The monument can still be visited today and has been given Grade II listed status.
Cambridgeshire is a county packed full of history that can often be found in the strangest of places. If you have ever taken a walk along St Margaret’s Mount, also known as Maggot’s Mount, near Little Shelford, you might have seen a strange obelisk in the middle of the field.
You might not have taken a closer look at the monument if you have walked past it but it does hold a very sweet story behind it. The obelisk was built in 1739 by James Church in memory of his friend Gregory Wale.
Gregory Wale was a Justice of the Peace for Cambridgeshire and a Conservator of the River Cam. Gregory Wale and James Church would often meet up at the mound and agreed that when one of them died, the other one would put up a monument at the spot where they would meet.
The monument had an inscription on it to commemorate the life of Gregory Wale. It reads: “To the Memory of Gregory Wale Esq, Justice of the Peace for this County. Deputy Lieutenant. County Treasurer. Conservator of the River Cam. He lived an advocate for liberty. A good subject. An agreeable companion, a faithful friend, an hospitable neighbour, and in all parts of life a useful member of society. He died June 5th 1739 in the 71st year of his age: universally lamented, and was buried in the parish church of Little Shelford. This obelisk was erected by his surviving friend James Church Esq as a public testimony of his regard to the memory of so worthy a gentleman.”
The obelisk was restored in 1909 by the Wale Family and William Marshall with a concrete base was constructed around the foundation of the monument. The last restoration of the monument was recorded in 1985 and was carried out by Rattee & Kett.
After his death, his granddaughter, Margot Wale, would often be seen walking up to the obelisk and enjoyed visiting it. Near the end of the her life, she would watch the hill from her window.
People in the area started calling the little hill ‘Margot’s Mount’ but it was later changed to ‘Maggots Mount’, as it is more commonly known as today. The monument is still in good condition today and can be reached via a footpath found on a road from Little Shelford to the B1368.
The obelisk has been given Grade II listed status by English Heritage. The monument was first listed in August 1962.

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