Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Santlache 12th Bello

• Senlac 12th Ord

• Sandlak(e), borga de Sandlak(e) 1248 AOMB18 1296,1332 SR 1398 BM 1667 Battle

• Seynlak 1343 Battle

• Sanglake 1516 AOMB56

Etymology

'Sand-stream' or 'sand-water-course,' v. sand , lacu . The main street which skirts the abbey precincts is still called 'Upper and Lower Lake.' This is given as the name of the famous battle by Orderic, using a spelling which shows common AN confusion of a and e . This form was first adopted from Orderic as the name of the battle by the historian Freeman and has continued in use in our histories (v. the full discussion by Stevenson in EHR 28, 292). In earlier days attempts were made to explain the name in a way which would fit the events in more picturesque fashion. Thus Camden (317) writes “Wherein (i.e. in Battle) there is a place called by a French word sangue lac , of the bloud there shed, which by nature of the ground seemeth after raine to wax red.” The form Sanglake is found in 1724 on a map of the manor of Battle. As a matter of fact the little stream here is of chalybeate origin and does run red after heavy rain (v. EHR 28, 301).