The famous Essex road with a dark history that nobody knows the reason behind its strange name

Bread and Cheese Hill in Benfleet (Image: Google Maps)

There could be a number of reasons behind its name - but some of those reasons are rather sinister.

Essex has a range of famous roads that thousands of people use every single day. Each of them have their very own names - most of which give an insight into the past.

The Bread and Cheese hill in Thundersley is slightly different though - as there could be a number of reasons as to why its called what it is. The road itself is incredibly busy to this day, with thousands of motorists travelling on it each and every day.

Several ideas have been put forward as to the origin of the name Bread and Cheese Hill, some say that it is due to the shape of the hill resembling a cottage loaf, but others have slightly more darker opinions.

Some suggestions believe that the hill was named after a Welsh battle cry, while others believe it stems from a tree which once grew there. Perhaps the most logical of all explanations can be traced to the numerous waggons pulled by oxen and horses, who were rested and fed by their carter on reaching the top. Meanwhile, others think it is named after something a bit more sinister.

According to Benfleet History, the hill may have been named after historically the words "bread and cheese" were used in ancient England as a way of finding out the nationality of strangers. During the troubled times of the Peasants Revolt in 1381, which began in south-east Essex, rebels patrolled the top of the hill at Thundersley, about one-and-a-half miles west of Victoria House Corner, Hadleigh, stopping any stranger that clambered up the narrow track, requesting them to repeat the phrase “bread and cheese”.

If it was not pronounced with a recognisable English accent the unfortunate person was put to death on the spot. Benfleet History says: "Flemish weavers had been invited here by Edward III because their cloth was improved by the use of English wool. As a result exports increased between the two countries but although the weavers grew rich the ordinary English labourer found that he had to work harder than ever for his pittance."