engine, a steam-powered pump used to drain the fens. The pump is still in use today although converted to electric power. It has open...
- StuntneyStuntney-Location:Stuntney is located between Ely and Soham. It is just off the main road going from Newmarket to Ely, the A142.-Archaeology:The region between Devil's Dyke and the line between Littleport and Shippea Hill shows a remarkable amount of archaeological findings of the Stone Age, the Bronze Age...
- SuttonSutton-in-the-IsleSutton-in-the-Isle, commonly referred to simply as Sutton, is a parish and village in the county of Cambridgeshire in England, near the city of Ely. The "in-the-Isle" suffix refers to the fact that the village is part of the Isle of Ely, once an island in The Fens and also an administrative county...
- Swaffham BulbeckSwaffham BulbeckSwaffham Bulbeck is a village in East Cambridgeshire, England.Swaffham Bulbeck is located about from the city of Cambridge, and 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...
- Swaffham PriorSwaffham PriorSwaffham 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...
- UpwareUpwareUpware is a hamlet in Wicken civil parish, part of East Cambridgeshire, England, lying on the east bank of the River Cam.-History:Situated in the isolated south-west corner of the parish of Wicken, the hamlet of Upware is believed to have existed, and indeed been known by its present name, since at...
- WickenWicken, CambridgeshireWicken is a small village on the edge of the fens near Soham in East Cambridgeshire, 10 miles north east of Cambridge and 5 miles south of Ely. It is the site of Wicken Fen National Nature Reserve.-History:...
- WilburtonWilburtonWilburton is a small village of just over 1,000 inhabitants, situated in Cambridgeshire, England. It is 6 miles south west of Ely.While nominally an agricultural village, many of the inhabitants work in Cambridge, Ely or London.-History:...
- WitchamWitchamWitcham is a small village near Ely in Cambridgeshire, England.The village is surrounded by fenland farms and has a village hall and a 13th-century church dedicated to St Martin. It has a pub called the White Horse, which was the winner of the Ely and District CAMRA Rural Pub of the Year Award...
- WitchfordWitchfordWitchford is a small village near Ely in Cambridgeshire, England.Witchford houses the secondary school Witchford Village College that serves all of the surrounding villages, including Haddenham, Little Thetford, Mepal, Stretham, Sutton, Wilburton and Witcham.The village hosts the Grunty Fen Half...
- WooddittonWooddittonWoodditton is a village and civil parish in East Cambridgeshire, England. The other settlements in the parish are Ditton Green, Little Ditton and Saxon Street. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 1,789 people....