Whissendine
Encyclopedia
Whissendine is a village
and civil parish
in the county of Rutland
, England
lying north west of the county town, Oakham
.
It has two pubs (The White Lion and The Three Horseshoes), a church, a former Methodist chapel, and a windmill
. The Methodist chapel closed in 2009, the last service being held on 30 August.
Whissendine Windmill, built in 1809, is again producing flour. Miller Nigel Moon restored the full set of sails in September 2006 and has returned it to wind power.
The large parish church towards the east of the village centre has a prominent tower. The screen to the Lady Chapel
was brought here in the 19th century from the old chapel of St John's College, Cambridge
.
Whissendine Church of England Primary School is situated in the middle of the village and has a reputation which draws pupils from outside its catchment area.
The Village Hall is a centre for the community, hosting many events throughout the year including antiques
fayres and the village pantomime
. Each year in late June, the village hosts a "feast week", an ancient custom from the middle ages that has been reintroduced and entails a week of activities for the community. This includes a 6 miles (9.7 km) run, an AA approved race, the Feast week extravaganza, the knockout and the fete on the green.
The village also has a Sports Club which plays host to a cricket
team, football pitch, tennis
club, archery
club and a bowling green.
The pasture called The Banks is still let by an ancient custom. This involves a candle in which a pin is stuck is lit and the last bidder before the pin falls is entitled to rent The Banks for the ensuing year.
The village has a thriving scout and cub pack drawing children across the county to participate. It meets every Tuesday in the School Hall.
The village sits on the Rutland Round, the circular walk around Britain's smallest county.
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...
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 the county of Rutland
Rutland
Rutland is a landlocked county in central England, bounded on the west and north by Leicestershire, northeast by Lincolnshire and southeast by Peterborough and Northamptonshire....
, 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...
lying north west of the county town, Oakham
Oakham
-Oakham's horseshoes:Traditionally, members of royalty and peers of the realm who visited or passed through the town had to pay a forfeit in the form of a horseshoe...
.
Windmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
. The Methodist chapel closed in 2009, the last service being held on 30 August.
Whissendine Windmill, built in 1809, is again producing flour. Miller Nigel Moon restored the full set of sails in September 2006 and has returned it to wind power.
The large parish church towards the east of the village centre has a prominent tower. The screen to the Lady Chapel
Lady chapel
A Lady chapel, also called Mary chapel or Marian chapel, is a traditional English term for a chapel inside a cathedral, basilica, or large church dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary...
was brought here in the 19th century from the old chapel of St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
.
Whissendine Church of England Primary School is situated in the middle of the village and has a reputation which draws pupils from outside its catchment area.
The Village Hall is a centre for the community, hosting many events throughout the year including antiques
Antiques
An antique is an old collectible item. It is collected or desirable because of its age , beauty, rarity, condition, utility, personal emotional connection, and/or other unique features...
fayres and the village pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
. Each year in late June, the village hosts a "feast week", an ancient custom from the middle ages that has been reintroduced and entails a week of activities for the community. This includes a 6 miles (9.7 km) run, an AA approved race, the Feast week extravaganza, the knockout and the fete on the green.
The village also has a Sports Club which plays host to a cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
team, football pitch, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
club, archery
Archery
Archery is the art, practice, or skill of propelling arrows with the use of a bow, from Latin arcus. Archery has historically been used for hunting and combat; in modern times, however, its main use is that of a recreational activity...
club and a bowling green.
The pasture called The Banks is still let by an ancient custom. This involves a candle in which a pin is stuck is lit and the last bidder before the pin falls is entitled to rent The Banks for the ensuing year.
The village has a thriving scout and cub pack drawing children across the county to participate. It meets every Tuesday in the School Hall.
The village sits on the Rutland Round, the circular walk around Britain's smallest county.