51°52′08″N0°42′36″W / 51.869°N 0.710°W /51.869; -0.710
Crafton is ahamlet in thecivil parish ofMentmore, inBuckinghamshire, England.[1][2]
The hamlet's name isAnglo Saxon in origin, and means 'farm where saffron grows'.Edith of Wessex, a queen of England, had a hunting lodge in the small area betweenMentmore and Crafton known as Berrystead. The remains of the Lodge, converted in the 15th century to a farmhouse, were demolished whenMentmore Towers was under construction in the mid 19th century.
The hamlet while in the ecclesiastic parish of Wing, is nearer toWingrave. It is however under the jurisdiction theparish council of Mentmore. There are two 16th century farmhouses, one of which (known as Hellesthorpe) has the unusual distinction of having a Crafton postal address, but is in the parish of Wingrave. Many residents of the hamlet are equally confused by their parish's whereabouts, most have chosen to worship and be buried at Mentmore, the village most socially connected to Crafton.
Crafton once had a smallMethodist chapel; this is now a private house.
The remainder of thesettlement comprises small terraced 18th century cottages. However the hamlet was substantially rebuilt after the 1850s when it became part of the Mentmore estate ofBaron Mayer de Rothschild.
In addition to building some cottages the Baron built his famedCrafton Stud farm in the hamlet. In the short space of ten years following its creation the stud farm bred twoEpsom Derby winners for the Baron. These wereLadas andSir Visto.
One of the most attractive buildings in the hamlet is Keeper's Cottage, originally the home of the head game-keeper it also served as the lodge to the Crafton drive of Mentmore Towers.
The hamlet is reached only by one smallcul-de-sac road. It contains nopublic house or shop.
