After the long periods of Lockdown, we (my wife and I) will be enjoying only our second visit in two years to our Daughter and her family in Derbyshire.
Tomorrow Saturday 19th March will be our Son-in-Law's 61st Birthday and having arrived today Friday 18th mid morning we are able to relax with them.
As a treat we drove North on Thursday enjoying an overnight stay at The Crown Inn in the village of ELTON.
This most welcoming 'hostelry' is one of the oldest buildings in the village. The oldest part of the main building dates back to the early 17th century, with the west wing added in the latter part of the same century.
Below: The Crown Inn at Elton in Cambridgeshire
The Crown Inn is a family-run bed and breakfast offering five-star bedrooms, a traditional country pub and a very warm welcome.
Taking a stroll around the area near the Crown Inn, the village has a 'Chocolate Box beauty with the stone block walls and many with thatched roofs.
"From the website: Our five-star rated rooms are all uniquely decorated and furnished to a very high standard, offering a tranquil place to relax after a busy day's sightseeing around Peterborough and the surrounding areas. The Crown is also at the heart of the local community and organises numerous events throughout the year for both locals and visitors to enjoy.
The Crown Inn is situated in the small village of Elton, which is 3,758 acres in size and situated seven miles south-west of Peterborough. The River Nene, the UK's tenth longest river, meanders alongside Elton and its picturesque banks provide the perfect location for a walk, picnic or a spot of fishing.
The history of Elton, or Adelington as it was once known, can be traced back over 2,000 years with evidence of a 2nd century settlement found in Nether End in the north of the village.
The first known records of the village detail a trip from the Danish King Canute in 1035, in which the then Danish lord and owner of Elton became so drunk that he offered the village for sale at "50 marks of gold before day break". Aethelric, the Bishop of Dorchester, collected the money from friends and acquired the village the next morning and granted it to the Abbot of Ramsey Abbey, located just 20 miles away.
From this date, the village was known as Aethelington. Since then, Elton has had only two other owners, the Sapcote family from 1300 to1600 and today's current owners, the Proby Family.
This small chain of succession has allowed Elton to establish one of the best sets of estate records throughout all European villages, with surviving records dating back to 1279.
Elton was also listed within the 1086 Domesday Book, as sanctioned by William the Conqueror, first Norman King of England. The records detail the land to have had three manors, 37 households, a church, 28 ploughlands, 184 acres of meadow and two water mills.
Ownership of Elton - Only three owners in 1000 years have given Elton one of the best sets of estate records of any village in Europe.
1035-1303 Ramsey Abbey
1300- 1600 Sapcote family
1600- Proby Family
Below: the bar has a very welcoming ambience
Below: the Dinning Room has a great ambience and the service and food excellent
Below: The bedrooms all have the name of villages in the vicinity: we were in WADDENHOE
That is all for this week. Next week The English Apple Man will be visiting apple and pear orchards to record the development of the trees as they respond to the warmer weather.
Take care
The English Apple Man