Waddesdon

Waddesdon ( /ˈwɒdzdən/) is a village within the Aylesbury Vale district in Buckinghamshire, England, 6 miles from Aylesbury on the A41 road. The centre of a civil parish, including the hamlets of Eythrope, Wormstone and Woodham, Waddesdon was an agricultural settlement with milling, silk weaving and lace making enterprises.

The parish church of St Michael and All Angels dates from 1190 with medieval and Victorian additions. In 2001, the population of the parish was 2000.

Between 1897 and 1936, Waddesdon had train services on the Aylesbury and Buckingham Railway (later part of the Metropolitan) at Waddesdon Manor railway station, two miles from the village. There was also a halt on the Brill Tramway.

In 1874, Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild bought a large estate in the area and built the mansion of Waddesdon Manor on a hill-top above the village. He transformed Waddesdon into an estate village, with new houses for employees and tenants, a school, a public house, cricket pavilion and village hall.

Waddesdon Manor and grounds are now the property of the National Trust, and Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild retains the estate and a house at nearby Eythrope.

Waddesdon was often referred to as Black Waddesdon and was notorious for being one of the most dangerous stops on what is now the A41. Highwaymen were rife and the chances of being held up at gun point were significant.

Waddesdon Village Primary School is a mixed, community, primary school, which has approximately 200 pupils from the age of four through to the age of eleven. The village is also home to Waddesdon Church of England School, a secondary school.

References

External links

• Waddesdon Village Primary School website
• Waddesdon Policing Team