On Thursday the 18th June a number of the Chiltern District Welsh Society were treated to an historical and archaeological walk around Hodgemoor Woods led by Nigel Rothwell and his wife Janet.
To quote two members of the group after the event: “I really enjoyed it and it was very informative. I will look at woods with new eyes from now on.” “I thought the talk today was amazing. I loved every minute of it! “ Indeed it was. Nigel had done a great deal of preparation and we were all supplied at the beginning with a booklet containing maps, photos and diagrams for reference during the walk.
We started with the Iron Age and Roman times – did you know that a road from Verulamium (St Albans) runs right through the wood? The Lidar map showed it up beautifully and Nigel was able to show us parts of the Roman road. The same map revealed an Iron Age farmstead and field system through which the road later passed. Lidar is a remote sensing technology that uses laser pulses to measure precise distances and generate highly accurate, 3D models and topographic maps of environments. Then on to an Anglo Saxon homestead and medieval field patterns with their characteristic ridge and furrow system.
Walking through the woods we were at the edge of the Parish of Seer Green. In the Domesday Book Seer Green was recorded as a detached woodland portion of the Manor of Farnham (later Farnham Royal). The land was governed by a companion of William the Conqueror, Bertram de Verdun. This is where a Welsh connection comes in. De Verdun was also a Marcher Lord!
The woods were at one time fields which gradually became wooded through the Middle Ages. Names of fields such as Further Brickmill Field gave evidence of the brick making industry that took place, together with the huge pits in the wood where the clay was dug out. Nigel was by profession a geologist so he gave us insight into why the pits, and other features such as springs were in the place they were. The underlying ground being chalk in the south-eastern corner of the wood, overlaid in the centre with clay and further north with a top layer of sand and gravel.
It was fascinating to hear of the local Chalfont St Giles “Pest House”. Apparently most parishes had one for locals with contagious diseases. It was situated on the very limit of the Parish and was only demolished round about the end of the second World War when found not fit for habitation.
During the Second World War the woods served as temporary billeting for various units, including Northamptonshire Territorials and the 51st Highland Division.
Following WW2 Hodgemoor Woods served as a Polish Resettlement Camp for allied soldiers and their families and we were shown the remains of the necessary Effluent Treatment Plant that was built for the camp. The Camp only closed down in 1962. We spotted the remains of their telegraph system way up in a large Scots Pine!
A fascinating morning. We have walked through Hodgemoor Woods on many occasions without realizing the wealth of history literally beneath our feet.
Our thanks to Nigel and his wife Janet. CDWS has made a contribution to the Seer Green and Jordans Society, of which Nigel is an active member.
The morning was rounded off with a very pleasant lunch at The White Hart in Chalfont St Giles.
A morning to remember.
Janet John 18/6/2026
The tour was very informative and full of surprising insights into life in Amersham during Tudor times. We also discovered the origins of many everyday expressions that originated in that period.
We met again with the three other women. One was the Wise Woman, who sold herbs and potions for medicinal purposes. She trod a fine line between providing a health service and being accused of witchcraft. Life was hard for most people and meat was a luxury. A family meal might be a pot of vegetables with a very small portion of meat. It was “pot luck” for whoever pulled out a ladleful with the piece of meat in it.
The Martyr’s Memorial was a poignant reminder of harsher times. Their crime was to read the Bible in English, an act seen as a challenge to the authority of the Church and its bishops. They were burned at the stake, with the daughter of the first victim made to light the fire. Ironically, within less than a century English language bibles were to be found in all Anglican churches. A play about those events is held every four or so years in Amersham, and for those that haven’t seen it, preparations have already begun for the next performance in 2027. Well worth seeing.
His Chairman’s Report ran through the events that we had organised over the previous year, starting with the Summer Lunch (where more help is needed in setting up the gazebos) which was hosted by our President, Ann Evans.
Membership of the society has remained constant at 121.
That concluded the formal part of the meeting, and we broke for a meal provided by Ann Tennant and her daughter-in-law, Jagger. This was up to their usual standard – delicious – with a choice of chicken or salmon and lots of different deserts.
Being new to the location, we did have some tense minutes trying to set up the overhead projector, but then Wendy was able to start her talk.
The evening finished at about 10pm with Gwyndaf thanking Wendy for such an interesting and informative talk.
David Hancox made it in time, which was a surprise as he had to drop his children off, then get changed and rush all the way from Kingston Bagpuize, which is the other side of Abingdon, and a good hour away.
Gwyndaf had prepared a table plan so that we knew where we were sitting. We had 62 in total spread across 7 tables, so it was a good turn-out.
Ann Evans had arranged for the golf club to be decorated with lots of Welsh flags and, with the help of the ladies and wives of the committee, there were bouquets of daffodils on each table.
A baritone, Gwion was born in Gorseinon, South Wales. He gave up a career in banking to study singing at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, where he graduated with Distinction, winning many prizes. He has been a wide-ranging opera and concert soloist, taking leading solo operatic roles with the Welsh National Opera, the Scottish Opera, and many other companies.
Gwion and Chloe sang a variety of solos and duets starting with a piece from Handel and covering Mozart, Welsh songs and pieces by Andrew Lloyd Webber.
We were told of tragic stories in which magicians had met their end on stage through various accidents, including that of Chung Ling Soo, who died when a member of the audience tried to see whether the magician could catch a real bullet between his teeth.
Sooty is the only non-human member of the circle, and demonstrated his skills by cutting a lady (Barbie) in half live on TV.
The Society’s Golf Day on Friday September 12th dawned dry and bright. ‘Twas ever thus’ – as they don’t often say in the Valleys.
We all met at Milton’s Cottage at 10am on Friday 10th October. Most of us arrived early and, as the weather was good gathered in the garden.
Milton took refuge from the plague in London by escaping to this cottage in 1665, and, although he lived here for less than two years, wrote his most famous work Paradise Lost and began Paradise Regained, whilst living here with his third wife.
We then walked down the hill to the parish church of Chalfont St Giles. Here we met our guide Tony Ferguson, who is not only an author and speaker, but also a member of the St Giles watch, which helps to ensure that the church remains open to visitors.
One of the most striking features of the church is a set of 14th century wall paintings depicting scenes from the bible. These were discovered and revealed by the Victorians, but about 20 years ago suffered damage as a result of thieves taking lead from the roof.