This was the only essex castle mentioned in the domesday book of 1086. Sorry, there are no tours or activities available to book online for the. Lord rayleigh was an english physicist who discovered the argon gas and won the nobel prize for physics in 1904. So much interest was generated locally with new information and ephemera being donated and lent that ernie published a second book in 1996 entitled rayleigh, its people and places. About plaque on rayleigh railway station, the railway arrived in rayleigh on 1st october 1889. If you cannot find anything of interest then why not try using the site search engine type a word or two into the little box in the site header and then click go. Its current focus is on materials sciences and physics particularly condensed matter, but the scope has varied over the years. The name rayleigh, according to the english place name society, means roe deer in a glade or clearing, to which the crest refers. See more ideas about local history, through the looking glass and ww2 women. Its modernday name, rayleigh mount, survives as a reminder of this confusion.
Posts about history written by rayleigh gray setser. Once an early medieval motte and bailey castle, but now an expanse of greenery and wildlife, rayleigh mount offers vast views of the surrounding area as well as neighbouring a sensory garden and windmill. Sweyne park school, formed by the amalgamation of the sweyne and park schools, and fitzwimarc school. These are displayed at a number of regular exhibitions held in town but they are worthy of a permanent home for all to see, enjoy, and learn about our towns history.
Come and have a look at history of this town from saxon times to the present day. The castle motte, now known as a mount, was given to the national trust by edward francis in 1923 and is a scheduled ancient monument. Heritage list entry summary for francis house lloyds bank heritage list entry summary for francis house lloyds bank. Rayleigh photos explore and buy nostalgic photos of rayleigh everything old photos old maps books memories. The mount is owned and managed by the national trust. In past years there were several well remembered, never to be forgotten characters in and around rayleigh. Rayleigh mount is the site of an early medieval motte and bailey castle. Rayleigh rockets speedway team competed against other clubs from around the country in the late 1940s, early 50s, 60s and into the 70s. Out of this concept has evolved the aspiration to find a suitable premises in rayleigh and for us to open a rayleigh town museum. The top 10 things to do in rayleigh with kids family.
Being a major doglover myself, and having had experience with raising a border collie mix like lance, i was looking forward to reading about this bittersweet rescue of an abused dog. The name rayleigh is old english in origin deriving from r. For more information please call mike stone on 01268 775328. Rayleigh castle academic dictionaries and encyclopedias. The domesday book records that swein, son of norman lord robert fitzwimarc, had the castle built on his manor. From april 9th 2016 rayleigh now has a museum, rayleigh town museum. Exceptional rayleigh characters a dozen never to be forgotten by sid barker. Rayleigh mount the gatehouse record gatehouse gazetteer. The town stands on a creek of the thames, at the skirt of a bold steep hill, adjacent to the southend railway, opposite canvey point, 3 miles w of southend and 4 miles sw by s of rochford. Rayleigh castle was a masonry and timber castle built near the town of rayleigh in essex, england in the 11th century shortly after the norman conquest. All that exists today are the earthwork remains of its large motteandbailey the castle was built by swein c. Rayleigh mount has been described as a certain timber castle, and. If any of the scrolling banner images at the top of the page grabs your attention then just click on it to enter the banner gallery and freeze the action.
It lies 32 miles 51km to the east of central london. The following indexes mirror those on the left panel. The doe stands upon a representation of the famous rayleigh mount, the site of a norman fortification built by the sheriff of rayleigh, the son of robert fitzwimarc a local landowner. Rayleigh used to have its own stadium, the weir stadium, where greyhound dog racing and speedway racing took place. The ancient market town of rayleigh is rich in both its history and in the historians who have told the tale.
Rayleigh town museum, rayleigh, southendonsea, united kingdom. The upper floor of the attractive, timberframed building is home to the rayleigh town museum, three rooms tracing the history of rayleigh from the roman period to the present day. Before then this site was part of castle hill farm which extended up to the high street and included rayleigh mount and the site of the rayleigh castle and tower windmill. Leigh is also known as leigh on sea, it is a small seaport town and a parish in rochford district, essex. I was born at home in avondale rd, rayleigh essex in 1958. Rayleigh castle, or rayleigh mount as it is sometimes known, was recorded in. Inside the building one of the groundfloor rooms is lined with early 17thcentury panelling and has an encased ceilingbeam with curved braces. The name rayleigh is saxon in origin and is cognate to the german place name rehlach of the same. Rayleigh mount is now in the care of the national trust and commands fine views across the valley of the river crouch. For light frequencies well below the resonance frequency of the scattering particle normal dispersion. Rayleigh castle was a masonry and timber castle built near the town of rayleigh in essex. A museum dedicated to the history of rayleigh, essex.
Rayleigh mount, a national trust property adjacent to rayleigh windmill, is the site of a domesday castle erected by sweyn of essex with distinctive motteandbailey defences. It is one of the few castles mentioned in the book and as. Rayleigh is steeped in history and i wouldnt be surprised if spooks existed in the area. The philosophical magazine archives the online books page. Rayleigh town museum, 1st floor, 91 high street, rayleigh 2020. Rayleigh castle also known as rayleigh mount was a masonry and timber castle built near the town of rayleigh in essex, england in the 11th century shortly after the norman conquest. We may be able to help should you be interested in obtaining a copy of either. New facts on its history and recent explorations on its site trans. Rayleigh, or raleigh, is a village, a parish, and a subdistrict, in rochford district, essex. Leighonsea, essex genealogy genealogy familysearch wiki. These are displayed at a number of regular exhibitions held in the town but they are worthy of a permanent home for all to see, enjoy, and learn about our towns history. Some antiquarians thought that it was a stone age earthwork. A historic oasis in an urban landscape, rayleigh mount hides away in the heart of rayleigh, a green lung in a busy essex town.
Church of holy trinity, rayleigh 1112676 historic england. Rayleigh owes its origins to the flints on hambro hill, which attracted its first human residents as long ago as the stone age. Rayleigh mount 2020 all you need to know before you go with. The exhibits are regularly rotated throughout the year. A document of 96 specifies the building of the tower.
The tudor rose was a favourite badge of henry viii and refers to the association between the town and that monarch, through his hunting park and lodges now eastwood lodge and rayleigh lodge. This biography of lord rayleigh provides detailed information about his childhood, life, career, achievements and timeline. The only rayleigh haunting i know of is rayleigh lodge pub. The seventh, glebe primary school with uhi, was created in september 2014 through the. Whle the original norman castle may be long gone, there is still a trail mappin. Both of these books are now out of print and are hard to find in bookshops. Things to see and do at rayleigh mount national trust. Rayleigh is a large market town positioned on a hill in the county of essex, and is home to over thirty thousand people. Like most of the early norman castles, it was built from wood, on an earth mound or. Rayleigh photos, maps, books, memories francis frith. Providing a tranquil refuge from the hustle and bustle of. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.
My earliest recollection is a man who used to walk up and down crown hill and along station road all day long. Housed in a 14th century timber framed building in the centre of the high street. It also has seven primary schools down hall, edward francis, grove wood, our lady of ransom catholic, rayleigh primary and wyburns. Limelight lantern lectures were first shown in 1884, when the population was just over 1,000, the railway had not yet arrived, and the roads were.
I used to play up there when i was about 12 when i had some friends in rayleigh. Lord rayleigh biography childhood, life achievements. You can also get an overall view of all articles by clicking the link all pages, which is also found at the right hand end of the top bar. The name rayleigh is old english in origin deriving from. Every saturday from april to the end of september, there is a history walk round rayleigh. Rayleigh, essex genealogy genealogy familysearch wiki. In saxon times the focus moved to the area covered by the modern high street. A famous entry in the essex folios of domesday book tells us that in hoc manerio ie rayleigh suenus fecit suum castellum, and the massive earthworks, now. A committee of local people, also formed in 1923, continues to help to look after the site and in 1987 a special fund was created by a member, frank todman, to provide money for its upkeep. Interest continued to grow and ernie was often asked to give talks to local groups and also to give public slide shows at the mill hall on rayleighs rich and varied history. The rayleigh mount is a haven of wildlife in the centre of rayleigh and neighbours the historical rayleigh windmill museum.
Rayleigh castle existed at the time of the domesday book in 1086. The stone for the tower is believed to have come from rayleigh castle, a licence was granted by richard ii in 94 to the people of rayleigh for the carrying away of stone for repairs to church and building of a belfry. To limit the spread of the coronavirus, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Local history group rayleigh through the looking glass have over time acquired a significant number of rayleigh related artefacts, such as postcards, maps, books, ephemera and much more. Rayleigh town museum, 1st floor, 91 high street, rayleigh. Local archaeologist and benefactor who donated rayleigh mount to the national trust, 18501939. The town has an interesting history and dates back to saxon times, the romans came here, and the normans built a motte and bailey castle here, rayleigh mount, although little survives today it is an ideal spot for a stroll or. It had a population of 30,196 in 2001, increasing to 32,150 at the census 2011.
It was probably erected by sweyn of essex, son of robert fitz wymarc, shortly after the norman. A link to the national trusts web page about the rayleigh mount is the related content section. It has a population of 30,196,1 having expanded rapidly in the 1960s. Rayleigh town museum home page based in rayleigh essex. A famous entry in the essex folios of domesday book tells us that in hoc manerio ie rayleigh suenus fecit suum castellum, and the massive earthworks, now known as rayleigh mount, bear witness to this day to the defensive capacity of the site, dominating the saltmarshes of southeast essex. Just how did the only castle in essex to be mentioned in the 1070 domesday book become cattle pasture. He was an enthusiastic amateur archaeologist who purchased the mount in 1909 to prevent its loss to development and carried out some excavations at the site. Rayleigh mount history, travel, and accommodation information. Apparently a ghostly customer turns up after last bell. Must see for the history buff rayleigh mount, rayleigh. The theory of sound rayleigh, john william strutt on.
From its summit it offers sweeping views across the crouch valley. The philosophical magazine is one of the longestrunning scientific journals in the english language. The name rayleigh is saxon in origin and is cognate to the german place name rehlach of the same meaning. From its summit it offers sweeping views across the crouch valley societiesgroupsclubs. Themed exhibits focus on rayleigh castle, the only castle in essex to be mentioned in the domesday book. We have a new range of merchandise, come in and take look. The mount is the remains of a norman motte and bailey castle built on a natural ridge commanding amazing views. Old photos of rayleigh, essex browse nostalgic, historic local photos online.
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