Chelsworth is a village some 5 miles due south of Brettenham  and in close proximity to Bildeston and Hitcham, see below for local map, some of the parishes mentioned in earlier chapters can be located.

What is known is that Thomas Raynham 's R103 youngest son Robert Raynham had six children, three of whom were baptised in Brettenham  and the last three in Chelsworth . Robert was baptised on the 22 July 1694, at the All Saints' Church, Hitcham and married Sarah Studd at St Mary the Virgin Church, Brettenham on the 1 November 1736.

The first of his children Robert was baptised at Brettenham  in 1720, followed by William R42 in 1721 and Sarah R43 in 1722/23. A gap of two years occurs before Thomas R44, my direct descendant was baptised in Chelsworth  in 1724/25, two other children were known to have been baptised at Chelsworth parish church, Frances R45 in 1726/27 and Elizabeth R46 in 1730.

You will note, again, the use of double dating for some of the dates, due to the use of the Julian calendar prior to 1752. The chart below displays the family on the Raynham Tree .

Robert's wife Sarah Studd was baptised in 1690 at Chelsworth  and died at a relatively young age in 1736.

Much is known about the village of Chelsworth  and its history, the church, its Lords and the people who occupied the village. Most of the material for the Raynhams of Chelsworth has been extracted from Geoffrey  Pocklington book about Chelsworth, privately published in 1956, [2] Bernard Quinlan has subsequently published this as a new edition in 1994 .

Bernard Quinlan , a resident of Chelsworth  was instrumental in providing significant data on the Raynhams of Chelsworth, including a Chelsworth Raynham Family Tree and extracts from the Chelsworth parish registers .

Bernard Quinlan 's updated book on Chelsworth provided us with details of the Raynham families and we know that Robert and Sarah were one of two distinct Raynham family lines, the other was a James Raynham , farmer (1730 - 1787) it is inconceivable that they are not distant cousins, although as yet he has not been identified. It would seem from Geoffrey  Pocklington 's research that Robert was a thatcher; and that he and his subsequent descendants were less prosperous than the farming side of the Raynham family.

From parish and village records it would seem that Robert owned no land or occupied any known official positions, however a thatching great grandson Thomas Raynham , R51 (1773 - 1853) did purchase Meadow Cottage , in the village, at the end of the eighteenth century. An early 20^th century photo of the cottage can be seen below and can be compared with that of one taken late in the same century, albeit from the opposite direction. Note the replacement of the thatch roof with tile and the addition of roof window.

Robert was born at the end of the joint monarchs King William 111 and Queen Mary 11 reign, and throughout his adult life he was a subject under the Hanoverian King Georges'. Poverty continued to be a major threat to the communities during these times. The Act of Union united England and Scotland under the name of Great Britain in 1707.

In 1722, just after the baptisms of his first two children Robert and William, Guys Hospital in London was founded with a ?300,000 dedication from Thomas Guy about ?30 million today. The price of a cuppa went down when the Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole reduced the tax a year later. The Industrial Revolution was taking its first tentative steps with the invention of a steam condenser, [3] by James Watt (1736 - 1819) in 1764.

The complicated system of providing relief to the poor, set up by successive Tudor and Stuart legislation gave way to the provision of workhouses . By 1766 ninety-four Suffolk parishes had their own workhouses.

Suffolk's agriculture was innovative and increasingly specialised, it is likely that turnips would have been a major field crop. This would have provided a means to feed cattle during the winter and spring, which no doubt the farming Raynhams would have kept.

Robert spent nearly 50 years raising a family and living in Chelsworth , he was buried on Tuesday19 May 1772 in the parish church of Chelsworth.