Ospringe is a village and area of
Faversham
Faversham is a market town in Kent, England, from London and from Canterbury, next to the Swale, a strip of sea separating mainland Kent from the Isle of Sheppey in the Thames Estuary. It is close to the A2, which follows an ancient British t ...
in the English county of
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
. It is also the name of a
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
, which since 1935 has not included the village of Ospringe.
The village lies on the
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
road
Watling Street
Watling Street is a historic route in England that crosses the River Thames at London and which was used in Classical Antiquity, Late Antiquity, and throughout the Middle Ages. It was used by the ancient Britons and paved as one of the main R ...
(nowadays the
A2 road), called Ospringe Street in the village. The historic
Maison Dieu is on Ospringe Street. The remains of substantial Roman buildings have been found to its north west; the ruins of the abandoned
Stone Chapel lie nearby.
The largest settlement in the civil parish of Ospringe is now
Painters Forstal
Painters Forstal (Painter's Forstal on Ordnance Survey maps) is a village in the Swale district of the English county of Kent. It is south-west of the town of Faversham and is part of the civil parish of Ospringe. It lies just south of the M2 ...
, which lies a mile south west of the village of Ospringe. The civil parish also includes the hamlets of
Brogdale
Brogdale is a hamlet in Kent, England, immediately south of the M2 motorway (Great Britain), M2 motorway, south of Faversham. It is one of several hamlets making up the civil parishes in England, civil parish of Ospringe and is in the Borough o ...
and
Whitehill. The civil parish had a population of 715 in 2001, increasing to 771 at the 2011 census.
[
The parish church of St Paul and St Peter, a ]Grade II* listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
, lies half a mile south of the village of Ospringe and within the civil parish. It was built in the early 1200s. The church is in the diocese of Canterbury
The Diocese of Canterbury is a Church of England diocese covering eastern Kent which was founded by St. Augustine of Canterbury in 597. The diocese is centred on Canterbury Cathedral and is the oldest see of the Church of England.
The ''Report ...
, and the deanery of Ospringe.
History
The Roman ruins are believed to be on the site of the Durolevum
Durolevum was a Roman settlement in Britain. The only surviving mention of it from antiquity appears in the Antonine Itinerary, where it forms part of the Roman equivalent of Watling Street, connecting Rutupiae (Richborough) to Londinium (Londo ...
mentioned in the Antonine Itinerary
The Antonine Itinerary ( la, Itinerarium Antonini Augusti, "The Itinerary of the Emperor Antoninus") is a famous ''itinerarium'', a register of the stations and distances along various roads. Seemingly based on official documents, possibly ...
, although this remains uncertain.
In 1798, Edward Hasted
Edward Hasted (20 December 1732 OS (31 December 1732 NS) – 14 January 1812) was an English antiquarian and pioneering historian of his ancestral home county of Kent. As such, he was the author of a major county history, ''The History and T ...
records that the village was once called "Ospringes", and that this name comes from the spring or stream that rises in the village and used to lead to Davington pond.
The village was once separate from the hundred
100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101.
In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to de ...
of Faversham, and had its own constable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...
. In 1935 part of the parish (including the village and Ospringe Street) became part of the Borough of Faversham
Faversham is a market town in Kent, England, from London and from Canterbury, next to the Swale, a strip of sea separating mainland Kent from the Isle of Sheppey in the Thames Estuary. It is close to the A2, which follows an ancient British t ...
. This enabled electricity to be installed in many of the properties. Other parish matters (such as rubbish collection) were now controlled by Faversham, removing the need to dispose of waste in a local disused quarry.[
The stream that gave the village its name ran from Whitehill, near ]Painters Forstal
Painters Forstal (Painter's Forstal on Ordnance Survey maps) is a village in the Swale district of the English county of Kent. It is south-west of the town of Faversham and is part of the civil parish of Ospringe. It lies just south of the M2 ...
(or Painter's Forstal) northwards along a valley (along Water Lane), towards Ospringe Church and then past Queen Court (a former mansion house – now a Grade II*
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
listed farmhouse,). The stream then passed through a corn grinding water mill
A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production o ...
(demolished around 1960) and then actually flowed along Water Lane, with raised pavements either side, creating a ford close to the junction with Ospringe Street (A2) (beside the Maison Dieu) It was then culverted under the A2 to reappear on the north side and head towards Chart Gunpowder Mill, before finally running into Faversham creek near Oare.[ When the ]M2 motorway This is a list of roads designated M2:
Europe
* M2 motorway (Great Britain), a motorway in England
* M2 expressway (Hungary), a motorway in Hungary
* N2 road (Ireland)#M2 motorway, a motorway in the Republic of Ireland
* M-2 highway (Monteneg ...
was built in 1965, Water Lane was rebuilt south of the A2 and the stream completely diverted into a culvert under the road. This led to the complete disappearance of the ford and stream. The raised pavements were eventually levelled.
According to the Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
of 1086, the village belonged to Odo, Earl of Kent
Odo of Bayeux (died 1097), Earl of Kent and Bishop of Bayeux, was the maternal half-brother of William the Conqueror, and was, for a time, second in power after the King of England.
Early life
Odo was the son of William the Conqueror's mother ...
, (as the Bishop of Bayeux
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bayeux and Lisieux (Latin: ''Dioecesis Baiocensis et Lexoviensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Bayeux et Lisieux'') is a diocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is coextensive with the Department of Calvados and is ...
). After Odo's trial for fraud, the village then passed back to the Crown as part of the royal demesne
A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. The concept or ...
s. King John stayed in the manor of Ospringe in October 1214 and in October 1215 (during the First Barons' War
The First Barons' War (1215–1217) was a civil war in the Kingdom of England in which a group of rebellious major landowners (commonly referred to as barons) led by Robert Fitzwalter waged war against King John of England. The conflict resulte ...
). Richard de Marisco, Lord Chancellor
The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. The ...
of England, came to Ospringe to deliver the Great seal to King John. It then passed to Hubert de Burgh, 1st Earl of Kent
Hubert de Burgh, Earl of Kent (; ; ; c.1170 – before 5 May 1243) was an English nobleman who served as Chief Justiciar of England and Ireland during the reigns of King John and of his son and successor King Henry III and, as a consequenc ...
but then returned to the King in 1235. In 1299, Queen Margaret became the owner. The manor of Ospringe then became ''Queen-Court''.[
Later, two manors split. Sir John Pulteney became the owner of the manor of Ospringe. He was ]Lord Mayor of London
The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional powe ...
(1330–1331 and 1333) and also owner of Penshurst Place
Penshurst Place is a historic building near Penhurst, Kent, south east of London, England. It is the ancestral home of the Sidney family, and was the birthplace of the great Elizabethan poet, courtier and soldier, Sir Philip Sidney. The ori ...
. When he died in 1350, it passed to his son William de Pulteney. When Sir William Pulteney died in 1367, it passed to Sir Nicholas Lovaine (Sir William's stepfather). The manor then passed through many generations of that family, including Sir Philip St Clere. In 1550, Sir Thomas Cheney, a Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports
The Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports is a ceremonial official in the United Kingdom. The post dates from at least the 12th century, when the title was Keeper of the Coast, but may be older. The Lord Warden was originally in charge of the Cinqu ...
, became owner.[
During the reign of ]Edward II
Edward II (25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327), also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to t ...
, after the split, The Manor of Queen-Court passed to Fulk Peyforer, then in 1357 to Sir William de Clinton. It then returned to the Crown's control after his death. Nicholas Potin (a sheriff of Kent) then leased the manor. In 1550, it passed to Sir Thomas Cheney. When the two manors became one manor. Sir Henry Cheney (Sir Thomas's son) then sold the estate to Richard Thornhill, of London. By 1789, George North, 3rd Earl of Guilford
George Augustus North, 3rd Earl of Guilford, FRS (11 September 1757 – 20 April 1802), known as The Honourable George North until 1790 and as Lord North from 1790 to 1792, was a British politician.
Early life
Guilford was the eldest son of ...
(once MP for Harwich
Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-on- ...
).[
Also included in the Parish of Ospringe were the estates of 'Plumford' and 'Painters' (the latter is now part of ]Painters Forstal
Painters Forstal (Painter's Forstal on Ordnance Survey maps) is a village in the Swale district of the English county of Kent. It is south-west of the town of Faversham and is part of the civil parish of Ospringe. It lies just south of the M2 ...
), which were both Manors of Queencourt. It was held in 1547, by the son of Sir Anthony Aucher (an MP for Canterbury). The manor passed through various owners in the same way as the Manor of Ospringe.[
Another estate was ]Brogdale
Brogdale is a hamlet in Kent, England, immediately south of the M2 motorway (Great Britain), M2 motorway, south of Faversham. It is one of several hamlets making up the civil parishes in England, civil parish of Ospringe and is in the Borough o ...
and Brook Farm (near the hamlet of Whitehill), named after the brook that flows through Ospringe. Brook Farm is now a Grade II listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
building.
Another estate is Elverland, (once called Elvyland). It was owned by John, the youngest son of Bertram de Criol (High Sheriff of Essex
The High Sheriff of Essex was an ancient sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the invasion of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around a thousand years. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the ...
in 1239). It passed to his son, Nicholas de Criol. Then it passed to the Maison Dieu, who leased it out for a fee. After the hospital at Maison Dieu ended it passed into private hands again.[ The Manor House is now a Grade II listed building.
Another small estate is Hansletts (once called ''Hansells'' or ''Hansletts forstal''). This passed through various private hands.][ Hansletts House is now a Grade II listed building.
West of the parish, on Judd's Hill, is Folly House. It is in the grounds of a five-acre (2 hectares) wood, which in 1201 was owned by the ]Bishop of Rochester
The Bishop of Rochester is the ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Rochester in the Province of Canterbury.
The town of Rochester has the bishop's seat, at the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, which was foun ...
, Gilbert Glanvill
Gilbert Glanvill or Gilbert de Glanville was a medieval Bishop of Rochester.
Life
Glanvill was a clerk of Archbishop Baldwin of Canterbury and the archdeacon of the Lisieux.[Henry Sandford
Henry Sandford was a medieval Bishop of Rochester.
Sandford was a royal official before becoming a canon of the diocese of Salisbury and was Archdeacon of Canterbury from about 1213 until he was chosen for Rochester.] (a later Bishop) passed the wood to a local resident and his heirs.[ It now has become Judd's Folly Hotel, and Syndale Park Fitness Club.
West of Folly House is the estate of Syndale, also in private hands.][ Now part of Syndale Farm. Syndale Farmhouse is Grade II listed.] Until 1961, a Palladian-style house known as Syndale House stood in the grounds immediately south of the A2. It was completely destroyed by fire and not rebuilt. The grounds were investigated by television's ''Time Team
''Time Team'' is a British television programme that originally aired on Channel 4 from 16 January 1994 to 7 September 2014. It returned online in 2022 for two episodes released on YouTube. Created by television producer Tim ...
'', in search of a possible early Roman fort adjoining the main Roman road from the continent to London. The fort was not found, though many traces of a Roman presence were.
The Church of St Paul and St Peter was built in the early 1200s. In 1384, it was under the Abbot of Pontiniac (in France). Then it (and the attached parsonage) became a possession of the Maison Dieu. In 1558, the parsonage was privately leased by Robert Streynsham (a former secretary of the 1st Earl of Pembroke), and then passed through his family.[
]
See also
* Mount Field
References
External links
Parish Council website
{{authority control
Villages in Kent
Civil parishes in Kent
Faversham