Harwell: Village for a thousand years

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  • Harwell Book – Full text of ‘Village for a thousand years’
    • Introduction
      • Contents
    • Beginnings – The Beginnings of Harwell
      • The Beginnings of Harwell
      • The Charters
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    • Middle Ages – The Late Middle Ages
      • Harwell Church
      • The Medieval Manors
      • Cruck Buildings
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    • Tudors – Tudors to Charles II
      • The Tudor period
      • Berkshire Farmers and their Homes
      • The Harwell Mug
      • Harwell: The Family Name
      • Trade Tokens
      • In the Civil War
      • Close
    • Charities – Harwell Charities
      • John Loder
      • Christopher Elderfield
      • Poor’s Orchard
      • William Wells
      • J. King
      • Frances Geering
      • Matthew Eaton
      • Robert Loder
      • Bag(g)’s Tree
      • An Old Harwell Recipe
      • Close
    • 19th C – Harwell in the Nineteenth Century
      • Enclosures
      • The Great Fire of Harwell
      • Fire at Didcot Station
      • Harwell and the Early Posts
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    • People – Some Nineteenth Century Families, Houses and Personalities
      • The Manor of Bishop’s Harwell, or Lower Manor, after the Middle Ages.
      • Bob Lay, Bob Lay, Bob Lay
      • The Bosley Family
      • John Lay of Prince’s Manor 1815 – 1888
      • From a book sold for the Blewbury Village Organ Fund in 1874.
      • Thomas James Pryor
      • The Day Family
      • The Hitchman Family
      • Other Old Harwell Families
      • Pillar House, Harwell
      • A Country Doctor (Dr Richard Rice)
      • Kelly’s Directory reports on the Harwell of 1891
      • The School
      • A Pictorial Miscellany
      • Close
    • 20th C – The Early Twentieth Century
      • Stanley Day
        • The Turn of the Century
        • A Visit to Harwell
      • Tape Recordings
        • A Houseboy at Harwell
        • Eliza Hutchings
        • Harwell Bakeries
        • The Eggs
        • Old Neighbours
        • Fire at King’s Farm (c.1908)
        • Will It Light?
        • Miss Irene Clarke’s memories.
      • Poem by H.S. Baker
      • Close
    • WWII – The Second World War
      • Guinea Pig Club
      • Eric Greenwood
      • Harwell in Wartime
      • School Life in Wartime
      • The Harwell Players
      • Close
    • 1945 -1985 – The Post War Years
      • The Atomic Energy Research Establishment.
      • Harwell Parish Council
      • Water and Sewage
      • Nursing Service
      • School Life after the War
      • The Winterbrook Youth Club
      • The Public Houses
      • The Whit Monday Feast
      • Wild Flowers of Harwell
      • The Bee Orchid
      • Village Footpaths
      • St Matthew’s Church Today
      • Harwell Women’s Institute
      • Harwell Bowls Club
      • Harwell Football Club
      • Close
    • Cherries – Harwell Cherries
      • Robert Loder
      • Cherries (1965)
      • Gordon Bosley
      • John Masefield: The Cherries
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    • Appendices
      • Appendix I the Harwell Charters
        • Introduction to The Harwell Charters
        • Charter No 1
        • Charter No 2
        • Charter No 3
        • Appendix I Charter References
      • Appendix II Buildings
      • Appendix III Glossary
      • Appendix IV Contributors
      • Appendix V References
      • Close
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« Robert Loder
An Old Harwell Recipe »
You are here: Home / Charities / Bag(g)’s Tree

Bag(g)’s Tree

The ancient elm known as Bag’s or Bagg’s Tree grew, until 1975, on the Downs above Harwell, between the Chilton track and the Winnaway. It gave its name to the surrounding field, and is mentioned in the John Loder charity as some fourteen acres awarded in lieu of Grove land in the West Field of Harwell, at the time of the enclosures (1802 – 05). It is still owned by the Harwell Parochial Charities.

Traditionally it is said to have marked the spot where Bagrun, king of the Danes, died of wounds on his way back to the Thames at Goring after being defeated by Alfred at the battle of Ashdown. A succession of trees was probably planted over the centuries to mark the site. When the latest elm had to be felled, its trunk measured 4.3 metres round. Its age was estimated at about 275 – 300 years, roughly the life span of an elm.

Between 1695 and 1722, twelve people called Baggs are mentioned in the parish register as having been baptised or buried. The Oxford Dictionary gives the verb bag(g) as meaning cut (wheat etc.) with reaping-hook, originating in the seventeenth century; also badge, a verb with the same meaning, of unknown origin.

Comments

  • Hazel Phillips –
    20 Feb 2008

    There is no mention of the wonderful band that was named after this tree!!

  • Baggs tree
    Bill Sievwright –
    9 Dec 2009

    I refer to your article on “Bag(g)s tree” and note that you say it refers to a Danish leader, or king, called Bagrun, as being the person associated with the tree. Reading a book recently about King Alfred I noticed that it says the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle refers to the Dane killed at the battle of Ashdown as being “Bagsecg” not “Bagrun”, and the following (paraphrased) info is given on a wikipedia page:Bagsecg (died January 8, 871) was a Viking leader referred to as a ‘King’ and was possibly a King of Denmark, after Horik II died and ruled Denmark after his death from the 860s to his death in 871. He is also known as Bægsecg or Bagsec. He was leader, along with Halfdan Ragnarsson, of part of the great Danish army which invaded Wessex in 871. That army subsequently lost the battle of Englefield against a local saxon army, won the battle of Reading against Ethelred and his son Alfred, but was killed along with five Danish earls at the battle of Ashdown on the North Wessex Downs.

    Therefore, is it not likely then that the tree in question was named after Bagsecg, not Bagrun? I can find no trace of anyone called Bagrun.

    Regards

    Bill

Comments

  1. Mal Powell says

    June 11, 2017 at 09:32

    I once heard a story from a friend who was in college with a girl who, when she didn’t fully comprehend a concept, used the expression, “I’m out of sight of Bagg’s tree here.” This was apparently because the children of the area knew they were not far from home if they could see the tree. As I am unfamiliar with the area, can anyone confirm or deny the use of the expression?

    Reply

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« Robert Loder
An Old Harwell Recipe »

Harwell is a village in south Oxfordshire, England, although until 1974 it was a Berkshire village. Harwell was first mentioned in 985, before the Doomsday Book.
This website presents the full text of the book (ISBN 0 9510668 0 3 ) published in 1985 to celebrate the village millennium.
"Harwell ~ Village for a thousand years"

Additional information about Harwell Village (History Notes, photos and more) can be found at harwellvillage.uk

Website © 2005–2023 maintained and managed by David Marsh on behalf of Harwell Parish Council
Copyright © 1985–2023 in the text of the book is vested in Harwell Parish Council