Finchampstead

Finchampstead
Berkshire
View to the church, Finchampstead
Location
Grid reference:	SU795635
Location:	51°21’40"N, -0°51’36"W
Data
Post town:	Wokingham
Postcode:	RG40
Local Government
Council:	Wokingham

Finchampstead is a village in Berkshire, rather unusual in form, for the original village stands alone in the woods, but the parish extends beyond northwards up to Wokingham, a sizable town, and part of development grown out of the latter town is regarded as part of Finchampstead, with Wokingham.

Finchampstead parish extends from 'The Deep Throat' on the southern edge of Wokingham, just past the Inchcape Garage, down to the Tally Ho public house on the River Blackwater which forms the southern border with Eversley and Hampshire, over Eversley Bridge. Finchampstead Bridge is further east, just above Eversley Cross. To the east of the parish is Sandhurst and, to the west, Swallowfield, Arborfield and Barkham.

The name of the village is recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 1098 as Finchamstæde, which said to be derived from the large variety of finches that still populate the area (“Finch homestead”).

Around the village

Finchampstead from Horsehoe Lake

Finchampstead Village itself is at the top of Fleet Hill on the B3348. Finchampstead Lea is to the west, along the A327.

The woodlands of the Ridges spread north to the Nine Mile Ride. This is a dense, mostly pine tree, wood much of which is owned by the National Trust, including Simon's Wood, a woodland of sweet chestnuts. It has dramatic hills that give very picturesque views of the surrounding area. In the winter if there has been a good snowfall it can provide very good sledging opportunities and in the summer the long evenings make for beautiful quiet walks.

The Nine Mile Ride (or B3430) runs the entire width of Finchampstead, through California and then on, between King's Mere and Queen's Mere, to the border with Crowthorne, and eventually Pinewood and its termination in Bracknell. California is the name of this northern part of the parish. It is a large residential village with its own Country Park surrounding the fine Longmoor Lake, on the edge of Barkham Common.

The southern portion of the parish contains the parish church, St James's.

Warren Wood, an area of secondary birch oak and pine woodland and a large meadow, between Nine Mile Ride and Warren Lane, contains a scheduled ancient monument, a round burial mound, which is the largest example of a bell barrow in Berkshire and dates back to between 2000 and 1300 BC. Trees have been removed from the mound in recent years as their roots can damage archeological remains and paths have been rerouted around the mound.

Churches

• Church of England: St James
• Baptist: Finchamstea Baptist Church

St James

St James, the parish church, stands on the top of a prominent hill. It has an old Roman earthwork surrounding it and it has been speculated, albeit with no evidence, that the site could have been that of a Roman church or an earlier Roman pagan temple, which would not be unknown for an early church site.

St James is almost entirely late Norman (12th century) with a few alterations dating from the late 16th century. It has a contemporary Norman eastern apse and a sturdy brick tower added in 1720. The font inside is late Saxon.

The church still retains a number of interesting early features including the font, a pillar piscine and an apse.

Baptist church

The Baptist church stands next to the school, built as the old village chapel in 1840.

It remains a thriving congregation and in recent years its congregation has exceeded the capacity of the church, so it now meets regularly at Waverley School.

History

Historical remains around Finchampstead include:

• A round burial mound, a bell barrow, in Warren Wood, dated to between 2000 and 1300 BC
• Roman earthwork surrounding the parish church.
• The 'Devil's Highway', a Roman road from London to Silchester, which ran through the middle of the parish
• Roman milestone at Banisters.

The Romans were in Finchampstead. The Devil's Highway is part of the Roman road running between Londinium (London) and Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester) and a Roman mile stone for the road was discovered in 'Six Acres' field in 1841. Near the road is an apparent Roman enclosure, and here was built the parish church.

Alongside the Devil's Highway is the Queen's Oak, the only inn of this name in the country. Stories of Roman remains beneath its floors have led to its claim of being the oldest pub in the country. It could well stand on the site of a Roman hostelry. One local legend says that the Emperor Magnus Maximus stopped in Finchampstead on his way to London and thus to the continent to claim his throne in 383 AD.

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle reports that in the summer of 1098 (during the reign of William II) in Finchamstæde a pool of blood welled up. In 1103, in the reign of Henry I, it reports of a new upwelling of blood at Heamstede innan Barrucscire.

Finchampstead is a richly wooded area on the western edge of old Windsor Forest and once the centre of one of its divisional 'walkes' and 'bailiwicks'. It was the hunting place of royalty and an old tale tells how King Henry VII brought his son, Prince Arthur, out onto the Ridges to see his bride, Catherine of Aragon, for the first time. His other son, Henry VIII, is said to have wooed two sisters at East Court Manor until one committed suicide in a fit of jealousy.

The Wellingtonia Avenue was planted in Finchampstead as a monument to the 1st Duke of Wellington in 1869. He lived in nearby Stratfield Saye, which remains the seat of the Dukes of Wellington to this day.

Dodswell's Well

Oswald, King of the Northumbrians, is reputed to have visited the village in the 7th century on his way to meet Cynegils, King of the West Saxons, and named the local holy well or according to some accounts he prayed and water sprang up from the earth. The spring, on Fleet Hill, is known as Dodwell's (or Dozell's) Well, after St Oswald.

The well was said to have marvelous curative powers, especially for eye complaints.

The well was accidentally destroyed in 1872 by deepening of the ditch, but there is still a constant trickle of water from the spot.

The forest

Finchampstead Ridges

Finchampstead was the centre of a bailiwick of Windsor Forest and included the three 'walks' of Sandhurst, Bigshot (Northern Crowthorne) and Easthampstead which were stocked with red deer for the King's entertainment.

Prince Arthur is supposed to have been hunting on the Ridges, at Finchampstead, with his father, King Henry VII, when he heard of the arrival, in England, of his fiancée, Catherine of Aragon. They immediately rode out to meet her, but found their way barred by a party of Spanish cavaliers who insisted that, according to Spanish tradition, the Prince could not look upon his bride until after they were married. The King would have none of this, rode on to Dogmersfield Park (Hampshire), where the lady was staying, and arranged for her coach to ride along the Ridges, where Catherine raised her veil for her waiting groom. A plaque in Longwater Lane now commemorates these events.

Today the most famous feature of the Ridges is the Wellingtonia Avenue, leading to Wellington College in Crowthorne. The superb double row of Wellingtonia trees was planted as a monument to the 1st Duke of Wellington in 1869. They rival the Duke's column at Heckfield and his equestrian statue at Aldershot (both in Hampshire) as his most spectacular memorial.

Sights about the village

There are three manor houses. East Court stood next to the church, but has been replaced by a Victorian building. The name has been taken up by another house in the village. West Court is a good 17th and 19th century house at Finchampstead Lea. Banisters, on the lower slopes of Fleet Hill, is a fine brick Restoration house of 1683.

Most of the parish's housing is in the district named California, most notably the Fernlea Estate, built on private farmland, and the Gorse Ride estate, built on the site of a watercress farm. Gorse Ride South estate was built as a temporary measure for only 10 years. The properties consist of terraced houses and terraced bungalows. All are built from Swedish timber, with precast concrete end panels and solid concrete foundations. Although only designed for a lifespan of 10 years, all the dwellings are now permanent properties, after being refurbished in the late 1970s with Swedish timber cladding on the external plywood walls, and tiled roofs over the previous felt roofs.

The village has a number of charming old cottages. In 1960, Finchampstead Memorial Hall was built alongside Finchampstead Cricket Club there. A location offering magnificent out views onto the cricket fields and the tree lined perimeter of the park itself. Furthermore, there are tennis courts and a children's playground area available for use within the park. Finchampstead Church of England Primary School is found opposite the park and is a popular school for children from reception (age 5) up to year 6 (age 11). A pre school is also run daily during term time in the Memorial Hall.

In April 2010 the new Finchampstead Baptist Church Centre was opened in California.

Big Society

• 1st Finchampstead Scout Group

Sport & Leisure

• Cricket: Finchampstead Cricket Club
• Football: Finchampstead Football Club
• Netball: Finchampstead Netball Team
• Running: Finch Coasters Running Club

Outside links

("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Finchampstead)

• The Devil's Highway
• Finchampstead Memorial Hall
• Finchampstead Parish Council
• Royal Berkshire History: Finchampstead
• Welcome to Finchampstead Village
• WriterGuy's Weborama Page: Finchampstead Ridges Panorama
• Finchampstead North Conservative Party
• Finchampstead Baptist Church
• Finches Pre-School
• FBC Centre