Godmanchester
Encyclopedia
Godmanchester is a small town and civil parish within the Huntingdonshire
district of Cambridgeshire
, in England. It lies on the south bank of the River Great Ouse
, south of the larger town of Huntingdon
, and on the A14 road.
The town was on the site of the Roman town of Durovigutum. It was first chartered by King John
in 1212, though it had been a market town
and royal manor for some years. There is archaeological evidence of Celt
ic and earlier habitation prior to the establishment of a key Roman
town and a Mansio
(inn
), so the area has probably been continuously occupied for more than 2000 years. The settlement was at a crossroads of Roman road
s, with Ermine Street
, the Via Devana
(from Cambridge
, between Colchester
and Chester
) and a military road from Sandy, Bedfordshire
, all passing through. The Roman settlement was sacked by Anglo-Saxons
in the third century. In contrast to Huntingdon
, there have been vast amounts of archaeological finds in the centre of Godmanchester, which has two conservation areas with a large number of timber-framed Tudor
houses, the largest being Tudor Farm, dating from 1600 and restored in 1995.
The mansio is mentioned in Godmanchester's name, which comes from Anglo-Saxon
Godmundceaster, meaning a "town or Roman buildings associated with a man called Godmund". The location is likely to have been originally settled due to the gravel
beds providing a ford across the River Great Ouse
. In 2003 it had a population of about 5500 in 3500 homes, with the largest increase in population occurring between 1981 and 1991 (81%) with more modest growth since.
There are several bridges across the Great Ouse to Huntingdon, but until 1975 Old Bridge, Huntingdon
, a medieval bridge, was the only one. It is now used only for light traffic, and a parallel footbridge
has been built for pedestrians. Construction of the A14 bypass means that heavy traffic now flows over a modern bridge.
One of the town's best-known features is its Chinese Bridge
which connects Godmanchester with a water meadow. Local legend has it that the Chinese Bridge was built without the use of nails or any other fixings. A number of years later, an architect applied to the council for permission to deconstruct the bridge to discover how exactly this had been accomplished. This being done, they tried to reconstruct it, but found that they could not get it to support itself under its own weight. Today the Chinese Bridge is held together by nails. Of course this is false, as Cambridge has the same urban legend. More likely is that the original nails eroded away, giving the appearance that no nails existed. With maintenance work carried out in the latter part of the 20th century, nails would have been applied to strengthen the structure.
The bridge was removed by crane on Tuesday 9 February 2010. A new replica will be put into position on Monday 15th and Tuesday 16 February.
Between Godmanchester, Huntingdon and Brampton lies England's largest meadow, Portholme, which remains an important flood plain but which has served as a horse race course and centre for early aviation.
About a mile south of the town centre, on the A1198 road
at is the headquarters of the Wood Green Animal Shelters
- a charity dedicated to rehoming unwanted pets.
Original historical documents relating to Godmanchester, including the original church parish registers, local government records, maps, photographs and the surviving borough charters, are held by Cambridgeshire Archives and Local Studies
at the County Record Office Huntingdon.
Huntingdonshire
Huntingdonshire is a local government district of Cambridgeshire, covering the area around Huntingdon. Traditionally it is a county in its own right...
district of 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...
, in England. It lies on the south bank of the River Great Ouse
River Great Ouse
The Great Ouse is a river in the east of England. At long, it is the fourth-longest river in the United Kingdom. The river has been important for navigation, and for draining the low-lying region through which it flows. Its course has been modified several times, with the first recorded being in...
, south of the larger town of Huntingdon
Huntingdon
Huntingdon is a market town in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was chartered by King John in 1205. It is the traditional county town of Huntingdonshire, and is currently the seat of the Huntingdonshire district council. It is known as the birthplace in 1599 of Oliver Cromwell.-History:Huntingdon...
, and on the A14 road.
The town was on the site of the Roman town of Durovigutum. It was first chartered by King John
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
in 1212, though it had been a market town
Market town
Market town or market right is a legal term, originating in the medieval period, for a European settlement that has the right to host markets, distinguishing it from a village and city...
and royal manor for some years. There is archaeological evidence of Celt
Celt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
ic and earlier habitation prior to the establishment of a key Roman
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
town and a Mansio
Mansio
In the Roman Empire, a mansio was an official stopping place on a Roman road, or via, maintained by the central government for the use of officials and those on official business whilst travelling.-Background:The roads which traversed the Ancient World, were later surveyed,...
(inn
INN
InterNetNews is a Usenet news server package, originally released by Rich Salz in 1991, and presented at the Summer 1992 USENIX conference in San Antonio, Texas...
), so the area has probably been continuously occupied for more than 2000 years. The settlement was at a crossroads of Roman road
Roman 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...
s, with Ermine Street
Ermine Street
Ermine Street is the name of a major Roman road in England that ran from London to Lincoln and York . The Old English name was 'Earninga Straete' , named after a tribe called the Earningas, who inhabited a district later known as Armingford Hundred, around Arrington, Cambridgeshire and Royston,...
, the Via Devana
Via Devana
The Via Devana was a Roman Road in England that ran from Colchester in the south-east to Chester in the north-west. Both were important Roman military centres and it is conjectured that the main reason the road was constructed was military rather than civilian. The Latin name for Chester is Deva...
(from 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...
, between Colchester
Camulodunum
Camulodunum is the Roman name for the ancient settlement which is today's Colchester, a town in Essex, England. Camulodunum is claimed to be the oldest town in Britain as recorded by the Romans, existing as a Celtic settlement before the Roman conquest, when it became the first Roman town, and...
and Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
) and a military road from Sandy, Bedfordshire
Sandy, Bedfordshire
Sandy is a small market town and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England. It is between Cambridge and Bedford, and on the A1 road from London to Edinburgh. The area is dominated by a range of hills known as the Sand Hills. The River Ivel runs through Sandy. The dedication of the Anglican church is to...
, all passing through. The Roman settlement was sacked by Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-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...
in the third century. In contrast to Huntingdon
Huntingdon
Huntingdon is a market town in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was chartered by King John in 1205. It is the traditional county town of Huntingdonshire, and is currently the seat of the Huntingdonshire district council. It is known as the birthplace in 1599 of Oliver Cromwell.-History:Huntingdon...
, there have been vast amounts of archaeological finds in the centre of Godmanchester, which has two conservation areas with a large number of timber-framed Tudor
Tudor architecture
The Tudor architectural style is the final development of medieval architecture during the Tudor period and even beyond, for conservative college patrons...
houses, the largest being Tudor Farm, dating from 1600 and restored in 1995.
Old English language
Old English or Anglo-Saxon is an early form of the English language that was spoken and written by the Anglo-Saxons and their descendants in parts of what are now England and southeastern Scotland between at least the mid-5th century and the mid-12th century...
Godmundceaster, meaning a "town or Roman buildings associated with a man called Godmund". The location is likely to have been originally settled due to the gravel
Gravel
Gravel is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel can be sub-categorized into granule and cobble...
beds providing a ford across the River Great Ouse
River Great Ouse
The Great Ouse is a river in the east of England. At long, it is the fourth-longest river in the United Kingdom. The river has been important for navigation, and for draining the low-lying region through which it flows. Its course has been modified several times, with the first recorded being in...
. In 2003 it had a population of about 5500 in 3500 homes, with the largest increase in population occurring between 1981 and 1991 (81%) with more modest growth since.
There are several bridges across the Great Ouse to Huntingdon, but until 1975 Old Bridge, Huntingdon
Old Bridge, Huntingdon
The old bridge in Huntingdon is a well-preserved medieval stone bridge over the River Great Ouse, connecting Huntingdon to Godmanchester.-History:...
, a medieval bridge, was the only one. It is now used only for light traffic, and a parallel footbridge
Footbridge
A footbridge or pedestrian bridge is a bridge designed for pedestrians and in some cases cyclists, animal traffic and horse riders, rather than vehicular traffic. Footbridges complement the landscape and can be used decoratively to visually link two distinct areas or to signal a transaction...
has been built for pedestrians. Construction of the A14 bypass means that heavy traffic now flows over a modern bridge.
One of the town's best-known features is its Chinese Bridge
Godmanchester Chinese Bridge
Godmanchester Chinese Bridge is a landmark of the town of Godmanchester, Huntingdonshire . It is a pedestrian bridge that spans a mill stream on the River Great Ouse and is, as the name suggests, built in an ostensibly Chinese style...
which connects Godmanchester with a water meadow. Local legend has it that the Chinese Bridge was built without the use of nails or any other fixings. A number of years later, an architect applied to the council for permission to deconstruct the bridge to discover how exactly this had been accomplished. This being done, they tried to reconstruct it, but found that they could not get it to support itself under its own weight. Today the Chinese Bridge is held together by nails. Of course this is false, as Cambridge has the same urban legend. More likely is that the original nails eroded away, giving the appearance that no nails existed. With maintenance work carried out in the latter part of the 20th century, nails would have been applied to strengthen the structure.
The bridge was removed by crane on Tuesday 9 February 2010. A new replica will be put into position on Monday 15th and Tuesday 16 February.
Between Godmanchester, Huntingdon and Brampton lies England's largest meadow, Portholme, which remains an important flood plain but which has served as a horse race course and centre for early aviation.
About a mile south of the town centre, on the A1198 road
A1198 road
The A1198 is a road in Cambridgeshire, England, following the route of Ermine Street between the A505 at Royston, Hertfordshire and Godmanchester, near Huntingdon....
at is the headquarters of the Wood Green Animal Shelters
Wood Green Animal Shelters
Wood Green Animal Shelters is an English animal welfare charity.The charity was founded in 1924 as a response to the number of animals abandoned on London's streets.There are three shelters:#601, Lordship Lane, Wood Green, North London...
- a charity dedicated to rehoming unwanted pets.
Original historical documents relating to Godmanchester, including the original church parish registers, local government records, maps, photographs and the surviving borough charters, are held by Cambridgeshire Archives and Local Studies
Cambridgeshire Archives and Local Studies
Cambridgeshire Archives and Local Studies Service is a UK local government institution which collects and preserves archives, other historical documents and printed material relating to the modern county of Cambridgeshire, which includes the former counties of Huntingdonshire and the Isle of Ely...
at the County Record Office Huntingdon.