Luffield Abbey
Encyclopedia
Luffield Abbey is a village
in the very north of Buckinghamshire
, England
. It is on the border with Northamptonshire
, close to Biddlesden
. It is one of the few examples in the country where there is an ancient parish
with no church at its centre, though since the Victorian era
it has been considered part of both Stowe
in Buckinghamshire (although the two aren't neighbours) and Silverstone
in Northamptonshire.
Little information remains of the ancient abbey
from which the village takes its name though the name 'Luffield' is Anglo-Saxon
and means 'Lufa's field'. There was no trace of the ancient abbey in a land survey conducted in 1732.
added: The remains of the abbey were found on the edge of the south east runway of the airfield which is now part of Silverstone Circuit.
about 200mtr NE from stowe corner. Markings of the foundations can be seen in discolorations in the grass on some aerial images taken in the early 1990s.
Human remains were found nearby to the abbey in the 1970s. found to be monks who had been sufferers of the plague and buried face down.
foundations for Luffied chapel still exist in the hedgerows nearby to "chapel" corner of the circuit.
The corner Luffield on the Silverstone Circuit
is named after this.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in the very north of Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
, 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...
. It is on the border with Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
, close to Biddlesden
Biddlesden
Biddlesden is a village and civil parish in Aylesbury Vale district in north-west Buckinghamshire, England on the boundary with Northamptonshire. It is about east-north-east of Brackley, Northamptonshire and north-west of Buckingham. The River Great Ouse forms part of the western boundary of the...
. It is one of the few examples in the country where there is an ancient parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
with no church at its centre, though since the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
it has been considered part of both Stowe
Stowe, Buckinghamshire
Stowe is a civil parish and former village about northwest of Buckingham in the Aylesbury Vale district of Buckinghamshire, England. The parish includes the hamlets of Boycott, Dadford and Lamport....
in Buckinghamshire (although the two aren't neighbours) and Silverstone
Silverstone
Silverstone is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is about from Towcester on the former A43 main road, from the M1 motorway junction 15A and about from the M40 motorway junction 10, Northampton, Milton Keynes and Banbury...
in Northamptonshire.
Little information remains of the ancient abbey
Abbey
An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...
from which the village takes its name though the name 'Luffield' is Anglo-Saxon
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...
and means 'Lufa's field'. There was no trace of the ancient abbey in a land survey conducted in 1732.
added: The remains of the abbey were found on the edge of the south east runway of the airfield which is now part of Silverstone Circuit.
about 200mtr NE from stowe corner. Markings of the foundations can be seen in discolorations in the grass on some aerial images taken in the early 1990s.
Human remains were found nearby to the abbey in the 1970s. found to be monks who had been sufferers of the plague and buried face down.
foundations for Luffied chapel still exist in the hedgerows nearby to "chapel" corner of the circuit.
The corner Luffield on the Silverstone Circuit
Silverstone Circuit
Silverstone Circuit is an English motor racing circuit next to the Northamptonshire villages of Silverstone and Whittlebury. The circuit straddles the Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire border, with the current main circuit entry on the Buckinghamshire side...
is named after this.