Thatch Cottages of England

Driving through the little villages of England, one comes across many cottages with thatched roofs.  Many of these villages consist of just one main street.  Some of the lanes winding through the countryside are only wide enough for one car.  Sometimes there are high hedges beside the road.  If one happens to meet an oncoming car, one has to back up to a break in the hedge to pull off and allow the other one to pass.

The above photo was taken in Kersey, a tiny village in Suffolk County, East Anglia, east of Cambridge.  Population in 2005 was 340.

There are more thatched roofs in the UK than anywhere else in Europe. Thatchers have been practicing their craft here since people first began gathering in villages - before the middle ages.

Good quality thatching straw can last for more than 45–50 years when applied by a skilled thatcher. After about 40 to 50 years, the top layer is stripped off and replaced.

Traditionally, a new layer of straw was simply applied over the weathered surface. This has generated accumulations of thatch 2.0 m thick and in ancient buildings preserved lower layers of medieval thatch over 600 years old.

Thatch is fastened together in bundles with a diameter of about two feet. These are then laid on the roof with the butt end facing out and secured to the roof beams, after which they are pegged in place with wooden rods. The thatcher adds the layers on top of each other, finishing with a layer to secure the ridgeline of the roof.  Often the thatcher will put his own personal design, his signature, in these decorative ridgelines.