Wendens Ambo

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Wendens Ambo
Wendens Ambo shown within Essex
Population	360 (recent est.)
OS grid reference	TL513363
District	Uttlesford
Shire county	Essex
Region	East
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Saffron Walden
Postcode district	CB11
Dialling code	01799
Police	Essex
Fire	Essex
Ambulance	East of England
European Parliament	East of England
UK Parliament	Saffron Walden
List of places: UK • England • Essex

Coordinates: 52°00′18″N 0°12′14″E / 52.005, 0.204

Wendens Ambo is a small village of approximately 400 people in Essex, England. Its unusual name originates from the joining of two villages, Great and Little Wenden, to form Wendens Ambo, meaning "both Wendens".

1 Situation
2 History
3 Further Information
4 External links

[edit] Situation

Wendens Ambo is approximately 2 miles south-west of the market town of Saffron Walden, 15 miles south of Cambridge and 40 miles north of London.

Wendens Ambo is in the constituency of Uttlesford, located in the north west of Essex. The MP for Uttlesford is Sir Alan Haselhurst.

[edit] History

The earliest signs of settlement are from the Roman period. Remains of a villa were found during an excavation in 1853, and finds of flint tools from 300-200BC suggest an even earlier settlement.

It is likely that the farming community of Wenden probably started around the 6th and 7th centuries, taking its name from the valley in which it lies: Wendene. The Domesday Book contains the first written account of Wenden Magna (Great Wenden) and Wenden Parva (Little Wenden). Wenden Magna was owned by Robert Gernon, a Frenchman who also had land in Stansted and Takeley. Wenden Parva was also owned by a Frenchman, William de Warren. The Wendens passed through the Middle Ages as very ordinary English villages.

During the 17th century work began to rebuild the village dwellings, some of which are still occupied today. Also at this time, on 23 March 1662, Wenden Magna and Wenden Parva were joined to create Wendens Ambo.

The 18th and 19th centuries brought the industrial revolution and also the railway, providing opportunities for work elsewhere, leading to Wenden eventually becoming a commuter village.