Chippenham Park, near Newmarket, has a rich history. The best stretches of wooded country in the Cambridgeshire landscape often turn out to be the remains of 18th-century parks surrounding surprisingly little-known country houses. Typical of these is Chippenham Park, which lies between Ely and Newmarket. The house, seen from the park, appears to be a late-19th-century red-brick. neo-Queen Anne country house, typical of those built round Newmarket for shooting and racing parties-indeed, the Prince of Wales and his brother the Duke of Cambridge stayed here for a shoot in 1896.

To a casual visitor, Chippenham might seem to be in a time warp. On the surface it seems little changed from the days when the village existed only to house workers on the estate. The lovely row of pink and yellow William and Mary cottages are still there on the High Street. Next to them is the beautiful Georgian building that used to be the village school. Opposite is the 11th Century Church of St Margaret, and at the junction of Palace Lane with the High Street in its own little shelter is the village pump.