Woodham Ferrers

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Woodham Ferrers is a small village about 7.5 miles (12 km) southeast of Chelmsford, located between South Woodham Ferrers and Bicknacre in the county of Essex, England. The village is often shortened to Woodham by those in the area. The village is sometimes erroneously referred to as North Woodham due to its geographical relationship with South Woodham Ferrers.

Originally a hermitage during the reign of Henry II the name Woodham was adopted in 1175 when it became a priory, including 60 acres (240,000 m2) of forest stretching towards Danbury.

In the late 13th century the manor of Woodham Ferrers passed briefly to the Scottish noble house of Douglas by virtue of the marriage of William Le Hardy, Lord of Douglas to Eleanor de Lovaine, the widow of William de Ferrers of Groby. Eleanor was a ward of Edward I, and had her late husband's manors of Stebbing and Woodham Ferrers made into a dowry for a future re-marriage. Douglas absconded with Eleanor, when she was attending to her late husband's estates in Scotland, and married her c.1288. Douglas, a significant figure on the Scottish side during the First Scottish War of Independence, had his English manors finally forfeited by 1298 when he died of mistreatment in the Tower of London. His son Hugh Douglas, aged just two years old, having been captured previously at Stebbing in 1296, by the Sheriff of Essex.


Sources

 

Sources for this article include:

•  The Douglas Book, Edinburgh 1885. Sir William Fraser

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Last modified: Monday, 25 March 2024