History of Finchingfield

Finchingfield is often described as one of the most picturesque villages in England, with a history spanning back thousands of years. Its development can be traced through several distinct periods:

Pre-History and Roman Period

Ice Age & Stone Age

The valley where Finchingfield sits was carved by melting ice-age glaciers, which also formed the village pond. The oldest known flint tool found dates back approximately 12,000 years, and a Neolithic polished axe head is about 3,000 years old.

Roman Settlements

Archaeological evidence points to at least two Roman settlements in the parish, with finds including tiles, pottery, oyster shells, deer horns, and a beehive quern for grinding corn, likely dating from AD 50-150.

Anglo-Saxon and Norman Period (c. AD 500 - 1300)

Anglo-Saxon Origin

Around AD 500, the Kingdom of Essex was founded. The village's Saxon name, Phincinghefelda, suggests an origin meaning 'land cleared by the people of Phinc'.

Domesday Book (1086)

Finchingfield was recorded as a significant settlement in the Domesday Book, listed as Phincingfelda. It had a recorded population of 124 households, placing it in the largest 20% of settlements at the time. Its land was held by various Norman owners, including King William I and Hervy de Ispania.

Hervy de Ispania and Family, one of the Domesday tenants-in-chief, built the original manor house, a moated wooden structure and was later known as Spains Hall (named after the family).

St John the Baptist Church is the oldest stone building in Finchingfield village, the church's large Norman tower dates from c. 1170.

Medieval Period (c. 1300 - 1485)

The Church of St John the Baptist saw significant construction, with the chancel, aisles, and chapels being built or remodelled in the late 13th and 14th centuries. The church boasts an exceptionally fine and well-preserved 15th-century rood screen.

The distinctive timber-framed Finchingfield Guildhall was built around 1470 by the Guild of the Holy Trinity. It originally housed a priest and provided a large hall for meetings, with shops and workshops on the ground floor. It later served as a school for boys and almshouses.

In the early 15th century, the manor of Spains Hall passed to the Kempe family when Margery de Ispania married Nicholas Kempe.

Tudor and Stuart Periods (1485 - 1714)

Prosperity and Architecture: Many superbly preserved houses in the village date from around 1500, featuring large chimney stacks which suggest a period of wealth and pre-industrial prosperity. The village's distinctive appearance began to take shape.

Spains Hall was rebuilt in brick to its current Elizabethan country house style in 1585.

A local folk-tale surrounds William Kempe (1555-1628) of Spains Hall, who supposedly took a vow of silence for seven years as penance for a jealous outburst against his wife, marking the years by digging fish ponds.

The parish had a notable figure in Stephen Marshall, who was a powerful and influential Puritan preacher who served as the vicar in the early 17th century and advocated for church reform during the English Civil War era.

Georgian and Victorian Eras (18th - 19th Centuries)

Finchingfield was an official stop for horse-drawn coaches traveling on the London to Norwich route, contributing to the establishment of historic public houses like The Red Lion (15th century), The Fox Inn (16th century), and The Three Tuns (18th century).

A parish workhouse was opened in 1767 (located in what is now Bridge House) to house the needy and provide relief for the poor.

Spains Hall passed to the Ruggles family (later Ruggles-Brise) in the 18th century.

The population of Finchingfield village reached 2,594 by the 1851 census. The local economy was largely agricultural with many villagers working as farm laborers on the Spains Hall estate. At one time, there were eight windmills in the parish with the remaining Post Mill dated from the early 18th century. Straw plaiting was an important cottage industry for women and children.

By the early 20th century, the village was a self-sufficient community, boasting a doctor, thatcher, carpenters, blacksmiths, multiple pubs, grocers, and a fire station.

Historical Film Archive

The following historical films provide a fascinating glimpse into Finchingfield's past, showing daily life in the village during the 1930s and 1940s:

Modern Era (20th Century - Present)

Finchingfield gained a widespread reputation as a "picture-postcard" village and one of the most photographed in England, thanks to its central village green, duck pond, hump-backed bridge, and surrounding historic cottages.

During World War II a sizable part of the parish land was used for the construction of Wethersfield Airfield, which served as an American base after the war.

Notable Residents include author Dodie Smith (The Hundred and One Dalmatians) who lived in the parish at a house called The Barretts in the hamlet of Howe Street.

The village has been used as a filming location for television. Ownership of Spains Hall remained with the Ruggles-Brise family until 2019, when it was purchased by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver. The community remains active in preserving its heritage, notably campaigning to protect the historic bridge in the village centre. The Guildhall continues to operate as a museum, library and local resource.