Fotheringhay, across the River Nene

Fotheringhay is a village in Northamptonshire, England four miles north east of Oundle and around ten miles west of Peterborough. Northamptonshire (or archaically the County of Northampton; abbreviated Northants England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Oundle is an ancient Market town on the River Nene in Northamptonshire, England, with a population of 5345 (2001 Census) History Early history Present-day Peterborough is the latest in a series of settlements which have at one time or other benefited from its situation where the Nene It is most noted for being the site of Fotheringhay (or Fotheringay) Castle which was razed in 1627. Fotheringhay Castle was in the Village of Fotheringhay some 3½ miles (6 km to the north of the Market town of Oundle, Northamptonshire There is nothing left of the castle to be seen today other than the motte on which it was built that provides excellent views of the River Nene. nA motte-and-bailey is a form of Castle. Many were built in Britain, Ireland and France in the 11th and 12th centuries favored as a relatively The River Nene is a River in the east of England that rises from three sources in the English County of Northamptonshire. The Nene Way long distance footpath runs through the village. The Nene Way is a waymarked Long-distance footpath in England running through the English counties of Northamptonshire and Lincolnshire Long-distance trails (or long-distance tracks paths footpaths or Greenways are the longer recreational right-of-way routes mainly through rural areas used for non-motorised

As the home of the great Yorkist line the village was, for a considerable part of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, of national standing. For the nursery rhyme see The Grand Old Duke of York. The title Duke of York is a title of Nobility in the British Peerage The death of Richard III at Bosworth Field altered its history irrevocably. Richard III ( 2 October 1452 &ndash 22 August 1485) was King of England from 1483 until his death The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field ( 22 August, 1485) was Lancastrian Henry Tudor's defeat of Yorkist Richard As the historian John Nicholls stated, "Fotheringhay has been distinguished beyond any other place in Britain, except the Capital, by the aggravated misfortunes of Royalty. " ^[1]

History

The first written mention of a settlement here was in 1060, and the Domesday Book lists the site as 'Fodringeia'. The Domesday Book (ˈduːmzdeɪ bʊk also known as Domesday, or Book of Winchester) was the record of the great survey Leland wrote this as 'Foderingeye' or "Fodering inclosure", referring to the section of the forest that is segregated for the purpose of producing hay. This is about John Leland antiquary For other people called John Leland see John Leland (disambiguation. ^[1] During the medieval period the village was variously mentioned as Foderingey, Foderinghay, Forderinghay, and Fotheringhaye.

Access to the village was formerly via a ford of the Nene adjacent to the former castle site. A ford is a place in a Watercourse (most commonly a stream or River) that is shallow enough to be crossed by wading on Horseback or in a wheeled The first bridge built was ordered by Elizabeth I in 1573. The present bridge was built by George Portwood of Stamford in 1722 under the orders of the Earl of Nottingham, then proprietor of the estate. Daniel Finch 2nd Earl of Nottingham 7th Earl of Winchilsea ( July 2 1647 &ndash January 1 1730) son of Heneage Finch 1st Earl of Nottingham ^[1]

In medieval times, it hosted a weekly market, held between at least the start of the fourteenth century and around the mid-fifteenth century, and was also the site of an annual fair beginning on the eve of the feast of St Michael (later moving to the Sunday after Relic Sunday in July and still celebrated in the nineteenth century). Michaelmas, the feast of St Michael the Archangel (also the Feast of SS Michael Gabriel and Raphael or the Feast of Michael and All Angels) is a day in the Relick Sunday (or Relic Sunday) is a Moveable feast in the Christian calendar celebrated in mid July on the third Sunday after Midsummer's day ^[1]

Sixteenth century Fotheringhay, as observed by Leland, consisted a single street of around forty houses and a population of around 300. In the seventeenth century the population dropped sharply when the castle was destroyed. By 1811 it had risen to a peak of around 310 but has fallen steadily since. ^[2] The present population is 125 (2006 est. ). ^[3]

The village was formerly home to a renowned grammar school, believed to have been formed as the continuation of the collegiate church and probably founded by Edward VI. Edward VI (12 October 1537 &ndash 6 July 1553 became King of England and Ireland on 28 January 1547 and was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine

Notable former residents include Walter de Foderingey, the first principal of Balliol College, Oxford in 1282. Balliol College (ˈbeɪlɪəl founded in 1263 is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England.

The lordship of the town and the castle passed through many hands through the years. From the Earl of Newport, the lordship passed to Sir George Savile, Marquis of Halifax, and thence to his son, William Savile, the second Marquis, who died without issue. The manor and castle were then sold by his father-in-law, Daniel, Earl of Nottingham, to Hewer Edgeley Hewer (heir to Will Hewer, Samuel Pepys' onetime servant and later protege in the Admiralty). Hewer himself died without issue on Nov. 6, 1728, when it passed to Hewer's heirs, the Blackbourne family. ^[4][5] Eventually the lordship of the manor and castle came to the Belsey family.

Fotheringhay Castle

Full article: see Fotheringhay Castle

After the manor came into the possession of Edward III he passed it to his son Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, founder of the Yorkist line. Fotheringhay Castle was in the Village of Fotheringhay some 3½ miles (6 km to the north of the Market town of Oundle, Northamptonshire Edward III (13 November 1312 &ndash 21 June 1377 was one of the most successful English monarchs of the Middle Ages. Edmund of Langley 1st Duke of York ( June 5 1341 &ndash August 1 1402) was a younger son of King Edward III of England and Philippa The castle then became the home of the Dukes of York. For the nursery rhyme see The Grand Old Duke of York. The title Duke of York is a title of Nobility in the British Peerage Richard III was born there in 1452, and his father, Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York was re-buried at the nearby church in 1476. Richard III ( 2 October 1452 &ndash 22 August 1485) was King of England from 1483 until his death Richard Plantagenet 3rd Duke of York ( 21 September 1411 &ndash 30 December 1460) was a member of the English royal family who served in senior His wife, Cecily Neville, Duchess of York, was interred in a tomb opposite. Cecily Neville Duchess of York (3 May 1415 &ndash 31 May 1495 was the mother of two Kings Edward IV of England and Richard III of England.

Fotheringhay is also where Mary, Queen of Scots was tried and beheaded in 1587, and her body lay there for some months before its burial at Peterborough Cathedral and then its final burial in Westminster Abbey. Decapitation (from Latin, caput, capitis, meaning head or beheading, is the cutting off of the head of a person or animal Peterborough Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of St Peter St Paul and St Andrew, is the seat of the Bishop of Peterborough, is dedicated to Saint Peter The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, which is almost always referred to by its original name of Westminster Abbey, is a large mainly Gothic church Although it is often said that James I destroyed the castle because his mother was killed there, the facts are rather more prosaic; it fell into such disrepair that it had to be pulled down, and the stones were all taken to be used in other buildings. James VI and I (19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625 was King of Scotland as James VI, and King of England and King of Ireland as James Local legend has it that the staircase from the Castle is now in the Talbot Hotel in nearby Oundle. Oundle is an ancient Market town on the River Nene in Northamptonshire, England, with a population of 5345 (2001 Census) ^[6]

Church of St Mary and All Saints

Fotheringhay Church

The work on the present church was begun by Edward III who also built a college as a cloister on the church's southern side. Edward III (13 November 1312 &ndash 21 June 1377 was one of the most successful English monarchs of the Middle Ages. After completion in around 1430, a parish church of similar style was added to the western end of the collegiate church with work beginning in 1434. It is the parish church which still remains.

The large present church is named in honour of St Mary and All Saints, and has a distinctive tall tower dominating the local skyline. The church is Perpendicular in style and although only the nave, aisles and octagonal tower remain of the original building it is still in the best style of its period. English Gothic is the name of the Architectural style that flourished in England from about 1180 until about 1520 ^[7]

The church contains a notable fifteenth-century painted pulpit donated by Edward IV. A pulpit (from Latin pulpitum "scaffold" "platform" "stage" is a small elevated platform where a member of the clergy stands Edward IV ( 28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 2 October

Edward of Norwich, 2nd Duke of York, who was killed at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, and his wife, Cecily Neville as well as his son Edmund, Earl of Rutland, who with Richard himself, fell at the Battle of Wakefield in 1460, are buried in the church. The Battle of Agincourt was an English victory against a larger French army in the Hundred Years' War. Richard Plantagenet 3rd Duke of York ( 21 September 1411 &ndash 30 December 1460) was a member of the English royal family who served in senior Cecily Neville Duchess of York (3 May 1415 &ndash 31 May 1495 was the mother of two Kings Edward IV of England and Richard III of England. Edmund Earl of Rutland ( May 17, 1443 &ndash December 31, 1460) was the fifth child and second surviving son of Richard Plantagenet 3rd The Battle of Wakefield took place at Wakefield, in West Yorkshire, on 30 December 1460 and was one of the major actions of the Wars of the Roses. After the choir of the church was destroyed in the sixteenth century, Elizabeth I ordered the removal of the smashed York tombs and created the present monuments to the third Duke and his wife around the altar.

The birthday of Richard III is commemorated annually by the Richard III Society by the placing of white roses in the church. Ricardian is a term used to describe a person who is interested in rehabilitating the posthumous Reputation of Richard III, King of England (reigned

References

External links

• Pictures of Fotheringhay
• Map sources for Fotheringhay