Introduction

Holme is a Viking word which means island or peninsula surrounded by water. When you approach the village the slightly higher land is quite obvious, the lower dark soil of the Fens surrounds the village on three sides. The original part of the village developed on the highest ground near the church and followed a circular pattern as a result.

Holme was a hamlet of Glatton until 1857 when it became a parochial parish in its own right and 1861 when it also became a civil parish. The population of Glatton in 1801 was 323 with 71 houses whilst Holme had 218 with 51 houses but by 1901 Holme had a population of 658 to Glatton’s 189.

The history of Holme is shaped by its proximity to Whittlesey Mere which was once the largest area of fresh water in the South of England. There is a rhyme which says

“Yaxley Stone Mill
Glatton Round Hill
Whittlesea Mere
Are the three wonders of
Huntingdonshire”

Yaxley, Denton, Caldecote and Stanground manors also held land surrounding Whittlesey Mere but the manor of Glatton cum Holme held the largest part.