Minsmere
Minsmere is a place in the
History
At the
Ranulf de Glanvill, King Henry II's Lord Chief Justice, founded an abbey on the marshes at Minsmere in 1182,[3] but, probably due to an increased risk of flooding, this was abandoned in favour of Leiston Abbey in 1363.[4][5][6]
Peat cutting took place at Minsmere from at least the 12th century
The marshes along the
Geography
Minsmere is in a low-lying area of the Suffolk coast approximately 24 miles (39 km) north-east of Ipswich. It is in the civil parishes of Westleton and Leiston with the parish border running along the Minsmere Old River. It borders the parish of Theberton at Eastbridge to the south-west and the parish of Dunwich to the north along the coast.
The landscape is largely flat along the line of the river. This is known as the Minsmere Level, an area of drained and re-flooded marshland with underlying alluvial geology.[4] The area to the south of the Minsmere New Cut drainage ditch, built in 1812, is used as grazing marsh.[4][16] To the north the wetland areas are flooded and managed as part of the RSPB's habitat management strategy for its Minsmere reserve. This area includes drier areas of sandlings, including areas of mixed woodland rising up to 20 metres above sea level on sandy ridges.[17]
The area provides a number of important habitats, including for species such as
The coastline at Minsmere consists of a narrow shingle beach and some areas of sand dune with a shingle bank protecting the low-lying coastal areas.
Minsmere Sluice Chapel
The remains of a chapel built on the original site of
The chapel remains include a pillbox built in the early stages of the
References
- ^ Minsmere, Domesday book online. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ a b Minsmere Archived 2014-05-13 at the Wayback Machine, Open Domesday. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ a b c d e Archaeology and history, RSPB, 2011-02-14. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ a b c d e f Coastal levels, Suffolk Landscape Character Typology, Suffolk County Council. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ A stranger in Leiston, Suffolk Magazine, 2010-06-25. Retrieved 2014-03-04.
- ^ a b c Minsmere Sluice chapel, Eastbridge, Suffolk Churches. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ a b Minsmere peat cuttings, of at least 12th century date, Heritage Gateway. Retrieved 2012-11-01.
- ^ Medieval battery 1485-1540, Heritage Gateway. Retrieved 2012-11-01.
- ^ History, The Eel's Foot Inn. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ Suffolk, Smugglers' Britain. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
- ^ White W (1855) History, Gazetteer, and Directory of Suffolk, and the Towns Near Its Borders (second edition), Sheffield: R. Leader, p.505, (available online)
- ^ White W op. cit. p.318
- ^ A Walk around Suffolk's Minsmere Bird Reserve, Griffmonsters Great Walks. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
- ^ Sluice Cottages Minsmere, Leiston cum Sizewell newsletter, Autumn 2013. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
- ^ Milestones, RSPB. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ a b c d e Suffolk Coast and Estuaries Coastal Habitat Management Plan, Posford Haskoning Ltd, October 2002. Retrieved 2012-11-01.
- ^ Estate sandlings, Suffolk landscape character typology, Suffolk County Council. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ a b c Suffolk SMP2 Sub-cell 3c - Policy Development Zone 4 – Dunwich Cliffs to Thorpeness, Shoreline Management Plan, January 2010. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ a b c d e f Historic England. "Leiston Abbey (first site) with later chapel and pill box (1015687)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
- ^ 38: Leiston Abbey Archived 2014-02-26 at the Wayback Machine, Eastern Daily Press, 2010-04-15. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
- ^ Page.W (1975) 'Houses of Premonstratensian canons: The abbey of Leiston', A History of the County of Suffolk: Volume 2, pp. 117-199 (available online). Retrieved 2012-10-31.
- ^ New life for old chapel, Ipswich Star, 2008-07-04. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
External links
Media related to Minsmere at Wikimedia Commons