England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Holme St Giles

The Parish

The chapelry of Holme, its mother parish being Glatton, lies in northern Huntingdonshire roughly 8 miles south of the city of Peterborough, through a quirk of parish boundaries it has a tiny stretch of the border with the cross-county parish of Lutton, Northamptonshire. Holme sits on the B660 road which meanders from Kimbolton to Ramsey. Most of Holme's properties lie along that road or around a semi-circular out-and-back lane that curves away to the north. Much of Holme's acreage, however, is reclaimed Fen, the eastern area being once part of the extensive Whittlesey Mere but was drained in the early 1850s subsequent to this transcript. Holme, like so many parishes in this area, was a farming parish with arable farming in the main as the main economy. Modern developments have come aplenty to Holme, the London to Edinburgh East Coast Main Railway Line passes to its east whilst a little further to the west the former Great North Road is nowadays upgraded as the A1(M) motorway. Less busy but a considerable attraction is the development of part of the Fen as a National Nature Reserve, preserving fen landscapes as they were before man's drainage and reclamation and a haven for wildlife as a consequence. Most of Holme's drainage is man-influenced with a series of dykes taking water across eastwards to the Nene and thus into the North Sea through The Wash. Holme is sited below 10 metres above the sea with the eastern parts almost at sea level, land rises gently westwards to reach 66 metres west of Glatton, something of a local high spot. Holme chapelry was extensive, a feature of many that have reclaimed former "waste" in their area, covering over 4,000 acres the chapelry would have supported a population of around 400 parishioners. Holme is not mentioned in Domesday Book.

The Church

St Giles' church sits on the western arm of the out-and-back lane, here Church Street, and on its western side. Sadly this is not some medieval masterpiece nor indeed is it the venue for these marriages as the current church replace a medieval predecessor in 1862. Some of the prior church was reused within enough to identify a 12th century and some 13th century capitals which give an indication of the early age of what has been demolished. Today's St Giles is a simple structure of nave and chancel topped by a western double-bellcote, the whole employing a style evoking the early 14th century Decorated style. Outside the churchyard is a semi-circular parking area allowing an extended visit. A set of wooden gates grants entry to an open and uncluttered churchyard with no obvious difficulties for the photographer.