Kings Cliffe
Married here:
Henry Hercock & Elizabeth Horsepole (1796)Born here:
Charles Hercock, William Hercock.Kings Cliffe (variously King's Cliffe, King's Cliff, Kings Cliff, Kingscliffe) is a beautiful little village and civil parish in the East Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England, between Corby and Peterborough.
The church of All Saints is a cruciform building of stone. The oldest part of this church is the tower which dates from the first part of the 12th Century. The spire was added in the 13th Century, with the rest of the church mainly dating from the 15th Century. The interior is seated with open oak benches, many of the ends of which, as well as the pulpit, constructed from ancient woodwork. There are some impressive stained glass windows and very high quality gargoyles. A Palace, occupied by King John when hunting in Rockingham Forest, once stood on the south side of the churchyard, adjoining a place called " The Hall Yard".
Kings Cliffe's most famous son was born in the village in 1686. William Law was an important theologian whose major work A Serious Call To A Devout And Holy Life is still read today. He retired back to the village of his birth in 1740 and is buried in the churchyard.
The Willow Brook, which runs through the town and expands into a beautiful lake of 5 acres at the bottom of the rectory grounds, is a tributary of the Nene.
The village is famous for being built almost entirely of honey-coloured stone as illustrated in the photographs.
The Hercocks were originally from nearby Laxton, but Henry Hercock (1769-1859) moved there after his marriage to Elizabeth Horsepole in 1796. All thirteen of Henry and Elizabeth's children were born in Kings Cliffe and they would all have been christened in All Saints Church. Many of their marriages would also have occurred here. The 1841 Census shows Charles Hercock and his wife Ann, were living in Bridge Street in 1841 (see photograph 3).
