Fenny Stratford

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Fenny Stratford is a town that is now part of Milton Keynes, ceremonial Buckinghamshire, England and in the Civil Parish of Bletchley and Fenny Stratford. It was included in the designated Milton Keynes "new city" area in 1967. From 1895 it to 1974 it formed an urban district with Bletchley, when it became part of the borough of Milton Keynes (since 1997 a unitary authority). It is located at the south east edge of the city and is its gateway to northbound travellers on the A5.

Map sources for Fenny Stratford at grid reference SP880340

1 History
2 Parish church
3 The Fenny Poppers
4 Today
5 External links

[edit] History

The town name is an Old English language word that means 'marshy ford on a Roman road'. The Roman road in this case is the Watling Street. There are traces of the Roman settlement Magiovinium on the edge of the present day occupation. The town was recorded in manorial rolls in 1252 as Fenni Stratford, though previously it was just known as Stratford: the prefix being added to distinguish the town from nearby Stony Stratford.

Being an ancient market town, Fenny Stratford was the location of a weekly market for many years until 1665 when the town was badly hit by the bubonic plague. As a result the main road that ran through the town was diverted away from it, and the market died as a result. The market was never reinstigated: the town was very much in ruins by the early Eighteenth century, and had by this time joined with both Bletchley and Simpson, being commonly considered a hamlet of the former.

[edit] Parish church

St Martin's Church

On St Martin's Day 1724 the first stone was laid of the new parish church of Fenny Stratford, marking a fresh start in the town's history. Browne Willis, a historian of the day, had raised the funds for the reconstruction. The Church was built on the site of the old Chantry Chapel of St. Margaret and St. Catherine at Fenny Stratford. He erected the church as a memorial to his grandfather Dr. Thomas Willis, a famous physician, who lived in St. Martin's Lane in the parish of St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London, who died on St. Martin's day, 11th November 1675.In order to perpetuate his own memory, Browne Willis arranged for a sermon to be preached at St. Martin's Church on each St. Martin's Day, for which a fee was payable. During his lifetime, he also celebrated the occasion with a dinner attended by local clergy and gentry,an event which has continued to the present day.

[edit] The Fenny Poppers

The fenny poppers are six small ceremonial canon which date from this time and are still fired ceremonally (with blank charges) today.

There is no record of their first use. In 1740, Browne Willis bought a house in Aylesbury Street, Fenny Stratford and the rent from this was used to pay for the sermon and gunpowder. Following his death in 1760, the traditions were carried on and later documented.

All six poppers were re-cast by the Eagle Foundry, Northampton in 1859, after one of them burst. It is these that are still in use today and they were recently examined and x-rayed to ensure there are no cracks. During their long history, many sites have been used for this battery. These include; the Canal Wharf, land behind the Church, St, Martin's Hall, the Churchyard and now the Leon Recreation Ground that was once part of the lands belonging to the Chantry.

The poppers each weigh about 19 pounds (8.5 kg). The bore, 6" by 1¾" (152 mm x 44 mm) will take one ounce (28g) of gunpowder, which is plugged with well-rammed newspaper. They are fired three times on St. Martin's Day (11 November); noon, 2:00pm and 4:00pm precisely. There is of course no connection with Remembrance Day (also 11 November). In 1901 they were fired to mourn the death of Queen Victoria, the 81 salutes were heard as far as Olney. On the 1 January, 2000, at 11.00am the Poppers were fired to mark the beginning of the Second Millennium. At 2.00pm on the 4 August, 2000, a salute of Six Poppers was fired to celebrate the 100th Birthday of the Queen's Mother.

[edit] Today

Aylesbury Street

Fenny Stratford is a busy small town at the edge of the Milton Keynes urban area. It still doesn't have a market, but the small shopping street gives the town a real community feel. It has its own railway station on the Marston Vale Line, one of the five that serve Milton Keynes.