Stebbing is a small village in the Uttlesford

Uttlesford

Uttlesford is a local government district in Essex, England. Its council is based in Saffron Walden.Its name is derived from the ancient Hundred of the same name....

 district of northern 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...

, England. The village is situated north of the ancient Roman road

Roman roads in Britain

Roman roads, together with Roman aqueducts and the vast standing Roman army , constituted the three most impressive features of the Roman Empire. In Britain, as in other provinces, the Romans constructed a comprehensive network of paved trunk roads Roman roads, together with Roman aqueducts and the...

 Stane Street. Its high street contains a pub, and a bowling green

Bowling green

A bowling green is a finely-laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of lawn for playing the game of lawn bowls.Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep on them...

. About 1500 people live in the village. It is 6.4 miles (10.3 km) from the nearest train station (Braintree railway station

Braintree railway station

Braintree railway station is owned by Network Rail and managed by train operating company National Express East Anglia. Most trains run direct to London Liverpool Street, joining the Great Eastern Main Line at Witham...

), and 7.6 mi (12.2 km) from nearest airport (BAA London Stansted)

Stebbing is 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...

"Henry de Ferrers

Henry de Ferrers

Henry de Ferrers was a Norman soldier from a noble family who took part in the conquest of England and is believed to have fought at the Battle of Hastings of 1066 and, in consequence, was rewarded with much land in the subdued nation.His elder brother William fell in the battle. William and Henri...

 holds Stebbing in demesne which Siward held as a manor and as two hides and 30 acres. Then and later two ploughs in demesne; now 3. Among the men then 4 ploughs now six and a half. There were six villans now eight. Then 16 bordars now 33."

Half a mile north-west of the church is The Mount, the moated earthwork remains of the medieval castle.

The Church

The earliest written record referring to the present church dates from 1377, when it was reported of Henry de Ferrers that he was “said to have been born in the Abbey of Tilty and baptised in the church of St. Mary the Virgin, Stebbing”. During work inside the church a few years ago part of the foundations of an earlier building were uncovered along with coins of King Henry II

Henry II of England

Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...

 (1154 - 1189).

The crowning glory is the stone rood screen

Rood screen

The rood screen is a common feature in late medieval church architecture. It is typically an ornate partition between the chancel and nave, of more or less open tracery constructed of wood, stone, or wrought iron...

, one of only three that survive in Europe (the others are at Great Bardfield

Great Bardfield

Great Bardfield is a large village in Essex, England.The Great Lodge at Bardfield is a Grade II listed building, which built in the 16th century and was given to Anne of Cleves by Henry VIII as one of several properties as part of a generous settlement for an amicable divorce. The grounds include...

 and in Trondheim

Trondheim

Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...

).

During restoration work in 2010 remnants were discovered of medieval wall paintings.

External links

• Stebbing village page
• old Stebbing census records
• http://www.stebbingparishcouncil.ukpc.net