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England > East of England > Norfolk

Norfolk is famous for its Broads, great, undisturbed wetland expanses scattered with bird reserves. Most of the broads are shallow freshwater lakes, rich with fish and bird life. It wasn't until the 1950s that scientists finally proved that the broads were man-made - the result of digging for peat in the late Middle Ages. For intervening centuries it had been thought they were natural lakes.

In this wild region, the great arch of the sky magnifies space and distance. Often only the cry of a wild duck or some other bird disturbs the solitary stillness. It's a reminder that the southern section of England, while densely populated in some parts, still offers plenty of secluded areas in which to enjoy the outdoors and refresh the soul.

If you've seen the Oscar-winning 1999 movie Shakespeare in Love, a romantic comedy starring the glorious Gwyneth Paltrow, you may be interested to know that those scenes around the dramatic shipwreck were filmed at Norfolk's Holkham Beach.

Norwich, one of Britain's best-preserved old cities, lies at the heart of Norfolk. Fortified by Saxons in the 9th Century and bolstered by the arrival of Flemish settlers 300 years later, Norwich rose to become England's second city after London - a position it lost only in the 19th Century.

Click on the headings to find out more: The Castle Museum in Norwich served as a prison for 650 years before entering service as a museum in 1834. During its prison years, public hangings were carried out at the main gates, attracting crowds of up to 21,000 people. Today, the museum displays all sorts of things: thumbscrews, a ducking stool for witches, a medieval scold's bridle and man-traps for poachers (resembling steel-jawed bear-traps), along with medieval armour and porcelain. The museum's wackiest section is the Twining Teapot Gallery, world's largest collection of English ceramic teapots. In the late 19th Century, well-to-do Englishmen risked social ostracism if they poured tea from an out-of-date teapot. "By 1890 the fashionable shape changed every few years," a display in the museum notes. "In Jane Austen's 'Northanger Abbey', General Tilney apologised for his tea set as two years old and already outdated," A museum sign records that the teapot collection (about 2600 pots) was begun by a retired colonel who "inherited over 100 teapots" (from whom, you may wonder) and didn't know quite what to do with them. The good colonel perhaps received a few suggestions. The Caldwell Collection of Custard Cups is also housed in the museum. Fascinating. Watch your head - the museum's ceilings are quite low. At one spot, over a flight of stairs, people in a hurry have been knocking themselves senseless for centuries.


Dragon Hall, Norwich, is a magnificent medieval merchant's hall with a strong, timber-frame structure, built for the sale and display of cloth. This 15th Century Great Hall has an intricately carved and painted dragon as its crown post.


Norwich Cathedral is a Norman structure dating from 1096 AD. It's 14th Century roof bosses depict Bible scenes, from the Garden of Eden right through to the Day of Judgement. Loiter in the cloisters; perhaps order tea in the restaurant and contemplate all those teapots in the Castle Museum.


Framlingham Castle in Framlingham boasts 13 towers and Tudor-brick chimneys. Mary Tudor, daughter of Henry VIII, was staying here when she heard her father had died and she was to become Queen. Mixed news indeed...


Baconsthorpe is a 15th Century part-moated, semi-fortified house, with the inner and outer gatehouse and the wall remaining.
The Collectors World of Eric St John-Foti at Hermitage Hall, Bridge Farm, Downham Market, is one of those extraordinary eclectic assemblages the English excel at. Armstrong Siddeley Motor Cars rank highly in the collection, along with Dickensian Christmas paraphernalia and items relating to eccentric historical-romance novelist Barbara Cartland.


Neo-Jacobean Sandringham House is the Queen's country retreat. If Her Majesty is in, the Royal Standard flies overhead. The house museum contains an exhibition of royal memorabilia. The house itself, Edwardian in atmosphere, lies in a 7000-acre estate, where shotgun-toting Royals pursue hapless gamebirds in season.


The classic 18th Century Palladian-style mansion of Holkham Hall stands a couple of miles from the quaintly-named town of Wells-next-the-Sea. You might think this indicates that Wells is, err, next to the sea - but don't be fooled - the sea is at least a mile away from any part of the town. Holkham Hall holds a treasure house of artistic and architectural history, worth a browse, Holkham Bay (not far away) is a fine sandy beach, great for a bracing stroll.
Castle Rising, five miles northeast of the town of King's Lynn, is a fine example of a Norman Castle. The rectangular keep was built around 1140 by William D'Albini to celebrate his marriage. It's in fine condition, considering it's technically a ruin.
King's Lynn was once called Bishop's Lynn, but the townsfolk soon changed that when Henry VIII took on the church and they decided to back the winning side. The town faces The Wash, not a laundromat but a huge estuary where King John lost the Crown Jewels while crossing the sea in 1216. Optimistic treasure hunters have been dredging ever since.
Blicking Hall at Aylesham is a wondrously symmetrical Jacobean country house. Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII's second queen, spent her childhood here. Anne was mother of Elizabeth I, who became one of England's greatest monarchs. Henry VIII, however, was interested only in a male heir. When Anne failed to produce one, he had her tried for adultery and beheaded.
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