Croydon, Cambridgeshire
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Croydon is a small 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
in
South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...
, England. It is south-west of
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
and immediately west of the A1198 road (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 Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
Ermine Street Ermine Street is a major Roman road in England that ran from London (''Londinium'') to Lincoln ('' Lindum Colonia'') and York ('' Eboracum''). The Old English name was ''Earninga Strǣt'' (1012), named after a tribe called the ''Earninga ...
). The population in 2001 was 221 people, increasing to 235 at the 2011 Census. The site of the
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 conve ...
of Clopton is in Croydon parish, which was formerly known as Croydon-cum-Clopton.


History

The village's name was spelled ''Crauudene'' in the 1086
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 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
– it is derived from the
Old English Old English ( or , or ), 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 developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
''crawe'' and ''denu'', meaning 'valley of the crows'. The parish is now known as Croydon, but it used to be called 'Croydon-with-Clopton' or 'Croydon-cum-Clopton'. In 1086, about 28 peasants lived at Croydon. The separate
vill Vill is a term used in English, Welsh and Irish history to describe a basic rural land unit, roughly comparable to that of a parish, manor, village or tithing. Medieval developments The vill was the smallest territorial and administrative unit†...
s of Croydon and Clopton were joined in 1561 and Croydon's population may have increased to around 140 people early in the 17th century, but fell to 90 during the reign of Charles II. Open fields surrounding Croydon village were enclosed for pasture around 1640, but from the late 18th century arable farming recommenced.'Parishes: Croydon cum Clopton', A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 8 (1982), pp. 30–42. Date accessed: 8 August 2008.
/ref> Current-day Croydon grew up along a street which runs east–west along the ridge to the north of the parish. Some timber-framed houses dating from the late 17th or early 18th centuries still stand, though most of the cottages date from the early 19th century. The main route through the parish followed a terrace along the steep hillside towards
Tadlow Tadlow is a small village and civil parish in South Cambridgeshire, South Cambridgeshire, England on the River Cam (or Rhee). It is south-west of Cambridge and north-east of Biggleswade, Bedfordshire. In 2001 the population was 181 and the ar ...
. The track, called 'Royston road', was improved and incorporated into the
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
-
Biggleswade Biggleswade ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Central Bedfordshire in Bedfordshire, England. It lies on the River Ivel, 11 miles (18 km) south-east of Bedford. Its population was 16,551 in the 2011 United Kingdom census, This figur ...
turnpike, later became the A603 and it has now been downgraded to the B1042. Croydon Old Lane, in the north, went towards Hatley, while the current road up Croydon Hill to Hatley was first built in 1830.


Clopton

Clopton was a medieval village which was deserted in the 16th century. It has been designated a
Scheduled Ancient Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...
and is west of Croydon village; a footpath known as the 'Clopton Way' runs past it. There were signs of
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 Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
occupation at Clopton and a Anglo-Saxon village was in place by the 10th century. It was mentioned in the 1086
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 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
, when 18 peasants were in residence and a Friday market was granted in 1292 to Robert Hoo, lord of Clopton. The village stood on a prominent ridge and was terraced into the hillside –
archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
excavations have revealed the former locations of a central church, two sites with moats and a probable mill. The site of the manor of Clopton, Clopton Bury, had a rectangular moat linked to the mill in the south-east of the village. The village started to decline in the later Middle Ages and was deserted for good in the early 16th century after
enclosure Enclosure or inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or "common land", enclosing it, and by doing so depriving commoners of their traditional rights of access and usage. Agreements to enc ...
, begun around 1500, deprived the villagers of their livelihood. By 1524, the only households left belonged to the lady of the manor and five labourers. Today, earthworks outline the site of the village.


Governance

Croydon parish council consists of seven councillors and a parish clerk. The parish is represented on
South Cambridgeshire District Council South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz' ...
by two councillors for the Gamlingay ward and on
Cambridgeshire County Council Cambridgeshire County Council is the county council for non-metropolitan county of Cambridgeshire, England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county, which additionally includes the City o ...
by one councillor for the Gamlingay electoral division. It is in the
parliamentary constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...
of South Cambridgeshire, represented at the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
by Anthony Browne since 2019.


Geography

It is north-west of Royston, south-west of the county town of Cambridge and north of London, a short distance west of what was the Roman
Ermine Street Ermine Street is a major Roman road in England that ran from London (''Londinium'') to Lincoln ('' Lindum Colonia'') and York ('' Eboracum''). The Old English name was ''Earninga Strǣt'' (1012), named after a tribe called the ''Earninga ...
, now the A1198 road. The village of Arrington is east of Croydon,
Wendy Wendy is a given name generally given to girls in English-speaking countries. In Britain during the English Civil War in the mid-1600s, a male Captain Wendy Oxford was identified by the Leveller John Lilburne as a spy reporting on his activit ...
is south-east and Hatley north-west.Ordnance Survey: Getamap
/ref> The
River Cam The River Cam () is the main river flowing through Cambridge in eastern England. After leaving Cambridge, it flows north and east before joining the River Great Ouse to the south of Ely, Cambridgeshire, Ely, at Pope's Corner. The total distanc ...
(or Rhee) runs along the southern boundary of Croydon parish. The soil at Croydon is 'clayey' with a chalk and
gault The Gault Formation is a geological formation of stiff blue clay deposited in a calm, fairly deep-water marine environment during the Lower Cretaceous Period (Upper and Middle Albian). It is well exposed in the coastal cliffs at Copt Point in Fo ...
subsoil.GENUKI: Croydon-with-Clopton
The parish ranges from 22 metres, by the river, via the foot of a chalk down at 45 metres, to a northern plateau reaching 82 metres above sea level. It covers an area of 1,103 hectares.


Demography

At the time of the 2001 census, Croydon parish had 221 residents living in 89 households. The ethnic group of 98.6% of people was white; 1.4% described themselves as Asian or Asian British. 79.5% were
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
, 1.4% followed another religion and 19.1% followed no religion or did not state one. Croydon parish had 208 inhabitants in 1801 and around 325 in the 1900s but in 1971 the population had fallen again to 205.


Landmarks

A war memorial stands on Church Lane and commemorates Croydon men who were killed in the
First First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...
and
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
s. Three buildings in the parish are listed: the parish church, a row of cottages along Larkins Road and a
milestone A milestone is a numbered marker placed on a route such as a road, railway, railway line, canal or border, boundary. They can indicate the distance to towns, cities, and other places or landmarks like Mileage sign, mileage signs; or they c ...
along Tadlow Road.


Religious sites

Croydon's church was established by the late 12th century and was dedicated to All Saints by at least 1520. It stands on a slope above the village street and has had problems with
subsidence Subsidence is a general term for downward vertical movement of the Earth's surface, which can be caused by both natural processes and human activities. Subsidence involves little or no horizontal movement, which distinguishes it from slope mov ...
; it is constructed of brick and field stones in the Perpendicular style. In 1561 it was described as ''ampla et ornata'' and said to be in decay; Sir John Cage made efforts to improve it in the 1620s and
Sir George Downing, 1st Baronet Sir George Downing, 1st Baronet ( – 1684) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish diplomat and financial reformer, who held office first under the Commonwealth of England, then Charles II of England, Charles II. As Teller of the Receipt of the ...
, rebuilt the chancel in brick and established a family vault, where he was subsequently buried. He founded
Downing College Downing College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge and currently has around 950 students. Founded in 1800, it was the only college to be added to the university between 1596 and 1869, ...
, Cambridge, and
Downing Street Downing Street is a gated street in City of Westminster, Westminster in London that houses the official residences and offices of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Chancellor of the Exchequer. In a cul-de-sac situated off Whiteh ...
in London is named after him. There are some pictures and a description of the Grade II* church at the Cambridgeshire Churches website.The church's page at the Cambridgeshire Churches website
/ref> Another church was built at Clopton in the late 12th century on a terrace; it was reconsecrated in 1352 and measured around by . It was in poor repair by 1561 and was turned over to agricultural use before 1660 and was demolished, with even the foundations removed.


References


External links


Fulford's 'Speculum Gregis' for the Parish of Croydon Cambridgeshire'
{{authority control Villages in Cambridgeshire Civil parishes in Cambridgeshire South Cambridgeshire District