"Coggeshall - a charming village" a Coggeshall Travel Page by alucas

Coggeshall is a charming little village situated between Braintree and Colchester on the A120. Its heydey was in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries when it was a place of real importance in the wool trade. Today there are around two hundred listed buildings (according to the Parish Council website) surviving, many of them timber - framed. Grange Barn and Paycockes are both National Trust properties.

The 15th century Parish Church of St Peter-ad-Vincula is one of the largest parish churches in the country. There are two other churches - St. Bernard of Clairvaux, in Stoneham Street, is the Catholic church, whilst Christ Church is a free church formed by the union of the Baptist, Methodist and United Reformed congregations.

Coggeshall has a number of pubs, of which the most famous is the White Hart Hotel - a 15th century timbered framed building with 18 rooms, conference facilities and an excellent restaurant. We have eaten there several times, and have never been disappointed. There is also another well-known restaurant - Baumanns. This used to be owned by Peter Langan (and called Langan's Brasserie) - before he came to a sudden end in 1988, and the restaurant was taken over by his chef, Mark Baumann.