Whiteleaf, Buckinghamshire

Infobox UK place
country = England
official_name= Whiteleaf
static_

static_image_caption=
latitude= 51.731929
longitude= -0.814836
civil_parish= Princes Risborough
shire_district= Wycombe
shire_county= Buckinghamshire
region= South East England
constituency_westminster= Aylesbury
post_town= PRINCES RISBOROUGH
postcode_district= HP27
postcode_area= HP
dial_code= 01844
os_grid_reference= SP8104

Whiteleaf is a hamlet in the parish of Princes Risborough in Buckinghamshire, England. It is located 7 miles south of the county town of Aylesbury and 8 miles north of High Wycombe.

The hamlet's name is Old English and refers to the nearby Whiteleaf Cross, a large cross with a triangular base cut into the chalk on the side of Whiteleaf Hill to the east of the hamlet, making an important landmark for miles around. The date and origin of this cross are unknown. It was mentioned as an antiquity by Francis Wise in 1742, but no earlier reference has been found. The cross is not mentioned in any description of the area before 1700 [cite journal
last = Hey
first = Gill
authorlink =
coauthors = Dennis, Caroline. and Mayes Andrew
title = Archaeological Investigations on Whiteleaf Hill, Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire, 2002-6
journal = Records of Buckinghamshire
volume = 47
issue = part 2
pages = pp.1-80
publisher = Buckinghamshire Archaeological Society
location = Aylesbury
date = 2007
url =
doi =
id =
accessdate = ] There are some who believe that the cross dates back to the time of a medieval monastery in Monks Risborough, and others who believe it to be a prehistoric phallic symbol that was later changed into a more acceptable shape. However, there is no evidence for a monastery in Monks Risborough itself, and no written record of the cross before 1700. Many of the houses refer to the Cross in their names - sometimes using the old word Rood. In addition to the cross, Whiteleaf Hill has a barrow thought to date from the Neolithic period.

Whiteleaf is home to Monks Risborough Cricket Club and the 9-hole Whiteleaf Golf Club, both of which lie slightly South-East of the main road through the village, which follows the path of the Upper Icknield Way. The cricket ground has an incredible slope and was tried by the BBC to see if it would be suitable for filming the cricket scene in the production of A. G. Macdonnell's England, Their England. However, it was found to be not quite sufficiently sloping. The cricket club celebrated its centenary in 1993 and a book covering its history was published.

The village also has a public house, the Red Lion.

References