Only 4 miles from the centre of Ipswich, yet centuries away in terms of atmosphere, the little church of Akenham seems like the sort of place where nothing has changed for hundreds of years, and nothing ever will. The church is very simple, even plain, with a nave, chancel, south chapel, and tower inserted in the south wall.
Akenham,
Suffolk,
England,
IP1 6TQ
There was a church here at the time of the Domesday Book, but the current church of St Peter and St Paul is largely an early 16th century building, with an earlier 14th century tower. There may have been an even earlier Saxon church at Aleburgh, but if so, only limited traces of that building now remains in the altered roofline of the current church.
Victoria Road,
Aldeburgh,
Suffolk,
England,
IP15 5DY
Alderton is an attractive village south of Orford, on the Bawdsey Peninsula, near the mouth of the River Deben. There's not a lot to the village beyond some cottages, a country inn, and the partially ruined church of St Andrew, set in an odd position tucked away behind the pub.
The Street,
Alderton,
Suffolk,
England,
IP12 3BS
The village of Bacton lies some 5 miles north of Stowmarket, off the B1113. The parish church of St Mary the Virgin is a lovely flint rubble building dating to the 14th century. It has a clerestoried nave with aisles, a chancel, west tower, and north vestry. The oldest psart of the church is likely the west doorway, set into the wall of the tower. This round-arched door is probably 12th century. The tower has had a stair turret of brick inserted during the 16th century.
Church Road,
Bacton,
Suffolk,
England,
IP14 4LN
St John the Baptist at Badingham is a fascinating country church, dating mostly to the 13th century, but with enough surviving bits and pieces to suggest that there was an earlier Norman church on the site. With so much to see that it is hard to know where to start, so let's begin with the orientation of the building. Rather than being aligned on the usual east/west line, St John's is set on a Northeast/Southwest line, so that the midsummer sun shines through the east window. This is likely because St John the Baptist's feast day is traditionally celebrated on midsummer day, but it is interesting to speculate how much this sort of solar alignment is tied to older, pre-Christian folk customs.
Low Street,
Badingham,
Suffolk,
England,
IP13 8JX
A medieval church with many Georgian features, St Mary's is located in an isolated rural setting up a long track far from a major road. Though the church is medeval in origin, the main interest here is the unaltered Georgian interior, essentially unchanged for the last several centuries.
Badley,
Suffolk,
England,
IP6 8RU
Bawdsey is almost literally 'the end of the road'. The little village lies on the north side of the River Deben, at the end of the Bawdsey peninsula. From here the road carries on to the old manor house of Bawdsey Manor, where radar was developed. The Manor stands by the river bank, from whence you can take a ferry across to Felixstowe. But you are far from the bustle of busy Felixstowe here; here there is silence, the rustle of the wind and the remote sound of seabirds circling overhead.
The Street,
Bawdsey,
Suffolk,
England,
IP12 3AH
The church of St Mary Magdalene stands high on a hill, overlooking the village itself a good half mile away on the valley bottom. Why is St Mary's so far from the rest of Bildeston? The usual (and usually erroneous) answer in cases like this is to blame a distant village on the Black Death of 1348-9. But the more practical and less romantic answer is simply a gradual move to be near the site of a market, which a 13th century lord of the manor established near the crossroads in the valley below.
All Saints church at Blyford seems like a little lost child that has wandered off and got lost. There is no village to speak of, just an attractive 16th century country pub and a few scattered farm houses. The church was originally owned by Blythburgh Abbey, and retains many Norman features, including two Norman doorways and a 13th century font.
B1123,
Blyford,
Suffolk,
England,
IP19 9JY
The church of Holy Trinity at Blythburgh is one of the outstanding historic buildings in a county that seems to specialise in such things. There has been a church here on the banks of the River Blyth since perhaps as early as 630 AD, but the current building has its roots in the 12th century, when Blythburgh Priory was founded by a group of canons from Essex. In 1412 Henry IV granted the canons the right to build the current church.
Church Lane,
Blythburgh,
East Anglia,
Suffolk,
England,
IP19 9LL
Very spacious open plan sitting/dining room with vaulted ceiling and step up to draped four poster bed and doors to garden. Small galley kitchen. Bathroom/WC … more >> Sleeps 2
A friendly welcome awaits you at the Rutland Arms where history combines with modern hospitality. With 46 en-suite bedrooms, an elegant restaurant and bar area, as well as the traditional cobbled courtyard, the Rutland Arms is the ideal base from which to explore Newmarket and the surrounding area. Located in … more >>
Days Inn Haverhill is a modern hotel superbly located to visit nearby Cambridge, Newmarket and Bury St Edmunds. The hotel is located on the edge of the town of Haverhill and is adjacent to a Harvester. The hotel offers 80 contemporary guest rooms all with luxury hypnos beds, power showers, … more >>
