Pinkneys Green is a semi-rural village near the town of

Maidenhead Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England, on the southwestern bank of the River Thames. It had an estimated population of 70,374 and forms part of the border with southern Bu ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Ber ...

. It sits within the ancient

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

Cookham Cookham is a historic River Thames, Thames-side village and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the north-eastern edge of Berkshire, England, north-north-east of Maidenhead and opposite the village of Bourne End, Buckinghamshire, Bourne ...

Location

Pinkneys Green is about two miles northwest of

town centre, although it is located within the boundaries of the town. The village is located just north-east of the A404 road and north-west of Highway.

Cookham Dean Cookham Dean is a village to the west of the village of Cookham in Berkshire, England. It is the highest point of all the Cookhams (Cookham Rise, Cookham Village and Cookham Dean). Commerce Cookham Dean is served by two pubs, Uncle Tom's Cabin an ...

is to the north,

Bisham Bisham is a village and civil parish in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. The village is on the River Thames, around south of Marlow in the neighbouring county of Buckinghamshire, and around northwest of Maide ...

to the northwest, Burchett's Green and

Stubbings Stubbings is a hamlet in the civil parish of Bisham, west of Maidenhead, in the English county of Berkshire. Stubbings House mansion was very briefly the home of Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester, the Governor of Quebec and later, during World ...

to the west, and Cox Green to the south.

History

Established as a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

circa 1650, it became known as Pinkneys Green by the early 1700s, although it is unclear whether the name derives specifically from Ghilo de Pinkney, a Norman knight who supported

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 10 ...

, or in reference to the Pinkney family as a whole. This prominent family, whose main estates were in

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It ...

, owned the original manor of ''Pinkneys Court'', then in the

, from the 12th to the 15th century. The wooded

Thicket, also owned by the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

, is at Pinkneys Green. The banks and ditches of a small

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...

farmstead, called '

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is dep ...

's Arbour' may be seen there. The Thicket was originally a much larger area of wilderness, famous as the haunt of

highwaymen A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to fo ...

in the 17th and 18th centuries. Maidenhead's coaching inns grew rich on the travellers' fear of crossing the Thicket at night.

Character and amenities

Pinkneys Green CC temporary pavilion 2006

Pinkneys Green is a dormitory residential area and contains very few businesses or services. It does, however, have two

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...

s and a restaurant, and it is only a short distance from

town centre and railway station. Pinkney's Green Common is frequented by dog-walkers at all hours of the day from across the area. It is owned by the

Carter's Steam Fair Carters Steam Fair (no apostrophe is used in the name) was a travelling vintage fair. Founded in 1977 by John Carter (1942–2000), this family business is now managed by the second generation of Carters. Carters operated and maintained a large ...

stops at Pinkneys Green each year in the Spring, commenced by an annual "

road run Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road. This differs from track and field on a regular track and cross country running over natural terrain. These events are usually classified as long-distance a ...

Scouts Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpack ...

have been in Pinkneys Green since 1909. Pinkneys Green Scouts on Winter Hill Road has over 135 members. The first Girl Guide Company in the world was the 1st Pinkneys Green Guides ( Miss Baden-Powell's Own). Ellington Morris -

Morris Dance Morris dancing is a form of English folk dance. It is based on rhythmic stepping and the execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers, usually wearing bell pads on their shins. Implements such as sticks, swords and handkerchiefs may ...

side - are based in Pinkneys Green. Formed in 1972, the side practices throughout the winter at the

hut and perform their traditional

Mummers play Mummers' plays are folk plays performed by troupes of amateur actors, traditionally all male, known as mummers or guisers (also by local names such as ''rhymers'', ''pace-eggers'', ''soulers'', ''tipteerers'', ''wrenboys'', and ''galoshins''). ...

on Boxing day followed by dancing out from May 1 at

pubs A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

, fetes and events in the area throughout the summer. The side dances traditional

Cotswold The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale. The area is defined by the bedrock of Jur ...

dances together with their own Ellington tradition which continues to show that traditional morris is alive and thriving within this rural community.

Sports

Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

has been played on Pinkneys Green since 1885.

Michael Parkinson Sir Michael Parkinson (born 28 March 1935) is an English broadcaster, journalist and author. He presented his television talk show '' Parkinson'' from 1971 to 1982 and from 1998 to 2007, as well as other talk shows and programmes both in the U ...

officially opened the new Pinkneys Green Cricket Club pavilion in May 2007 following the destruction of the previous one in an arson attack in February 2004. Pinkneys Green F.C. was founded in 1978. The club currently plays in the

Thames Valley The Thames Valley is an informally-defined sub-region of South East England, centred on the River Thames west of London, with Oxford as a major centre. Its boundaries vary with context. The area is a major tourist destination and economic hub, ...

Sunday Football League Division 2.

References

External links

{{authority control Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Villages in Berkshire Maidenhead