Great Wratting is a village and civil parish

Civil parish

In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

 in 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...

, about four miles from Haverhill

Haverhill, Suffolk

Haverhill is an industrial market town and civil parish in the county of Suffolk, England, next to the borders of Essex and Cambridgeshire. It lies southeast of Cambridge and north of central London...

, Suffolk

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...

, in the valley of the River Stour

River Stour, Suffolk

The River Stour is a river in East Anglia, England. It is 76 km long and forms most of the county boundary between Suffolk to the north, and Essex to the south. It rises in eastern Cambridgeshire, passes to the east of Haverhill, through Cavendish, Sudbury and the Dedham Vale, and joins the...

. There is a ford across the Stour in the centre of the village, where bathing and fishing are common pursuits.The river here is heavily populated by crayfish, a non native species long since escaped from farms near the mouth of the Stour.

Etymology

The origins of the name of the village are uncertain. There is a Little Wratting

Little Wratting

Little Wratting is a small village and civil parish in the St Edmundsbury district of Suffolk in eastern England. Located on the north-eastern edge of Haverhill, in 2005 its population was 160....

 nearby, and a West Wratting

West Wratting

West Wratting is a village and civil parish 10 miles southeast of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire. At above sea level, it can claim to be the highest village in Cambridgeshire, although the Gog Magog Hills are a little higher....

 about 10 miles away. One theory is that the name originates in the process of candle-making, where 'wratting' refers to part of the process of preparing tallow. Others think the name may refer to catching rats.

History

Many of the older houses in the village were once estate cottages on the Thurlow Estate, now owned by the Vestey family, and date to the 16th century or earlier. A large proportion are thatched, mostly with traditional Suffolk straw thatch, but with some Norfolk reed thatch. The village boasts a vibrant and successful pub, the Red Lion, a thriving Anglican church, St Mary's, and a church room purchased by the village which is used for meetings and concerts. The old vicarage, the old school and the old post office are now - long since - family homes, as are the old forge (which has also been the old Bell pub).
The village is well known for its large and hugely successful annual summer fete - held either at Great Wratting Hall or Rook Tree Farm on the first Saturday in June. A local silver band plays all afternoon and people attend from miles around. The village also has a well attended carol service and festival of readings on the Friday before Christmas. The flint walled church is Saxon in origin, its interior Victorian but with a wooden rood screen which was possibly put in by W H Smith

W H Smith

WHSmith plc is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. It is best known for its chain of high street, railway station, airport, hospital and motorway service station shops selling books, stationery, magazines, newspapers, and entertainment products...

 of book-selling fame (once a resident of the Hall).

Great Wratting was mentioned 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...

.

It lays claim to being the site of the battle where Boudica

Boudica

Boudica , also known as Boadicea and known in Welsh as "Buddug" was queen of the British Iceni tribe who led an uprising against the occupying forces of the Roman Empire....

defeated the IXth Legion, a claim also made by a village in Essex.

Schools

The nearest schools are the Church of England Primary in Thurlow, Samuel Ward comprehensive, in Haverhill, and Barnardiston Hall, a private preparatory school at the far end of The Street.

External links

• Parish Council website