Imagine yourself surrounded by colorful houses with typical sloping roofs made of red tiles, colorful walls, flower pots hanging from the windows, and beautiful lanterns illuminating the way in the evening. It looks like a fairytale place as we know many in Italy and the rest of the world. Still, something doesn’t seem quite clear to you. The wood of the beams is not perfectly straight and these facades look progressively more and more inclined better yet, they are crooked! Optical effect or historical mystery? The fact is that Lavenham small parish 70 kilometers from Cambridge built its tourist success on this original… slope.
How to get to Lavenham by motorbike. Itinerary
Map
Leaving Cambridge we take the A1303 towards the A14 which passes City Airport and heads east. The first part of the route, in the green countryside Suffolkleads in 47 kilometers to Bury St Edmunds, famous for its ancient Benedictine abbey, the remains of which are now incorporated into a beautiful urban landscape dominated by a Gothic-style cathedral. Out of town continue on the A134 to the Hewicks Haulage junction on the A1141 which leads after 5 miles to Lavenham. Mandatory stop when visiting crooked cities, and we continue the English road always along the A1141 towards the south. Let’s touch Kersey Mill, a small village outside Hadleigh with Georgian houses and leafy gardens. Finally (AA1141/A1071) we arrive in Ipswich.
The exterior of Lavenham Guildhall, a historic town building
Described as the most beautiful medieval village in England, Lavenham is set in the Suffolk countryside and offers a peaceful escape from the chaos of big cities (London is just over 120 km away, about a 2-hour drive) with a rich historical backdrop. The village is a testament to medieval architecture and history. Especially in the Middle Ages, it was one of the wealthiest settlements in England due to its heyday wool trade. Today it is famous for its Guild Hall, Small Hall, and 15th-century church, all surrounded by picturesque half-timbered medieval cottages and picturesque circular walks.
Lavenham’s past as a medieval woolen town is still palpable in its beautiful half-timbered buildings and the magnificent church that adorns its skyline, featuring distortion in its forms. This is caused by rapid urban development, which imposed a hectic construction pace and did not give the wood the time it needed to dry in the area’s humid climate. The houses thus gradually “twisted” and acquired decidedly curious and original shapes, which are also there basically the English countryside. In this vast land, old customs and unshakable traditions are preserved. To discover Lavenham at its best, visitors can immerse themselves in its history, enjoy local pubs and restaurants, and learn more at the Guild Hall Museum, a real focal point for understanding more about this treasured corner of Suffolk.
Half-timbered houses, a permanent presence in Northern Europe
Colmar, the “Venice of Alsace”, is famous for its navigable canals and half-timbered houses
The half-timbered houses are characteristic of medieval European architecture dating from the 12th century. This technique uses a visible wooden supporting structure, filled with materials such as clay, straw, or stones. Originally, latticework offered a cheap and quick construction method while allowing for structural flexibility in areas subject to ground movement. Over time, half-timbered houses have become a symbol of historic charm and craftsmanship, surviving in historic city centers and rural villages as a living testament to the techniques and aesthetics of the past. Spectacular examples of this style can be found at Colmar (Alsace, France), a Nuremberg in Germany, and again in France in the village Dinan in Brittany.
