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Trumpington is a village in
Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...
, England, mostly located in
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
, with a small southern area of the village extending into the
South Cambridgeshire South Cambridgeshire is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district of Cambridgeshire, England, with a population of 162,119 at the 2021 census. It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of Chesterton Rural District and South Cambri ...
district. As of the
2021 UK census 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
, the village had a population of 12,393 people. The village was a separate parish from the
Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...
era until the 20th century. In 1912 all of the land north of Long Road was transferred to Cambridge, and on 1 April 1934 most of the remaining land, including all of the village, was also given over to Cambridge. Only , almost uninhabited, were transferred to
Haslingfield Haslingfield (''haiz''-ling-field) is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in South Cambridgeshire, South Cambridgeshire, England. The village is about six miles south-west of Cambridge, between Harston, Barton, Cambridges ...
parish. In 1931 the parish had a population of 1183. The Cambridge Local Plan 2006 took land around the village out of the green belt and paved the way for an urban extension due for completion in 2023. A map of the enlarge village is available in ''The Trumpet'', a community magazine produced by the parish church.


Archaeology

There is evidence of
Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...
and
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
settlements in Trumpington, near the
River Cam The River Cam () is the main river flowing through Cambridge in eastern England. After leaving Cambridge, it flows north and east before joining the River Great Ouse to the south of Ely, Cambridgeshire, Ely, at Pope's Corner. The total distanc ...
ford by the road to Grantchester, and a Roman cemetery. An Anglo-Saxon cemetery has also been found nearby at Dam Hill.


Trumpington bed burial

In 2012 archaeologists working on the Trumpington Meadows site discovered a 7th-century Anglo-Saxon
bed burial A bed burial is a type of burial in which the deceased person is buried in the ground, lying upon a bed. It is a burial custom that is particularly associated with high-status women during the early Anglo-Saxon period (7th century), although excav ...
for a young woman aged about 16 years old, in a field on the outskirts of the village. The occupant of the grave had been buried on a wooden bed, and had an ornate gold
pectoral cross A pectoral cross or pectorale (from the Latin ''pectoralis'', "of the chest") is a Christian cross, cross that is worn on the chest, usually suspended from the neck by a cord or Link chain, chain. In ancient history and the Middle Ages, pector ...
inlaid with garnets on her breast. The jewelled gold cross is very unusual, and can only have belonged to a member of a rich aristocratic family. It is thought that the grave must have been associated with a hitherto unknown Anglo-Saxon settlement near the site, perhaps that of a monastic community.


History

The
Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
of 1086 records a community of 33 peasants. The population had risen to 100 by the late 13th century. The village remained sizeable throughout the Middle Ages and by 1801 there were 494 residents. By the time the parish was dissolved there were about 1,200 inhabitants. Until the 20th century Trumpington was an agricultural village with cattle and sheep as well as crops. Trumpington's association with agriculture was extended in 1955, when the
Plant Breeding Institute The Plant Breeding Institute was an agricultural research organisation in Cambridge in the United Kingdom between 1912 and 1987. Founding The institute was established in 1912 as part of the School of Agriculture at the University of Cambridge. ...
(PBI) – founded in 1912 as part of the
University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
's School of Agriculture – moved to the Anstey Hall site adjoining Maris Lane in Trumpington. Here the PBI developed new plants, notably
potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...
es called
Maris Piper Maris Piper is the most widely grown potato variety in the United Kingdom accounting for 16% of the planted area in 2014. Introduced in 1966 it was one of the first potato varieties bred to be resistant to a form of potato cyst nematode, a major ...
and Maris Peer, a
barley Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikele ...
called
Maris Otter Maris Otter is a two-row, autumn sown variety of barley commonly used in the production of malt for the brewing industry. The variety was bred by Dr G D H Bell and his team of plant breeders at the UK's Plant Breeding Institute; the "Maris" pa ...
, and a wheat called Maris Widgeon. These are now in use worldwide. The PBI was split up and privatised in 1987. In 1990 the PBI moved to
Colney Colney () is a village in the western outskirts of Norwich in the England, English county of Norfolk. Colney is located west of Norwich and north-east of Wymondham. History Colney's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old En ...
, near
Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...
, but the reference to the Maris Lane site survives in the names of plants. Anstey Hall is a Grade I listed, former country house built within its own parkland. Once owned by writer and poet
Christopher Anstey Christopher Anstey (31 October 1724 – 3 August 1805) was an English poet who also wrote in Latin. After a period managing his family's estates, he moved permanently to Bath and died after a long public life there. His poem, ''The New Bath Gui ...
and later by the polymath
Robert Leslie Ellis Robert Leslie Ellis (25 August 1817 – 12 May 1859) was an English polymath, remembered principally as a mathematician and editor of the works of Francis Bacon. Biography Robert Leslie Ellis was the youngest of six children of Francis Ellis (17 ...
, it was leased to the PBI for many years. It is now used for weddings, parties, corporate events and meetings. The
Trumpington War Memorial Trumpington War Memorial is a war memorial cross in the village of Trumpington, on the southern outskirts of Cambridge. The memorial was designed by Eric Gill. It was unveiled in 1921, and became a Grade II* listed building in 1999. Proposa ...
was designed and carved by
Eric Gill Arthur Eric Rowton Gill (22 February 1882 – 17 November 1940) was an English sculptor, letter cutter, typeface designer, and printmaker. Although the ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' describes Gill as "the greatest artist-craftsma ...
, who also designed and carved the crocodile on the wall of the
Cavendish Laboratory The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the School of Physical Sciences. The laboratory was opened in 1874 on the New Museums Site as a laboratory for experimental physics and is named ...
. The memorial was dedicated on Sunday 11 December 1921 to commemorate 36 Trumpington men who died in the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. The
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
claimed eight more local men; their names were added by
David Kindersley David Guy Barnabas Kindersley Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, MBE (11 June 1915 – 2 February 1995) was a British stone Letter cutting, letter-carver and typeface designer, and the founder of the Kindersley Workshop (l ...
, a pupil of Gill.


Trumpington Fair

In 1314, the lord of the manor, Giles of Trumpington, was given permission to hold a three-day fair on the feast of St Peter's Chains (1 August). The feast was still held in the 19th century though it was transferred to 28–30 June, and became known for the rowdiness and drunkenness of its many visitors. It was reduced to only one day (29 June) in 1882 and was still held in the 1930s.


Parish church

The earliest parts of the
Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ...
of Saints
Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...
and
Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...
are late 12th- or early 13th-century. The
chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...
was rebuilt late in the 13th century. The rest of the church, including the
nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...
,
clerestory A clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey; from Old French ''cler estor'') is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye-level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, a ''clerestory' ...
, aisles, chapels, porches and upper part of the tower was rebuilt about 1330. The church was
restored ''Restored'' is the fourth studio album by American contemporary Christian musician Jeremy Camp. It was released on November 16, 2004, by BEC Recordings. Track listing Standard release Enhanced edition Deluxe gold edition Standard Aus ...
several times in the 19th century, notably in 1858 and 1876–77 under the direction of the
Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...
architect
William Butterfield William Butterfield (7 September 1814 – 23 February 1900) was a British Gothic Revival architect and associated with the Oxford Movement (or Tractarian Movement). He is noted for his use of polychromy. Biography William Butterfield was bo ...
. The church is a
Grade I 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 ...
. The church is the resting place of
Henry Fawcett Henry Fawcett (26 August 1833 – 6 November 1884) was a British academic, politician, statesman and economist. Background and education Henry Fawcett was born in Salisbury where his father was a gentleman farmer. He was educated at the A ...
, the blind academic and politician who, as
Postmaster General A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. History The practice of having a government official ...
(1880–84), introduced parcel post, postal orders and other innovations. The local primary school is named Fawcett School after him.
John Venn John Venn, Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS, Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, FSA (4 August 1834 – 4 April 1923) was an English mathematician, logician and philosopher noted for introducing Venn diagrams, which are used in l ...
, originator of the
Venn diagram A Venn diagram is a widely used diagram style that shows the logical relation between set (mathematics), sets, popularized by John Venn (1834–1923) in the 1880s. The diagrams are used to teach elementary set theory, and to illustrate simple ...
, is buried in the church's extension graveyard, at the junction of Shelford Road and Hauxton Road. The church also contains the
monumental brass A monumental brass is a type of engraved church monument, sepulchral memorial once found through Western Europe, which in the 13th century began to partially take the place of three-dimensional church monument, monuments and effigy, effigies carve ...
of Sir Roger de Trumpington, a
crusader Crusader or Crusaders may refer to: Military * Crusader, a participant in one of the Crusades * Convair NB-36H Crusader, an experimental nuclear-powered bomber * Crusader tank, a British cruiser tank of World War II * Crusaders (guerrilla), a C ...
knight bearing the date 1289; it is said to be the second oldest brass in England. The brass of Sir Roger as seen through the thoughtful eyes of a young
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. It was the only British fighter produced continuously throughout the ...
pilot who visited the church in 1941 is movingly described by Squadron Leader Guy Mayfield, then chaplain of RAF Station Duxford, in his diary. It is noted by
Anthony Sattin Anthony Sattin FRGS is a British journalist, broadcaster and travel writer. His main areas of interest is the Middle East and Africa, particularly Egypt, and he has lived and travelled extensively in these regions. Education Sattin completed a l ...
that
T. E. Lawrence Thomas Edward Lawrence (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British Army officer, archaeologist, diplomat and writer known for his role during the Arab Revolt and Sinai and Palestine campaign against the Ottoman Empire in the First W ...
hung a rubbing of the brass in 'pride of place' in his parents' Oxford home. The west tower has a
ring (The) Ring(s) may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell Arts, entertainment, and media Film and TV * ''The Ring'' (franchise), a ...
of eight bells, all cast and hung in 1957 by
John Taylor & Co John Taylor Bell Foundry (Loughborough) Limited, trading as John Taylor & Co and commonly known as Taylor's Bell Foundry, Taylor's of Loughborough, or simply Taylor's, is the world's largest working bell (instrument), bell foundry. It is locat ...
of
Loughborough Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood (borough), Charnwood Borough of Leicestershire, England; it is the administrative centre of Charnwood Borough Council. At the United Kingdom 2021 census, the town's built-up area had a popula ...
. The church has also a sanctus bell cast at
Bury St Edmunds Bury St Edmunds (), commonly referred to locally as ''Bury,'' is a cathedral as well as market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk District, West Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer map 211: Bury St. Edmunds an ...
in about 1450.


"Southern Fringe" developments

Cambridge City Council's 2006 Local Plan provided for the release of an extensive area of Green Belt land around Trumpington for new housing and associated community facilities. Major new developments are being constructed on the Glebe Farm and Clay Farm sites to the south and east of the village, and on Trumpington Meadows to the southwest. In 2017 a new
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 ...
of
South Trumpington South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz' ...
was created, which will include some of the most southerly part of the new Trumpington Meadows development. It comprises the land formerly in the
Haslingfield Haslingfield (''haiz''-ling-field) is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in South Cambridgeshire, South Cambridgeshire, England. The village is about six miles south-west of Cambridge, between Harston, Barton, Cambridges ...
parish of
South Cambridgeshire South Cambridgeshire is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district of Cambridgeshire, England, with a population of 162,119 at the 2021 census. It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of Chesterton Rural District and South Cambri ...
that lies east of the River Cam between the current Cambridge city council boundary and the M11.


Cultural references

*
Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer ( ; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for ''The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...
's ''
The Reeve's Tale "The Reeve's Tale" is the third story told in Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbury Tales''. The reeve, named Oswald in the text, is the manager of a large estate who reaped incredible profits for his master and himself. He is described in the ...
'' is set in the village, and a water mill on the
River Cam The River Cam () is the main river flowing through Cambridge in eastern England. After leaving Cambridge, it flows north and east before joining the River Great Ouse to the south of Ely, Cambridgeshire, Ely, at Pope's Corner. The total distanc ...
is mentioned in it. The location of the mill is believed to be Old Mill Holt on the river to the southwest of the village. * The 19th-century novelist G. A. Henty, was born in Trumpington. * Clergyman, classicist, philologist, and
Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born  BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...
translator,
Robert Gregg Bury Robert Gregg Bury (; 22 March 1869 – 11 February 1951) was an Irish Anglican clergyman, classicist, philologist, and a translator of the works of Plato and Sextus Empiricus into English. Early life and education Born in Clontibret, County ...
, worked in Trumpington as a vicar in 1903-18 and was Vice President of the Trumpington Volunteer Training Corps during the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. * The former
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
journalist Bridget Kendall, later
Master of Peterhouse The Master of Peterhouse, Cambridge is the head of the oldest University of Cambridge, Cambridge University college, Peterhouse. As of 2014 there have been 52 masters (counting John Cosin twice), the incumbent being Andy Parker (physicist). Lis ...
, grew up in Trumpington and attended
Perse School for Girls The Stephen Perse Foundation is a family of private schools in Cambridge and Saffron Walden for students aged 1 to 18. The Foundation is made up of: - 3 nurseries (2 in Cambridge and 1 in Saffron Walden, Essex) for ages 1–5. - 2 Junior S ...
. *
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...
's lead singer and guitarist,
David Gilmour David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter who is a member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined in 1967, shortly before the departure of the founder member Syd Barrett. By the early 1980s, Pink F ...
, lived in Trumpington in his early childhood. * In the "Matthew Bartholomew" series of novels by
Susanna Gregory Susanna Gregory is the pseudonym of Elizabeth Cruwys, a Cambridge academic who was previously a coroner's officer. She writes detective fiction, and is noted for her series of mediaeval mysteries featuring Matthew Bartholomew, a teacher of medi ...
, Trumpington is the location of the Manor House belonging to Matthew's sister and husband. * Trumpington residents are referred to in
Rupert Brooke Rupert Chawner Brooke (3 August 1887 – 23 April 1915The date of Brooke's death and burial under the Julian calendar that applied in Greece at the time was 10 April. The Julian calendar was 13 days behind the Gregorian calendar.) was an En ...
's poem ''
The Old Vicarage, Grantchester "The Old Vicarage, Grantchester" is a light poem by the English Georgian poet Rupert Brooke (1887–1915), written in Berlin in 1912. Initially titled "The Sentimental Exile", Brooke, with help from his friend Edward Marsh, renamed it to the ...
'', written in 1912 - "...they fling oaths at one, / And worse than oaths at Trumpington."


Politics

Most of Trumpington falls within the
electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected t ...
of Trumpington on
Cambridge City Council Cambridge City Council is the local authority for Cambridge, a non-metropolitan district with city status in the United Kingdom, city status in Cambridgeshire, England. The council has been under Labour Party (UK), Labour majority control since ...
, which is represented by three councilors. As of 2025, the three councilors are Ingrid Flaubert, Olaf Hauk and Nadya Lokhmotova, all of the Liberal Democrats. Like the rest of Cambridge, the ward is an
unparished area In England, an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish (the lowest level of local government, not to be confused with an ecclesiastical parish). Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unparis ...
. A small southern area of the village is part of the parish of South Trumpington, which falls within the
South Cambridgeshire South Cambridgeshire is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district of Cambridgeshire, England, with a population of 162,119 at the 2021 census. It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of Chesterton Rural District and South Cambri ...
district. For
South Cambridgeshire District Council South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz' ...
elections, the parish is part of the electoral ward of
Harston Harston is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in South Cambridgeshire, England, located around 5 miles (8 km) south of Cambridge. In 2011, it had a population of 1,740. Village Sign The village sign was erected in th ...
and
Comberton Comberton is a village and civil parish in South Cambridgeshire, England, just east of the Prime Meridian. History Archaeological finds, including a Neolithic polished stone axe (found to the south of the current village) and a Bronze Age ba ...
.


References


Sources and further reading

* *


External links


Trumpington Residents' AssociationTrumpington Local History GroupParish Church of St Mary & St Michael, Trumpington
{{authority control Villages in Cambridgeshire Wards of Cambridge Former civil parishes in Cambridgeshire