© David MelfordReprinted from: Saffron Walden Historical Journal No 2 Autumn 2001 Small parishes do not necessarily have brief histories. Strethall (600 acres, 11 houses – current population 22) is arguably the smallest parish in Essex but its origin can be traced back well before Domesday when the 10 hides of land sold by King Aethelred to Aelsinus, Abbot of …