It’s a strange name in a county that’s no short of some odd ones. In fact, the curious name is a nod back to the time when Wendens Ambo was formed as the villages of Great (Magna) and Little (Parva) Wenden merged on 23 March 1662 to form Wendens Ambo. Ambo means “both”. Wendens comes from Wendene, the valley in which the settlement is located.
It’s a chocolate box village, crammed full of historic homes and thatched cottages.
A commuter village these days for both London and Cambridge, it was once a farming community. Before that, it was settled during Roman times as evidenced by the remains of a Roman villa and perhaps even earlier following the discovery of some flint tools from between 200 and 300 BC.
Like many in the area, the church is dedicated to St Mary the Virgin. Once constructed from wood, it was rebuilt in stone and over the centuries several alterations and additions have been made.
If you’d like to take a look around, perhaps time your visit to coincide with the National Garden Scheme Open Gardens event being held on June 5th 2016 from 2pm to 6pm. Seven gardens plan to be open with proceeds going to a number of charities including Macmillan Cancer Support and Marie Curie. There’s a decent pub too. Find out more about The Fighting Cocks at http://www.thefightingcocks.biz.
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