Historic places of worship in Norfolk

Norfolk is a large county that contains one modestly-sized city (Norwich), a port town (Great Yarmouth), a number of small seaside resorts (e.g. Cromer and Sheringham), a scattering of market towns (e.g. Kings Lynn and East Dereham), and a huge number of small villages that bear witness to the main industry of the county, which is agriculture of the rich soils that cover much of the terrain.

Virtually every village has a parish church, and, given the nature of Norfolk’s gently undulating topography, it is the churches that one is aware of first on approaching these villages along the miles of roads and lanes that weave through the countryside. Many of these churches were built from local flint and feature a square tower without a spire, although not every church follows this pattern; there is a significant number of churches with round towers, for example.

Given that many of these churches, both in villages and towns, date from medieval times, and there are hundreds of them to choose from, any selection of places of worship of historical interest is going to be partial, and a short article cannot hope to do justice to the riches on offer. There are, however, two places in Norfolk that could not possibly be left off any list, namely Norwich Cathedral and Walsingham Shrine. There are also two well-preserved monastic sites that should not be missed.

Norwich Cathedral

The see of Norwich was created by the Normans, and much of what you can see of the Cathedral today, particularly at the lower levels, is the original stonework placed here from 1094. However, various disasters in later years, including the 1463 collapse of the original wooden spire into the nave after being struck by lightning, mean that the cathedral has undergone many changes over time, most of which have been to its advantage. The 15th century rebuilding was on a grand scale, including a magnificent vaulted stone ceiling that features hundreds of carved stone bosses at the junction points of the vault ribs; there are more than 1,000 in total if the vaulted cloisters are included.

The spire was rebuilt in stone in the 1490s on top of the Norman tower, part of which was re-constructed to exactly the same design as the original. At 315 feet in height the spire is the second tallest in England after that of Salisbury Cathedral.

Walsingham Shrine

In medieval times there were three main religious sites in England to which pilgrims flocked in their thousands, namely Canterbury, Bury St Edmunds and Little Walsingham. Although the first two were marked by massive cathedrals, the focus of attention at Little Walsingham (a few miles inland from Wells on the north Norfolk coast) was a simple building that had been erected as a supposed replica of Christ’s childhood home at Nazareth.

The original shrine dated from 1061 (shortly before the Norman Conquest) when the lady of the manor had a vision of the Virgin Mary and was inspired to build the “Santa Casa” (“Holy House”). The fame of the shrine grew, and even kings made the pilgrimage to Walsingham, walking the last mile barefoot.

The last king to make the pilgrimage was Henry VIII in 1511, but he included Walsingham on his list of monastic sites to be destroyed during the dissolution of the monasteries when he broke with Rome in the 1530s.

The shrine was only restored in the 1930s, after a high-church Anglican priest, Alfred Hope Patten, had organised a pilgrimage in 1922. A new Santa Casa was built to house a statue of the Virgin Mary and this now forms the heart of the Anglican Shrine.

The Roman Catholics also recognise Walsingham as a place of pilgrimage, their shrine being based on the 14th century Slipper Chapel which also features a statue of Mary that is based on the medieval image of Our Lady of Walsingham.

A number of hostels and other facilities have been built to cater for pilgrims and visitors, although these do not detract from the generally peaceful atmosphere of the place. The gardens around the shrines provide a welcome respite on a fine day.

Large-scale pilgrimages are organised every year, and it has become a regular custom for these to feature visits to both shrines. However, anyone can visit Walsingham on a private basis, even taking advantage of a narrow-gauge steam railway that runs from Wells-next-the Sea (summer months only).

Binham Priory

This is not far from Walsingham, and is an excellent example of a Benedictine priory, especially as part of it is still in use; the nave of the priory church survived the Dissolution as the parish church of the local community, and did not therefore suffer the ruination of the rest of the site. The church, dating from the 13th century, is highly impressive, but when one imagines what the whole priory would have looked like in its heyday it shows just how rich these institutions were, and why they excited the jealousy of King Henry VIII!

As well as the cathedral-like interior the church has several features of interest for the visitor. The stone font depicts scenes representing the seven sacraments and the wooden carvings on the bench ends and misericords are worth more than a passing glance.

However, it is the overpainted rood screen panels that are of greatest interest for most people, not only for the images that can be seen on them but for the history that they represent. It was common in medieval times for screen panels to be paid for by donors, and for images to be painted on the panels as suggested by the donors. At Binham it looks as though sixteen separate images were painted, most of these being of saints. However, at the Reformation, particularly after the accession of Edward VI, such images were regarded as idolatrous and orders were given for them to be whitewashed over. Under Queen Elizabeth I it was common for Biblical texts to be inscribed on the whitewash, as church interiors had become very bland and uninspiring.

At Binham these processes can be traced very clearly because, over the years, the whitewash has started to wear away and a number of the original paintings can be seen, still with the texts written over them. The panels are now preserved under glass.

Castle Acre Priory

Founded in 1090, this large Cluniac priory, not far from Binham and Walsingham, copied its French original in its love of architectural decoration, such as the intersecting round arches to be seen on the west front of the priory church.

The west range at Castle Acre is still virtually complete. The prior’s lodging includes a chamber that was revamped in Tudor times for one of its last inhabitants, including a painted ceiling and two massive oak chests which can still be seen.

Among the buildings in a reasonable state of preservation is a two-storey toilet block with spaces for 24 monks. A herb garden has been created to represent what the monks would have used for medicinal and culinary purposes.

Other religious sites in Norfolk

Another Cluniac foundation, in south-west Norfolk, is Thetford Priory, which is less well preserved than Castle Acre, although the 14th century gatehouse is almost complete. Visitors should also see the ruins of the 14th century Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Thetford, the only surviving example in England of a church of the Canons of the Holy Sepulchre.

St Olave’s Priory, near Great Yarmouth, was a small Augustinian priory. Visitors can see the complete 14th century brick-vaulted refectory undercroft.

As mentioned above, Norfolk is full of interesting smaller churches. One that is well worth a visit is at Cley-next-the Sea, although the sea is now some way off. The name is a clue as to why St Margaret’s Church is so big and splendid for such a tiny village; at one time Cley was a major port for exporting wool, and in the 1320s there were extravagant plans for rebuilding the older, more modest church, to accommodate the growing local population. However, the work had not been finished when the Black Death arrived in the 1340s, hence the splendid nave is not matched by the much smaller chancel and squat tower.

Oxborough Church, near Downham Market, is remarkable for the fact that it is a 14th century building that was partially destroyed when the tower collapsed in 1948. A new wall was built to preserve the chancel that now acts as the parish church while the walls of the nave remain roofless.

Another parish church that is much visited is that of All Saints, Burnham Thorpe. This was the village where Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson was born in 1758; however, despite the connection there is not much to be seen in the church that has a Nelson connection. There is a Nelson bust and the lectern was made from timbers taken from HMS Victory, which was Nelson’s flagship. These relics, plus a small exhibition devoted to Nelson’s life and times, hardly made the detour to this remote village worth the journey.