Dedham Vale

Dedham Vale, region in Suffolk, eastern England, in the valley of the River Stour. Dedham Vale is situated south of Ipswich, and is often referred to as “Constable Country” because of its strong links with the English landscape painter John Constable, who was born in East Bergholt. Many of Constable’s paintings feature the area—one of his first major landscape paintings was Dedham Vale: Morning (1811, Elton Hall, Huntingdonshire). His paintings of the area conjure up a timeless English scene of pastoral meadows, hedgerows, and trees. Constable said of his native landscape, “I associate my careless boyhood with all that lies on the banks of the Stour; those scenes made me a painter and I am grateful.” Another English landscape painter, Thomas Gainsborough, was born nearby, and this has sometimes led to claims that the area is the “birthplace of English landscape painting”. Dedham Vale is a major tourist attraction, and has managed to remain relatively unspoilt, although there are concerns that increased tourism and modern farming methods could threaten the classic rural scenery.