BALSHAM MANOR

Identity: confirmed — The registry record, GB/NNAF/M292715 authority reference, Balsham location, and the associated medieval surveys, Ely episcopal accounts, court rolls, rentals, terrier, and 1617 Charterhouse manor map consistently identify the principal ecclesiastical manor of Balsham in Cambridgeshire, later vested in the Governors of Charterhouse. This is distinct from the separate 16th-century Place Manor/Balsham Place estate.
Representative point: 52.1332, 0.3166
Basis: documented_manor_house — The medieval Balsham Manor house or Balsham Hall stood on the site later occupied by the Old School on Church Lane, in the historic village core. The coordinate is an approximate WGS84 position for the Old School/manor-house site, based on postcode and mapping evidence for CB21 4DS.
Point confidence: medium
Boundary status: representative_point_only
Boundary period: Medieval to early modern; specifically evidenced by records from 1222 through the 1617 Charterhouse map and later manorial records.
Boundary confidence: none
Boundary basis: The records establish a substantial manorial landholding in Balsham, including demesne and customary parcels in named open fields, closes, woods, heathland, and waste. The 1617 Charterhouse map and associated terrier are potentially capable of supporting a parcel-level reconstruction, but the accessible evidence does not provide a sufficiently legible, georeferenced perimeter for the manor as a whole. The modern parish, conservation area, or settlement boundary must not be substituted for the historical manorial boundary.
Sources:
- The National Archives, Balsham Manor record F274655: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/c/F274655 — Registry record and associated authority/reference for Balsham Manor.
- The London Archives / National Archives lead: 1617 map of manor belonging to Charterhouse, ref. 1876/MP2/3a: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/N16258390 — Identifies a contemporary map of the Charterhouse manor at Balsham; this is the strongest known lead for reconstructing the historical territorial extent.
- Balsham – Cambridge Ramblers: https://cambridgeramblers.org/tag/balsham/ — States that Balsham Hall manor house was ruinous by 1356 and that its site was later used for the old school, supporting the manor-house-site identification.
- The Old School, Church Lane, Balsham sale particulars: https://alto-live.s3.amazonaws.com/y8NNX3Sxxyr-jDfHgAdfX2ng9KQ/IPFz5lqyQdSHuClSFK3aOEcTHio/Brochure/%5B0%5D/Hj-Z2i7WxEO4BSQrhD8u2g.pdf — Locates the Old School in Church Lane and the historic village core, corresponding to the documented former manor-house site.
- Oxford Archaeology, 97 High Street, Balsham report: https://eprints.oxfordarchaeology.com/4713/1/Report%202229_LR.pdf — Recognizes the nearby medieval Balsham Manor archaeological asset and places it within the historic core of Balsham.
- Cambridgeshire Archives catalogue, Manor of Balsham records: https://calm.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/TreeBrowse.aspx?field=RefNo&key=K132%2FT%2F819&src=CalmView.Catalog — Shows surviving admissions and surrenders for the Manor of Balsham, with named parcels in fields, closes, roads, and waste, confirming the manorial landholding pattern but not supplying a complete perimeter.
Warnings / uncertainty:
- No reliable complete historical perimeter polygon was found in the accessible sources.
- The 1617 Charterhouse map should be consulted directly at the London Archives and georeferenced before attempting polygon injection.
- The representative coordinate is for the documented former manor-house/Old School site and should not be interpreted as the centre of the entire manorial territory.