Great Horkesley is a village approximately 3 miles north of Colchester in the county of Essex, UK, and is part of the borough of Colchester. Horkesley is located in what is known as "Horkesley Heath", which is a combination of two villages: Great Horkesley and, to the north, Little Horkesley which is an entirely different Parish. Horkesley is a modern name for the original Saxon name of "Horkaslay" which means "farm land for herds" (mainly sheep) though now it has many fields growing a variety of crops from corn to hemp. A few years ago an archaeological dig was made in woods on Coach Road, where a Bronze Age bronze smelting pit was found. Much Of Great Horkesley was a marsh, with very boggy ground, until it was drained by farmers. This is the reason why the main road is called "The Causew