Aldwincle is situated north of Thrapston and was mentioned in the Domesday book as Eldwincle - probably named after the Saxon word 'wincel' meaning bend or corner. The village lies on a large bend on the Nene. The village is linear in form, centred along Main Street, with All Saints Church marking the southernmost tip of the village. The poet John Dryden was born in 1631 in the Old Rectory.