Table Of ContentThe Project Gutenberg eBook, Rogers' Directory of Norwich and
Neighbourhood, by Edward Dawson Rogers
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most
other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of
the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at
www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have
to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook.
Title: Rogers' Directory of Norwich and Neighbourhood
Author: Edward Dawson Rogers
Release Date: December 10, 2020 [eBook #64006]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROGERS' DIRECTORY OF NORWICH AND
NEIGHBOURHOOD***
Transcribed from the c1858 Jarrold and Sons edition, using scans from the British Library, by David Price.
ROGERS’
DIRECTORY OF NORWICH
AND
NEIGHBOURHOOD.
(ENTERED AT STATIONERS’ HALL.)
PRINTED FOR THE PROPRIETOR, BY
JARROLD AND SONS, LONDON STREET, NORWICH.
PREFACE.
It is never pleasant to have to make apologies; and yet there are some circumstances under which an apology is a duty, and therefore, whether
pleasant or not, should be tendered cheerfully. The present is a case in point. The work should have been published earlier, and would have been
had it been possible. The truth is that the “Guide to Streets, &c.,” was a novel experiment, and the compiler—having nobody’s experience to guide
him—thought the task an easier one than it turned out to be. It was at first imagined that the matter for this “Guide” could be obtained simultaneously
with the information for the Directory itself. The attempt proved the mistake. It was found that to do both well they must be done distinctly and
independently. Hence chiefly came the delay, to say nothing of the fact that for many “local habitations” it was very difficult to find the “name.” In
yards and courts not a few, and in some out-of-the-way streets even, not one of the inhabitants could give his whereabouts a designation! The task,
however, has been achieved at last; and it is trusted that upon the whole the public will think that it has been achieved well. A few errors have crept
in, doubtless; but no labor and no care have been spared to avoid them. The hope is confidently cherished that the faults of the work will be forgiven
for the sake of its excellencies, especially as the compiler promises to “do better next time.”
HISTORY OF NORWICH.
Norwich, a city and county, situate in the centre of the Eastern Division of Norfolk, consists of 35 parishes and 10 hamlets, covers 6,638 acres, is
nearly 14 miles in circumference, and contained, in 1851, 15,000 houses and 68,195 inhabitants. The undisputed metropolis of the Eastern
Counties, it has communication both by water and rail with the seaports of Yarmouth and Lowestoft, while it is doubly connected with London by
the Ipswich and Cambridge lines; and has access to the midland and northern counties, by way of Peterborough. Having thus indicated the locale
and dimensions of the “old city,” it is but right that before proceeding further we should give a brief sketch of its history. And this we the more
readily do, inasmuch as Norwich has borne a by no means undistinguished part in those great political and social movements which have made
England what she is.
We should, however, only trifle with our readers were we to express any opinion upon the origin and paternity of the East Anglian capital, for it
would ill become us to pretend to pierce through the obscurity which surrounds the early history of this, as indeed of all other cities. It is certainly but
natural to suppose that Norwich gradually rose round a military fortress erected on the site which the present Castle partly occupies; but whether
that fortress was raised by some British potentate whose very name is mythical, or was the work of Uffa, the first Saxon king of the eastern counties,
p. i
p. 1
and whether, it being destroyed by Sweyn, the present structure was founded by Canute, it would profit us little to discuss. Declining, therefore,
these bootless speculations, we find that in the reign of Edward the Confessor, “Northwic” contained 1300 burgesses, boasted of 25 churches, and
was already of sufficient importance as to constitute a “hundred;” while in 1085, as appears by the Doomsday Survey, its burgesses had increased in
number to over 1500, and its churches to 45. Shortly before this, William the Conqueror had appointed its first Norman governor, Ralph de
Guader, or Waher, who, however, marrying the monarch’s niece, Judith, without his consent, and afterwards conspiring against his sovereign, was
obliged to flee to Brittany; his bride, after a three-months’ siege in the castle, during which the city suffered much damage, was compelled to
capitulate. The office, which included the earldom of Norfolk and some considerable estates, was then conferred on Roger Bigod, the founder of a
baronial house illustrious in English history. [2] In the following reign the city rose in importance by the translation, in 1094, of the Bishop’s See from
Thetford—where indeed it had barely been fixed a quarter of a century; having, up to 1070, been located at North Elmham, then a place of note,
and subsequently a favorite residence of the diocesans. The then bishop, Herbert de Lozinga, for having purchased his preferment of William Rufus,
and for other simoniacal practices, was required, after the fashion of the times, to prove his contrition by a substantial atonement. He accordingly
purchased a meadow, called Cow Holme, extending from the castle ditches to the river; and in 1096 laid the foundation of a cathedral church,
proceeding with such expedition, that in five years he was able to place 60 Benedictine monks in the new priory. About this period many Jews from
Normandy settled in the city; popular prejudice, however, was strong against them, and in 1137, on a charge of crucifying a boy in Thorpe wood,
large numbers of them were ruthlessly slaughtered. Carrow Abbey, we may here mention, dates its origin from the middle of the 12th century, the
site being granted by Stephen for a nunnery, where the daughters of the noble and the affluent were wont to be educated.
A century later, and we find the lay and clerical elements in rancorous hostility. Perpetual animosities between the citizens and the monks rose at last
to such a height, that the priory was, in 1234, entirely destroyed; while 38 years subsequently, the cathedral itself was well nigh demolished—an
offence for which the city was visited with the terrors of an interdict. The injury, however, was not irreparable, for with a fine of 3000 marks
imposed on the principal inhabitants, and with some liberal donations, the edifice was sufficiently restored as in 1278 to be consecrated by Bishop
Middleton, in the presence of Edward the First and his queen, Eleanor—the first royal visit of which we have any reliable evidence. A wall was,
moreover, raised round the Cathedral precincts—St. Ethelbert’s Gate being erected by the citizens; and this seems for a time to have prevented
further dissension. Between the two epochs of contention above-named, arose the first recorded charitable institution in Norwich—Bishop Walter
de Suffield founding St. Giles’ (commonly called the Old Man’s) Hospital, for the triple purpose of ensuring masses for his soul’s repose, providing
an asylum for superannuated and infirm priests, and furnishing a refuge for 13 aged persons; to the last object only, it is hardly necessary to say, is
the building now devoted; and enriched by subsequent benefactions, the hospital accommodates 50 of each sex, who, on admission, must have
reached 65 years of age.
Another noticeable feature which must by no means be overlooked while dwelling on this period, is the enclosure of the city, from Conisford or King
street to Pockthorpe, by a wall. This important work, a testimony to the increasing prosperity of the city, as well as to the turbulence of the times,
was commenced in 1294 and completed in 1320; but it was not till two and twenty years afterwards that, through the munificence of one Richard
Spynk, the wall was flanked with 40 towers, furnished with 12 gates, and fortified by a broad ditch. The gates remained up to 1792, and the wall,
though now built upon on every side, may yet be traced for almost its entire length, being especially prominent as the southern boundary of Chapel
Field, and offers many a study to the antiquarian and the historian.
In 1340 and 1342 Edward the Third held grand tournaments in the city, and in 1348 the heir apparent, the Black Prince, with his mother Philippa,
also visited Norwich, and were entertained at a cost of £37 4s. 6d. A more unwelcome visitor quickly followed; for in seven months 37,000
persons are said to have perished by the plague, by which the city was alarmingly depopulated. It was about this time that the Castle began to be
used as a county prison, which was authorized by an Act of 14 Edward III., though a military governor continued still to be appointed. In 1381,
cotemporaneously with the Wat Tyler rebellion in the south, John de Litester, a dyer, at the head of a large body of the disaffected, pillaged the
houses of the wealthy, but was speedily overthrown by the forces of Bishop Spencer. This very warlike ecclesiastic was a fierce enemy of the
Lollards, who had acquired a strong hold in the city, and he imprisoned Sir Thomas Erpingham, who had shown a warm sympathy for the reformed
doctrines; but in the parliament of 1400 the king directed them to “shake hands and kiss each other in token of friendship.” The reconciliation was
apparently sincere, for the baronet became a munificent benefactor to the church. He erected the Erpingham gateway, and rebuilt the monastery of
the Black friars, now known as St. Andrew’s Hall. This noble building was not, however, completed until the time of his son Sir Robert, himself a
member of the fraternity. On the dissolution of the monasteries by our royal Bluebeard, the property was obtained by the Corporation for the sum
of £81, and became devoted to the guilds and other secular purposes.
In 1403, in consideration, as it appears, of a gift of 4000 marks, (for most of our ancient liberties were purchased) Henry IV. conferred municipal
institutions on the city, and would also have increased its representatives—for Norwich had returned two members since 1296—to four, had not the
citizens represented their inability to meet the increased expense which their services would have occasioned. William Appleyard was the first
mayor, and he celebrated his year of office in the fine flint building then just erected, lately used as a Bridewell, and now as a tobacco manufactory.
In 1407 the Guildhall was commenced, on the site of a small thatched erection, called a toll-booth, used for collecting the market tolls. Henry V., in
1415, visited the city, and, we are told, left his coronet in pawn for 1000 marks, which he doubtless required for his French wars; but 25 years
afterwards Norwich was in sad disgrace at court, for as a rebuke for suing Henry VI. for £100 which they had lent, the charters were suspended. A
few years after, however, the city was visited by that unfortunate monarch, and in 1469 by Edward IV., who, writes John Paston, “hath been
worshipfully received into Norwich, and had right good cheer and great gifts”—with which he was so well pleased that he speedily paid another visit,
when some grand pageants were performed, though interrupted by “heavy and continuous rain.”
But we now come to a catalogue of disasters: the Cathedral was seriously injured by fire, 1463; the fatal plague ravaged the city, 1479; and in 1505
and 1507 there were great fires, in the latter year 718 houses being consumed, which obliged the corporate authorities to prohibit the erection of
thatched buildings. In 1517, disputes between the citizens and the monks being again rife, Wolsey came over on a mission of mediation, but it was
not till several years afterwards that peace was restored by the settlement of the civil and ecclesiastical boundaries and jurisdictions. We must not
forget to notice the burning of the martyr Bilney, after an imprisonment in a dungeon of the Guildhall; and scarcely were the lurid fires of persecution
extinguished before a memorable political outbreak exposed the city to the ravages of contending armies, and excited the anxious consideration of
the youthful Edward’s ministers. The details of Kett’s rebellion are too well known to require recapitulation; suffice it to say that after obtaining
possession of the city and defeating the Marquis of Northampton in an encounter on Palace Plain, the insurgents were dispersed by the Earl of
Warwick—Robert Kett being executed at the Castle, and William at Wymondham. To close a paragraph of casualties, persecutions, and tumults,
we must record the visitation of the sweating sickness, striking down near 1000 victims in 1551, and of the quartan ague six years later; the
conviction of several citizens in 1570, for participation in a plot for assassinating the queen, re-establishing Popery, and expelling the strangers “out of
the citye and realme,” of whom four suffered death, and others confinement for life; and the imprisonment in the Castle of certain persons
apprehended in Suffolk for “refusing to come to the church in time of sermons and common prayer.”
Turning from these saddening scenes, we note the foundation, in 1557, of Caius College, Cambridge, by a Norwich citizen of that name, (but
sometimes spelled Keyes, whence, we suppose, the pronunciation of the word,) physician to three sovereigns of the house of Tudor, and a man of
learning. He was one of the first of a long line of distinguished men educated at our Grammar School—an institution of ancient date, but which did
not become located in the present venerable structure until the reign of Elizabeth. And this mention of “Good Queen Bess” reminds us of her visit to
the old city in 1578, spending a week in all sorts of festivities, pageantries, and amusements, to the unutterable delight of her loyal subjects. Nearly a
century was destined to elapse ere Norwich was honored with another sight of royalty; and as there is a back-ground to every picture, so all this
rejoicing was followed by the dread calamity of the plague—introduced, indeed, it was supposed, by some of the Queen’s attendants—and which
slew five thousand victims.
The succeeding half century is chiefly characterised by ecclesiastical commotions, of which the fact that within little more than 60 years the diocese
p. 2
p. 3
p. 4
p. 5
had twelve bishops, may be taken as one indication. Of these, the first, John Parkhurst, who died about 1575, was favorably disposed towards the
church polity of Calvin, and opposed, as far as he could, a passive resistance to the harsh injunctions of his Primate (Parker, a native of Norwich)
against the Puritans; Edmund Freke, his successor, deprived many nonconforming ministers of their livings, and imprisoned Robert Brown, the first
separatist from the Establishment, and whose ideas of church government are mainly identical with those of the present Congregationalists; a third—
Matthew Wren, father of the famous architect, was censured and imprisoned by the Parliament, on a complaint by the people of Ipswich, that he
had, in two years, suspended or deprived fifty ministers, and driven 3000 persons, with their manufactures, to Holland, to the prejudice of the trade
of the kingdom; Joseph Hall, the last of the twelve, was a man much esteemed for his mild disposition, and for the purity of his style was termed the
English Seneca. Though at one time harshly treated by the Roundhead soldiers, he was ultimately restored by the Commons to the full possession of
his revenues, and spent the latter part of his life in a quiet retreat at Heigham, (now the Dolphin Inn,) in the church of which parish he was interred,
though a passage in his will runs thus—“I do not hold God’s house a meet repository for the bodies of the greatest saints.”—(Neale’s History of
the Puritans.) Of the Civil War, the period in which this worthy bishop lived, there is but little to record. Norwich seems from the first to have
given an unhesitating support to the Parliament, and was assessed at £53 yearly towards the maintenance of the Earl of Manchester’s forces. That
there was, however, a party in the city who leaned to the King’s side, is shown by a tragical occurrence in 1648. John Utting, the mayor, had been
complained of for not carrying out the ordinances against images; but upon a poursuivant being sent to require his attendance at the bar of the
House to answer the charge, a violent tumult arose; the rioters obtained possession of the military depôt, (whose site the Bethel now occupies,) and
98 barrels of gunpowder being accidentally fired, 200 persons were killed or wounded by the explosion.
Coming down to 1671, we must chronicle the visit of the “Merry Monarch,” with his Queen and brother, who were sumptuously entertained by the
Duke of Norfolk, as well as by the civic grandees: an animated description of the city at this period—with its ducal palace, its prosperous
manufactures, and the priceless cabinet and botanical gardens of the famous Sir Thomas Browne (whose monument may be seen in St. Peter’s
church)—is given by Macaulay. Ten years later, James, Duke of York, paid a second visit; but in 1687 he had, as king, forfeited all popularity by
his arbitrary interference with the corporation; and the representative of the house of Howard, riding into the market at the head of 300 knights and
gentlemen, amid the acclamations of the citizens, declared for a free parliament. It was the son of this duke, who, taking umbrage at the mayor’s
forbidding his comedians entering the city with trumpets, demolished the whole of his ancestral palace, said to be the largest town house in the
kingdom out of London, and which, from Christmas to Twelfth-night, was wont to be open to all comers.
Henceforth politics almost disappear, and the remainder of the narrative must be confined to matters of purely local interest, which may be very
briefly chronicled. From 1696 to 1698, a mint was established here, and coined about a quarter of a million of money. In 1732 the Market and
Charing crosses were taken down; in 1731 the St. George’s Company—incorporated 1416, and the principal of the city guilds—resigned their
charters to the corporation. In 1761 a coach was started between Norwich and London, to run the distance in twenty hours, it having hitherto taken
two days in summer and three in winter. An inundation in the following year, flooded nearly 300 houses. In 1771 the Norfolk and Norwich
Hospital was founded, William Fellowes, Esq., of Shotesham, laying the first stone. In 1776 an act was obtained for making a turnpike to Thetford.
In 1785 the first balloon ascent seen in the city took place, Major Money being the adventurous aeronaut. In 1791 the barracks were erected, at a
cost of £20,000. In 1824 the first Musical Festival was held, and was conducted by Sir George Smart; its chief promoter was Mr. Edward Taylor,
now Gresham Professor. The same year the City Gaol was built, in lieu of an old building on the site of the Public Library—the Shirehall is of about
the same date; the Museum was founded in 1825, and in 1828 the Corn Exchange was erected. In 1835, June 16, the last guild-day celebration
took place, 800 ladies and gentlemen dining in St. Andrew’s Hall; the late Mr. T. O. Springfield was, in the following January, elected the first mayor
under the Municipal Reform Act. In 1837 Dr. Stanley was appointed bishop; this beloved prelate expired in 1849, about two years after the death
of the equally beloved and philanthropic Joseph John Gurney. In 1844 the Yarmouth railway was opened, in the following year the Norfolk, and in
1846 the Ipswich and Colchester line. In 1854, the mayor, (then Mr. Samuel Bignold) was knighted by her Majesty, on presenting an address from
the Corporation, on the war with Russia. In 1857 the Free Library was opened, and the first stone was also laid of the New Workhouse.
Having thus brought down the political history of the city to the present time, we propose to offer a review of the origin and progress of the
manufactures of Norwich, on which its prosperity has so materially depended, and indeed still depends.
As a manufacturing city, Norwich first comes into notice in the reign of Henry I. In 1108 an inundation in Flanders induced many of the sufferers to
try their fortunes in England; some of them settled at Worstead, (whence the name “worsted”) and afterwards at Norwich. In the following reign
more Flemish emigrants came over; and they introduced the weaving of wool. The weavers, in Henry the Second’s reign, formed themselves into
guilds, and obtained charters; but it was not till the time of the third Edward that the next great advance was made. This wise king invited into the
kingdom a large number of the countrymen of his consort, Philippa of Hainault, who were skilled in weaving woollen and worsted. They were
principally located in the eastern counties; Norwich was fixed as the staple for Norfolk and Suffolk; and an act was passed prohibiting the wearing of
any but English cloth—a piece of protectionist policy at which we may smile, but which was no doubt then very commendable. In several following
reigns great complaint was made of the “craft and deceit” practised in the making of serges, says, fustians, &c., and wardens were appointed to
supervise the “true making thereof.” Trade in these articles seems to have declined about the period of the Reformation, and attention began to be
paid to dornecks and coverlets; and in the reign of Mary, the manufacture of “light stuffs”—the same fabric as the Naples fustians, and resembling
the bombazines of later years—was introduced. In 1565, however, there was much distress in the city through the decay of the worsted trade, and
the corporate body obtained permission to “import” 300 Dutch, but too glad to avoid the persecution of the merciless Alva, who brought with them
the art of weaving with a warp of silk or linen, as well as of dyeing and other processes. In five years their numbers increased to 3000, (in London
there were nearly 4000) and in 1575 their elders exhibited to the authorities a mixed fabric of silk and worsted, termed bombazine. Religious
persecution, however, drove many back to their fatherland, now liberated from the intolerant Spaniard; but Cromwell’s policy of liberty of
conscience and unfettered trade, remedied the mischief thus occasioned. In Charles the Second’s reign, the lower west room of the Guildhall (the
Criminal Court) was the Cloth Hall, and the chamber over (now Sword-room) was devoted to the sale of wool and yarn. Wool-combing was now
a source of great employment, (it was carried on here until 1808,) and the anniversary of its patron saint, Bishop Blaize, was celebrated with much
pomp; while the manufacture was so extensive as to be described as “such as England never knew in any age.” Shortly afterwards an additional
branch of industry was opened, the French refugees introducing the making of crape, which soon became very popular, and under Sir Robert
Walpole’s administration, a public mourning was ordered to be in Norwich crape. About the middle of last century the trade of the city is generally
supposed to be at its zenith, its productions being exported to all the continental markets; after this period the increasing use of cotton goods inflicted
a heavy blow on the manufacture of woollen fabrics, while even in the latter, Norwich became exposed to the competition of Yorkshire mills, which
occupied vantage ground from their proximity to iron and coal mines. In 1776 there were alarming riots on the part of the weavers, owing to lack of
employment and the dearness of provisions. The American and French wars supervened in rapid succession—the latter closed most of the foreign
markets, and thus inflicted incalculable injury on the city. Broad bombazines, poplins, camlets, fillover and other shawls, have been introduced at
different periods since 1780; the bombazines are nearly superseded by paramattas, &c., and bareges, balzarines, &c., in every variety of design, are
now manufactured. Of the yarns chiefly used, the wool is mostly from Australia, the silk from China, (though some from India and Italy) and the
mohair from Angora; an inferior description is, however, obtained from Asia Minor.
We must not forget to notice the opening of the shoe manufacture in the city, which gives employment to a considerable number of persons of both
sexes: nor must we overlook the starch and mustard works of Messrs. Colman.
Appended is a brief statement of the particular branches to which the principal factories are devoted:—Messrs. Middleton and Answorth, and
Messrs. Bolingbroke, are famed for their poplins, and for the production of crinoline—the material being horsehair from South America. Messrs.
Clabburn, for fillover long shawls, by a patented process, which gained the Paris Exhibition medal. Messrs. Willett and Nephew—paramattas, and
many plain and fancy fabrics. Messrs. Grout and Co. (also of Yarmouth and Bungay)—silk crape. Mr. Geary and Mr. Sultzer, cotton fabrics—the
latter establishment also carries on the winding of cotton on reels. Messrs. Blake and Mr. Jay—spinning of woollen and mohair yarns. Messrs.
p. 6
p. 7
p. 8
Towler and Co., and Messrs. Rowling and Allen—plain and fancy fabrics. Mr. G. Allen—woven silk for gloves. Messrs. Hinde—bareges and
paramattas.
Other important departments of trade, too numerous to be enumerated, are also carried on; such as sacking, tobacco, brushes, egg-flour, artificial
manures, &c., &c.
PLACES OF WORSHIP.
CHURCHES.
We have already alluded to the fact, that in the reign of William the Conqueror there were 45 city churches; and it appears from an inventory of the
ornaments in the churches of the Norwich archdeaconry—commenced by William de Swyneflete in 1368, and continued to about 1419—that at
that period there were 55 churches in use, exclusive of the Cathedral and conventual churches, besides the following which had then been
desecrated or annexed to other parishes: St. Wyndwall, or Catherine in Newgate, (consolidated with All Saints, the parish being nearly depopulated
by the plague in 1349), St. Olave’s Chapel, St. Michael Conisford, St. John the Evangelist, St. Cuthbert, St. Matthew, St. Christopher (united with
St. Andrew), and St. Anne. Of the 55 then in use, the following, however, have long ceased to exist as parish churches; St. Botolph, St. Margaret
Newbridge, St. Mary Combust, St. Margaret Colegate, St. Olave, (the two last named were taken down and consolidated with St. George at
Colegate), St. Cross, St. Bartholomew (united with St. John at Sepulchre), St. Michael, (Ber Street,) St. Edward, St. Clement Conisford, St.
Vedast, and St. Mary Parva (now the French Church). St. Mary in the Marsh was desecrated in 1653, and the parishioners have since used St.
Luke’s Chapel, in the Cathedral.
We append a statement of all the edifices now standing, in connection with the Established Church, commencing of course with
THE CATHEDRAL.
The present structure is considered by some to be mainly the work of Bishop Alnwyck, temp. 1430, and this prelate is generally supposed to have
completed the cloisters—one of the finest quadrangles in the kingdom, commenced by Ralph de Walpole in 1297. The edifice is principally in the
Norman style. The nave is divided into fourteen semi-circular arches; its roof is attributed to Walter Lyhart, the second bishop after Alnwyck. The
large west window has recently been filled in with stained glass, as a memorial to Bishop Stanley. The nave itself contains the tombs or monuments
of Chancellor Spencer, Bishop Nix, Bishop Parkhurst, Dean Gardiner, Sir James Hobart, (Attorney-General to Henry VIII.) and Bishop Stanley;
while in the church are the monuments of Bishops Goldwell (1472) and Bathurst. Attached to the Cathedral were several chapels, but these have
mostly been demolished. The interior generally suffered much defacement at the hands of the iconoclasts of the 16th and 17th centuries; in 1740 the
nave and aisles were repaired, and in 1806 the whole fabric was restored and beautified.
The present bishop—appointed in 1857—is the Right Rev. J. T. Pelham, D.D. Dean—the Hon. and Very Rev. G. Pellew, D.D. Archdeacons—
Norwich, Ven. R. E. Hankinson; Norfolk, Ven. W. A. Bouverie; Suffolk, Ven. T. J. Ormerod. Canons—Revs. M. Wodehouse, A. Sedgwick, G.
Archdall, and H. Philpott; besides 23 honorary and 4 minor canons.
All Saints, a small structure, with a square tower and three bells, contains an antique font with curiously carved figures of St. Paul and other
apostles. The living is consolidated with St. Julian, and the joint benefices were returned in 1831 at £246 per annum. The Rev. T. Gurney is rector.
St. Andrew, next to St. Peter Mancroft, the finest church in the city—was rebuilt in 1506. The font is massive. In the north aisle is a costly
monument, with effigies of Sir John and Lady Suckling, of whom there is an annual commemoration. The curacy is in the gift of the parishioners; the
Rev. A. C. Copeman was elected in 1857. Out of the proceeds of the sale of the church ornaments at the Reformation, the parish paid £17
towards the repair of the gates and walls, and £20 to that of the Great Hospital—both injured in Kett’s rebellion.
St. Augustine, an unpretending edifice, with a tower and three bells. Rev. M. J. Rackham, rector.
St. Benedict, a small building with a round tower. The parishioners are the patrons; perpetual curate—Rev. W. Goodwin.
St. Clement, one of the most ancient fabrics in the city. In the churchyard is the tomb of the parents of Archbishop Parker, rebuilt over the original,
in 1823, by Caius College; and also the “Leper’s tomb.” Rev. R. Rigg, rector.
St. Edmund, a small structure, founded in the time of the Conqueror, has a tower and one bell. Among the relics formerly preserved here, was a
piece of the shirt of St. Edward the King and Martyr, kept in a box of crystal, and visited with great reverence. The Rev. G. B. Everett, rector.
St. Etheldred is a small fabric, with a short tower and one bell. In the burial-ground was formerly an anchorage, which continued till after the
Reformation. Rev. J. Deacon incumbent.
St. George at Colegate is a large, handsome, gothic structure, rebuilt at different periods, and has a lofty tower. In the chancel is a fine altar tomb to
Robert Jannis, a great benefactor to this church; and near it a beautiful mural monument to John Herring, Esq. The window over the communion
table is of stained glass. In a vault is buried the elder Crome, the distinguished painter, who died in 1821. The Rev. A. W. Durdin, incumbent.
St. George at Tombland consists of a nave, chancel, and side aisles, and has a handsome square tower; it was erected by the parishioners in 1445.
In the interior are spacious galleries, and many monumental inscriptions. Rev. K. Trimmer, incumbent.
St. Giles, founded in the reign of William the Conqueror, by Elwyn the priest, who gave it to the monks of Norwich, was rebuilt in the reign of
Richard II., and is now one of the handsomest churches in the city. The tower, 120 feet high, contains a clock and eight bells, and is surrounded by
a cupola and battlement. The chancel has been demolished since 1581, when the dean and chapter, to quit themselves of the expense of repairing it,
gave all the materials to the parish, for “a stock to be put out for the encouragement of poor trades.” There are many curious old brasses, and
several neat mural monuments. Rev. R. Sedgwick incumbent.
St. Gregory is a lofty gothic structure, consisting of nave, side aisles, and chancel, the latter built in 1395; since which, the whole pile has received
many reparations. The font is very large, having an octagonal top, and on its eight sides the four evangelists, and figures emblematic of the four
quarters of the globe. In the nave is a fine brass reading-desk, in the shape of an eagle with expanded wings. Among the monuments is one to Sir
Francis Bacon, a Judge of the Court of King’s Bench, in the time of Charles II. Here are also some ancient brass inscriptions. Rev. W. R. Sharpe,
incumbent.
St. Helen—or the Great Hospital, previously mentioned as founded by Bishop Suffield, was originally built like a cathedral, in the form of a cross,
with nave, tower, aisles, and transept; the tower is all that remains entire, but the cloisters are still almost perfect. The men’s apartments occupy the
refectory and part of the nave and aisles, while the choir is appropriated to the women’s. Rev. W. F. Patteson, incumbent.
St. James’ (with Pockthorpe), is a small building, rebuilt in 1743. The font has some fine panel carvings. Rev. J. Ross, incumbent.
St. John Maddermarket, a handsome church, consisting of nave, side aisles, and a fine tower, was founded before the survey made in Edward the
p. 9
p. 10
Confessor’s time. The lead was removed, and the roof covered with slate in 1835. It contains many ancient sepulchral inscriptions, with a few
brasses and several neat mural tablets. Lady Margaret, Duchess of Norfolk (second wife of the duke beheaded in Elizabeth’s reign), died at the
Duke’s Palace in 1563, and was interred with great pomp on the north side of the choir, where a mural monument was raised to her memory in
1791. Rev. J. Perowne, rector.
St. John Sepulchre was founded before the Norman conquest. Rev. T. Calvert, incumbent.
St. John at Timberhill, so called from the timber market formerly held on the plain adjacent, has a small wooden steeple, in place of the tower which
fell down in 1784. Rev. S. Titlow, incumbent.
St. Julian, the smallest church in the city, and one of the oldest, was founded before the Conquest, and had an anchorage or hermitage in the
churchyard.
St. Lawrence is an ancient Gothic fabric, with a fine tower; was rebuilt in 1472. Over the west door are two ancient carvings, one representing the
martyrdom of St. Lawrence. Rev. P. U. Brown, rector.
St. Margaret has a square tower, in which were five bells till 1830, when four of them were sold to assist in defraying the expense of covering the
structure with blue slate. Rev. J. W. Cobb, rector.
St. Mary at Coslany was built in 1477, and contains six antique stalls. Rev. C. Morse, incumbent.
St. Martin at Oak derived the latter part of its name from a large oak, formerly standing in the churchyard, with the image of St. Mary in it. This was
much visited in superstitious times, and several legacies were given towards repairing and painting it. The oak now standing on the site was planted
about 60 years ago. On an alabaster tomb are effigies of Jeremiah Ravens and his wife. Rev. C. Caldwell, incumbent.
St. Martin at Palace is an ancient structure, where, in early times, a boys’ singing school was kept. Rev. A. Braddell, incumbent.
St. Michael at Coslany is a handsome structure, with a lofty embattled tower, containing a clock and eight musical bells. The interior of the church is
handsomely decorated. The altar-piece represents the Ascension, and the four evangelists; and the floor in front is paved with black and white
marble, from the domestic chapel of the Earl of Yarmouth, at Oxnead. On the south side is Thorp chapel, erected in 1508, of flint and freestone,
and one of the finest specimens of flint-work in the county. The church contains a very old font, several mural monuments, and some ancient
brasses. Rev. R. Rigg, rector.
St. Michael at Plea, so named from the Archdeacon of Norwich holding in it his Pleas or Courts, is built in the form of a cross, and has a square
embattled tower. There are some ancient paintings near the pulpit, well worthy of inspection. Rev. C. Morse, rector.
St. Michael at Thorn—a large thorn tree still grows in the graveyard—is a small structure, with a tower, built in 1436. Criminals executed at the
castle were formerly buried in the churchyard. Rev. C. T. Rust, incumbent.
St. Paul is a small structure with a round tower, and is in a dilapidated state. Rev. B. Cook, rector.
St. Peter Hungate, so called from the bishop’s hounds being formerly kept in the parish, is built of flint and stone. Rev. S. Titlow, rector.
St. Peter of Mancroft, the finest church in the city, was rebuilt of white stone in 1455. It has a noble tower, 98 ft. high, with a splendid peal of
twelve bells, exchanged for the old peal of ten in 1775, at a cost of £800. The font stands under a canopy supported by pillars, forming a baptistry
on a raised platform, which there is room enough to walk round. The church was greatly beautified about twenty years ago, by the putting in stained
glass windows, with figures of the apostles. Among the church plate is a beautiful large cup cover, on which is represented Abigail bringing presents
to David, presented by Sir Peter Gleane, 1633. In the vestry is a portrait of Sir Thomas Browne, who was buried here, and whose coffin was
accidentally broken open in 1840, when the skeleton was found in a good state of preservation. Several old books are also preserved in the vestry,
including a manuscript bible of 1340, and a beautifully illuminated copy of St. Paul’s Epistles, much more ancient. In the church are many
monuments and inscriptions. The parishioners are patrons, and the Rev. C. Turner is incumbent.
St. Peter per Mountergate—so named from a gate formerly adjacent—was erected in 1486. In the chancel are twenty-four stalls, which belonged
to a college of secular priests that stood in the churchyard. South of the altar are the tomb and effigies of R. Berney, Esq., and his wife; and in the
nave is interred Thomas Codd, mayor during Kett’s rebellion.
St. Peter of Southgate is an ancient building, with a square tower. Rev. J. Deacon, rector.
St. Saviour, a small fabric, dedicated to the Transfiguration, has a square embattled tower, and contains several neat mural monuments. In Bishop
Oxford’s time it was appropriated to the almoner of the cathedral convent. Rev. W. H. Cooke, incumbent.
St. Simon and Jude contains some ancient brasses, and several monuments and effigies of the Pettus’ family, upon one of which is a recumbent
figure, in complete armour, of Sir J. Pettus, the first of the family who was knighted. The church is of great antiquity, and was held by the bishops
before the removal of the see to Norwich. Rev. C. Holloway, rector.
St. Stephen is a commodious gothic structure, with two side chapels, and a square tower at the west end. The nave is divided from the aisles by
fluted columns with pointed arches, and the east window is richly beautified with stained glass. There are several old brasses and many mural
tablets. In the vestry is a manuscript description of the church, written by Benjamin Mackerell, author of a history of Lynn; also a curious old
alabaster carving. The church has lately undergone repairing and restoration. Rev. E. Evans, vicar.
St. Swithin is a neat structure, with a square tower and three bells. During the cleansing of the church in 1834, an ancient portrait of Edward the
Confessor was found nailed under one of the seats, where it is supposed to have been placed for security during the civil wars. The altar-piece is a
painting of Moses and Aaron. On the font are carved emblems of the Trinity, Eucharist, and the Passion, with the arms of East Anglia. Here are
also three stalls. Rev. R. C. Cavell, rector.
The following are the churches in the hamlets of the city:—
Christchurch (New Catton), which is in the parish of St. Clement, was erected in 1841. It is built of brick and flint, and cost £2500. Rev. R. Wade,
incumbent.
St. John the Baptist (Old Lakenham), situate on a declivity commanding a fine prospect; has a handsome font. The vicarage is united to Trowse
Newton. Rev. G. Carter, incumbent.
St. Mark (New Lakenham) was erected in 1844, and has 1000 sittings. It cost upwards of £4000; and has a nave, tower, and three bells. Rev. G.
I. Pellew, incumbent.
St. Matthew (Thorpe Hamlet) was built in 1851, of Kentish rag-stone. Rev. G. W. Grogan, incumbent.
St. Bartholomew (Heigham), a small edifice, contains a mural monument to Bishop Hall, who was buried here. Rev. G. C. Hoste, rector.
Trinity (or the Episcopal) Chapel, situate in Union place, Heigham, was originally a Baptist place of worship, but was consecrated in 1839. The
rector of Heigham is the officiating minister.
p. 11
p. 12
p. 13
St. Andrew (Eaton) is an ancient edifice, having a thatched roof. It lies near the river Yare, which separates the county of Norwich from the county
of Norfolk. The father of Henry Kirk White was buried here. Rev. G. Day, incumbent.
St. Mary (Earlham), also on the Yare, is a picturesque structure, bedecked with ivy. Rev. J. H. Payne, rector.
St. Mary (Hellesdon) stands just within the city boundary, part of the burial ground being in the county. The rectory is consolidated with Drayton.
Rev. H. Howell, rector.
CHAPELS.
The Old Meeting House, Colegate street, was erected in 1693 by the Independents, a congregation of which body had existed in Norwich since the
Commonwealth. They had originally assembled in a brewery in St. Edmund’s, and afterwards in the “west granary” of St. Andrew’s Hall. The Old
Meeting is built of red brick, fronted with four Corinthian pilasters. The Rev. John Hallett is the minister.
Prince’s Street Chapel, another Independent place of worship, was erected of white brick, with boldly-displayed cornice and pediment, and a Doric
portico of four columns. The cost was upwards of £4500. The Rev. John Alexander has been the minister ever since its erection.
A third Congregational Chapel, a very handsome building erected in the vicinity of Chapel Field, was opened in 1858. Rev. Philip Colborne,
minister.
The Tabernacle, St. Martin’s at Palace—originally built by the Calvinistic Methodists—was, in 1775, purchased by the Countess of Huntingdon.
Rev. J. J. J. Kempster, minister.
St. Mary’s (Baptist) was rebuilt in 1811 and enlarged in 1839. Its chief feature is a beautiful vaulted roof. The Rev. Joseph Kinghorn was for many
years the pastor. Rev. George Gould, minister.
St. Clement’s, another Particular Baptist place of worship, was built in 1814, at a cost of £5000. Rev. T. A. Wheeler, minister.
Orford Hill Chapel, also Baptist, was opened as a chapel in 1832. Rev. T. Corbet, minister.
Ebenezer Chapel, Surrey Road, was built in 1854; a gallery was subsequently added. The congregation had previously assembled in the Bazaar, St.
Andrew’s; the minister being the Rev. R. Govett, who, some years since, seceded from the Established Church.
There are several smaller structures in connexion with this denomination.
The General Baptists, established in the city since 1686, have a chapel in St. James’, erected in 1812 on part of the site of the White Friary. Rev.
Thomas Scott, minister.
The Octagon (Unitarian) Chapel, St. George’s, is a handsome building, of the shape implied by its name. It is surmounted by a dome, supported by
eight Corinthian pillars. It was erected in 1756, on the site of the old Presbyterian Meeting-house. Dr. John Taylor, and Dr. Enfield (compiler of the
Speaker) preached in this chapel. Rev. J. H. Hutton, minister.
The Society of Friends have two meeting-houses in Norwich; one of which, in Upper Goat Lane, is a fine white-brick structure, with Doric portico,
and lighted by a dome lantern. It was rebuilt in 1826. The other is the Gildencroft Meeting House, St. Augustine’s, erected in 1680. There is a
spacious burial-ground attached, in which are deposited the remains of Joseph John Gurney, Mrs. Opie, and other eminent Friends. This building is
supported by two lofty oak pillars, cut out of single trees.
The Roman Catholics have also two chapels. That in St. John’s Maddermarket is an ancient but plain structure, rebuilt in 1794; that in Willow
Lane, called the Chapel of the Apostles, is a handsome building, erected in 1828. The windows are of stained glass, and the interior decorations are
very striking.
The Dutch Church, in St. Andrew’s Hall, originally the Conventual Church of the Black Friars, was granted to the Walloon congregation; but they
now have service only once a year, when a sermon is preached in Dutch and afterwards in English. The building is used as a chapel to the
Workhouse, but it is expected that it will be occupied by the Free Christian Church when the New Workhouse, now being erected near the
Cemetery, has been completed.
Calvert Street Chapel, built by the Wesleyans in 1811. Since the recent disruption in that body, it has been held by the Reformers, or United
Methodist Free Church; as is also the case with New City Chapel, in Crook’s Place.
St. Peter’s Chapel (Lady’s Lane), held by the Conference Wesleyans, was built in 1824.
The Primitive Methodists have chapels in Heigham (St. Benedict’s Road), Lakenham (St. Catherine’s Plain), Cowgate Street, and New Catton.
The French Church, Queen Street—originally the parochial church of St. Mary Parva, and afterwards a cloth exchange—was granted, in 1637, to
the French Protestant refugees. It is now leased to the receivers of the doctrines enunciated by Emanuel Swedenborg, and the minister is the Rev.
David Goyder.
The Free Christian Church, St. Michael at Plea, which is unconnected with any particular denomination, was opened in 1852, upon its pastor, the
Rev. Joseph Crompton, quitting the Unitarians, of which denomination he had been minister.
The Jews—who were formerly very numerous in this city—have a handsome synagogue in St. Faith’s Lane. Rev. S. Caro, minister.
THE MONUMENTAL BRASSES OF NORWICH
AND NEIGHBOURHOOD.
To Archæologists visiting this ancient city, and particularly to those directing their attention to Monumental Brasses, the following list of Brasses in
Norwich and the principal villages in the neighbourhood, may be considered useful. They are classified under their distinctive characters, namely—
1st, Ecclesiastics; 2nd., knights; 3rd., civilians and ladies; 4th., miscellaneous. The list specifies those consisting of effigies generally perfect, with
their inscriptions, unless otherwise mentioned.
An alphabetical list of the churches, with the various brasses in each, is also appended.
ECCLESIASTICS.
1389. Richardus Thaseburgh, rector of Hellesdon.
Hellesdon.
p. 14
p. 15
1437. Galfridus Langley, installed Prior of Saint Faith the Virgin, at Horsham, 1401. St. Lawrence.
1450. John Alnwik, in academic costume.
Surlingham.
1487. Roger Clarke, priest.
St. Peter at Southgate.
1497. Walter Goos, priest.
St. Swithin.
1499. John Smyth, priest—chalice.
St. Giles’.
1499. Henry Alikok—chalice.
Colney.
Thome Coke, rector of Bodham.—Chalice lost, inscription only remaining.
St. Michael at Coslany.
An individual unknown.—Chalice.
Poringland Magna.
Randulphus Pulvertoft; inscription only
The Cathedral, (Jesus’ Chapel),
1531. William Richies, vicar of Bawburgh.
Bawburgh.
1545. Thome Capp, vicar.
St. Stephen.
KNIGHTS.
c1460. John Toddenham. A small figure, with scroll from the mouth.
St. John in
Maddermarket,
Norwich.
1499.
Thome Heveningham, and Anne, his wife.—This is a beautifully executed brass, and is placed under a canopy upon
an altar tomb. He died 1499. The blank intended for the date of the death of his wife still remains.
Ketteringham.
1559.
John Corbet, and Jane, his wife. He died 1470. The blank left for the date of her death still remains.
Sprowston.
1565.
Sir Edward Warner.
Plumstead Parva.
1568.
Sir Peter Rede.—Discovered to be a Palimpsest, in 1851.
St. Peter Mancroft,
Norwich.
CIVILIANS AND LADIES.
c1380. Richard de Heylesdone, and Beatrice, his wife.
Hellesdon.
1384.
John de Heylesdon, and Johanna, his wife. An inscription only.
Hellesdon.
1412.
Walter Moneslee, and Isabella, his wife.
St. John in
Maddermarket.
1432.
Robert Baxter, and Christiana, his wife.
St. Giles.
1435.
Robert Brasyer, and Christiana, his wife. A celebrated bell-founder.
St. Stephen.
Roberti Brasyer (mutilated).
St. Stephen.
1436.
Richard Purdaunce, and Margaret, his wife.
St. Giles.
1436.
John Asgar, the younger.
St. Lawrence.
c1445. Alice Thorndon.
Frettenham.
1460.
Thomas Bokenham, and wife.
St. Stephen.
c1460. A Lady (unknown).
Frettenham.
1470.
Jane Corbet, in Brass, of John Corbet, and Jane, his wife—see “Knights.”
Sprowston.
1475.
William Pepyr, and Joan, his wife, inscription and four shields lost.
St. John in
Maddermarket.
1475.
William Norwiche, and Alicia, his wife. A Bracket Brass. Canopy mutilated.
St. George at
Colegate.
1495.
John Horslee, and Agnes, his wife.
St. Swithin.
1499.
Anne Heveningham, in Brass, of Thome Heveningham, and Anne, his wife—see “Knights.”
Ketteringham.
A Lady (unknown). There are two Inscriptions, with a figure of a Child, inserted with this Brass, in the wall of the
church, which do not relate to it.
Ketteringham.
1501.
Richard Ferrers, Mayor of Norwich, in the years 1473, 1478, 1483, 1493, 1498. Merchant’s mark and inscription
only remaining.
St. Michael at
Coslany.
1502.
Thomas Cok.
St. Gregory.
1503.
Edward Ward.
Bixley.
1505.
William Dussing, and Katherine, his wife. In winding sheets.
Kirby Bedon.
1505.
Thome Tyard. In winding sheets.
Bawburgh.
c1510. Juliane Anyell.
Witton.
1514.
Margaret Pettwode.
St. Clement.
1515...
