Ellesborough is a village and

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 ...

in the south of

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-e ...

, England. The village is at the foot of the

Chiltern Hills The Chiltern Hills is a chalk escarpment in England. The area, northwest of London, covers stretching from Goring-on-Thames in the southwest to Hitchin in the northeast - across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, and Bedfordshi ...

just to the south of the Vale of Aylesbury, from

Wendover Wendover is a market town and civil parish at the foot of the Chiltern Hills in Buckinghamshire, England. It is situated at the point where the main road across the Chilterns between London and Aylesbury intersects with the once important road a ...

and from

Aylesbury Aylesbury ( ) is the county town of Buckinghamshire, South East England. It is home to the Roald Dahl Children's Gallery, David Tugwell`s house on Watermead and the Waterside Theatre. It is in central Buckinghamshire, midway between High Wy ...

. It lies between Wendover and the village of

Little Kimble Great and Little Kimble cum Marsh is a civil parish in central Buckinghamshire, England. It is located to the south of Aylesbury. The civil parish altogether holds the ancient ecclesiastical villages of Great Kimble, Little Kimble, Kimblewick ...

. The civil parish (population in 2011 was 820) includes the hamlets of

Butlers Cross Butlers Cross is a hamlet within the parish of Ellesborough (where the 2011 Census population was included), in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the south of the parish, at the crossroads between the road from Ellesborough to Little Kimble, ...

, Chalkshire,

Dunsmore Dunsmore is a name with a separate origin in Scotland and England. Scots place name and surname Dunsmore is a surname and place name of Scottish origin, predating its first written mention in the Chartulary of the abbey of Lindores in 1198 AD.' ...

North Lee North Lee is a hamlet in the parish of Ellesborough, in Buckinghamshire, England. It is located in the very north of the parish, near the main road that links Aylesbury with Wendover. The hamlet name is a compound of English and Anglo Saxon ...

, and

Terrick Terrick (formerly Terwick) is a hamlet in the parish of Ellesborough, in Buckinghamshire, England. It is located in the north of the parish, where the lane leading to Chequers meets the main road from Stoke Mandeville to Little Kimble. The ha ...

. Close to Ellesborough is the Prime Minister's country residence

Chequers Chequers ( ), or Chequers Court, is the country house of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. A 16th-century manor house in origin, it is located near the village of Ellesborough, halfway between Princes Risborough and Wendover in Buck ...

History

The village's name is probably derived from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th ...

for "hill where asses are pastured". This denotes its importance to the nearby settlements known today as

The Kimbles Great and Little Kimble cum Marsh is a civil parish in central Buckinghamshire, England. It is located to the south of Aylesbury. The civil parish altogether holds the ancient ecclesiastical villages of Great Kimble, Little Kimble, Kimblewick ...

and collectively they comprise a typical Chiltern strip parish with Ellesborough containing valuable hill pasture. In 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 it was recorded as ''Esenberge''. The road from

Princes Risborough Princes Risborough () is a market town in Buckinghamshire, England, about south of Aylesbury and north west of High Wycombe. It lies at the foot of the Chiltern Hills, at the north end of a gap or pass through the Chilterns, the south end o ...

, which makes a very clearly defined detour around the hill on which Ellesborough Church stands, follows the route of the

Icknield Way The Icknield Way is an ancient trackway in southern and eastern England that runs from Norfolk to Wiltshire. It follows the chalk escarpment that includes the Berkshire Downs and Chiltern Hills. Background It is generally said to be, wi ...

, an ancient trackway used in the neolithic age (3000 to 1800 BC) which ran from Norfolk to Avebury in Wiltshire. Beacon Hill from Ellesborough Church Tower - 1256054

Beacon Hill from Ellesborough Church Tower - 1256054

Towering over the village is the dominating Beacon Hill, with its grassy mound and lone tree, iconic amongst the Chiltern Hills when viewed from within the Aylesbury Vale. It is also the site of Cymbeline's Mount, also known as Cymbeline's Castle, referred to in the Shakespeare play ''Cymbeline''. In reality, the name refers to the British King

Cunobelinus Cunobeline (or Cunobelin, from Latin , derived from Common Brittonic ''*Cunobelinos'' "Strong as a Dog", "Strong Dog") was a king in pre-Roman Britain from about AD 9 until about AD 40.Malcolm Todd (2004)"Cunobelinus_

motte and bailey A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy t ...

castle.

Parish church

The Church of England parish church of Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, Saints Peter and Paul stands apart from the village, high on the hill overlooking it. The central part of the building dates from the 15th century, with extensions and restoration between 1854 and 1871. It contains 17th century memorials to Sir Robert Croke MP, his son

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

, and their family. Prime Ministers have often attended this church for Sunday morning worship when in residence at Chequers.

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of t ...

, however, followed his wife and children to their

Roman Catholic 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 let ...

church in

Great Missenden Great Missenden is an affluent village with approximately 2,000 residents in the Misbourne Valley in the Chiltern Hills in Buckinghamshire, England, situated between the towns of Amersham and Wendover, with direct rail connections to London Mar ...

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

was famously known to have prayed at Ellesborough church, finding comfort during the

Falklands War The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial ...

Notable people

Lady Isabella Dodd, widow of Sir Samuel Dodd, endowed workhouses in the village in her will in 1722. The Dame Isabella Dodds charity continued until 2004 and gave its name to Dame Isabella Dodds Court in Aylesbury. Notable people who live in the village include former

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

world champion racing driver Sir

Jackie Stewart Sir John Young Stewart (born 11 June 1939), known as Jackie Stewart, is a British former Formula One racing driver from Scotland. Nicknamed the "Flying Scot", he competed in Formula One between 1965 and 1973, winning three World Drivers' Cha ...

and the actor Sir

David Jason Sir David John White (born 2 February 1940), known professionally by his stage name David Jason, is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as Derek "Del Boy" Trotter in the BBC sitcom '' Only Fools and Horses'', Detective Inspector ...

References

External links

Wycombe District Council
* {{authority control Villages in Buckinghamshire Civil parishes in Buckinghamshire