HADDENHAM
Haddenham is a large village in the south-west of the
Isle, 7 miles south-west of Ely. It lies on the crest of a
ridge rising to a height of 121 ft. (fn. 1) and in this countryside is therefore conspicuous from a distance. The
hamlet of Aldreth lies 1½ mile south-west of the main
village.
Haddenham is a road-centre of some importance.
The north and east arms of the cross-roads round which
it lies form part of a cross-country road from March
and beyond. This road is often used by eastbound
traffic to Newmarket and Bury in order to avoid
awkward corners in Ely. The west arm of the cross
forms one of the routes from Earith Bridge eastwards
and is sometimes preferred to the main road through
Sutton for the same reason. The railway to Ely was
constructed in 1866, that to St. Ives in 1878. (fn. 2) The
stations on this line, known as Haddenham and Earith
Bridge, have, however, been closed since 1931. (fn. 3)
The village is spacious and dignified. The mansard
roofs that cover several of its houses and the abundance
of orchards and market gardens give it an appearance
foreign to the Fens and more closely resembling that of
a village in Huntingdonshire or upland Cambridgeshire. The best building in the village is Porch House,
Hill Row, a fine brick structure of 17th-century date.
The Limes, Station Road, is a building of 18th-century
and later date perhaps with an earlier core. Other 18th century buildings of note are: the Vine House; the pair of
cottages 40 yds. west of the Limes, Hill Row; the pair
of houses (originally one house) 120 yds. north-west of
Porch House; the farm 40 yds. east of Highfield
House; Linden House; and the Bell Inn. St. Ovin's,
Highfield House, and the Limes, Hill Row, are early19th-century buildings of note. The conspicuous
windmill on the road between Haddenham and Aldreth
was built in 1803. (fn. 4) In Cole's time Ovin's (fn. 5) stone, now
in Ely Cathedral, stood on the east side of the road
opposite the church. It was used as a mounting block. (fn. 6)
Cole also mentions St. Audry's Well, ½ mile from the
village on the Cambridge road, 'where the people of the
neighbourhood do now resort to drink the waters of it,
it being a sort of mineral water'. (fn. 7)
In the Middle Ages Haddenham and Aldreth commanded the principal land entrance to the Isle and
derived a special importance from that fact. There was
a crossing of the Ouse at Aldreth from early times. In
1169–70 a serjeant of the Bishop of Ely in Aldreth
rendered 4s. 4d. to the Exchequer sede vacante for the
farm of the fisheries and the passage of ships. (fn. 8) In 1172–3
the considerable sum of £6 10s. 9d. was spent on a
'brethasch' or causeway, (fn. 9) which suggests that at this
time the original ferry to the mainland was being replaced by something more permanent. In 1279 a bridge
is mentioned in addition to the causeway. Both had
been out of repair for sixteen years, but had
lately been restored by the bishop, who was responsible
for their maintenance. His bailiff let the tolls for 20s.
a year; horsemen paid ½d. each and foot passengers
¼d. (fn. 10) Though an indulgence was granted for the repair
of the causeway by Bishop Fordham in 1406, (fn. 11) the duty
of regular maintenance was in principle distributed
among the customary tenants of the various episcopal
manors. Even Outwell and Upwell, 20 miles away on
the opposite side of the Liberty, were originally required
to look after 44 perches of the causeway. In 1453,
however, after attempts to disclaim their responsibility,
their share was transferred to John Candeler, a Haddenham tenant who was in possession inter alia of part of
the Queye property in Chewells manor (see below—
Manors). (fn. 12) In 1548–9 the tolls of the bridge and
causeway amounted to 17s. a year. (fn. 13) When Bishop
Heton alienated Haddenham manor in 1600 he imposed the condition that he and his successors should
be exempt from responsibility for Aldreth causeway.
Thomas Lord Howard, on purchasing the manor in
1602, assumed the responsibility and was allowed a
rebate of £300 for so doing. (fn. 14) Howard seems to have
neglected his duties, for about 1613 the bridge collapsed and was replaced by a ferry, to the prejudice of
the Bishop and Dean and Chapter of Ely and other
landowners and their tenants. This ferry also was
dangerous; by 1638 six or seven lives had been lost
there. (fn. 15) By 1662 the bridge had perhaps been rebuilt. (fn. 16)
It was certainly in existence again early in the 18th
century, but in bad repair; William Cole, father of the
antiquary, was in the habit, c. 1725, of dismounting
from his horse before crossing. (fn. 17) Another partial collapse occurred in 1765, when the two middle piers fell
down 'within a few minutes after two gentlemen had
luckily got over' the bridge. (fn. 18) This disaster was probably caused by the succession of wet seasons and floods
of the early 1760's. As early as 1676 (fn. 19) the existence of
an entry into the Isle through Stretham (q.v.) is noticed.
This is the present approach to the Isle from the south.
By the late 18th century it was brought into good
repair, and with the alternative route formed by the
road from Cottenham to Wilburton via Twenty Pence
Bridge caused the main stream of traffic to be diverted
from Aldreth causeway. The causeway, however, was
still used fairly frequently until c. 1870, and the bridge
was rebuilt in 1901–2. (fn. 20)
No doubt the causeway helped to bring prosperity to
Haddenham which in 1562 was the most populous
village in the county. Its householders then numbered
188. (fn. 21) In 1639–40 Haddenham was assessed for shipmoney at £75 15s. Its rateable value at this time therefore was higher than that of the undivided parish of
Doddington (£69 9s. 11d.) and not far below that of
Ely (£85). (fn. 22) In Bishop Compton's census of 1676
Haddenham was credited with 700 persons of communicant age, which is a larger total than that assigned
to any other village in the county. (fn. 23) Even in 1801,
when Aldreth causeway was growing less frequented,
the population of Haddenham was still larger than that
of any other village in the Isle except Littleport and
Thorney—both parishes with a greater acreage. The
population increased with normal rapidity until 1851.
It has subsequently declined greatly, so that at least six
villages in the Isle now have a larger population. Moreover in density per acre Haddenham is now below the
average for the Isle.
In 1612 Thomas Howard, Earl of Suffolk, as lord of
the manor of Haddenham, was granted the right to hold
a market in Aldreth on Thursdays and fairs there on the
Tuesday after Trinity and at Michaelmas. (fn. 24) In 1858
Haddenham had 'a few shops, but on a small scale'. (fn. 25) A
Haddenham Gas Company was formed between 1865
and 1869, and in 1879 the principal streets were lit
with gas. The Company had ceased to exist by 1900. (fn. 26)
Haddenham was inclosed in 1847 under an Act of
Parliament of 1843. (fn. 27) This inclosure dealt with 2,638
acres, including 35 acres of old inclosures exchanged,
but not the roads and drains across the area allotted. A
supplementary award of 1851 dealt with a further 39
acres. The open fields were Haddenham End, Linden
End, Aldreth, and Hilrow Fields, whose position is
shown by their names, and Hinton Closes in the northeast of the parish. There were 162 allottees under the
award of 1847, the largest being the Earl of Hardwicke
(355 acres, including 4 as lord of Haddenham and
Hinton manors and 37 as lessee of the great tithes
under the Archdeacon of Ely), Caius College (167½
acres, 102 leased to the Earl of Hardwicke and 65½ to
Thomas Oscar Drage), Mary Cropley (146 acres),
Edward Humphreys Greene (108 acres), John Read
(107½ acres), and T. O. Drage (99 acres in his own
right). Various members of the Camps family, who
were principal beneficiaries at Wilburton a few years
later, received 144 acres in Haddenham, 84 being
allotted to John Camps.
On 18 March 1947 the whole western end of
Haddenham parish, more than 2,000 acres in extent,
was inundated to the eaves of the houses. The damage
was more serious than in any other part of the Isle, and
this was the one area where it was not possible to grow
crops for the 1947 harvest. (fn. 28)
From about 1665 to 1680 Haddenham was the
scene of operations of Christopher Graye, a son of the
well-known bell-founder Miles Graye of Colchester.
Christopher cast the three existing bells at Witchford
and others in the county. (fn. 29)
'Gooding Day' (21 December), on which the widows
of the parish went round collecting in money and kind
for their Christmas festivities, was long celebrated in
Haddenham. (fn. 30)
MANORS
In 1086 Haddenham was held by the
Abbot of Ely in three portions. The first
of these was LINDONE, now represented
by Linden End Field south-east of the village, which
was purchased for the convent by Abbot Brithnoth. (fn. 31)
The abbot held in Lindone 4 hides with land for 6
ploughs, of which 2½ hides (4 plough-lands) were in
demesne. There were two sokemen who neither then
nor formerly could depart from their land, 9 cottars,
1 bordar, and 10 serfs. The fisheries were important
for a place on the landward side of the Isle, producing
3,333 eels and 4s. in tribute. The value of Lindone
was £4 when purchased. It had risen to £9 T.R.E.
and in 1086 was £8. (fn. 32) HELLE, now Hill Row, was
a berewick of Lindone and rated at 2 hides (5 ploughlands), of which 1 hide 1 virgate and 10 acres with
3 ploughs were in demesne. Here there were 10
villeins, 4 cottars, and 5 serfs; a rather mysterious entry
states that there were 'from the port (portu) three
ploughshares'. This estate was worth 40s. when received, £6 T.R.E. and 100s. in 1086. (fn. 33) HADDENHAM itself was rated at 3 hides and was held by 7
sokemen under the abbot; like those at Lindon they
were tied to the soil. They had land for 5 ploughs, and
there were 8 villeins each with ½ virgate, 4 bordars each
with 5 acres, and 6 cottars. The value when received
was £8, and again £8 in 1086, but prior to the Conquest it had risen to £12. (fn. 34) In all cases there was
sufficient meadow for the plough-teams, and pasture
for all the cattle of the vills. (fn. 35)
Haddenham, like most of the valuable manors of the
Isle except those in the immediate neighbourhood of
Ely, was allotted to the bishop in 1109. In the early
Middle Ages the manor was generally known as
Lindon. This suggests that Linden End was the more
ancient settlement and that we have here an example of
an early settlement in the middle of a piece of territory
(Lindon) supplanted by one at a cross roads (Haddenham). This process is common in many parts of England but rare in Cambridgeshire (fn. 36) . The theory is borne
out by the absence of demesne in Haddenham in 1086,
as opposed to Linden End and Hill Row.
The survey of Bishop de Fontibus (1221) (fn. 37) shows
a demesne of 919 acres divided almost equally between
the three fields of 'Northey', 'Middlefeld' and 'Scephey'.
There were 68 acres of mowable meadow, but some
land of this type had been lost owing to floods. There
were two meres, 'Alkesmere' and 'Sothemere', and
two fisheries. Besides the two tenants by military
service (see below) there were 117 householders,
divided into the six grades of hundredarii (owing suit of
court at the hundred), customary tenants, holders of
full and half lands, cottars and half-cottars. The
Northwold survey of 1251 (fn. 38) does not show so much
progress as on many of the episcopal manors, but
Haddenham on the landward side of the Isle had less
room for expansion than, for example, Littleport, and
even at Haddenham a few novi feoffati are recorded.
The demesne had been slightly reduced to 834 acres,
though assarts are mentioned in 'Sephey' and a small
new field of 'Snota' is recorded. This demesne was
rated at 5 carucates. The meadow land had increased
to 134½ acres, besides 23 of 'great meadow' in the
marsh. During the preceding generation the Ouse,
now the Old West River, seems to have changed its
course. Queenholm marsh, which formerly belonged
to Haddenham, was now reckoned part of Willingham
on the Cambridgeshire side. (fn. 39) The demesne was
stocked with 30 cows and 2 bulls, 60 pigs and 2 boars,
and 240 sheep. There was a windmill, let at 100s., and
6 fisheries producing 48s. and 5,000 sticks of eels.
There were now 3 holders of fees, and 136 other
tenants. Fourteen holders of plene terre are specified as
living at Hill Row: one of the similar tenants in
Lindon and Aldreth, of whom there were 20, (fn. 40) was
Cassandra relict of William son of Robert. Commutation of services for money rents had not gone far, the
manor producing only £2 10s. 4d. on this score. During the vacancy of the see consequent on Bishop Balsham's death (1286) £4 16s. 9d. was received from
commutation of 518 summer and 902 autumn works,
and though the mill only realized £1 9s. 5d. the manor
as a whole brought in £27 12s. 6d. (fn. 41) During the early
years of the 14th century the value of the manor fluctuated; it was £51 6s. 11d. for the two years 1298 and
1299, (fn. 42) £35 0s. 8d. gross in 1302 (fn. 43) and £34 4s. 7d.
gross in 1316. (fn. 44) In 1299 the fisheries, one of which
was at Aldreth and the other on the extreme edge of the
manor and county at Earith, were rated for 4,900 eels,
commuted for £2 9s. 6d.; in 1302 and 1316 they produced, with the mill, £4 3s. 1d. and £2 16s. respectively. In 1302 works to the number of 1,347 were
commuted for £2 17s. 7d.; in 1316 only 549 were
commuted for £1 2s. 10d. In 1345 the corresponding
figure, for an unstated number of works, was £4 19s. 8d.
out of a total revenue from 'Lyndonby' of £65 5s. 5d. (fn. 45)
The survey of 1356, (fn. 46) made during Bishop Lisle's
tenure of the see, shows retrogression. The demesne
had shrunk to 380 acres, valued at £17 15s. 11d., and
75 acres of meadow worth 6d. an acre. The immediate
cause of this reduction was stated to be floods. The
manor house, known as Lyndonbury, (fn. 47) was ruinous,
like so many of the bishop's manor houses at this time,
and had neither garden nor dovehouse from which
profit could be extracted. The only sound portions
were a small hall, chamber and kitchen, repairable for
2s. The outer gates were said to need complete rebuilding at a cost of 13s. 4d. The same was true of the hen
house (domus gallin') at half that cost. Other farm
buildings were repairable at 8s. 8d. The windmill now
brought in £2, and five several fisheries £5 8s. Rents
came to £5 19s. 1d. and the movable property, including crops and stock, was worth £31 5s. 8d. At this
late date 26 niefs were recorded in the four hamlets of
Haddenham, Hill Row, Lyndon, and Aldreth. The
Aldreth causeway needed considerable repairs, estimated
at £2, the Earith causeway 3s. 4d. only. The warren of
Haddenham is mentioned in 1468 and 1490, when its
custody was entrusted to Elias Cliderow and his son
Clement for 3d. a day and perquisites. (fn. 48) In 1612 it
was let to Alice Davye for 10s. a year. (fn. 49)
Haddenham continued, however, to be one of the
bishop's most valuable manors, bringing in £118 2s. 2d.
gross in 1518, though the windmill was now only worth
£1 13s. 4d. and the fisheries £2 17s. 8d. (fn. 50) In 1541,
when the receipts totalled £91 5s. 7½ d., it ranked third,
after the episcopal property in Wisbech and Ely. (fn. 51)
Another account of 1548–9 shows a slight surplus.
Rents of assize (£85 1s. 5d.) and the rent of the Delphs (fn. 52)
(£10) accounted for most of the revenue. (fn. 53) A survey (fn. 54)
made during the long vacancy after Bishop Cox's death
(1581–1600), possibly on the occasion of a lease (1593)
to Edward Skipwith of the manor house and demesne, (fn. 55)
shows a gross value of only £38 8s. 10d. No rents, however, are mentioned other than rents of assize fixed at
£20. The 'Berrysted' with its demesne of 77 acres was
let at £3 10s. a year under an eighty-year lease made in
1529–30 to Robert Stannyowght. (fn. 56) A little reclamation of the fen seems to have been attempted; John
James a copyholder had erected a windmill which,
judging by its value (3s. 4d.), must have been one of
the small 'draining engines' occasionally overthrown
by conservative fenmen. A series of late-16th-century
bailiffs' accounts, (fn. 57) recording gross receipts ranging
from £82 15s. 1d. to £112 17s., suggest that the
estimate of this first survey may have been too low.
Another survey of 1595 (fn. 58) valued the pastures of the
Delphs, the windmill, fisheries, causeway tolls, rents of
land, and tenements and perquisites of court, at £50.
In addition the sum of £40 was allowed yearly for the
repair of Aldreth and Earith causeways and bridges. (fn. 59)
Thomas Lord Howard (later Earl of Arundel) purchased the manor in 1602, at which date the rents of
assize and customary rents amounted to £81 11s. 5½d. (fn. 60)
In 1612 the manor was transferred to the Earl of
Arundel's cousin, Thomas Earl of Suffolk. (fn. 61) In 1642
and 1643 an order was made by the House of Lords for
'protection of certain lands of the Earl of Suffolk at
Haddenham'. (fn. 62) Some time between these dates and
1659 James Earl of Suffolk, Thomas's grandson, conveyed the manor to Dr. Aylett and John Aylett of the
Middle Temple, from whom Edward Eltonhead
agreed to buy the reversion for £1,200. Eltonhead
became financially embarrassed and only paid £600,
but John Aylett agreed to lease the manor to John
Eltonhead, presumably Edward's son, for £50 yearly
exclusive of taxes. (fn. 63) The manor is next found (1674–5)
in the hands of Frances, Edward Eltonhead's daughter,
and her second husband Sir Joseph Douglas, (fn. 64) after
which its descent is for a time obscure. In 1718 it was
with the March family, (fn. 65) already owners of the subordinate manors of Grays and Hinton (see below).
From 1742 when Pell Gatward and Sarah Rowland
(March) his wife were dealing with them (fn. 66) the three
manors descended together. Isaac Wollaston, Sarah
March's second husband, obtained the baronetcy of
Lawrence (created 1748) by special remainder, and
was lord for a short time before his death (1750). His
son died a minor in 1756. (fn. 67) In 1766 the manors were
obtained by Philip Yorke, 2nd Earl of Hardwicke, (fn. 68)
in whose family they descended for more than a century.
At the beginning of the 19th century they were vested
in Philip Yorke (lost at sea in 1808) and his cousin
Charles Philip, both Viscounts Royston and heirs to the
earldom. (fn. 69) A series of accounts from 1820 to 1828 (fn. 70)
shows ground rents from £52 18s. 7¼d. to £88 14s. 10¼d.
Fines naturally varied greatly from year to year, but the
balance due to the earl, after allowing for collector's
expenses of £2 2s. and court expenses of about £10,
averaged about £80 yearly. In the middle of the century the court proceedings were opened in the porch
of the demolished manor house. (fn. 71) The manorial rights
were still being exercised by the earl in 1900, but in
1933 the lords were Mr. James Spearing, and Mr.
W. L. Raynes of Cambridge. (fn. 72)
In 1221 Simon de Insula held 3 carucátes in
HINTON (Henegeton) as 1 fee, and Philip de Insula
held them in 1251. (fn. 73) In 1341 Sir William de Ruston
received licence for an oratory in his house at Hinton. (fn. 74)
Some time before 1459 Thomas Freeman, having
settled the manor of Hinton on John Prysot, Chief
Justice, and John Cheyne, sold it to John Colan, his
cousin. Colan was slow in fulfilling his side of the contract, but Prysot expressed himself willing to give up
his interest on completion of the transaction. (fn. 75) No
connexion can be traced between these successive
holders of the manor, who seem to have been merely
tenants at will under the bishops. In 1544 Sir Edward
(later Baron) North had licence to alienate this manor
to Thomas Wren of Haddenham, (fn. 76) who was already
the tenant of the 'Delphs' under Bishop Goodrich. (fn. 77)
His daughter Elizabeth later married Sir Edward's
grandson, another Edward. (fn. 78) The estate pertaining
to the manor extended into Wilburton, Wentworth,
Witcham, and Sutton. Wren, who executed settlements of the manor on his wife Anne in 1565 and 1578, (fn. 79)
died in the latter year leaving two daughters, Frances
wife of John Wyllyams and Elizabeth (see above). He
held the manor in chief by 1/10 knight's fee, and land and
a fishery of the bishop in socage and fealty as of his
manor of Haddenham. (fn. 80) The two halves of the manor
were conveyed by the respective heiresses and their
husbands to Francis Brakyn in 1581 and 1588. (fn. 81) In
1602 Brakyn, in association with John Williams and
Frances (Wren) his wife, passed the manor to Sir John
Jolles. (fn. 82) Jolles, who was an alderman of London and
died in 1621, made a complicated settlement of the
manor, preserving the two moieties into which it had
recently been divided. One was to go to his niece
Alice (Towers) for life, with remainder to Danett
Poyntell, a nephew; the other was settled on Poyntell
and his sons in tail male, with remainder to his daughters
and finally to John Towers, Alice's eldest son and her
other sons successively in tail male. (fn. 83) Accordingly the
whole manor ultimately came to the Towers family, of
whom Thomas was in possession at the end of the century. Being financially encumbered he sold it to David
Rowland in 1693. (fn. 84) Rowland died in 1717: by the
marriage of his heiress it came to the March family (fn. 85)
and thereafter descended with the main manor (q.v.).
The second military tenure in 1221 was that of
Richard de Chevall, who held 2 carucates as a fee. His
son Niel held similarly in 1251. (fn. 86) This fee became the
manor of CHEWELLS. A manor of the same name
in Hatfield (Herts.) passed before 1303 from Niel de
Chevell to John de Queye, who in that year was joint
holder of ⅓ fee in Haddenham. (fn. 87) The de Queye family
is recorded as holding by military service in Haddenham to 1428, (fn. 88) but had probably been extinct for some
time, as Edmund de Suttone, the co-tenant in the 1346
inquiry, was in 1370 styled lord of 'Chiwalle' and had
mortgaged his share, consisting of 2 messuages and
46¾ acres of land, to Sir Robert Busteler. The heirs of
the latter were John Hanchache a minor and four others
of full age, un-named in the inquisition. These five
enfeoffed Robert Parys of one messuage and 16 acres,
and John Wroth, a lessee under Busteler, of the other
messuage, named 'Thunderesplace', and 30¾ acres. (fn. 89)
Meanwhile the overlordship of this manor had been
granted (1344) by Bishop Montacute to Peterhouse,
Cambridge. (fn. 90) In 1594, when the college's tenant was
the Betts family of Chatteris (q.v.), the manor was worth
£10 a year. (fn. 91) In 1808 the tenant was the Revd. Samuel
Hunt. (fn. 92) Court rolls exist for the period 1745 to 1937 in
the strongroom of Messrs. Francis & Co., Cambridge.
In 1224 Hamon Passelewe was to be reseised of
1 carucate in 'Hedham' if Richard de Secheford,
Beatrice his wife and Maud her sister had disseised him
solely on account of the king's anger against Robert
Passelewe, Hamon's brother. This anger seems to have
been caused by Robert having taken the case to the
court of Rome, and in 1225 he was reinstated in his
carucate from which Richard and Beatrice de Secheford
and Maud, with her husband Robert de Upwic had
dispossessed him. (fn. 93) In 1277 Hamon Passelewe, perhaps Robert's nephew, held 25 acres in Haddenham of
the manor of Rettendon (Essex) (fn. 94) for £1 a year. (fn. 95)
The co-tenant with John de Queye of a third fee in
1302–3 (fn. 96) was Fulk Baynard or Barnard. He or his
ancestor of the same name had in 1271 and 1272 received two portions of an estate of 2 messuages, 3 carucates and 7 acres of wood in Haddenham and Hatfield
(Herts.) from John de Ditton and Philip Pertrick and
their wives, presumably co-heiresses. (fn. 97) In 1346 Edmund de Suttone had succeeded to the Baynard portion
of this ⅓ fee, and his heirs are similarly recorded in
1428. (fn. 98) At the latter date John Grenelane and others
held ½ fee in Haddenham. (fn. 99)
The manor of GRAYS originated in an estate of a
messuage and 320 acres of land, with 6 marks rent,
held by William de Grey of the Bishop of Ely by
unknown service. His son Thomas was a minor at his
father's death (1495). (fn. 1) In 1541, when Edmund Grey,
probably William's grandson, conveyed it to Thomas
Waters, it included lands and rents in several Isle
parishes, as far as Chettisham. (fn. 2) In 1580 Edward
Cowper granted an eighty-year lease of it to Robert
March, (fn. 3) whose son of the same name died seised of it in
1601. He held it of the chief lord (Thomas Lord
Howard) by fealty and a rent of a pound of cummin
or 3d. yearly. (fn. 4) During the minority of Humberston
March, son of Robert March the younger, the issues of
the manor were taken by his mother Anne and her
second husband Thomas Castell. Humberston and his
son William were dealing with this manor in 1652. (fn. 5)
Since the 18th century this manor has descended with
the main manor (see above).
Another fee is mentioned in 1303–5. In the former
year a commission of oyer and terminer was issued
regarding persons who broke into the estate of William
de Tuddeham, king's yeoman, at Haddenham, and
fished in his free fishery. (fn. 6) In the latter year William
brought a suit against his tenants Nicholas de Cokayne
and his son and daughter, who had forcibly secured
certain cattle that William had distrained for arrears of
services for lands held of his fee. (fn. 7)
In 1537 William Buckenham, master of Gonville
Hall, was licensed to alienate to his college 2 messuages
called 'Madingleys' and 'Partriks' (fn. 8) (the latter in Hill
Row), 2 tofts called 'Chevyns' and 'Codwyns', and
237 acres of land. This estate was worth £9 12s. a year
and the purchase price was £200. (fn. 9) Minor adjustments
during the following centuries reduced this estate to
171 acres, scattered in 283 pieces over the north and
west of the parish. Under the Haddenham Inclosure
Act (1843) the college received 167½ acres. When
Grunty Fen was inclosed in 1861, it received a further 14 acres. These were near Wilburton railway
station. Adjustments made with the Great Eastern
Railway and others reduced the size of the estate
slightly. The rents of the whole amounted to £332 in
1875, £346 in 1885, and £100 in 1895. (fn. 10) The reduction in rent in 1895 was due to the assumption by
the college of responsibility for tithes and drainage
taxes.
The antiquary William Cole also owned land in
Haddenham, the history of which, as might be expected, is very well documented. (fn. 11) He traced his
estate back to 1560, when Richard Tyrrell of London
disposed of it by bargain and sale to Robert March of
Ely for £160. It then consisted of a messuage and 72
acres, and had formerly been held by William Grace.
In 1614 there were 4 messuages, including two called
Graces and Hallyards and about 130 acres of land. In
that year it changed hands within the March family for
£1,000. Twenty years later it was sold by the Marches
to Thomas Baron of Saffron Walden (Essex) for £920.
The estate remained with the Baron family for nearly
a century, gradually increasing in size and appreciating
in value, (fn. 12) and was sold in 1728 by John Baron of
Trumpington to William Cole of Babraham, father of
the antiquary, for £2,205. The sale of 1728 included
some 30 acres in Ewell Fen obtained by the Barons
from the Mason, Phypers, and Worts families at the
end of the preceding century. The total area sold in
1728 was 666 acres of arable, 26 of pasture, 95 of fen,
and 10 of marsh (the Holmes), with 5 tenements including one with a 2-acre close at Aldreth. The then
tenants of William Cole, the elder, were Francis
Goodday and William Dunkin.
In 1754 Cole's tenant at Frog Hall, on the river
bank near Aldreth High Bridge, was John Huckle. He
showed the antiquary a document of 1728 rating the
proprietors of lands in Ewell Fen at 4s. 3d. an acre for
the repair of the fen bank. The 404 acres of the fen
were divided amongst fourteen proprietors. The share
of Cole's father amounted to 54 acres. This share was
increased in 1733 by the antiquary's purchase of 2 closes
from Joseph and Sarah Ogram. They totalled 24 acres
and cost £525. The value of the property, and Cole's
personal income, was much lowered by the serious
floods of the 1760's. (fn. 13)
CHURCH
The church of Haddenham, like others
on the manors granted to the see of Ely in
1109, remained in the bishop's hands, and
is so recorded in 1251. (fn. 14) It was worth £30 in 1217,
£40 in 1254, (fn. 15) and £80 in 1291, (fn. 16) and may therefore
be reckoned a valuable rectory. During the early
Middle Ages there were frequent disputes between the
bishops and archdeacons of Ely regarding the rights of
the latter in the Isle. (fn. 17) To settle these disputes, Bishop
Fordham was licensed in 1401 to unite the rectory of
Haddenham to the archdeaconry. (fn. 18) This arrangement
was confirmed in 1406, (fn. 19) and prevailed until the middle
of the 19th century. The church was in effect appropriated to the archdeacon, though no vicarage was
ordained and the church was served by a succession of
curates-in-charge. In 1837 the rectorial tithes which
had come to the earls of Hardwicke as lords of the
capital manor were commuted for a rent-charge of
£1,850, whereas those due to the incumbent were
commuted for £250 only, although they included a
portion of the great tithes. (fn. 20) The position was normalized in 1865, when Archdeacon Emery transferred the
tithes to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners for £600
a year, (fn. 21) on condition that the living should be improved and a parsonage erected. This was done at
various dates between 1866 and 1874, (fn. 22) and the living
is now a vicarage in the gift of the Archdeacon of Ely. (fn. 23)
The rectory being a rich one, it is not surprising to
find that the rectors and archdeacons treated it like a
manor, and leased it. Thus in or before 1332 Geoffrey
de Pakenham, rector, leased to Richard le Ferrour and
his wife Margaret an acre of land in Haddenham for
6s. 6d. a year. (fn. 24) In 1601, when the rectory was leased
to Richard Arkenstall for twenty-one years, the value
of the rents was just over £8 a year; there were also
50 acres of glebe and the total value of the rectory was
stated to be £100. (fn. 25) Arkenstall was shortly afterwards
(1605) engaged in a lawsuit with Edward Phipers and
other rectory tenants regarding his claim to the tithes. (fn. 26)
From the latter half of the 17th century the rectory
descended with the main manor, (fn. 27) but the tithes were
sometimes leased out. (fn. 28)
The advowson lay with the bishops of Ely until
1401, and has since been held by the archdeacons, in
accordance with the agreement of that year. (fn. 29) Before the
transfer, a case of disputed presentation occurred, which
dragged on for a great many years. In 1342 the rector in
possession, John de Martham, was challenged by Henry
de Harwedon, who during the vacancy of the see in 1337
had intruded himself by virtue of a papal provision.
Harwedon continued his case against Bartholomew de
Bourne, Martham's successor in 1344, and the advowson was for this reason retained in the king's hands after
the other spiritualities were restored to Bishop Lisle
(1345). Harwedon finally abandoned the suit in 1348
and was pardoned for contempt of court. (fn. 30) The rights
of Martham and his successor Bourne were reaffirmed
in 1363, but four years later Walter de Baketon was
allowed to sue out possession of the church in ecclesiastical courts against Bourne by virtue of the papal
provision of Harwedon, whose surrogate Baketon
claimed to be. (fn. 31)
In 1386 the dedication feast of the church was
changed from the vigil of the Nativity of the Virgin
(7 September) to 20 October, as the former was a fastday. (fn. 32) By 1841 the feast was celebrated on Trinity
Sunday; 143 strangers attended it. (fn. 33)
Plan of Holy Trinity Church
In 1335 the prior and convent confirmed a grant by
Bishop Hotham to Robert de Orford, Agnes his wife,
and Beatrice his daughter, of 30 acres in Westhall Field,
reserving one good sheaf of corn per acre for the support of the lamp of St. Peter and St. Etheldreda in the
cathedral. (fn. 34) In 1553 a ½ acre in tenure of Richard
Wallis, (fn. 35) given for lights in Haddenham church,
was granted to Sir John Butler and Thomas Chaworthe, (fn. 36) and 4 acres which had provided for a light in
the rood loft were in 1571 granted to Richard Hill and
Robert Don; they were then held by Edward Brome. (fn. 37)
In the early 16th century there were three guilds in
Haddenham, of the Holy Trinity, All Saints and St.
Katharine. (fn. 38) The hall of one of them was granted to
Ralph Stretton and Edward Warner in 1561. (fn. 39)
The church of the HOLYTRINITY is built of ashlar
and rubble with leaded roofs, and consists of chancel,
north vestry, clerestoried nave, transepts, aisles, north and
south porches, and west tower. The present building
was constructed gradually during the 13th century, beginning with the chancel. The transepts were refashioned in the 15th century, the chancel arch rebuilt
in the same period, and another stage added to the
tower. In 1876 a drastic 'restoration' was begun, under
the supervision of R. R. Rowe. (fn. 40) The tower was completely rebuilt as was the greater part of the walling of
the aisles and transepts, and the vestry and north porch
added. The roofs were completely renewed and the
15th-century rood screen was thrown out. It reposed
for thirty years in a builder's yard but was eventually
restored to its rightful position.
The chancel has an east window consisting of three
lancets, which are entirely modern and replace a 15thcentury five-light window. There are 13th-century
angle buttresses with one set-off. The south-east
window, a late 13th-century insertion, is of two lights
with trefoiled heads and a quatrefoil above; the jamb
shafts have moulded caps and bases and there are external and internal hood-moulds terminating in heads.
To the west are two lancets much renewed. The
north-east window is a plain early 13th-century lancet.
The doorway to the vestry is original 13th-century
work with an arch of two orders, a continuous chamfer
and a hood-mould. To the west is a modern arch of
13th-century character with corbelled responds. There
is a much renewed 13th-century internal string-course.
In the south wall is an aumbry and double piscina, the
latter having a trefoiled head to its recess. The sill of
the south-east window is lowered to serve as sedilia. In
the north wall of the sanctuary is an aumbry and a
tomb recess with trefoiled arch and a hood terminating
in heads of late 13th-century date; at the back of the
recess is a squint to the vestry with a trefoil-headed
opening. The 15th-century chancel arch is of two
orders with semicircular shafts to the responds, having
moulded caps and bases, and there is a hood-mould on
the west terminating in heads. The modern vestry has
an east window of two trefoiled lights and a larger twolight window in the north wall, both of late-13thcentury origin but considerably renewed; they were
probably removed from the north wall of the chancel
when the present vestry was erected. There is a north
doorway and a doorway and arch communicating with
the transept, all modern.
The nave has arcades of seven bays, the easternmost
arch on either side, which opens to the transepts, being
larger than the others and of 15th-century date. The
remaining arches on either side belong to the second
half of the 13th century. The transept arches have an
eastern respond consisting of a semicircular shaft with
moulded cap and base; the western respond is modern
with a brown marble shaft and a clumsy foliaged cap.
The rest of the arches are of uniform design and are
two-centred and of two orders with octagonal columns
having moulded caps and bases. The west respond
consists of a large and clumsy modern corbel. Several
of the arches retain traces of red and yellow decoration.
Above the arches is a modern string-course. The clerestory consists of six two-light windows on each side with
trefoiled heads, except the first and fourth on the south
and the second and sixth on the north which are uncusped; all appear to have had their tracery renewed
but the rear arches are partly old and probably of late
13th-century date. There is a plain coped parapet.
The tower arch is deeply recessed and acutely pointed,
and springs from clustered shafts with moulded caps
and bases; it belongs to the latter part of the 13th
century but was rebuilt, largely with old materials,
in 1876.
The south transept has an east window of two cinquefoil-headed lights with a spherical triangle above and
jamb shafts with moulded caps and bases, and exterior
and interior hood-moulds; it dates from the end of the
13th century. The rood stair turret is in the angle
between the transept and the chancel with the entrance
in the former and the upper doorway, now blocked, in
the latter. There is a large shallow recess above the
lower doorway with a cinquefoiled head. The south
wall has been entirely rebuilt and has a window consisting of three lancets. The arch communicating with
the aisle is probably of late 13th-century date and
almost round; the south respond consists of clustered
shafts with moulded caps and bases and the north
respond, which is modern, consists of a marble column.
There is a piscina recess in the east wall.
The north transept was completely rebuilt in 1876
and has a window consisting of three lancets in the
north wall. The arch communicating with the aisle is
similar to the corresponding one in the south transept.
There is a canopied niche of 15th-century date in the
north-east angle. Upon the outside wall of the former
north transept there hung in Cole's time two dozen
fire buckets. (fn. 41)
The south aisle has five two-light windows, the first
and fifth cinquefoiled and the remainder trefoiled, the
tracery being renewed except the two westernmost.
There are four lateral buttresses and one at the west
end, all with one set-off and renewed except the first
and fourth. There is a plain coped parapet, mostly
modern. The south porch is of early 13th-century
origin, but rebuilt with old material farther to the west
in the last century. It has an outer doorway with a twocentred arch of two orders having responds composed
of clustered shafts with moulded caps and bases. There
are angle buttresses with one set-off and a one-light trefoiled window under a square label in the east and west
walls. There is a plain coped parapet and conical
pinnacles. The inner doorway has continuous mouldings and a hood terminating in modern heads; above is
a canopied niche. The plain bowl of a 13th-century
font is fixed in the north-east angle of the porch.
The north aisle has been rebuilt, but it retains five
old windows, similar to those in the south aisle, the
tracery in which has been much renewed. The north
porch is a modern addition with diagonal buttresses
and a trefoil-headed single light in the east and west
walls. The inner doorway is of early 14th-century
date with continuous mouldings and a hood terminating
in heads; the jambs have been renewed.
The fine tower was originally erected in the last
quarter of the 13th century and consisted of three
stages. In the 15th century another stage was added
and the tower crowned with an embattled parapet and
a lofty and slender leaded spire. In 1876 the whole
structure was pulled down and the three lower stages
rebuilt, largely with old materials; the top stage was
not replaced. The old design has been followed more
or less, but the stair turret, which was originally in the
south-west angle, is now placed at the north-east. The
west doorway is deeply recessed with an arch of five
orders springing from jamb shafts with moulded caps
and bases, all much renewed. The west window is of
three lights with reticulated tracery and ball-flower
ornament round the arch, and a hood-mould decorated
with dogtooth ornament, which must be a later insertion. In the second stage there is a deeply recessed
circular window on the north, south, and west filled
with early geometrical tracery; those on the west and
south have two circles of ball-flower in the splay while
that on the north has in addition an inner circle of
dog-tooth ornament. The belfry windows consist of
recessed double lancets in each face with cinquefoiled
heads and continuous mouldings. The tower is now
finished with a corbel table. The modern stair turret
in the north-east angle only reaches to the second stage
and is crowned with a conical cap.
All the roofs are modern and poor, those of the
chancel, nave and transepts being high-pitched and
those of the aisles of lean-to type. Some of the stone
corbels in the nave are ancient.
The font is octagonal and of 15th-century date with
a shield bearing demi-angels and Tudor roses on the
bowl and round the shaft seated lions and buttresses;
it belongs to a type often found in Suffolk. The 15thcentury chancel screen is of the arched type; it consists
of eight bays, the two centre being occupied by the
doorway. The vaulting is lost and the base beam,
panels of the wainscot and top beam are modern. The
uprights are buttressed and the middle rail well
moulded; each bay has good tracery of rectilinear
character. In the south transept is an elaborately
carved communion table of early 17th-century date.
In the chancel is a brass to William Noion, Rector, and
Canon of York, Lincoln, and Chichester, 1405. The
effigy in a cope is missing but the inscription and double
canopy remain. In the tower, but formerly in the north
transept, is a brass to John Godfrey and Margaret his
wife, 1454, with effigies of a civilian and lady, and
inscription. At the west end of the nave is a slab with
indents of the effigies of a civilian and lady, and of two
groups of children beneath.
The plate includes a silver chalice inscribed 'for the
Town of Hadnam on the Hil' with cover paten, 1569,
and a large silver flagon, 1701. These have been on
loan to the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, since
1933.
The tower contains six bells, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd by
Thomas Newman of Norwich, 1706, 4th by Joseph
Eayre of St. Neots, 1741, 5th by T. Newman, 1725,
6th by George Oldfield of Nottingham, 1657, and
inscribed in black letter 'All glory be to God for ever',
with the churchwardens' names and founder's stamp. (fn. 42)
The registers begin in 1570 and are complete.
NONCONFORMITY
In 1672 the house of John
Woodbridge was licensed for
Congregational worship. (fn. 43) In
1676 there were 30 Dissenters. (fn. 44) The houses of
Thomas Clark and John Smethey were licensed for
Congregational worship in 1745 and 1787 respectively. (fn. 45) John Berridge preached at Haddenham about
1768, and there was a congregation served by itinerant
Independent ministers in the village all through the
latter part of the 18th century. It was regularly organized
as a Baptist church in 1812, and from 1816 had its own
pastor, a local surgeon named Pinchard. There were about
50 members in 1819. (fn. 46) The chapel at Haddenham was
built in 1817 and that at Aldreth in 1844. A Wesleyan
chapel was built in 1800, rebuilt in 1843, and again in
1891. (fn. 47) All these three chapels are still in existence; the
old Haddenham Baptist chapel was used as a Sundayschool after 1905, in which year a new building was
erected at a cost of £2,000. (fn. 48) Its spire rivals the nearby
church tower. The Aldreth chapel was also rebuilt, in
1908. (fn. 49)
SCHOOLS
A school existed at Haddenham as early
as 1463, when John Strother was appointed master, (fn. 50) and schoolmasters are
mentioned in the Visitation Returns of 1590 and
1596. (fn. 51)
The early history of Arkenstall's School has already
been narrated. (fn. 52) The buildings of 1863 provided 115
places; a new classroom was built in 1909, and the net
result of this and the reorganization of the following
year was to increase the accommodation to 129. The
boys of 13 and over were in 1948–9 transferred to the
Cromwell School at Chatteris. (fn. 53)
A British school was established by the Baptists in
1847. (fn. 54) It was still in existence in the 1860's, (fn. 55) but was
closed by the School Board after the girls' and infants'
school had been taken over and enlarged in 1874 (see
below).
A school for children not old enough to attend
Arkenstall's School was established under the will of
Mrs. Elizabeth March (d. 1722), who left land at
Oakington to provide five such schools at Haddenham,
and at Brinkley, Fen Ditton, Fulbourn, and Histon in
the county proper. Haddenham's share in this charity
amounted to £20, and in the 1830's the churchwardens
were in the habit of adding £14 from Arkenstall's
charity and £6 from the extensive Town Lands to make
up the schoolmaster's salary. In 1835 the master was
teaching about 30 children. (fn. 56)
Haddenham presented a very favourable picture
when the National Society made their inquiry in
1846–7. Education of some kind was provided for 468
children—almost the whole of the potential school
population. There were 90 children in Mrs. March's
infant school, 67 in a 'school of industry' for girls, and
197 in a National Sunday-school. There were also
small primary schools at Aldreth and Hill Row. (fn. 57) The
school of industry, the infant school and those in the
hamlets employed 5 mistresses, and their total annual
expenses were £83. (fn. 58)
In 1862 the girls' and infants' schools were rebuilt at
a cost of £589. Of this sum £400 were subscribed
locally. Support, however, was not sustained and in
1874 a School Board was established, which enlarged
and improved the school. Further enlargements took
place in 1879 and 1909–10 at a cost of £369 and
£600 respectively. After the second enlargement the
school provided for 122 girls and 98 infants. The two
departments were amalgamated in 1927, and the
senior girls transferred to Chatteris in 1948–9. (fn. 59)
In 1877 the Board rebuilt the Aldreth school as
a mixed one for 80 children—a figure which was reduced to 63 in 1910. The chief interest of this school
lies in the repeated attempts to close it. In 1907 there
were only 14 children on the books as opposed to an
average of 29 in 1900–4. The Board of Education,
however, refused to sanction closure, as the number of
children in Aldreth at that time was abnormally low,
and the transfer of children from council to voluntary
schools might have led to difficulties. The County
Council, however, refused to appoint a new teacher and
closed the school in August 1907. This led to a strike,
the children assembling at the school and refusing to
travel to Haddenham in the conveyance provided by
the Council. The school was reopened in January 1908.
Another attempt to close the school was made in 1929,
when there were 40 on the books. This was abandoned
owing to strong local opposition. The further proposal
was made in 1940. It was held in abeyance for a time
but was finally carried out in 1944. (fn. 60)
In 1846–7 the 42 pupils at the Hill Row school
mostly attended on weekdays only. The school had
probably been closed by 1851 and certainly by 1900. (fn. 61)
CHARITIES
Besides the Arkenstall and March
charities devoted to education, the following existed in Haddenham in 1837.
Sir John Jolles, lord of Hinton manor, by his will
dated 1618 left £2 a year to the poor of Haddenham,
which was paid through the Drapers' Company, of
which Jolles was a member. (fn. 62) In 1837 the books of
this charity were 'regularly and creditably kept'.
Two messuages called the Town Houses belonged
to the parish from time immemorial. The Town Lands,
originally 10½ acres copyhold, were increased in 1677
by 132 acres freehold in the North Fen awarded under
the Bedford Level Act. In 1837 they were worth
£185 15s. annually. After drainage taxes of £44 2s. 5d.
and the diversions to educational purposes had been
paid, £102 9s. was available for the poor. This
was distributed to about 300 persons in sums of 3s.
to 12s. (fn. 63)