Кнодишалл: История и современность английской деревни в Саффолке.

Village in Suffolk, England

Knodishall, a village in Suffolk, England, lies 3.5 mile (6 km) south east of Saxmundham, 1 mile (2 km) south west of Leiston, and 3 miles from the coast, in the Blything Hundred. Most dwellings are now at Coldfair Green; just a few remain in the original village by the parish Church of St Lawrence, which falls gently on the north side of the Hundred River valley. It is now an outlier of Knodishall Common, a settlement a mile to the south east. The estimated parish population was 790 in 2019.

The rectory of Knodishall church is held as the benefice of Aldringham with Thorpe, Knodishall with Buxlow and Friston. The parish church, dedicated to the 3rd century martyr St Lawrence, stands a mile west of the present day settlement of Knodishall Common, on top of a hill. There is no recorded date of foundation. It belonged to the original Leiston Abbey at Eastbridge (founded 1182), when Robert, probably the first abbot, ceded it to the canons of Butley Priory in exchange for the churches of St Andrew at Aldringham and St Margaret at Leiston. The fabric of the nave is of Norman date, though the only remaining feature of Romanesque carving is the north doorway, now partially blocked. The windows contain some later medieval stained glass. The 15th century tower was built with a bequest from one John Jenney (lord of the manor, died 1460) and his wife, who have a monumental brass in the church. A vestry was added in 1838. The church also has a burial ground. On 7 December 1966, the church became a Grade II* British listed building.

The village is dispersed and close to both Leiston and Aldeburgh. It has a village shop, the Butchers Arms pub, a smallholding, a garage and Coldfair Green Primary School. The village expanded with the building of a small housing estate in the mid 1980s. There is also a local history group on Facebook, gathering information from the various families in the parish. "Knodishall Local History Group is now [2017] in its fifth year. With the help of local people we have amassed a large digital collection of photos, audio recordings and documents relating to the village."

The total population of Knodishall from 1801 to 2011 has gradually increased. in 1801 the total population was just under 300 people and a slow increase until 1961 came to over 500 people. Then there was a much steeper increase between 1961 and 2001, of around 400 more people – we do not have any separate census data between 1961 and 2001. However in 1865, when the parish of Buxlow became part of Knodishall, there was no significant increase in total population to show this boundary change in the following census year.

Of the 852 people living in Knodishall in 2008, 846 of them were white English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, British, or other. There was one person of mixed race white and black Caribbean. The area and surrounding areas are all predominantly white.