Quainton (formerly Quainton Malet)Plea rolls of the Court of Common Pleas; National Archives; CP 40/647; 7th entry, with "North" in the margin; the defendant, Richard Longe is of Quenton Malet 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

, England, north-west of

Aylesbury Aylesbury ( ) is the county town of Buckinghamshire, England. It is home to the Roald Dahl Children's Gallery and the Aylesbury Waterside Theatre, Waterside Theatre. It is located in central Buckinghamshire, midway between High Wycombe and Milt ...

. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 Census was 1,295. The village has two churches (Anglican and Baptist), a school and one

public house A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...

. The location means that while many commute to London, others are employed in neighbouring towns and villages.

Early history

Its name is

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 ...

and means ''Queen's Estate'' (''cwen tun''). It is not known to which

queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

this refers, but possibly the Queen was Edith, the wife of

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was King of England from 1042 until his death in 1066. He was the last reigning monarch of the House of Wessex. Edward was the son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy. He succeede ...

. Known as "Fair Edith" she held manors in this part of Buckinghamshire, including a hunting lodge at Mentmore. Edward the Confessor had a palace at nearby

Brill Brill may refer to: Places * Brielle (sometimes "Den Briel"), a town in the western Netherlands * Brill, Buckinghamshire, a village in England * Brill, Cornwall, a small village to the west of Constantine, Cornwall, UK * Brill, Wisconsin, an un ...

. The former suffix Malet refers to the Malet family who were

lords of the manor Lord of the manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England and Norman England, referred to the landholder of a historical rural estate. The titles date to the English Feudalism, feudal (specifically English feudal barony, baronial) system. The ...

from 1066 until about 1348. At least one member went on the

crusade The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...

s, and had associations with the

Hospitallers The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there ...

, the organization credited with rebuilding Quainton church circa 1340. The Hospitallers erected the cross on the

village green A village green is a commons, common open area within a village or other settlement. Historically, a village green was common pasture, grassland with a pond for watering cattle and other stock, often at the edge of a rural settlement, used for ...

, the base and shaft of which still remain.

Historic buildings

The parish church is dedicated to

St Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under various titles such as virgin or queen, many of them mentioned in the Litany of Loreto. ...

and the Holy Cross. It is a 14th-century building of the style of

gothic architecture Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High Middle Ages, High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved f ...

known as Decorated. The west tower was built later in the 15th century. The church contains many memorial brasses and

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

, including the 1689

tomb A tomb ( ''tumbos'') or sepulchre () is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called '' immurement'', alth ...

of Sir Richard Winwood carved by Thomas Stayner. The stone effigies depict the deceased lying in full armour, while his widow, Ann, who paid for the tomb, rests beside him, half sitting regarding her husband. In the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

are a

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

and

sedilia In church architecture, sedilia (plural of Latin ''sedīle'', "seat") are seats, typically made of stone, located on the liturgical south side of the altar—often within the chancel—intended for use by the officiating priest, deacon, an ...

by William White who was responsible for the heavy

Victorian restoration The Victorian restoration was the widespread and extensive wikt:refurbish, refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England church (building), churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century Victorian era, re ...

and rebuilding of the chancel in 1877. The church also contains Victorian

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

windows. Richard Brett, a former rector and translator of the

King James Bible The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version (AV), is an Early Modern English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by ...

, is buried in the chancel. Close by the church is the former

rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...

, a large house described by Pevsner as of vitreous red brick. The principal facade has a three–bayed centre and two canted bays. The house contains 16th-century linenfold panelling. Quainton Alms House sign

Winwood Almshouses

The Winwood

Almshouse An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) is charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the Middle Ages. They were often built for the poor of a locality, for those who had held ce ...

s were built to house the poor, their gothic style of architecture belying the construction date of 1687. They are a

terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk a ...

of eight small cottages, one storey high with a row of

dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a Roof pitch, pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the ...

s in the attics. These attic windows have alternating small and large

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

s. The terrace is decorated by two porches, with a plaque above. The almshouses are further adorned by diagonally placed chimney stacks.

Quainton Windmill

One of the most visible buildings is the 70 ft high Quainton Windmill, built in 1830–32. Derelict for the greater part of the 20th century it was restored in 1997 and can grind wheat into flour, with further restoration ongoing.

Other features

The local headquarters for the

RSPCA The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales which promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest a ...

are located just outside the village. Denham Farm, once one of the largest beef cattle farms in Buckinghamshire, ceased operation in the late 1990s and has since become a private residence.

Education

Quainton Church of England Combined School is a mixed Church of England

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

. It is a

voluntary controlled school A voluntary controlled school (VC school) is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust (usually a Christian denomination) has some formal influence in the running of the school. Such schools have less autonomy th ...

, which takes children from 4 to 11. The school currently has around 185 pupils.

Transport

Rail

Quainton's nearest National Rail station is Aylesbury Vale Parkway, about 5 miles away. Quainton was once linked to London by train from Quainton Road station to

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...

and

Baker Street Baker Street is a street in the Marylebone district of the City of Westminster in London. It is named after builder James Baker. The area was originally high class residential, but now is mainly occupied by commercial premises. The street is ...

; in the opposite direction travel was available to

Rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...

, Verney Junction and elsewhere. Passenger services ceased in 1963, but trains from

run to connect with events at the

Buckinghamshire Railway Centre Buckinghamshire Railway Centre is a heritage railway, railway museum operated by the Quainton Railway Society Ltd. at Quainton Road railway station, about west of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, England. The site is divided into two halves which a ...

at Quainton Road station on some bank Holidays. The station was also once a junction for the light railway (closed in 1936), sometimes known as the

Brill Tramway The Brill Tramway, also known as the Quainton Tramway, Wotton Tramway, Oxford & Aylesbury Tramroad and Metropolitan Railway Brill Branch, was a six-mile (10 km) rail line in the Aylesbury Vale, Buckinghamshire, England. It was privately ...

, connecting Quainton with Brill.

Buses

Quainton is served by Red Rose's 16 service between Aylesbury and

Steeple Claydon Steeple Claydon is a village and civil parish in the Buckinghamshire district of the ceremonial county of Buckinghamshire, England. The village is about south of Buckingham, west of Winslow and northwest of Waddesdon. The 2011 Census recorde ...

via Aylesbury Vale Parkway station. There around 5 buses daily in each direction on Mondays to Fridays and a reduced service on Saturdays.

Notable people

* Hilda Mary Woods MBE (1892–1971), statistician * Joseph Mayett (1783–1839), Autobiography, Joseph Mayett of Quainton * Ruth Goodman (born 1963), historian and television presenter * Mark Smith (born 1965), The Man in Seat Sixty-One

References

External links

Quainton village websiteOfsted Report for Quainton CoE Combined SchoolDfES Performance Tables for Quainton CoE Combined School
*British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/rchme/bucks/vol2/pp240-248 *Vision of Britain http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/3711 *The essential Francis Frith link https://www.francisfrith.com/uk/quainton {{authority control Aylesbury Vale Civil parishes in Buckinghamshire Villages in Buckinghamshire