History

 by Nancy Long

Most places received their names from the people who originally settled in the county. Northamptonshire's position in England led to invasion by many different peoples and the place names reflect this.

Northants place names are mostly Anglo-Saxon and Danish. "Tun" or "Ton" was the Saxon word for an enclosed farm, then later a village or town. There were three distinct manors in this area - Moreton, Grenteimaisal and Chester. It is possible that the most central of these manors was the beginning of the village as we know it today, the middle farm - Middle Ton.

Originally the village was divided in two - Upper or Church Middleton and Lower or Nether Middleton, a hamlet a quarter of a mile to the east. According to the Reverend R. S. Baker (who wrote a history of Northamptonshire in 1889) the village was divided in this way as early as the reign of Henry II (1154 - 1189).

Middleton is also located near to the prehistoric trackway called Banbury Lane, which runs along the northern boundary. This was the main medieval route from Northampton to Banbury and the important period of its use would have been in the late 12th century. Much of it is still an important road between the two towns. At one time Banbury Lane would have been used as a drove road to move cattle to market and would have linked up to another drovers' route known as Welsh Lane at Culworth.

After the Norman conquest many Norman lords added their family name to the manor they had been awarded. Simon de Chenduit held the manor in a 12th century survey. John de Curci held a part in 1205. The name is derived ultimately from Medieval Latin, "casnetum" (in Old French this becomes "chesnai"), which means oak grove. 

Many factors affect the location of a settlement , some of these will have exerted an influence in the past but are no longer important. In its natural state most of the low lying clay land in Britain was marshy and liable to flood so settlements avoided it. Middleton Cheney is no exception and is sited along the top of a ridge - as can clearly be seen on Ordnance Survey maps of the area.

Settlements also need an accessible water supply. Many undoubtedly obtained their water from underground sources, wells or springs. A walk around the village will reveal that a large number of wells and pumps still exist in cottage gardens and many are in working order today.

Finally, this has always been an important agricultural area. No remains of the original manors in this area can be found but the medieval pattern of strips and furlongs can still be seen in some fields around the village. This pre-enclosure pattern of ridge and furrow has been preserved because, over much of the Midlands, the land was turned over to pasture long ago, thereby fossilising the strips.