Knodishall facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Knodishall
Church of St. Lawrence, Knodishall
Knodishall
Population	852 2011 Census
Civil parish	Knodishall
District	East Suffolk
Shire county	Suffolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Saxmundham
Postcode district	IP17
EU Parliament	East of England
UK Parliament	Suffolk Coastal
List of places UK England Suffolk 52°12′N 1°33′E / 52.2°N 1.55°E / 52.2; 1.55

Knodishall is a village in Suffolk, England. It is about 3.5 miles south-east of Saxmundham and 1 mile south-west of Leiston. The village is also about 3 miles from the coast.

Most homes in Knodishall are now in an area called Coldfair Green. Only a few houses remain in the older part of the village, near the Church of St Lawrence. This church is on the north side of the Hundred River valley. Knodishall Common is another settlement about a mile south-east of the main village. In 2019, about 790 people lived in the parish.

History of Knodishall

The name Knodishall comes from Old English words. It means the "bower" or "retreat" of a person named Cnott. A bower is like a cozy, private place.

In 1086, the Domesday Survey mentioned Knodishall. It was called "Cnotesheala" or "Cnenotessala" back then. Roger Bigod owned most of the land. Another person, Ranulf FitzWalter, held 80 acres from him. Some land had belonged to Boti, a free man of King Edward the Confessor.

Knodishall Manor House

The Jenney family owned the manor of Knodishall for a long time. They got it around the 1400s and kept it for many years. The family's old home in Knodishall was near the church. Sadly, it burned down around 1860. At that time, the Mayhew family owned the manor.

Long ago, in 1291, the Abbot of Leiston and the Prior of Butley had land and collected rents in Knodishall. They also owned land in a nearby area called Buckeslow. Later, in the 1500s, Leiston Abbey had even more land in "Knotshall and Buxlow."

Today, the old manor house of Buxlow, now called Red House Farm, is still standing in the parish.

Knodishall Parish Changes

The parish of Buxlow officially joined Knodishall on February 22, 1721. By 1865, the area was known as Knodishall-cum-Buxlow.

In the 1870s, people noted that the parish included Coldfair Green and the former parish of Buxlow. It covered about 1,143 acres. Around 442 people lived there in 100 houses. The land was owned by a few different people. There were also clay and sand pits in the area.

The 2011 Census showed that 418 males and 434 females lived in the parish.

Knodishall Church

The main church in Knodishall is dedicated to St Lawrence, a Christian saint from the 3rd century. It stands on a hill about a mile west of Knodishall Common. No one knows exactly when the church was built.

The church once belonged to the original Leiston Abbey. This abbey was founded in 1182. The first abbot gave the church to the canons of Butley Priory. This was in exchange for other churches.

The main part of the church, called the nave, was built in the Norman style. This means it is very old. You can still see some Norman carvings on the north doorway, though it is partly blocked. Some of the windows have beautiful stained glass from later medieval times.

The church tower was built in the 1400s. It was paid for by John Jenney, who was the lord of the manor. He died in 1460. The tower has flint stones on the outside and was fixed up in the 1800s. It has one bell. A small room called a vestry was added in 1838. The church also has a burial ground. In 1966, the church became a Grade II* British listed building. This means it is a very important historical building.

Community Life

Knodishall Village Hall

Knodishall is a spread-out village. It is close to both Leiston and Aldeburgh. The village has a shop, a pub called the Butchers Arms, a small farm, and a garage. There is also Coldfair Green Primary School for younger students.

The village grew in the mid-1980s when new houses were built. There is also a local history group on Facebook. This group collects photos, audio recordings, and documents about the village's past. They have been doing this for several years.

Population and People

Population Trends

The number of people living in Knodishall has slowly grown over time. In 1801, there were fewer than 300 people. By 1961, the population was over 500. Between 1961 and 2001, the population increased much faster, by about 400 more people. We don't have detailed numbers for every year in between.

Even when the parish of Buxlow joined Knodishall in 1865, there wasn't a big sudden jump in the total population in the next census.

Ethnicity in Knodishall

In 2008, 852 people lived in Knodishall. Most of them, 846 people, were white (English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, British, or other white backgrounds). There was one person of mixed race (white and black Caribbean). The area around Knodishall is mostly made up of white people.

Jobs and Industry

In the 1880s, most jobs in Knodishall were in farming and selling goods. Most of these jobs were done by men. However, women mostly worked in domestic services, like helping in homes. Many women also stayed home to take care of their households.

This table shows the number of men and women aged 16 to 74 who had jobs in Knodishall in 2011.

According to the 2011 census, the main jobs in Knodishall were in retail (shops), repairing cars and motorcycles, healthcare and social work, building, and education. Many of these jobs were still done by men. However, jobs in hotels and restaurants, healthcare, social work, and education were mostly done by women.

Images for kids

• 

  An old map of Knodishall from the 20th Century.

• 

  This graph shows how the population of Knodishall changed from 1801 to 2011.

• 

  This chart shows the types of jobs men and women had in Knodishall in 1881.