|
COOKLEY GREEN AND SWYNCOMBE
A mile or so from Cookley Green along this lane, just off the road to the left, you will see the 1,000-year-old church of St Botolph, and Swyncombe House with its cluster of farm and other estate buildings is nearby. The Swyncombe settlement dates from at least Saxon times and in this secluded valley the Manor, church and farm formed an enclosed medieval community. The manor of Swyncombe was originally part of the manor of Ewelme and there has been a manor house here for hundreds of years although the present manor house at Swyncombe is a 19th-century rebuild of a fine Elizabethan house. The name Swyncombe means 'valley where pigs are kept'. The small Norman Church of St Botolph was probably constructed in the 11th century of flint and stone and it is largely untouched. It has traces of early wall-paintings which include some thought to have been painted by medieval knights leaving for the Crusades. February sees masses of snowdrops and aconites which are planted in drifts around the church and people come from miles around each year to see the display. For the history and full information about St. Botolph's Church click here. Cookley Green is high in the Chilterns about half way between Nettlebed and Watlington along the B481. |
|