Analysis of Writtle Green Jasmine Cress Landscape and Garden Design Reading the Landscape (H ) 1

Introduction Summary Location and Context Historical Timeline Geology Topography Ecology Access Attractions Business Roads Conservation Area Listed Buildings Architecture People Activities on the Green Community Buildings Personal Perceptions, Conclusion References 2 Table of Contents Page Heading

Summary Introduction The goal of this report is to look into and analyze all aspects effecting Writtle green, such as geography, history, architecture, infrastructure, peoples and activities, so that we can better understand the character of the green so that it may be preserved and maintained as the modern day moves in. 3 Writtle Green today is a small village, but it dates back to pre-historic time and at the height of its time was the largest community in Essex. Located in the clay countryside it is easily accessible but has a range of business and services so people living there don’t have to seek outside sources often, the church and village hall also provide a number of services. The green is used on a daily basis for a variety of uses by the locals, but is also important as the whole space is a conservation area, and a lot of the buildings surrounding the green are listed and protected, including one grade I building. It is truly a fascinating space, something you will realize instantly upon first arriving. Authors collection

Adapted from and Google Earth (Dec 2013) Writtle is a small village in the Essex country side, east of London, England (30mins by train), just outside the city of Chelmsford. The triangular ‘Green’ is in the centre of the village. At one corner is a war memorial and duck pond semi-surrounded by willow trees, followed by a large field lined with trees. There are roads on all three sides, the main road is lined with shops, places to eat, and homes. The road opposite this is homes, on a side road is Church lane leading to The All Saints Church. The shortest road, exactly opposite the duck pond is lined with residential buildings the post office and library. Adapted from Google Earth (Dec 2013) Location and Context 4

Historical Timeline of Writtle (Chelmsford City Council, 2004) (Writtle Village, unknown) 1211 King John build a hunting lodge. Artifacts date settlement in Writtle Village back to Pre-historic times. Evidence of romans, found in the brickwork of ‘The Church of all Saints’ 1086 (doomsday survey) population of Writtle was 945, biggest parish in Essex. It was along an important route from London to Colchester Chelmsford became more of a focus point when a bridge was built over river Chelmer Sir John Comyns built Hylands estate, on Highlands field Marconi radio broadcasts from Writtle by Guglielmo Marconi, known to be the inventor of the radio, making Writtle the birth place Writtle Agricultural College was built. Writtle, 1890 Writtle, 1990 Figure 1 & 2 show the amount of development and housing put up in a 100 year period. 5 Figure 1 Figure 2 Digi Maps (Jan 2014)

Geology The Green and most of Writtle sits on slightly acidic clay loam with poor drainage. The surrounding area towards Chelmsford is more loamy with better drainage, shown in figure 3. (British Geology Survey, unknown) Adapted from soilscapes Chelmsford and Writtle sit on the edge of the ‘South Suffolk and North Essex Claylands’ Natural Character Area (see figure 4) (Natural England a, unknown) This area is predominately countryside with gentle rolling hills averaging at 74m above sea level. It’s only about 4% forest. (Natural England b, unknown) Topography Above is an Ariel photograph of an area (Writtle College) beside the village. Writtle green is on a slope facing downwards towards the pond. The closest river is River Wid, which flows between Writtle and Chelmsford (figure 7). Authors Collection 6 Figure 3 Figure 4

Ecology TreeCharacteristics effecting site Quercus (Oak)-Long lived -Requires mycorrhiza activity Salix (Willow)-Thrive near water -Very large -Shallow roots Betula (Birch)-Susceptible to miners, and borers -Shallow roots Aesculus hippocastarium (Horse Chestnut) -Leaf bloch and powerdy mildew, notable problems -Large round fruit Tillia Cordata (Lime) -Attracts bees and butterflies -Little pest problems -Long lived Trees vary in size and age, effecting the site in different ways (below) Turf is a rhizomes species, with small bare patches throughout, possibly due to compaction from high traffic, and the clay soil. A well-populated duck pond is located at the lower corner, with various species of ducks including geese. 7 Figure 5 maps the trees on the green (Bartlett consulting, 2012) Figure 6 describes in more detail. (garden guides.com, unknown; Missouri Botanical garden, unknown) Figure 5 Figure 6 Adapted from digi maps (Jan 2014) Authors collection Adapted from authors collection

Mainly by road, Writtle is situated between two highways (A414 and A1060). A regular bus service is provided to and from Chelmsford (Writtle Village, unknown ).There is also a bicycle/footpath into Writtle. In Chelmsford there is a train station (see figure 7). The nearest airport is Stansted airport 18 miles away by car (google maps). Attractions Hylands park (estate and gardens), walking distance away, dates back to 1730 (visit essex.com, unknown). It hosts the ‘V festival’ every year in August (Activ Chelmsford, unknown). Writtle is also home to ‘Writtle College’ partner of Essex university (Activ Chelmsford, unknown). See both figure 7 Access Business around the Green All businesses around the green are described in figure 8. Places to eat include ‘The Rose and Crown pub’, ‘Bygones’ tea room, ‘The restaurant on the Green’, ‘Giahams on the Green’, and ‘Mauro’s’ coffee house. Businesses and services include A funeral home, Wichcraft Jewellery, a pharmacy, Bluebells Florist, veterinary clinic, and a hairdresser. Most appear to be privately owned. Adapted from Digi maps (Dec 2013) Adapted from Google maps (Dec 2013) Roads Interesting to note all roads around Writtle green are named ‘The Green’. One road is almost a direct route to a main door of the church, (looks like it may have been built on Later), another road is a direct route to Chelmsford, demonstrated in figure 9. 8 Figure 7 Figure 9 Figure 8 Adapted from google maps (Jan 2014)

Listed Buildings Buildings in the UK with historical importance, better preserved and older buildings, are more likely to be listed. There are three classes. Grade I – exceptional interest, sometimes of international importance. Grade II* - more then special interest, particularly important Grade II – special interest, nationally important. (English heritage, unknown) See figure 10 for listed buildings on The Green. A place within the UK with unique architecture, and historic interest. Permission is required before any changes are made within the area. Adapted from and Aubyns (Above) Writtle has one Grade I listed building, Aubyns (#11 The Green). A Tudor style building dating back to the 1500’s, well restored, the building is a good representation of the style, and shape of the buildings at that time. (British listed buildings, unknown) Conservation Area Authors Collection 9 Figure 10 A large portion of Writtle, shown in figure 10, and the whole Green is within a conservation area, it was named in (English heritage, unknown)

Buildings of various time periods, styles, shapes, colors, and materials makes the green unique and adds character, pictures and examples are below. These buildings are presumably homes today. Architecture 27,29,31 The homes to the right are grade II listed originally built in the 1500s, renovated in the 1800s (timber frame and plaster). Gables possibly added in the 1900s. 31, an addition in the 1800s. (British listed buildings, unknown) 42,40,36,34,32 these on the right are grade II listed buildings , from the 1800s , from the 1800s. The current front is from the 1900s. (British listed buildings, unknown) 33 (Ratcliffe’s) (above) Is a grade II listed building, Georgian style from the 1600s. (British listed buildings, unknown) Authors Collection 10

Age% of people People In 2001 there was 5632 people living in Writtle, 2308 homes. >75% of people said they were Christian. (Openly local, 2001) Area surveyed is shown in figure Figure 12 shows a fairly even rate of births and deaths. (Openly local, 2001) Most common activities observed on the green Dog walking Walking Running Families/couples spending time together Feeding ducks elderly people/ grandparents with grandchildren Activity's on The Green 11 Figure 11 Figure 12 Authors collection

(Left) Is located on the Green. It hosts a number of weekly/bi-weekly classes /meetings, as well as different events thought-out the year. (Writtle village, unknown) The Rose and Crown Above Is the main pub in the village, it is a Grade II listed building, from the early 1800’s(British listed buildings, unknown). They offer food, drink, entertainment, live music, quiz nights, and poker nights. (Rose and Crown, 2013) Village Hall (Left) Is a grade II* building. Built between the 1100’s- 1200’s with several restorations until 1886 due to a fire and a collapse. Style, methods and materials are typical of the time periods.(British listed buildings, unknown) Church of all Saints Holds services of different types every Sunday, and others for special events. They have a long list of committees/roles you can play within the church, and host organizations like guides and scots.(All Saints Church, unknown) Authors Collection Community Buildings 12 Buildings on this page are important to culture, traditions, and character of the village.

Personal Perceptions Upon first arriving to Writtle Green, in September (2013) I remember being over come with a feeling of calm. The space had a haze about it like it had been there for a long time, and had time to settle itself and identify itself with the area. Particularly the air around Aubyn’s, it stood out and almost gave off a hum. The churchyard had a similar energy around it, thought more of a place of reflection. When visiting the place again in December (2013) I decided it felt very enclosed, within itself. Instead of feeling mysterious this time, there was a charm to the place, with its different colored and textured buildings, I could also feel the rhythm that developed around the green, shops opening and closing, the seasons, and regulars to the space. But all of this doesn't seem to be happening in the green so much as around it, perhaps this is because so much of it is protected and not allowed to change. Authors Collection Conclusion 13 Writtle green is a place to be preserved and researched for its history, but is still an active community and any decisions regarding changes or not changing should be put past residents with equal importance.

Adapted from [www document] (Accessed November 2013) (And) Map of England Cities [www document] (Accessed December 2013) Chelmsford borough council (1991) Writtle conservation area [www document] (accessed December 2013) (And) British listed buildings. (know given) Listed Buildings in Writtle, Essex, England [www document] (accessed December 2013) Natural England. (Unknown) East of England [www document] (accessed January 2014) Openly Local. (2001) Chelmsford Borough Council: Writtle ward [www document] (accessed December 2013) Soil scapes, Cranfeild University. (Unknown) National soil resources institute [www document] (accessed December 2013) Writtle College Facebook. (2013) Welcome to Writtle College [www document] (accessed January 2014) Activ Chelmsford. (Unknown) Writtle, Chelmsford [www document] (accessed December 2013) All Saints Church. ((Unknown) All Saints Church, Writtle [www document] (accessed December 2013) Bartlett consulting (2012) Tree survey, condition, and management plan [www document] (accessed January 2014) British Geology Survey. (Unknown) Geology of Britain viewer [www document] (accessed December 2013) British listed buildings. (Unknown) Listed Buildings in Writtle, Essex, England [www document] (accessed December 2013) Chelmsford City Council. (2004) Writtle Village Design Statement [www document] %20Writtle%20Village%20Design%20Statement-web.pdf (accessed December 2013) %20Writtle%20Village%20Design%20Statement-web.pdf English Heritage. (Unknown)) Conservation areas [www document] (accessed December 2013) Garden guides.com. (Unknown) characteristics of Weeping Willows, Birch tree facts, Characteristics of Oak trees [www document] (accessed January 2014) Missouri Botanical garden (Unknown) Tillia cordata, Aesculus hippocastarium [www document] (accessed January 2014) Natural England a. (Unknown) East of England [www document] (accessed December 2013) Natural England b. (Unknown) NCA: 86 South Suffolk and North Essex Claylands Key Facts & Data [www document] (accessed December 2013) Openly Local. (2001) Chelmsford Borough Council: Writtle ward [www document] (accessed December 2013) Rose and Crown (2013) Rose and Crown [www document] (accessed January 2014) Visit Essex.com. (Unknown) Hyland House and Estate [www document] (accessed December 2013) Writtle Village. (Unknown) Writtle Village [www document] (accessed December 2013) Writtle Village. (Unknown) Writtle Village Hall Regular Activities [www document] (accessed December 2013) Picture References 14 References