Worminghall’s history can be explored through several specific traces: a church with features from different centuries, almshouses bearing a date on their plaques, and earthworks in the landscape. A section of the Bernwood Jubilee Way also passes through the village. These different themes can help you shape your stay around the discoveries that interest you most.
Church and Historic Village Centre
The Church of St Peter and St Paul is a Grade II* listed building. Its nave is originally Norman, the chancel dates from the 14th century and the tower from the 15th century. Several building periods can therefore be distinguished in a single church. The church is open during the day to villagers and visitors and can be used for prayer and meditation. Check access before you travel.
The village’s history also reaches far back: Worminghall is recorded in the Domesday Book. The historic village centre is designated an archaeological notification area.
Almshouses and Earlier Village History
Worminghall’s six almshouses bear plaques dated 1675. Their foundation stems from the bequest of John King, Bishop of London, and his son Henry King, Bishop of Chichester. Court Farm offers another glimpse of the former significance of individual buildings: the farm was once Worminghall’s manor house and still has a chimney dating from around 1600.
The surviving traces are not limited to buildings. Earthworks marking the remains of a shrunken medieval village survive around the parish church; these remains are visible in aerial photographs. Earthworks from medieval farming can also be seen on Worminghall’s eastern edge, including ridge-and-furrow fields and plough furrows. These field patterns tell a different story from the remains of the village: here, the focus is on the land’s earlier use.
The Clifden Arms and the Route Through Worminghall
The Clifden Arms is a late-medieval timber-framed inn with jettied construction and a thatched roof. The building also has a 17th-century extension. The combination of the timber frame, the projecting structure and the later extension makes its construction and the building’s different phases a distinct part of the village’s history.
The Bernwood Jubilee Way passes the Clifden Arms. On its section through Worminghall, the route turns left at a junction onto Clifden Road and continues towards the village centre. The historic walking and cycling route is 61 miles long in total and circles the former royal hunting forest of Henry II. The route is thought to have been established around 1228. When planning locally, the specific route through Worminghall is important; check the route and conditions before walking or cycling.
Saturday Visit and September Event
The Wornal Café serves unlimited tea and coffee, along with homemade cakes and sausage rolls, every Saturday morning from 10:00 to 12:00. If you would like to plan your stay around a visit, check the details before travelling.
Worminghall’s annual Church Village Fete takes place in September. If you plan to visit for the fete, confirm the dates and this year’s arrangements. This helps distinguish the recurring time of year from the plans for a particular year.
For the wider travel guide: Buckinghamshire.
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