" A small rivulet separates this parish from Belchamp Walter northward , and it extends southward to Wickham St. Paul's; on the east it is bounded by Bulmer and Middleton, and on the west by Little Yeldham . The soil is generally stiff and heavy , but a vein of sandy loam occurs, which is in a high degree productiv. Some hops are grown here . The name in records is variously written, Gedlingthorp , Gesting horp, Gestnynthorp , Gestmynthorpe, Ghestingetorp, and, in Domesday, Glestinge thorp. Some writers have supposed this name to be from the Saxon zest, a stranger, or guest; ing, a meadow or pasture; and forpe, a village; but this etymology is doubtful. "

" The village is four miles from Sudbury, and fifty from London. "

" There are four manors in this parish. Overhall, or Upperhall, with Gardiners, or Gernons, occupies the highest part, as the name indicates. This, which is properly the capital manor, is appended to the manor of Odewell, from which it continued distinct till the reign of Edward the Confessor, though neither of them bore their present names. "

" The mansion of Overhall , situated near the church (footnote 1), is a good substantial building , much improved by the family of the present possessor of the estate, Edward Walker, Esq. "

" Algar, earl of Mercia, was the owner of this lordship in the reign of Edward the Confessor; and, at the time of the general survey, it had passed into the possession of Otto Aurifaber, or “the Goldsmith”. (footnote 2) "

" Otto was succeeded by his son William; whose son, Otto Fitz-William, was sheriff of Essex and Hertfordshire , from the year 1183 to 1191 (footnote 3) William Fitz-Otho held these possessions, and also farmed lands in Gosfield of the earl of Gloucester. His heir was Thomas Fitz-Otho, who was engraver of the dies for the king's mint, (Sculptor Cuneorum) and died in 1274, possessed of this manor, and the advowson of the church. He married Beatrix, one of the daughters and co-heiresses of William de Beauchamp, baron of Bedford: by this lady, (footnote 5 - After his death, she was married to her second husband, William de Montchensy, of Edward's Town, in Suffolk.) besides his son Otho, who died in 1282, without offspring, he had three daughters, Joanna, Maud, and Beatrix: Joanna and Beatrix died unmarried. "

" Maud, marrying Sir John Botetourt, brought him this and other estates (footnote 6). They had four sons; Thomas, John, Otho, and Robert: and a daughter married to William Latimer. "

" Sir John died in 1324, or 1325, holding jointly, with his wife Maud, during their lives, this manor and other estates, of the gift of Hugh Pierpoint, as a trustee , by whom they were settled on John , the second son , and his heirs . John (footnote 7) succeeded his father in the Essex estates, and, on this occasion, the name of Overhall first occurs in the Inquisitions. "

" He died in 1339, leaving a son and heir, John, who married Joan, daughter and co-heiress of John Gernon, of this county, whose ancestors were barons of Stansted Montfichet. By this lady he had an only daughter, Joan, a very rich heiress, who was married to Sir Robert Swinborne, of Little Horksley, on whose death, in 1391, she came and resided at Overhall. "

" They had five sons, who died unmarried, and two daughters, Alice and Margery; of whom the latter was married to Nicholas Berners, of Amberden Hall, and Codham Hall, in Finchingfield. Alice, the eldest daughter , was married to John Helion, Esq. of Bumpstead-Helion, and bore him Elizabeth, married to John Warner, Esq. of Bois Hall, in Halstead . They had also a son, John Helion, Esq. who died in 1450; he had by his wife Editha, daughter and co-heiress of Thomas Rolfe, Esq. of Gosfield, Philippa and Isabel. "

" The former was married to Sir Thomas Montgomery, of Faulkbourn Hall, but bore him no children; Isabel, to Humphrey Tyrrel, Esq. of Little Warley, to whom she bore an only daughter, Anne, who, on the death of Sir William Finderne, grandson of Margery Swinborn and her husband Nicholas Berners, in 1515, and, on the death also of Thomas Finderne, their grandson, came to the inheritance of this estate; which, with other possessions, she, by marriage, conveyed to Sir Roger Wentworth, of Codham Hall, descended from a younger branch of the Wentworths of Nettlested, in Suffolk. "

" On her death, in 1534, her son, John, became her heir. He was afterwards knighted; and, dying in 1576, was buried, with his lady, t in the chancel of Gosfield church . Anne, their only daughter and heiress, was, at the time of their decease, the widow of Henry Fitz-Alan, lord Maltravers. Sir Hugh Rich was her first husband; her third was William Deane, Esq. of Dynes Hall, in Great Maplestead; but having no children by any of them , her estates , on her death in 1580 , descended to John , the eldest son of her uncle , Henry Wentworth , who died, in 1588, possessed of this and other capital estates , particularly Gosfield Hall. He married Elizabeth , daughter of Christopher St. Lawrence, baron of Howth, in Ireland (footnote 8), by whom he had John, his eldest son and successor; who, marrying Cecily, daughter of Edward, and sister and co-heiress of Sir Henry Unton, had by her two sons and four daughters. "

" John, the eldest , was created a baronet in 1611; and Anne , their first child , was married to Sir Edward Gostwick, of Wellington , in Bedfordshire. In 1608 , Overhall was sold to John Sparrow, Esq. of this parish, second son of John Sparrow, of Sible Hedingham, who, in 1622, disposed of it to John Elliston the elder, and John Elliston the younger, his son, clothiers, of Sible Hedingham. "

" The ancestor of this family, in the beginning of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, was John Elliston, mercer, of Sudbury, who had a capital mansion-house in Castle Hedingham; and an estate in Great Henny, called Nicholls , which he left to his eldest son, William, by will, dated 1586. His second son, John, became the most considerable person of the family. "

" The daughters were, Elizabeth, married to William Kidgell, and Joan and Dorothy . John Elliston, the son, being an eminent clothier, by persevering industry acquired a capital estate. * On his death, in 1630, he left Anne, married to Thomas, second son of William Soame, of Hundon, in Suffolk; and John , his son and heir, who resided at Overhall; he married Winifred, the daughter of Robert Barrington, Esq. by whom he had Peter, Oliver Elliston, M.D. who married the widow of William Sparrow, and died in London in 1665, and several other children, who died in infancy, or before reaching maturity. Peter, the eldest surviving son, married Judith, daughter of William Kedington, of Waldingfield, in Suffolk, by whom he had John, Peter, and Oliver. John , the eldest son and heir , had two wives ; first , Mary , daughter of Thomas Mortlock , of Sturmere , who died in childbed, and, secondly, Anne , daughter of Robert Wangford, Esq. of Barwick Hall, in Toppesfield, by whom he had John , Oliver , and Peter , of whom the two last died in the year 1691, and four daughters; Anna Bertha, married to William Steel, of London; Judith, to Arthur Brown, merchant; and Frances and Susan. John Elliston, the father, died in 1691 ; and his son John , the last of the family succeeded . I "

" The estate afterwards became the property of Mr. Thomas Walker, of Church House, in Henney . The manor house of Nether Hall is about half a mile from the church. Ledmar, a Nether Hall priest, was the proprietor of this estate in the Saxon times, which, after the Conquest, belonged to Richard Fitz-Gislebert , whose under tenant is in Domesday named William Peccatum, afterwards converted into Peche, Peachy, or Pechey, being the name of several failies. "

" In 1284 , Sir Gilbert Peche gave this manor to King Edward the First and his queen Eleanor; and, five years afterwards, it was granted by that king to Guy de Ferre, who, on his death, in 1322 , left it to his son of the same name. "

" It afterwards became part of the possessions of the noble family of Ufford; two parts of this manor, with other possessions, having been granted to Robert de Ufford , (footnote ?) as a reward for his magnanimity in seizing Roger Mortimer, the favourite of Queen Isabel, in Nottingham Castle, in 1330. "

" This famous warrior was created Earl of Suffolk in 1337, and afterwards made one of the original knights of the garter. On his death, in 1369, he was in possession of the whole of this manor; and William, his son, dying in 1381, held it as part of his earldom ; but leaving no issue male, it reverted to the crown, and was included in the endowment of Anne, queen of King Richard the Second; on whose decease , the king gave it to his favourite, Michael de la Pole, and his heirs male. It formed part of the possessions of William de la Pole, duke of Suffolk, at the time of his death, in 1450; but his grandson, John, earl of Lincoln, appearing in arms against King Henry the Seventh, at the battle of Stoke, where he was slain, this and his other estates were forfeited to the crown, in 1487. In 1496, King Henry granted Nether Hall to John de Vere, earl of Oxford, whose successors enjoyed it till it was sold, in 1579, by Edward, the seventeenth earl, to George Goulding, Esq. and Mary, his wife; from whom it passed, in 1580, to Arthur Goulding, Esq.; and, in 1585, was sold , by this gentleman, to John and William Coe . "

" The family of Coe had possessions in this parish , in the reign of King Henry the Fourth. John Coe , one of the founders of Hawkwood's Chantry, in Sible Hedingham, was the father of John Coe, of Gestingthorp , who lived in the reign of King Henry the Sixth. His four sons were Thomas, William of Wickham St. Paul , and two of the name of John. Thomas , the eldest son , marrying into the family of Wincoll , had Edward ; Thomas of London , who married a daughter of — Wentworth , Esq . of Bumpstead , by whom he had Roger of Newton , in the isle of Ely ; and Edward, the eldest son , who was of Pateswic , by his wife Jane , daughter of George Chauncy , of Gildeston , in Hertfordshire , had Abner , Jane , and Deborah . Thomas Coe, of London , was the ancestor of George Coe , of Byham Hall , in Great Maplestead . "

" William Coe, one of the purchasers of Nether Hall, sold it, in 1599 , to Deane Tindal , Esq . of Great Maplestead , by whose son , John Tindal, Esq. it was disposed of , in 1692, to Sir Josiah Child , knight and baronet , from whom it descended to his grandson , the right honourable John , earl Tilney . The manor of Odewell was formerly a hamlet and chapelry , or parish , for though Manor of now included in that of Gestingthorp , yet in records it is frequently named “ the parish of Odewell . ” The mansion - house is near Byham Hall , on the confines of Great Maplestead . In the reign of King Henry the Second , this district belonged to Sir Simon de Odewell , who , in the records , is stated to have given “ extensive possessions , lands and tenements , rents , pastures , and other property to him belonging , in Odewell and Gestingthorp , ” to the Knights Templars . * These bequests included what is now named the manor ; a portion of which , being a quarter of a knight's fee , was holden of William de Ufford , earl of Suffolk , t in 1381. On the suppression of the Templars , it passed to the Knights Hospitallers , who retained it till the general dissolution of religious houses in 1540. In 1543 , it was granted to Thomas Godwyn , by King Henry the Eighth ; and , in the following year , was transferred , by sale , to Richard Hardekyn , who died in 1558 , possessed of this and another estate , supposed to have been Wattons , in this parish . His son and successor , John Hardekyn , was of Seene , in Wiltshire. "

" In 1566 , this manor of Odewell, described as lying in the parishes of Gestingthorp, Castle Hedingham, Great Maplestead, and Odewell, was sold to George Sayer the elder, and his son of the same name, both of Colchester. The latter, on the death of his father, in 1577, became the sole possessor of this and other estates; which, on his own death in 1596, descended to his son and heir, George Sayer. From this pro prietor the estate passed , in 1620 , to the Alston family , of Polsted , in Suffolk ; and soon afterwards was conveyed , by Frances Alston , g to her husband , George Goodday, Esq. of Bower Hall, in Pentlow. "

" His son, Samuel, died young, and his only daughter, Elizabeth, marrying Sir Thomas Samwell, of Upton, in Northamptonshire , brought him this estate . He was created a baronet in 1691. The offspring of this marriage were two daughters , co-heiresses. Elizabeth was married , in 1691 , to John Langham , Esq . son and heir of Sir William Langham, knight, of Waldgrave , in the county of Northampton ; Frances , to Sir Richard Newman, of Fifehead Magdalen , in Dorsetshire , who was advanced to the title of baronet in 1699. In compliance with the will of Sir Thomas , their father , his trustees sold this estate , in 1699 , ( the co - heiresses being of age ) to Sarah Groom , widow , of London . This lady had two sons , Samuel and John , and three daughters , Sarah , Constant , and Elizabeth . By her will , dated in 1704 , she bequeathed this estate to her eldest son , Samuel ; who , in 1711 , sold it to the Rev. Moses Cook, rector of Sible Hedingham , by whose daughter it was con veyed to her husband , Major Sneyd . "

" Wottons, also named Nottons , is a capital messuage, sometimes called a manor. The house is near the road from Castle Hedingham to Sudbury . This estate , in 1486 , was conveyed , by Henry Turner , Esq . and Thomas Cornwall , to Thomas Hardekyn, of Castle Hedingham , and William Park , of Sudbury ; through whom it passed , in 1509 , into the possession of Richard , son and heir of the said Thomas Hardekyn . This Richard died in 1558 , but the estate remained in the family till it was sold , by John Hardekyn , to George Sayer ; from whom it passed , as did Odewell , to Alston , Goodday , Samwell , and Groom ; and , in 1712 , was conveyed , by Samuel Groom , to John Elliston , of Overhall . "

" An estate in this parish has received the name of Parks , from a family settled here in the time of King Edward the Third . In 1381 , Julian at Parke and Walter de Geldeford held the fourth part of a knight's fee , called Morhall , ( supposed to be this estate ) , of William de Ufford , earl of Suffolk . "

" Robert Parke died in 1400 , and Margaret , his wife , having outlived him fifty - seven years , died in 1457 ; both were buried in the church of Gestingthorp . John , his son , is in the list of those who were returned as gentlemen of Essex , in 1433. William Parke is believed to have been his son ; whose son, of the same name, died in 1574 ; having married Alice , daughter of Richard Strutt , of Maplestead , by whom he had John , living in 1634. He was one of those summoned, by the policy of King Charles the First, (footnote ??) to receive the honour of knighthood ; and , on his refusal , obliged to pay the prescribed fine , for which he had a tally from the Exchequer. "

" * He married Margaret , daughter of Nicholas Morton , by whom he had William , and two daughters ; Anne , married to William Edwards of Toppesfield , and Elizabeth , to Henry Meriton of Stanley Hall , in Pebmarsh . He died in 1636 , possessed of a considerable estate, t and was succeeded by his son Wil liam ; who married Hester , daughter of William Strutt , of Wickham St. Pauls , by whom he had William , John , Robert , Hester , Elizabeth , and Sarah . John , the second son , an attorney - at - law , educated at Catherine Hall , Cambridge , met his death by a fall from his horse , leaving this estate , heavily encumbered , to his only child , Elizabeth , married to Michael Drew, Esq. counsellor - at - law , who mortgaged , and finally disposed of Parks , in 1706 , to Thomas Morein , a brewer in London , whose daughter , Mercy , sold it to Joshua Maurice , attorney ; after whose decease, in 1727 , it became the property of Thomas Ashhurst . "

" The church , which is a good brick building , consists of a south aisle , nave , and The chancel . The tower is square, and contains six bells . It is kept in excellent repair , and the altar attracts attention by its handsome decorations, the munificent gift of John Morley, Esq. who, in 1723 , in conjunction with the Rev. Moses Cook , gave two hundred pounds , and thus procured Queen Anne's bounty for the augmentation of the vicarage . There have been here, from an early period , a rectory sinecure; f and a vicarage ; and the patronage of both passed from the Bottetourt family to those of Swinborne, Finderne, Wentworth, Sparrow , Elliston , Morley , Ashhurst , to Sir Henry Houghton , Bart . and to the Elwes family . "

" This parish , in 1821 , contained six hundred and ninety - four ; and , in 1831 , eight hundred and one inhabitants. "

" House. C17 or earlier with later additions and alterations including early C18 red brick facing. Circa 1890 and 1910 rear extensions. Red brick faced. Red tiled roofs left and right. 2 storeys and attics. 3 storeyed pedimented central bay breaks forward. 2:3:2 window range of small paned vertically sliding sashes, with aprons to first floor. Parapet and 3 stone bands. Pilaster strips to left and right bays. Stone coping and ball finials to raised parapet with moulded pediment breaking through. Circular cross transom window with keystones. Central stone achievement to third floor. Central 6 panel door. Ionic doorcase with dentilled soffits to pediment and reveal panels. Rear wings. Full height central hall with a 2 storeyed screen of 2 Tuscan lower and 2 plain upper columns. Very fine central staircase at rear of screen of double twisted balusters and wreathed handrail. Balusters to screen first floor. Contemporary panelled doors, reveal panels, dados, panelling wainscots etc. Central chandelier. Mouldings to ceiling. Drawing room circa 1740 with fine stucco ceiling, ornate fireplace and pedimented door surrounds. Rocaille and Naturalistic flower decoration. Other rooms with early C17 panelling. A fine carved overmantel and other details. The home of Captain Oates of the Scott Antarctic Expendition 1910. Manor of Gestingthorpe. RCHM 4. "

" The Oates family were wealthy landed gentry, having had land at Dewsbury and Leeds since the 16th century; William Oates moved the family to Gestingthorpe, Essex in 1891 after becoming Lord of the manor of Over Hall at Gestingthorpe. "

" During the Crusades, the manor and church of Little Maplestead were given to the Order of the Knights of St John of Jerusalem, also known as the Knights Hospitaller. After the grant of the land in 1185 by Juliana Fitz-Audelin, the Hospital was founded by the Knights who then built a church for their own use in around 1186.... "

" Edmund de la Pole, the 3rd Duke of Suffolk was the fourth son of John de la Pole and Elizabeth Plantagenet. He was the grandson of Richard Duke of York and William de la Pole the 1st Duke. Following the death of his eldest brother John at Stoke Field in 1487, Edmund became the Yorkist claimant to the throne. Although he succeeded to the title Duke of Suffolk in 1491, in 1493 he was demoted to the rank of Earl.

In 1501 Edmund, aided by Sir James Tyrrell, fled from England and sought refuge with Maximilian I, the Holy Roman Emperor. Tyrell was later executed for providing help to the latest Yorkist pretender. In a treaty with Henry VII signed in 1502 Maximillian agreed not to support de la Pole should he make an attempt on the English throne. In 1506, Maximilian's son, Philip of Burgundy, became the reluctant guest of Henry VII. Eager to set sail again in order to claim his wife's Castillian inheritance, he was cajoled by the Tudor king to hand over de la Pole. Henry agreed to the proviso that Suffolk would not be harmed and instead imprisoned the Earl. His unscrupulous successor, Henry VIII, did not feel himself bound by this agreement and angered by the plots of his exiled younger brother Richard de la Pole, ordered Edmund's execution in 1513. "