The name Cippenham has its origins in Saxon England - literally meaning Cippa's homestead - and was one of the manor of Burnham's eight liberties. Medieval Cippenham would have been unrecognisable to us today, though aspects of its history are still encapsulated in buildings such as Cippenham Place and the changing fortunes of Burnham Abbey.

Cippenham has a royal connection dating at least as far back as the thirteenth century, when King Henry III made occasional visits to his fortified house or palace, which is unfortunately no longer in existence. However it was his brother Richard, Earl of Cornwall and King of the Romans, who was more closely associated with Cippenham: he founded Burnham Abbey there in April 1266.

So much of Cippenham's past has still to be discovered and new finds are being made all the time, which gradually build up a fuller picture of what medieval Cippenham was really like.