Landscape of North East Cambridgeshire

Originally the Fens were vast stretches of reed and sedge covered swamp, with small communities supported on a few gravel islands.  Where possible, cattle were grazed on the dry summer lands and moved to higher land during the winter.  In the summer, willows and other materials were harvested and used for making baskets, traps, matting and other essential items including the small crude Fen houses.  Peat was dug and stored for winter fuel which provided cheer in the ever-damp environment.  Folks lived by their wits on the abundance of wildfowl, fish and eels jealously guarded from outside poachers.  Thousands of eels were often given to the religious establishments, who owned much of the land, as token rent payment.

Fen Slodgers strode through the water on stilts or used vaulting poles if it was too deep.  In winter skates often provided a good method of transport, on the frozen water.  Many champion skaters competed for money, pieces of beef and kegs of beer.  The wet, unhealthy surroundings gave rise to rheumatic and respiratory disorders and malaria, known as the ague, which was carried by a spotted mosquito which thrived in the swamps.  Relief was sought by drinking large quantities of blue 'poppy tea' (opium) or by smoking the dried leaves of the Hemp plant (Cannabis) which also grew profusely.

In the 17th century an ambitious drainage scheme was formulated by the Duke of Bedford who owned most of the land in the Thorney area which received the blessing of Charles I.  The Duke and his fellow 'Adventurers' invested a fortune in the scheme in return for large parcels of reclaimed land and engaged Cornelius Vermuyden, an eminent Dutch engineer, to undertake the work starting with the 21 mile long Old Bedford River stretching from Earith to Denver Sluice in 1630.  Work was delayed by technical problems and the Civil War, but in 1650 the Sixteen Foot, Twenty Foot and Forty Foot drains were cut and the tidal One Hundred Foot drain known as the New Bedford River was begun.  Vermuyden's drains still play an important part in the present drainage system. Most of Fenland is below sea level, the highest point 26 feet above sea level being at Chatteris.  In fact, the lowest point in Britain is to be found at Holme Fen near Whittlesey at 9 feet below sea level.

The Fen landscape is unique - dramatic vistas of sky over a seemingly endless plain of rich dark fields, criss-crossed by drainage dykes.  This landscape is very much man-made, the result of centuries of drainage and cultivation.  As a result of drainage, Fenland is today blessed with some of the finest agricultural soil in Britain.  The local economy is still dominated by farming, agricultural engineering, food processing and packaging and their associated haulage operators.  But in the quiet spaces between villages the combination of empty roads, tranquil waterways, open fields and spectacular skyscapes provides Fenland's own wild beauty.

Fenland covers about 50,000 hectares of the most productive soil in the country, and almost 45,000 hectares are farmed intensively for agricultural or horticultural use.  Cereals (wheat and barley) and root crops (potatoes, carrots and sugar beet) are the predominant crops grown widely across the district accounting for over half the land.  The Wisbech area is renowned for its orchards, especially for Bramley apples and soft fruit such as strawberries, raspberries and blackberries.

Varying in size from a few acres to several thousand, 913 farms provide full or part-time employment to over 4000 people.  Direct links with large multiple retailers have been secured by many Fenland produce-packers, and it is to be hoped that improved access to markets will increase the crop value directly to the farmer.

Most industry in Fenland is food related.  The service sector is grow because of the strength of nearby Cambridge and Peterborough.  Manufacturing in the key Fenland towns remains the dominant force, with the majority of industry based in Wisbech.  In Chatteris completion of the bypasses has made available a good supply of industrial land.  In March, the Trading Post provides a focus for new investment and Whittlesey continues to benefit from its proximity to Peterborough.

Source: From Interpreting the Fens by Polly Howat