MALDON
Maldon lies 15 miles east of Chelmsford in Essex and stands on the river Blackwater.
|
Now famous for its Thames Barges |
Maldon is also famous for its 13th century triangular towered church of All Saints |
|
|
|
|
Click the picture for a closer look. |
standing opposite the Blue Boar an historical inn and public house, |
|
|
|
|
the Moot Hall |
Maldon has many pubs |
|
|
|
|
and tea shops |
|
Also the Maldon Tapestry, similar to the Bayeux Tapestry in France, it was made to commemorate the millennium celebrations of the Battle of Northey Island. Hand stitched in 1990 by local ladies and showing the complete history of Maldon in pictures. This tapestry used to be housed in the Moot Hall but can now be seen in the Mealdune Centre in the High Street.
Brief History of Maldon
Maldon's name (Maeldun) comes from the early English "monument on a hill". A Roman fort once guarded the entrance to the Blackwater river at Bradwell a few miles up the river. In 1994 an important archaeological excavation in Heybridge (adjoining Maldon) uncovered a small Roman town. It is believed that Maldon was one of the last places that the Romans left from when they gave up trying to civilise England. After AD350 when the Roman legions returned home to defend Rome the Saxons began to move in.
In 653AD Cedd, a young English Christian Missionary landed at the mouth of the Blackwater and converted East Anglia to Christianity. The Church he built at Bradwell still stands - built between 654 and 664 AD it is one of the oldest and most complete Saxon churches in England.
In the ninth century Vikings, Danes and Norsemen came to invade East Anglia and in 991 AD the battle of Northey Island took place. A raiding party of Danes, having sacked Ipswich in the North sailed up the Blackwater towards Maldon. But when they moored on Northey Island to prepare for the final assault they found themselves faced by a well armed local English army and were forced to retreat back up the Blackwater. An Epic Poem was written about the battle and the Battlefield is now registered as the earliest recorded battlefield in Britain. However, within a short time King Ethelred the Unready was paying "protection money" to the Danes rather than fighting them.
Following the Norman Conquest Maldon became an important Borough and is recorded in the Doomsday Book. A Royal Charter was granted to Maldon in 1171 by Henry II.
During the Middle Ages Maldon along with its neighbour Burnham (on the river Crouch) became important trading and fishing ports. Ships built in the Maldon area took part in the Spanish Armada.
In 1797 the Chelmer and Blackwater Canal was built bypassing Maldon completely. In the 1800s the railway came to the area which started the decline of the Canal. The Canal is now used for pleasure craft.
Although the railways brought the decline of the Thames Barges they have recently made a come back with several of the old barges being restored. You can go on a day trip up the river on some of them or hire them out for weddings and parties. It's a great day out. They will even let you steer if you ask:-
