Saffron-Walden — Chambers's Encyclopaedia

Saffron-Walden, a municipal borough of Essex, 15 miles S. of Cambridge, 27 NNW. of

A detailed botanical illustration of a Crocus sativus plant. It shows a bulbous root system at the base, a single upright stem, and a cluster of flowers at the top. The flowers have six petals and prominent, pointed stigmas. The drawing is in a classic woodcut or engraving style. — *Crocus sativus*.

Chelmsford, and 45 by a branch-line (1865) NNE. of London. The Saffron Crocus (see SAFFRON) was formerly cultivated here, and the name of the town is said to be derived from 'Saffron Woods.' The parish church, crowning a hill, is a stately Perpendicular structure, with a spire 108 feet high, and brasses and monuments—one to Lord Chancellor Audley (1488-1544). There are also remains of a Norman castle, a corn exchange (1848), a town-hall (1879), a cattle-market (1834), and a grammar-school, founded in 1423. Audley End, 1½ mile SW., the seat of Lord Braybrooke, was built in 1603 by Thomas Howard, Earl of Suffolk, and is still a magnificent mansion, though partly demolished since 1701. Pop. (1851) 5911; (1891) 6104. See works by Lord Braybrooke (1836) and John Player (1845).