Discover Grendon Underwood

Grendon Underwood can be understood through its buildings, settlement history and traces in the surrounding area. For travellers interested in local history, different periods sit side by side: from Roman finds and a Roman road route to the church, historic houses and a war memorial.

St Leonard's Church: several building phases

St Leonard's Church is listed as a Grade II* building. Its nave probably dates from the 12th century, the chancel was rebuilt around 1310, and the west tower dates from the 15th century. These features represent different phases in the church's history. The south doorway also belongs to an earlier building phase: it dates from the early 13th century and features fragments of elaborate fleurons and capitals with stiff-leaf foliage.

Inside the church is a pair of coloured marble monuments from the 18th century. Together with the doorway and the building's different periods, they add to the picture of a building whose historical details are not limited to a single era.

Historic houses and village history

Shakespeare Farmhouse is also listed as a Grade II* building. The timber-framed house dates from the late 16th to 17th century, was known as The Ship, and is now a private farmhouse. It is traditionally associated with William Shakespeare; according to local tradition, he is said to have used the inn occasionally. This connection remains a tradition and should not be taken as evidence of a confirmed stay.

Crucks Cottage offers a different architectural focus. The timber-framed house, with its thatched roof and cruck construction, may date from the late Middle Ages and was altered in the 17th century. Three cruck trusses survive in the original part of the building. Crucks Cottage is a private building; a visit is only possible when it is opened separately.

The settlement's history can also be placed in context: Grendon Underwood is a medieval and post-medieval settlement recorded in the Domesday Book. The historic village is designated a Conservation Area. Its long settlement history and its designated historic village area are therefore two distinct aspects.

Landscape and historic points of reference

The medieval moat is a Scheduled Monument and lies 320 metres northwest of St Leonard's Church. It is situated west of Grendon Underwood, at the foot of a slope running down from the parish church to a narrow stream called the River Ray. Its location links the site to specific landmarks in the landscape.

A survey from 1995 recorded 665 acres of surviving ridge-and-furrow earthworks in the parish. This figure relates to that survey at the time. Akeman Street, a Roman road from London to Cirencester, runs through the parish of Grendon Underwood and is now the A41. The Loop Link route is six miles long; alongside buildings and landscape, local history therefore also offers a named route to explore.

Remembrance and Roman traces

The Grendon Underwood war memorial was erected on the village's main road in 1921. It records everyone who served in the First World War, including the wounded and prisoners. Its commemoration therefore extends beyond those killed in action to include a wider group of people who served in the war.

Finds from Ham Green add to the Roman period: pottery, bricks and metal objects indicated a settlement dating from the 3rd or 4th century AD. Together with Akeman Street, they make the Roman past tangible as part of local history, while the church, houses and memorial reveal other periods.

Discover more destinations: St Leonards, Botley, Wendover, Easington, Fulmer, Chalfont St Giles, Penn, Beaconsfield.

For the wider travel overview: Buckinghamshire.