St Osyth
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St Osyth is an English village and
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
in the
Tendring District Tendring District is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in north-east Essex, England. Its council is based in Clacton-on-Sea, the largest town. Other towns are Brightlingsea, Harwich, Frinton-on-Sea and Walton-on-the-Naze. T ...
of north-east
Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
, about west of
Clacton-on-Sea Clacton-on-Sea, often simply called Clacton, is a seaside town and seaside resort, resort in the county of Essex, on the east coast of England. It is located on the Tendring Peninsula and is the largest settlement in the Tendring District, wi ...
and southeast of
Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in northeastern Essex, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the county, with a population of 130,245 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census. The demonym is ''Colcestrian''. Colchester occupies the ...
. It lies on the B1027, Colchester–Clacton road. The village is named after
Osgyth Osgyth (or Osyth; died 700 AD) was a Mercian noblewoman and prioress, venerated as an English saint since the 8th century, from soon after her death. She is primarily commemorated in the village of St Osyth, in Essex, near Colchester. Alternati ...
, a seventh-century saint and princess. Locally, the name is sometimes pronounced "Toosey". It is claimed to be the driest recorded place in the United Kingdom. In 2011 it had a population of 4,277.


History

Before being renamed after the Abbey of St Osgyth built there in the 12th century, the village was called ''Chich'' (also spelt ''Chiche'' or ''Chick''), from an Old English word ''cic'' meaning "bend", a reference to St Osyth Creek. Under King Canute/Cnut (reigned 1018–1035), Chich was assumed as part of the royal
demesne A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land subinfeudation, sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. ...
and granted to Earl Godwin. By him it was given to Christ Church,
Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...
. After the
Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...
in 1066 it was transferred to the
See of London See or SEE may refer to: * Visual perception Arts, entertainment, and media * Music: ** ''See'' (album), studio album by rock band The Rascals *** "See", song by The Rascals, on the album ''See'' ** "See" (Tycho song), song by Tycho * Televisio ...
. The village is the location of an important medieval abbey, St Osyth's Priory, named after
Osgyth Osgyth (or Osyth; died 700 AD) was a Mercian noblewoman and prioress, venerated as an English saint since the 8th century, from soon after her death. She is primarily commemorated in the village of St Osyth, in Essex, near Colchester. Alternati ...
, a semi-legendary Saxon princess and martyr. The village was an important mediaeval pilgrimage centre, based on the cult of the saint, and was for a time very wealthy. It has an impressive parish church, St Peter and St Paul, which is a landmark building of the rediscovery of brick as a material in English architecture – its interior is almost entirely built of this material, but to a design resembling earlier stone-built churches.
Thomas Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy of Chiche Thomas Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy of Chiche (4 December 1506 – 28 June 1558) was an English courtier during the reign of Edward VI. He served as Vice-Chamberlain of the Household and Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard between 1550 and 1551 befo ...
(1506-1558) is buried in the parish church. For other historic buildings in St Osyth, see
Historic England Archive The Historic England Archive is the public archive of Historic England, located in The Engine House on Fire Fly Avenue in Swindon, formerly part of the Swindon Works of the Great Western Railway. It is a public archive of architectural and arc ...
. St Osyth village was the subject of an episode of
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
's ''
Time Team ''Time Team'' is a British television programme that originally aired on Channel 4, Channel 4 from 16 January 1994 to 7 September 2014. It returned in 2022 on online platforms YouTube and Patreon. Created by television produce ...
'' programme, "Lost Centuries of St Osyth", (series 12 episode 9, first broadcast in February 2005). The programme sought to uncover the early origins of the village, which is now concentrated around
the Priory The Priory Hospital, Roehampton, often referred to as The Priory, is a private mental health hospital in South West London. It was founded in 1872 and is part of the Priory Group. The Priory has an international reputation and, because of the ...
, the surviving parts of which date from its establishment as an Augustinian ('Austin') monastery in the 12th century. But digging in the churchyard of St Peter and St Paul close to The Bury – the old marketplace – in the current village centre found no evidence of much settlement there before the 14th century, whereas fieldwalking and digging revealed a mass of earlier material along the north bank of St Osyth Creek, about south. The earlier name of the village (Chich – see above) always suggested this might be the case - information the programme failed to give. The programme found evidence that a massive high tide in the 1600s might have ended industrial activity in the original village site along the creek. The village was a focus for the St Osyth witch persecutions in the 16th and 17th centuries. Fourteen women were tried and ten local women were hanged. In 1921 the skeletons of two women, one in chains, were discovered in the garden of a house in the village. One was claimed to be the witch Ursley Kempe, who was the first to be prosecuted. The skeletons became a local tourist attraction. In the Napoleonic Wars two
Martello Tower Martello towers are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts. They stand up to high (with two floors) and typica ...
s were built on the peninsula between the Colne Estuary and Brightlingsea Creek. One survives at Stone Point and is now the East Essex Aviation Museum. The peninsula was cordoned off and used by the Navy and Army in both world wars. Between 1942 and 1944 it was a landing-craft training base called HMS Helder. No 1 Martello Tower was a signal station and minefield control point, linked to the Navy at Brightlingsea.


Geography

St Osyth is claimed to be the driest recorded place in the United Kingdom, with an average annual rainfall of just . The modern village lies on the coastward edge of the clay plateau which forms much of the topography of North East Essex, at an altitude of about 20 metres above mean sea level, but extends down towards the tidal St Osyth Creek. It overlooks extensive areas of rough pasture to the south and east - former marshes drained and reclaimed from the 17th century onward, which typically lie only one or two metres above mean sea level (some patches are below, especially near
Jaywick Jaywick is a coastal village in the Tendring District, Tendring district of Essex, England, west of Clacton-on-Sea. It lies on the North Sea coast of England, from London and from Colchester. It was constructed in the 1930s as a Seaside reso ...
). To the north-east the land was formerly heathland, and in common with much or the area around Colchester has been extensively quarried for sand and gravel. St Osyth parish extends south from the village to the coast and includes the smaller villages of Point Clear and Lee-over-Sands. Although much of the parish boundary is coastline, which does not need to be "beaten," St Osyth is one parish that keeps up the tradition of
beating the bounds Beating the bounds or perambulating the bounds is an ancient custom still observed in parts of England, Wales, and the New England region of the United States, which involves swatting local landmarks with branches to maintain a shared mental map o ...
on
Rogation days Rogation days are days of prayer and fasting in Western Christianity. They are observed with processions and the Litany of the Saints. The so-called ''major'' rogation is held on 25 April; the ''minor'' rogations are held on Monday to Wednesday ...
. The Parish is one of the largest (in area) in Essex and extends inland almost to the village of
Weeley Weeley is a village and civil parish in Tendring District, Tendring, east Essex, England. The population of the parish at the 2011 Census was 1,768. It is served by Weeley railway station on the Sunshine Coast Line. It has bus links to Clacton-on ...
northeast. Between the Park of the Priory and Flag Creek (of which St Osyth Creek is a tributary) lies The Howlands, an extensive area of rough pasture managed as a Nature Reserve by the Essex Wildlife Trust. This is accessible to the public via a footpath along the creek from Mill Dam, and via another from the B1027. Two birdwatching hides are accessible to the public, one overlooking the rough grassland and the other on the sea-wall with views of Flag Creek. The seawall has been deliberately breached in order to create a shallow lagoon. Avocet, Golden Plover, Shelduck, Short-eared Owl, Marsh Harrier and Brent Geese are all found there, along with the invasive Wasp Spider (Argiope bruennichi). Adders ''(vipera berus)'' are also common.


Landmarks

The most famous feature of the village is St Osyth's Priory, a group of Grade I and II
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
s. The prime ones are the late 14th-century gatehouse (see photo) decorated in flint flushwork, and the Abbot's Tower of about 1527. The Abbey became home to the Earls of Rochford, after King William III created the title for William Nassau de Zuylestein in 1695. St Osyth's Priory held a herd of polled
White Park cattle The White Park is a modern British list of cattle breeds, breed of cattle. It was established in 1973 to include several herds or populations of colour-pointed white cattle – white-coated, with points of either red or black on the ears and ...
until an outbreak of
foot-and-mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious disease, infectious and sometimes fatal virus (biology), viral disease that primarily affects even-toed ungulates, including domestic and wild Bovidae, bovids. The vir ...
in 1951, which led to their slaughter. A contemporary account states: The land within the Priory boundaries is shown as a Deer Park on the
Ordnance Survey The Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see Artillery, ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of ...
map. The Priory is currently a private residence, not open to the public. Attempts by the owner to develop the park have resulted in controversy and a sustained campaign by a local group, Save Our St Osyth (S.O.S.). The owner, a property developer, has argued that the Priory buildings are in dire need of repair and development is required to finance this. The Priory grounds contain the site of a Roman villa, marked on the Ordnance Survey map TM1216. The site of the contemporary wharf serving the villa has been identified on Howlands Marsh. A Roman road led from near Elmstead Market to the vicinity of the current St Osyth burial ground on Clay Lane. A wooden tide mill stood at the north end of the dam which now crosses St Osyth Creek and the 'Mill Pond' or Mill Dam Lake; it was demolished in 1962 but the sluice which powered the mill still operates as Mill Dam Lake is filled and emptied tidally from St Osyth Creek. The lake is used for water-skiing. A commercial boatyard operates on St Osyth Creek. It is the home port of the
Thames sailing barge A Thames sailing barge is a type of commercial sailing boat once common on the River Thames in London. The flat-bottomed barges, with a shallow draught and leeboards, were perfectly adapted to the Thames Estuary, with its shallow waters and na ...
Edme, formerly of the Edme Maltings at
Mistley Mistley is a village and civil parish in the Tendring district of northeast Essex, England. It is around 11 miles northeast of Colchester and is east of, and almost contiguous with, Manningtree. The parish consists of Mistley and New Mistley, ...
, a frequent competitor, and often victor, in the annual Thames Barge racing series. A plaque on The Bury (as the green in front of the Priory is called) commemorates the achievement of Trevor Osben, who circumnavigated the globe in a self-built sloop. The village church is dedicated to Saints
Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...
and
Paul Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...
. The
Martello tower Martello towers are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts. They stand up to high (with two floors) and typica ...
at Point Clear has been converted into a war museum. Just south of the village lies St Clere's Hall, a fine example of a 13th-century aisled hall (not open to the public).


St Osyth Beach

The neighbouring settlement of St Osyth Beach contains Essex's largest concentration of static
caravan park Caravan or caravans may refer to: Transport and travel * Campervan, a type of vehicle also known as a motor caravan *Caravan (travellers), a group of travellers journeying together **Caravanserai, a place where a caravan could stop * Caravan (tra ...
ing, including Seawick, St Osyth Beach (owned by Park Holidays UK) and Hutleys. These boost the local population in the summer by an estimated 7,000. Some of the beach is used for nude bathing. St Osyth Beach and adjoining
Jaywick Jaywick is a coastal village in the Tendring District, Tendring district of Essex, England, west of Clacton-on-Sea. It lies on the North Sea coast of England, from London and from Colchester. It was constructed in the 1930s as a Seaside reso ...
were the scene of fatalities during "The Great Flood" of 1953. The tiny settlement of Lee-over-Sands, adjacent to Colne Point Nature Reserve with access from Lee Wick Lane, is a remnant of a failed 1930s attempt to build a golfing resort. Lying mostly along the seaward side of the coastal defences, it consists mainly of small chalet dwellings built on stilts to protect them against high tides. It has recently become celebrated for some unusual beach-house architecture.


Entertainment

The St Osyth Social Club in Church Square is home to three league
darts Darts is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small projectile point, sharp-pointed projectile, projectiles known as dart (missile), darts at a round shooting target, target known as a #Dartboard, dartboard. Point ...
teams: St Osyth Social, The Priorymen and SOSC Ladies.


Notable people

In order of birth: *
William de Corbeil William de Corbeil or William of Corbeil (21 November 1136) was a medieval Archbishop of Canterbury. Very little is known of William's early life or his family, except that he was born at Corbeil, south-east of Paris, and that he had two brot ...
(c. 1070–1136), appointed Archbishop of Canterbury in 1123, had previously been Prior at Chich (St Osyth Abbey). * Ursula Kemp (c. 1525–1582), midwife, was tried and hanged for
witchcraft Witchcraft is the use of Magic (supernatural), magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meanin ...
along with several others *
William Nassau de Zuylestein, 1st Earl of Rochford William Hendrik of Nassau, Lord of Zuylestein, 1st Earl of Rochford (1649 – 12 July 1708) was a Dutch Republic, Dutch soldier and diplomat in the service of his cousin William III of England. During the reign of James II of England he travelled ...
(1649–1708), Anglo-Dutch soldier and diplomat * William Nassau de Zuylestein, 4th Earl of Rochford (1717–1781), diplomat and statesman * Benjamin Golding (1793–1863), founder of
Charing Cross Hospital Charing Cross Hospital is district general hospital and teaching hospital located in Hammersmith in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The present hospital was opened in 1973, although it was originally established in 1818, approxim ...
*
Somerset de Chair Somerset Struben de Chair (22 August 1911 – 5 January 1995) was an English author, politician, and poet. He edited several volumes of the memoirs of Napoleon. Early and personal life De Chair was the younger son of Admiral Sir Dudley de Cha ...
(1911–1995), soldier, author, art collector and politician, owned St Osyth's Priory from 1954 until his death.


Notes and references


External links

*
St Osyth Parish Council websiteSt Osyth Museum website
{{authority control Saint Osyth Civil parishes in Essex Tendring Nude beaches