Faulkbourne

Faulkbourne is a village and civil parish in the Braintree district of Essex, England, about 2 miles (3 km) north-west of Witham.

According to Faulkbourne's Victorian era rector, the Rev. Frederick Spurrell, the name of the village (which was also spelled "Faulkbourn") is probably derived from the Old English words "falk" or "folc" (meaning "folk") and "burn" (meaning "well").

Faulkbourne Hall

The manor of Faulkbourne was given to Hamo Dapifer by his uncle, William the Conqueror, after the Norman Conquest, and was in the possession of various families over the following centuries (Bohun, Montgomery, Fortescue).

The present Hall dates from 1440 and is a red-bricked building with turrets and incorporates an earlier Norman tower. It has been suggested that a Roman villa originally stood on the site.

In 1637, the Fortescues sold the Hall to Sir Edward Bullock. The Bullock family lived at Faulkbourne until the late 19th century, and included Colonel John Bullock, Member of Parliament for Maldon from 1754 to 1774. In April 1885, Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll (Queen Victoria's daughter) stood as sponsor at the christening of a member of the Bullock family. There are several memorials to the Bullock family inside the Church.

Faulkbourne Church

The church, which stands close to Faulkbourne Hall, the former residence of the Bullock family, is dedicated to Saint Germanus and was restored in 1886 by the Rev. Frederick Spurrell, with the assistance of the architect Sir Arthur Blomfield. Rev. Spurrell presented a history of the church to the Essex Archaeological Society on 30 August 1877, a transcript of which can be found in their records. He dates the church as Norman, built towards the end of the reign of William I of England, and suggests that the reason for the building being dedicated to Saint Germanus is probably that it was consecrated on 31 July, his feast day.

List of rectors

Some of the Rectors of Faulkbourne include:

...
Rev. John Harrison (1746-1798)
Rev. John Watson (1798-1818)
Rev. John Bullock (1818-1845)
Rev. Robert Burdett Burgess, M.A. (1845-1847)
Rev. Walter Trevelyan Bullock, M.A. (1847-1853)
Rev. Frederick Spurrell, M.A., A.K.C. (1853-1898)
...
Rev. John Michael Hall (current Rector of Fairstead with Terling and White Notley with Faulkbourne)

Further reading

For more information on the church, see

"A guide to Saint Germanus Church Faulkbourne", (Ed. David Andrews) compiled by the Parochial Church Council (2000), Faulkbourne Press, ISBN 978-0953802814
"Faulkbourn Church", a paper by the Rev. Frederick Spurrell published in the Essex Archaeological Society Transperiodical (1878)

External links