| Water Newton | |
|---|---|
 Water Newton Lock and church | |
  Water Newton Location withinCambridgeshire | |
| OS grid reference | TL108972 |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Peterborough |
| Postcode district | PE8 |
| Police | Cambridgeshire |
| Fire | Cambridgeshire |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| UK Parliament | |
| |
Water Newton is a village andcivil parish inCambridgeshire, England.[1] Water Newton lies approximately 5 miles (8 km) west ofPeterborough. Water Newton is situated withinHuntingdonshire which is anon-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire as well as being ahistoric county of England. As the population of the village was 88 only at the 2011 Census it is included in the civil parish ofChesterton.
The village is sandwiched between theRiver Nene to the north and theA1 trunk road to the south. The River Nene marks the boundary between Huntingdonshire and theCity of Peterborough.
During ploughing in February 1975, a hoard of 4th-century Roman silver was discovered, which is known as the 'Water Newton Treasure'. They were probably buried by an inhabitant of the nearbyRoman fortified garrison town ofDurobrivae. The silver plates and bowls, votive tokens engraved and embossed with thelabarum (the chi-rho cross), and an unengraved standing two-handled cup of the form (cantharus) later used aschalices comprise the earliest group of Christian liturgical silver yet found in the Roman Empire. Due to the importance of this find, it is now in theBritish Museum, with replicas atPeterborough Museum.
In 1085,William the Conqueror ordered that a survey should be carried out across his kingdom to discover who owned which parts and what it was worth. The survey took place in 1086 and the results were recorded in what, since the 12th century, has become known as theDomesday Book. Starting with the king himself, for eachlandholder within a county there is a list of their estates ormanors; and, for each manor, there is a summary of the resources of the manor, the amount of annual rent that was collected by the lord of the manor both in 1066 and in 1086, together with the taxable value.[2]
Water Newton was listed in the Domesday Book in theHundred ofNormancross in Huntingdonshire; the name of the settlement was written asNewtone in the Domesday Book.[3] In 1086 there was just one manor at Water Newton; the annual rent paid to the lord of the manor in 1066 had been £5 and the rent had increased to £7 in 1086.[4]
The Domesday Book does not explicitly detail the population of a place but it records that there were 22 households at Water Newton.[4] There is no consensus about the average size of a household at that time; estimates range from 3.5 to 5.0 people per household.[5] Using these figures then an estimate of the population of Water Newton in 1086 is that it was within the range of 77 and 110 people.
The Domesday Book uses a number of units of measure for areas of land that are now unfamiliar terms, such ashides andploughlands. In different parts of the country, these were terms for the area of land that a team of eight oxen could plough in a single season and are equivalent to 120 acres (49 hectares); this was the amount of land that was considered to be sufficient to support a single family. By 1086, the hide had become a unit of tax assessment rather than an actual land area; a hide was the amount of land that could be assessed as £1 for tax purposes. The survey records that there were seven ploughlands at Water Newton in 1086 and that there was the capacity for a further ploughland.[4] In addition to the arable land, there was 60 acres (24 hectares) of meadows and twowater mills at Water Newton.[4]
The tax assessment in the Domesday Book was known asgeld or danegeld and was a type of land-tax based on the hide or ploughland. It was originally a way of collecting a tribute to pay off the Danes when they attacked England, and was only levied when necessary. Following the Norman Conquest, the geld was used to raise money for the King and to pay for continental wars; by 1130, the geld was being collected annually. Having determined the value of a manor's land and other assets, a tax of so manyshillings and pence per pound of value would be levied on the land holder. While this was typically two shillings in the pound the amount did vary; for example, in 1084 it was as high as six shillings in the pound. For the manor at Water Newton the total tax assessed was five geld.[4]
By 1086, there was already a church and a priest at Water Newton.
Water Newton is a small parish and has parish meeting rather than aparish council.
Water Newton was in the historic andadministrative county of Huntingdonshire until 1965. From 1965, the village was part of the new administrative county ofHuntingdon and Peterborough. Then in 1974, following theLocal Government Act 1972, Water Newton became a part of the county of Cambridgeshire.
The second tier of local government isHuntingdonshire District Council which is anon-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire and has its headquarters in Huntingdon. Huntingdonshire District Council has 52 councillors representing 29district wards.[6] Huntingdonshire District Council collects thecouncil tax, and provides services such as building regulations, local planning, environmental health, leisure and tourism.[7] Water Newton is a part of the district ward ofElton and Folksworth and is represented on the district council by one councillor.[8][6] District councillors serve for four-year terms followingelections to Huntingdonshire District Council.
For Water Newton the highest tier of local government isCambridgeshire County Council which has administration buildings in Cambridge. The county council provides county-wide services such as major road infrastructure, fire and rescue, education, social services, libraries and heritage services.[9] Cambridgeshire County Council consists of 69 councillors representing 60electoral divisions.[10] Water Newton is part of the electoral division ofNorman Cross[8] and is represented on the county council by two councillors.[10]
At Westminster Water Newton is in the parliamentary constituency ofNorth West Cambridgeshire,[8] and elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by thefirst past the post system of election. Water Newton is represented in theHouse of Commons byShailesh Vara (Conservative). Shailesh Vara has represented the constituency since 2005. The previous member of parliament wasBrian Mawhinney (Conservative) who represented the constituency between 1997 and 2005.
In the period 1801 to 1901 the population of Water Newton was recorded every ten years by theUK census. During this time the population was in the range of 88 (the lowest was in 1811) and 161 (the highest was in 1871).[11]
From 1901, a census was taken every ten years with the exception of 1941 (due to theSecond World War).
| Parish | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1951 | 1961 | 1971 | 1981 | 1991 | 2001 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water Newton | 91 | 105 | 78 | 79 | 69 | 69 | 51 | 72 | 74 | 88 |
All population census figures from reportHistoric Census figures Cambridgeshire to 2011 byCambridgeshire Insight.[11]
In 2011, the parish covered an area of 885 acres (358 hectares)[11] and the population density of Water Newton in 2011 was 63.6 persons per square mile (24.6 per square kilometre).
