Wymondham (pronounced, phonetically, ) is a village in the

Borough of Melton Melton is a local government district with borough status in north-eastern Leicestershire, England. It is named after its main town, Melton Mowbray. Other settlements include Asfordby and Bottesford. At the 2011 census, it had a population of ...

in Leicestershire, England. It is part 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 authorit ...

which also covers the nearby hamlet of Edmondthorpe. The parish has a population of 623, increasing to 632 at the 2011 census. It is close to the county boundaries with

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-we ...

and Rutland, nearby places being Garthorpe, Teigh (in Rutland) and

South Witham South Witham is a village and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 1,533. It is situated south of Grantham, 10 miles east of Melton Mowbray and 10 miles ...

(in Lincolnshire).

Description

The village church is St Peter's; the pub is the Berkeley Arms. There is a windmill that has been converted into a visitor attraction with tea room and craft shops. A part-time mobile Post Office visits the village twice a week. Wymondham has a primary school and a pre-school group. There is also a large playing field named after Sir John Sedley.

Manor

The manor of Wymondham was held by the Hamelin family in the 1200s. The south transept of the parish church had a chantry chapel founded by William Hamelin in 1290, who gave land in Wymondham, Saxby and Thorp Edmer for a chaplain to celebrate mass in perpetuity on his behalf. By 1553 the chantry was no longer in existence possibly as a result of the Reformation when saying masses for the departed was abolished. In the south transept of the church is a monument in the form of a large effigy of a knight, cross-legged, dating from the late 13th century; this was Sir John Hamelin who was supposedly a crusader on three occasions. Sir John's daughter and heiress, Isabel, carried the manor to her husband, Sir Thomas Berkeley, a son of

Thomas de Berkeley, 1st Baron Berkeley Thomas de Berkeley, 1st Baron Berkeley (c. 1245– 23 July 1321), ''The Wise'', feudal baron of Berkeley, of Berkeley Castle in Gloucestershire, England, was a peer, soldier and diplomat. His epithet, and that of each previous and subsequent head ...

in whose family it remained for centuries. Sir Thomas Berkeley (died 1488) was an English lawyer and politician who represented Leicestershire in Parliament and served as Sheriff for Rutland, Warwickshire, and Leicestershire. The public house in Wymondham is named The Berkeley Arms.

St Peter's church

The parish church dates back to the 13th century and was built in the "

Early English style English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture's defining features are pointed ar ...

on a

cruciform plan Cruciform is a term for physical manifestations resembling a common cross or Christian cross. The label can be extended to architectural shapes, biology, art, and design. Cruciform architectural plan Christian churches are commonly describe ...

"; the third storey of the tower and the spire are in the

Perpendicular style Perpendicular Gothic (also Perpendicular, Rectilinear, or Third Pointed) architecture was the third and final style of English Gothic architecture developed in the Kingdom of England during the Late Middle Ages, typified by large windows, four-ce ...

. The church priest is also responsible for

Buckminster Buckminster is a village and civil parish within the Melton district of Leicestershire, England, which includes the two villages of Buckminster and Sewstern. The total population of the civil parish was 356 at the 2011 census. It is on the ...

and Sewstern (South Framland). The church saw the wedding of footballer

Michael Carrick Michael Carrick (born 28 July 1981) is an English professional football manager and former player who is currently head coach of Middlesbrough. He is one of the most decorated English footballers of all time and is best known for his 12-year p ...

and Lisa Roughead in June 2007.

Disused railway

A disused railway line, part of the

Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway The Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway (M&GNJR) was a railway network in England, in the area connecting southern Lincolnshire, the Isle of Ely and north Norfolk. It developed from several local independent concerns and was incorporated ...

branch line between Saxby and Bourne, runs just to the north of the village. The

Edmondthorpe and Wymondham railway station Edmondthorpe and Wymondham railway station was a station in Wymondham, Leicestershire. It also served the small hamlet of Edmondthorpe. It was Midland Railway property but train services were operated by the Midland and Great Northern Joint Ra ...

closed to passengers in 1959 though the line remained open for ironstone freight, and Queen Elizabeth journeyed along it in 1967. The route was also used for holiday trips from Leicester to

Skegness Skegness ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey District of Lincolnshire, England. On the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, the town is east of Lincoln and north-east of Boston. With a population of 19,579 as of 2011, ...

. The former goods yard, goods shed, station, Station House and Navvies' Cottage (Grade II Listed) are passed when travelling from the village along Butt Lane towards the windmill.

Stilton cheese

Frances Pawlett (or Paulet), a "skilled cheese maker" of Wymondham, has traditionally been credited as the person who set modern Stilton cheese's shape and style characteristics in the 1720s, but others have also been named.

References