Lavenham

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Map sources for Lavenham at grid reference TL9149

The church of St. Peter and St. Paul, Lavenham

Lavenham is a medieval village in Suffolk, England famous for its impressive Fifteenth Century church, half-timbered medieval cottages and circular walk. The population of the town has never exceeded 2000. In the medieval period it was among the 20 wealthiest towns in England. Currently, it is a popular day-trip destination for British people from across the country and Americans from the air bases of Lakenheath and Mildenhall. Lavenham, along with another historic wool town in the area; Long Melford have become antique shoppers paradises with many antique shops and auction warehouses starting to open up. Lavenham is famous for its medieval architecture, rare as it is in such good condition. The shapes of the houses in the village are quite extraordinary and make you feel as if you are in the time's of the Medieval.

The village was built on the back of money from the wool trade in the 16th and 17th century. This can be seen in the lavishly constructed parish church of St Peter and St Paul which stands on a hill top at the end of the main high street. The church is excessively large for the size of the village and with a tower standing 141 ft (43 m) high it lays claim to being the highest village church tower in Britain. Other impressive 'Wool Churches' nearby include the church at Long Melford.

The Guildhall of the wool guild of Corpus Christi stands in the centre of the village overlooking the market square. Established in 1529, most of the timber framed building seen today was constructed in the 17th century and is now maintained by The National Trust. One well-known example is the Crooked House, an orange building on High Street which now serves as an art gallery.

In the late eighteenth century, the village was home to poet Jane Taylor, and it was while living in Shilling Street, that she wrote the nursery rhyme Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.