Frensham is a village in Surrey, England, next to the

A287 road List of A roads in zone 2 in Great Britain starting south of the River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest r ...

, WSW of Guildford, the county town. Frensham lies on the right bank of the

River Wey The River Wey is a main tributary of the River Thames in south east England. Its two branches, one of which rises near Alton in Hampshire and the other in West Sussex to the south of Haslemere, join at Tilford in Surrey. Once combined the ...

(south branch), only navigable to canoes, shortly before its convergence with the north branch. Farnham is the nearest town, to the north. The majority of Frensham parish is within the

Metropolitan Green Belt The Metropolitan Green Belt is a statutory green belt around London, England. It comprises parts of Greater London, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey, parts of two of the three districts of Bedfordshire and a s ...

and the substantial green buffer in the parish is

Frensham Common Frensham Common is a large Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) heathland of which includes two lakes; it is owned by the National Trust. Terrain, plants and animals Frensham Common is an English SSSI heathland of which includes two ...

which is owned by the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

and is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The non-agricultural land surrounding the village is mainly open heathland and birch woodland. The Common covers about and comprises

heathland A heath () is a shrubland habitat found mainly on free-draining infertile, acidic soils and characterised by open, low-growing woody vegetation. Moorland is generally related to high-ground heaths with—especially in Great Britain—a coole ...

, together with some coniferous and mixed woodland. There are two large ponds, known as Frensham Great and Little Ponds, which were built in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

to provide

fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of ...

for the Bishop of Winchester's estate and today are the backdrop for a hotel and are used for fishing and sailing.

History

Before the English Reformation

Mesolithic camp or living sites have been discovered around Frensham. Hundreds of

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

arrowheads have been found around Frensham and there are several

tumuli A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones built ...

(burial sites). In 688 AD, King Caedwalla of Wessex made a charter conveying to the

Catholic church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

60 hides of land that included Farnham, Frensham and

Churt Churt is a village and civil parish in the borough of Waverley in Surrey, England, about south of the town of Farnham on the A287 road towards Hindhead. A clustered settlement is set in areas acting as its green buffers, which include the ...

. This became the property of Hedda, Bishop of Winchester. The origins of the name Frensham come from 'Frena's ham'. Frena was the name of either a

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particula ...

who was killed in the

battle of Ashdown The Battle of Ashdown, was a West Saxon victory over a Danish Viking army on about 8 January 871. The location of Ashdown is not known, but may be Kingstanding Hill in Berkshire. Other writers place the battle near Starveall, a short distance n ...

in the year 871, or of a Saxon who was driven south from

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

by the Danes in 993. The second part 'ham' means 'settlement', and is also from where we get the word 'home', so Frensham is 'Frena's settlement'. In 1348, Frensham suffered from the

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pe ...

. Before it ceased in 1350, fifty-two area farms had become desolate. Frensham Beale Manor, off Mill Lane, is a Grade II listed timber framed manor house dating from the 14th century.

Neighbourhoods

Frensham includes the neighbourhood or locality, largely separated by a small green buffer,

Rushmoor Rushmoor is a local government district and borough in Hampshire, England. It covers the towns of Aldershot and Farnborough as well as Cove and North Camp. It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the borough of Aldershot and the Farnbo ...

or Rush Moor. A few outlying farmsteads have also become reverted to clusters of houses.

Industries

Locally clay was extracted from around Frensham for

Farnham Pottery Farnham Pottery is located in Wrecclesham near Farnham, Surrey. This is one of the best preserved examples of a working Victorian country pottery left in England and is a grade II listed building. Its significance in the local area is shown by ...

. The Bishop of Winchester managed to retain ownership of most of his historic Farnham estate including most manors in the south until the 19th century. In the 17th century, farmers focused primarily on hop growing and

sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated ...

rearing. Fishermen continued to work

Frensham Great Pond Frensham Common is a large Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) heathland of which includes two lakes; it is owned by the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, National Trust. Terrain, plants and animals Fr ...

20th century

Having been drained in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

the lakes in the common were transformed into a leisure destination and in the late 20th century they were used as film locations for the 1999 film ''The Mummy''. Actress

Liza Goddard Louise Elizabeth Goddard (born 20 January 1950) professionally known as Liza Goddard, is an English television and stage actress, best known for her work in the 1970s and 1980s. Early life Goddard was born in Smethwick, Staffordshire.Before 1 ...

was a Frensham resident. Pierrepont School was bought by Ellel Ministries International and converted into a training centre.

St Mary's Church

Originally a chapelry of Farnham, the present St Mary's church was dedicated in 1239, having been moved from its previous site on low ground beside the

. The move was probably due to the massive storms of the 1230s which flooded

Waverley Abbey Waverley Abbey was the first Cistercian abbey in England, founded in 1128 by William Giffard, the Bishop of Winchester. Located about southeast of Farnham, Surrey, it is situated on a flood-plain; surrounded by current and previous channe ...

, downstream, to a depth of . The

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ov ...

is the oldest part of the church, its walls being those of the original building, the 13th century niches,

piscina A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, or else in the vestry or sacristy, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a piscina. For Roman Ca ...

and

aumbry An ambry (or ''almery'', ''aumbry''; from the medieval form ''almarium'', cf. Lat. ''armārium'', "a place for keeping tools"; cf. O. Fr. ''aumoire'' and mod. armoire) is a recessed cabinet in the wall of a Christian church for storing sacred vesse ...

. The tower is 14th century, with massive diagonal buttresses and eight bells dated between 1627 and the 19th century. The porch is restored but is believed to be 15th century. The north aisle was built in 1827, and the whole church was subject to a major restoration in 1868. The font, of Purbeck Marble, is early

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

but its carvings are nearly obliterated. The organ was installed in 1871 with subsequent modernisations. The exterior of the building is of local

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and sta ...

and rubble, with evidence of endless repair and reconstruction. The church contains a large cauldron, said to have been borrowed from the fairies and never returned.

Demography and housing

Historic

The population of Frensham in 1851 was 714. Today the area of Frensham, Dockenfield and

Tilford Tilford is a village and civil parish centred at the point where the two branches of the River Wey merge in Surrey, England, south-east of Farnham. It has half of Charleshill, Elstead in its east, a steep northern outcrop of the Greensand Rid ...

has a total population of 3,961.

Latest statistics

The average level of accommodation in the region composed of detached houses was 28%, the average that was apartments was 22.6%. The proportion of households in the civil parish who owned their home outright compares to the regional average of 35.1%. The proportion who owned their home with a loan compares with the regional average of 32.5%. The remaining percentage is made up of rented dwellings (plus a negligible percentage of households living rent-free).

Amenities

Frensham post office and village shop is a community run shop and celebrated its tenth anniversary in January 2006. There are four local schools: St Mary's Church of England Infants' School, Frensham Heights,

Edgeborough Edgeborough School is a prep school near Farnham, Surrey in England. It is currently attended by ~360 kids between 2 and 13. The Head is Daniel Cox, former Deputy Head of Lambrook School, Ascot. Overview Edgeborough became co-educational in 1 ...

and More House. More House is the largest residential special school in the uk, educating boys with specific learning and language-based difficulties, including Dyslexia, Developmental Language Disorders and Dyspraxia. Frensham Great Pond, lying within

, extends over and is a centre for sailing activities. The pond sometimes suffers from

eutrophication Eutrophication is the process by which an entire body of water, or parts of it, becomes progressively enriched with minerals and nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. It has also been defined as "nutrient-induced increase in phytopla ...

. The occasional presence of

blue-green algae Cyanobacteria (), also known as Cyanophyta, are a phylum of gram-negative bacteria that obtain energy via photosynthesis. The name ''cyanobacteria'' refers to their color (), which similarly forms the basis of cyanobacteria's common name, bl ...

means that official advice regarding swimming varies, as indicated by notices at the water's edge. The smaller Frensham Little Pond is a scenic area for picnics - neither swimming nor sailing is allowed there. There are two active sports clubs in the village - Frensham Cricket Club and the Frensham RBL Bowls Club.Frensham RBL Bowls Club
/ref> The cricket club (2013) has two grounds, and plays in the I'Anson league with local villages. The bowls club have a very busy friendlies schedule as well as playing in the West Surrey Men's League, the Three Counties Bowl Fellowship and the Farnham and District league.

References

External links

Frensham Parish Council Website

Multimap

Results and conclusions of village survey

Frensham Little Pond

{{authority control Villages in Surrey Borough of Waverley Civil parishes in Surrey