Ringsfield is a village and civil parish in the

English county The counties of England are areas used for different purposes, which include administrative, geographical, cultural and political demarcation. The term "county" is defined in several ways and can apply to similar or the same areas used by each ...

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

. It is south-west of Beccles in the

East Suffolk East Suffolk may refer to the following places in Suffolk, England: * East Suffolk (county), a county until 1974 * East Suffolk District, a local government district established in 2019 * East Suffolk (UK Parliament constituency), an electoral dist ...

district. The parish had a population of 323 at the

2011 United Kingdom census A census of the population of the United Kingdom is taken every ten years. The 2011 census was held in all countries of the UK on 27 March 2011. It was the first UK census which could be completed online via the Internet. The Office for National ...

. It borders the parishes of Beccles, Weston, Redisham, Ilketshall St Andrew and Barsham. The parish council operates jointly with Weston.Welcome to the Ringsfield and Weston Website
Ringsfield and Weston Parish Council. Retrieved 2021-02-19.

History

At the Domesday survey of 1086 Ringsfield was a large village with a population of 100 households. Most of the land was in the direct holdings of King William, with other holdings controlled by Hugh d'Avranches, Earl of Chester and Roger Bigot.Ringsfield
Open Domesday. Retrieved 2021-02-19. It formed part of Wangford Hundred.Ringsfield
Suffolk Heritage Explorer,

Suffolk County Council Suffolk County Council is the administrative authority for the county of Suffolk, England. It is run by 75 elected county councillors representing 63 divisions. It is a member of the East of England Local Government Association. History Establ ...

. Retrieved 2021-02-19. Suckling AI (1846) 'Ringsfield', in ''The History and Antiquities of the County of Suffolk: Volume 1'', pp.67–71. Ipswich: WS Crowell.
Available online
at British History Online. Retrieved 2021-02-19.) The manor passed through a number of families, including the Roos family of nearby

Roos Hall Roos Hall (or sometimes Rose Hall) is a manor house and former manor ½ a mile (¾km) west of Beccles in Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west an ...

. The population of the parish grew to over 300 by the 19th-century. It declined in the early 20th-century, although house building since the 1970s has led to an increase. The parish was combined with Little Redisham, around south west of Ringsfield, in 1627. The former St James' church was in ruins by the early 17th-century and now forms part of the park surrounding Redisham Hall, the northern part of which is located within Ringsfield parish.Monument record RGD 002 - Church of St James, Little Redisham/Redisham Hall Park
Suffolk Heritage Explorer,

. Retrieved 2021-02-19. Suckling AI (1846) 'Little Redisham', in ''The History and Antiquities of the County of Suffolk: Volume 1'', pp.61–67. Ipswich: WS Cowell.
Available online
at British History Online. Retrieved 2021-02-19.) Redisham Hall was originally built in the 16th-century and is the site of a likely embarked

deserted medieval village In the United Kingdom, a deserted medieval village (DMV) is a former settlement which was abandoned during the Middle Ages, typically leaving no trace apart from earthworks or cropmarks. If there are fewer than three inhabited houses the convent ...

.Monument record RGD 003 - Redisham Hall Park
Suffolk Heritage Explorer,

. Retrieved 2021-02-19. It was rebuilt in 1823 by John Garden to replace a previous Elizabethan house. It is a Grade II listed building located in of parkland partly in the parish, to the south-west of the village. It passed down in the Garden family to John Lewis Garden, a big game hunter and husband of Caroline Murat.Redisham Hall, Ringsfield
List entry, Historic England. Retrieved 2021-02-19. Parts of the hall are now used as holiday cottages.

Culture and community

The modern village is concentrated around a crossroads at Ringsfield Corner, south of the parish church. The boundary divides this community, with some of the housing within the Weston parish area.Ringsfield and Weston
Healthy Suffolk, 2016. Retrieved 2021-02-19. Ringsfield Hall, in the north of the parish, is an outdoor education centre. The village has a primary school, village hall with a playing field an tennis courts, and a public house, the ''Horseshoes''. Few other services remain.Ringsfield Horseshoes
Suffolk Pubs, Suffolk

Campaign for Real Ale The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is an independent voluntary consumer organisation headquartered in St Albans, England, which promotes real ale, cider and perry and traditional British pubs and clubs. With just under 155,000 members, it is th ...

. Retrieved 2009-04-20

Church of All Saints

Monument to Caroline de Chassiron - geograph

The parish church is dedicated to All Saints. The building is medieval in origin, with a tower built in 1450. It was refurbished in the 1880s.Church of All Saints
List entry, Historic England. Retrieved 2021-02-19.Knott S (2021
All Saints, Ringsfield
Suffolk Churches. Retrieved 2021-03-04. The churchyard contains the grave and memorial of the American born Princess Caroline Murat (1833–1902), great niece of

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

and granddaughter of Joachim Murat, King of Naples. She lived and died at Redisham Hall after marrying John Lewis Garden, whose family seat it was. The church is a Grade II* listed building. The former St James' church at Little Redisham is in ruins.

References

External links

{{authority control Villages in Suffolk Civil parishes in Suffolk Waveney District