St Osyth facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Osyth
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 Village sign |
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 St Osyth
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| Population | 4,277 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | TM123156 |
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| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CLACTON-ON-SEA |
| Postcode district | CO16 |
| Dialling code | 01255 |
| Police | Essex |
| Fire | Essex |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament |
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St Osyth is a village and parish in Essex, England. It is about 5 miles (8 km) west of Clacton-on-Sea. The village is named after Osgyth, a saint and princess from the 7th century. Some local people call it "Toosey."
St Osyth is known as one of the driest places in the United Kingdom. In 2011, about 4,277 people lived there.
Contents
A Look Back in Time
Before it was called St Osyth, the village was known as Chich. This name came from an Old English word meaning "bend," which referred to the nearby St Osyth Creek.
Early History
Around the time of King Canute (1018–1035), Chich was part of the royal lands. It was given to Earl Godwin. He then gave it to Christ Church in Canterbury. After the Norman Conquest, it was given to the London Church.
The Famous Priory
St Osyth is home to an important old abbey called St Osyth's Priory. It was named after Osgyth, a Saxon princess and saint. In the Middle Ages, the village was a busy place for pilgrims visiting the saint's shrine. This made the village very rich for a time.
The village also has a beautiful church, St Peter and St Paul. It is famous for being built almost entirely of brick. Its design looks like older churches made of stone.
Uncovering the Past
The TV show Time Team once explored St Osyth in an episode called "Lost Centuries of St Osyth." They tried to find out how old the village really was. The show found that the village might have started closer to St Osyth Creek. A big high tide in the 1600s might have changed where people lived and worked.
Witch Trials and Discoveries
St Osyth was a place where witch trials happened in the 1500s and 1600s. In 1921, two skeletons were found in a garden there. One was thought to be Ursley Kempe, who was one of the first people accused of being a witch. These skeletons became a local attraction.
Wartime History
During the Napoleonic Wars, two Martello Towers were built nearby. These were small forts for defense. One of them, at Stone Point, is now the East Essex Aviation Museum.
The area was also used by the Navy and Army during both World Wars. From 1942 to 1944, it was a training base for landing crafts called HMS Helder.
Nature and Geography
St Osyth is known for being the driest place in the UK. It gets only about 507 mm (20 inches) of rain each year.
The village is located on a clay plateau, about 20 meters above sea level. It stretches down towards the tidal St Osyth Creek. To the south and east, there are large areas of marshland that have been drained. These areas are very low, sometimes only one or two meters above sea level.
St Osyth parish is one of the largest in Essex. It reaches the coast and includes smaller villages like Point Clear and Lee-over-Sands. Even though much of its border is coastline, St Osyth still follows the old tradition of beating the bounds on Rogation days. This is where people walk the parish boundaries.
Wildlife and Reserves
Between the Priory Park and Flag Creek, there is a large area of grassland called The Howlands. This is a Nature Reserve managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust. You can visit it using footpaths along the creek. There are two places to watch birds, one looking over the grassland and another on the sea-wall.
The sea-wall has been opened in one spot to create a shallow lagoon. Many birds can be seen here, including Avocet, Golden Plover, and Brent Geese. You might also spot the Wasp Spider and Adders (a type of snake).
Famous Places
St Osyth's Priory
The most famous building in St Osyth is St Osyth's Priory. It has many old buildings, including a beautiful gatehouse from the late 1300s. The Abbot's Tower was built around 1527.
The Priory became the home of the Earls of Rochford. It also used to have a special herd of White Park cattle. Sadly, these cattle had to be slaughtered in 1951 because of an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.
Today, the Priory is a private home and not open to the public. The land around the Priory is shown as a Deer Park on maps.
Other Historic Sites
- The Priory grounds also contain the site of a Roman villa.
- A wooden tide mill used to stand at the north end of the dam on St Osyth Creek. It was taken down in 1962. The sluice that powered the mill still works today. The lake is now used for water-skiing.
- A commercial boatyard operates on St Osyth Creek. It is home to the Thames sailing barge Edme, which often wins races.
- The village church is dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul.
- The Martello tower at Point Clear has been turned into a war museum.
- Just south of the village is St Clere's Hall, a good example of a 13th-century hall.
St Osyth Beach
The area next to the village, called St Osyth Beach, has many caravan parks. These include Seawick and Hutleys. They bring about 7,000 more people to the area in the summer.
St Osyth Beach and nearby Jaywick were affected by "The Great Flood" of 1953.
The small village of Lee-over-Sands is also nearby. It was meant to be a golf resort in the 1930s but that plan failed. Most of its small houses are built on stilts to protect them from high tides.
Fun and Games
The St Osyth Social Club is a place for fun. It has three league darts teams: St Osyth Social, The Priorymen, and SOSC Ladies.
Famous People from St Osyth
- William de Corbeil (c. 1070–1136), who became Archbishop of Canterbury, was once a leader at St Osyth Abbey.
- William Nassau de Zuylestein, 1st Earl of Rochford (1649–1708), a soldier and diplomat.
- William Nassau de Zuylestein, 4th Earl of Rochford (1717–1781), another diplomat and statesman.
- Benjamin Golding (1793–1863), who started Charing Cross Hospital.
- Somerset de Chair (1911–1995), a soldier, writer, and politician, owned St Osyth's Priory for many years.
See also
In Spanish: St Osyth para niños
