Saffron Walden Cestreforda to the north. After the Norman invasion of 1066, a stone church was built. Walden Castle, dating from about 1140, may have been built on pre-existing fortifications. A priory, Walden Abbey, was founded under the patronage of Geoffrey de Mandeville, first Earl of Essex about 1136, on the site of what is now Audley End village. The abbey was separated from Walden by Holywell Field. After the dissolution of the monasteries, Sir Thomas Audley converted its cloisters into a dwelling. Later this became the site of Audley End House. The market was moved from nearby Newport to Saffron Walden
Saffron Walden Railway day, while between 1877 and 1894 trains operated between Saffron Walden and London. Coaches dating from the 1890s operated on the line until the 1950s. From July 1958 the line was operated by railbuses until closure. The line closed to passengers on 7 September 1964 and to freight three months later. At Audley End services served a separate platform, of which the building still remains in the current car park (). Saffron Walden Railway The Saffron Walden Railway was a branch of the Great Eastern Railway between Audley End and Bartlow on the Stour Valley Railway between Shelford to Haverhill,