This island (lately become a peninsula) is situated in the most eastern part of Great Britain and in the northern corner of the County of Suffolk. It is bounded by the German Ocean on the east, by the river Yare on the north, by the Waveney on the west, and by the beautiful and spacious water, the lake Lothing on the south; thus encircled by water on every side it is generally called the Island of Lothingland, and would strictly be so, did not a very narrow neck of land (near Lowestoft) intervene, and make it a peninsula. Its length, from north to south, is about ten miles; its breadth from east to west, about six miles; and contains sixteen parishes, viz.: Lowestoft, Corton, Gunton, Olton, Ashby, Lound, Fritton, Flixton, Hopton, Somerley, Blundeston, Gorleston, Belton, Burgh, Bradwell, and Herringfleet, of which Lowestoft is the principal, and is the only market town in the island. During the Saxon Heptarchy, this island was part of the kingdom of the East Angles. In respect to the civil government of the county, it is reckoned but a half hundred, the other half being the district of Mutford. They are generally called the half-hundreds of Mutford and Lothingland, but were incorporated as one hundred by an Act of Parliament in 1764, for the better relief of the poor, and for building an house of industry for their use.

In the ecclesiastical division of the county, this hundred was one of the rural deaneries under the archdeacon of Suffolk. Bishop Kennet, in his parochial antiquities, informs us that this office in the church was very ancient, for in one of the laws ascribed to Edward the Confessor, it is provided, that of eight pounds penalty for breach of the king’s peace, the king shall have an hundred shillings, the earl of the county fifty, and the dean of the bishop in whose deanery the peace was broken, the other ten; which words can be applied only to the office of rural deans, according to the respective districts which they had in parts of every diocese. At first their office was merely to inspect the manners and behaviour of the inferior clergy and people, but by degrees they became possessed of a power to judge and determine in smaller matters, and the rest they were to report to their ecclesiastical superiors. Some time before the Reformation, by the great power of the archdeacons and their officials, the jurisdiction of rural deans declined almost to nothing; and at that period no steps being taken for the restoration of this part of the government of the Church, their name and office unhappily ceased together, notwithstanding attempts have since been made to revive this ancient and useful institution, which in some places have been successful.

Rural Deans of the deanery of Lothingland, Anno 1325, Jeffrey de Boudon, priest, upon the resignation of William de Weston: 1326, John de Wynneferthyng; 1328, John de Thrillo; 1339, Edmund de Bokenham; 1376, Roger de Belton. [1]It has been conjectured by some, that the island took its name from the lake Lothing, but, I apprehend, without any foundation; it seeming more probable that both the island and lake derived their names from Lothbrock, a noble Dane, whose descendants, in order to perpetuate his memory, gave to this part of the kingdom of the East Angles—frequently the seat of war in their descents on the British coast—the name of Luddingland, Lovingland, Luthingland, or as it is now called Lothingland.

This Lothbroth was of royal race, and had two sons, named Ingwar and Hubba. It happened once, as he was alone in a boat hawking for birds near the island on the coast of Denmark, that he was driven by a sudden tempest across the German Ocean and was carried into the mouth of the Yare up as far as Reedham. The inhabitants of the country having discovered the stranger they brought him to Edmund, king of the East Angles, whose palace was at Caister, about ten miles from thence. The king was astonished at the man’s figure and fortune, and received him with a countenance and behaviour so engaging that Lothbroch relinquished every desire of returning to his own country again, and was so delighted also with the diversions of the courtiers, particularly that of hunting that he oftentimes accompanied Berno the king’s huntsman, in that amusement, in order to become more expert in it; and in a short time made such great proficiency therein, and so far excited the envy of his master that having seduced him into a wood under the pretence of hunting, he privately murdered him. While Lothbroch was missing, a vigilant greyhound which he had kept, guarded his body; but being at last stimulated with hunger he sometimes visited the royal palace, which being observed by the servants, it excited their curiosity to follow him on his return, and they presently discovered the murdered body of Lothbroch. Berno being suspected, was apprehended and found guilty of the crime, and was sentenced, by the order of the king’s court, to be put alone into Lothbroch’s boat, and without a compass or any other instrument was committed to the mercy of the wind and waves which fortunately carried him to Denmark. The boat being there known he was suspected of having been accessary to the death of Lothbroch; and being examined upon the rack concerning it, he affirmed that the murder was committed by Edmund, king of the East Angles.

The Danes having resolved to revenge the death of Lothbroch upon King Edmund and his subjects, levied an army of 20,000 men, made Ingwar and Hubba (the sons of Lothbroch) commanders in chief of the expedition; and having made every necessary preparation for the voyage, and taken Berno with them as a leader, who knew the country, they immediately embarked and set sail for East England in the year 865, in the tenth year of King Edmund’s reign; but meeting with contrary winds they were driven ashore at Berwick upon Tweed, in Scotland, where having committed the most violent outrages, and in some measure gratified their revenge for the murder of Lothbroch, they soon after returned home. But in the following year the relentless Danes re-visited our coasts, when after burning and destroying all they could meet with, and also having greatly harassed and had frequent skirmishes with King Edmund’s army, they returned to their own country. The year after, the Danes again renewed their descents on the British coast, and so far succeeded in their enterprises against King Edmund, that they reduced him to the utmost distress; for surrounding him in a certain place in the Island, where he was so inclosed with marshes and rivers, that it was almost impossible for him to escape, he was left to this dreadful alternative, either to surrender to his enemies or fight his way through them. Having resolved upon the latter, he sought out a place most convenient for his design, and having at last discovered a ford (which was called Berneford, from Berno,) and now called Barnby, he passed it, and falling furiously upon his enemies, he routed them with a great slaughter, and compelled them to return immediately to Denmark. [3] In the succeeding year, the Danes returned again to England, and having committed the most horrid ravages in divers part of it, they came to Ely, where Hubba being left to guard their spoil, Ingwar, with his army entered East England, when, after committing many barbarous cruelties at Thetford, he sent a message to King Edmund, who was then at Eglesdune (now Hoxne, in Suffolk), proposing to him that if he would renounce christianity, pay adoration to his idols, and become his vassal and servant, he would then divide not only his treasure but also his kingdom with him. No sooner did the king receive this message than he marched with his whole army against the Danes and engaging them at a place not far from Thetford, the contending armies fought with great obstinacy from morning till evening, and great numbers were slain on both sides, when the Danes retreated from the field of battle. But the pious king was so exceedingly affected at the fate of so many martyrs who had shed their blood in this battle in defence of the christian faith as well as for the unhappy end for such a numerous body of Pagans that he returned with the shattered remains of his army to Eglesdune with a resolution excited by religious considerations never to engage any more in battle with the Pagans, but if it was necessary to appease their rancour by yielding himself up as a sacrifice for his people and for his christian faith. The army belonging to Ingwar was much diminished from the loss he sustained in this battle; but receiving information of Edmund’s retreat he instantly proceeded to Thetford, where, being joined by Hubba with 10,000 men, the brothers united their forces and pursued the unhappy king to Eglesdune, where, taking him prisoner he was martyred in the year 871, in the 29th year of his reign; and with him expired the kingdom of the East Angles.

After the death of Edmund, the Danes settled themselves in Lothingland, to which tract of land they are supposed to have given that name, in remembrance of their ancestor Lothbroch.

The following tradition respecting the death of King Edmund, is current in the parish of Hoxne to this day; namely, that the King, after he had relinquished every intention of opposing the Danes any farther, in consequence of the horrid carnage which the numerous contests between them had occasioned, fled to this village for safety, but finding himself closely pursued by his enemies, was obliged for security, to conceal himself under a bridge in that parish, now called Gold Bridge, so named from the gilt spurs which the king happened to have on whilst there concealed. A newly-married couple that were returning home in the evening, saw, by moonlight, the king’s spurs glitter in the water, and immediately discovered him to the Danes, who instantly put him to death. The king, in the warmth of resentment, pronounced a curse upon every couple that should afterwards pass over this bridge to be married. A superstitious regard is paid to this sentence even to this day; as not one will pass over the bridge in their way to the parish church on that occasion. It is now about a thousand years since the event happened, and is a remarkable instance of the length of time which traditions in parishes are sometimes continued.

The Danes, when they got the king into their possession, endeavoured to prevail with him to renounce the christian faith; which he refusing to do, they first scourged him with whips, and afterwards bound him to a stake and shot him to death with arrows. He was first buried in an obscure wooden chapel at Eglesdune (now Hoxne), but being afterwards esteemed a martyr, and canonized by the Church, his bones were removed to Bury St. Edmund’s, where a magnificent abbey was erected to his memory.

It appears from that ancient survey of the landed property of this kingdom, the Book of Domesday, that the fee of this hundred was originally in the crown, for that record informs us that Earl Guert [4a] held Gorleston, (and probably the whole island), in the reign of Edward the Confessor; and describing the extent and property of this manor in the time of Edward, and comparing them with the survey made in the reign of William the Conqueror, it says it contained five carucates of land; that there were then twenty villains, now only twelve; five bornars, then five servants, now only four; then two carucates in demesne, now but one; then cattle for five carucates of land, now only three; then two workhouses, now none; ten acres of meadow land, three salt pans, wood for five hogs, always three hundred sheep, and twenty-four fishermen at Yarmouth.

Both history and tradition informs us that some centuries since, there were numerous and violent disputes between the lords of this island and the men of Great Yarmouth, respecting the privileges of that burgh; and whereas it was alleged that those privileges had been greatly infringed by the said lords of the island.

King John in the ninth year of his reign, granted the burgesses of Yarmouth a charter, whereby it was created a free burgh, the burgesses were thereby invested with many valuable commercial privileges, and empowered to hold it in fee farm [4b] paying to the king and fisheries an annual rent of £55 for ever; for payment whereof they had nothing but the customs arising out of the port, not being allowed to receive any custom of goods bought or sold in the market in Lothingland at any time of the year.

Soon after the granting of this charter, the burgh of Great Yarmouth became most flourishing, and made a more respectable figure in trade and commerce than before; and whilst Yarmouth and Lothingland were both holden in the king’s hands, no disputes about customs arose betwixt them, nor do any records now extant mention any suits about them, payable at this or that place, but as the charter had invested the men of Yarmouth with the sole property of their land, as well as their merchandise, they sought to monopolize the trade to themselves, and to hinder the king’s tenants of Lothingland from enjoying any part with them. [4c]

The granting these privileges to the burgh of Yarmouth, was effectually emancipating the inhabitants; no sooner, therefore, had this charter passed, than the men of Lothingland, and particularly the inhabitants of Little Yarmouth and Gorleston (much more considerable places than now) began to be alarmed at the acquisitions of their neighbours, and dreaded their future power. In consequence of this grant several infringements were made, and many disputes arose; however, they did not arise to any considerable degree, till about the twelfth year of Henry III., when Roger Fitz-Osbert [4d] who was then the king’s bailiff or warden of Lothingland, endeavoured to draw the trade of herrings and other goods to his own side of the river Yare, and took certain customs in the port of Yarmouth, contrary to the liberties which the burgesses claimed by their charter.

Complaints against these proceedings of the bailiff of Lothingland were exhibited by the burgesses of Yarmouth, and king Henry, willing to terminate the dispute, as being a party concerned, and being also desirous of being informed what customs really belonged to Yarmouth, and what to his manor of Lothingland, sent Martin de Patteshall, an itinerant justice, to determine it, who took an inquisition at Yarmouth upon the oaths of forty-eight persons belonging to the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk, upon which a verdict was found, that all wares ought to be unladen and sold at Great Yarmouth, and that all the haven belonged to the burgesses of Yarmouth; but that small merchandise and provisions of all kinds might be unladen on the Yarmouth or Lothingland side of the river, at the option of the owners or importers thereof. This affair being thus decided, the respective parties continued for some time on more amicable terms, but it was of short duration, for upon king Henry’s exchanging the manor of Lothingland, and the rent of the fee-farm of Yarmouth, in 1228, with John de Baliol, for certain lands in Cheshire, it opened a new source of contention; for although the men of Yarmouth had seemingly the advantage in the late decision yet, as a license was given to unlade ships with provisions on either side, and as fish—which was the chief merchandise then carried on—was evidently included in that permission, they soon found, that in reality, they had gained no other advantage than an expensive suit and an ambiguous decree. John de Baliol seems to have been as well apprized of this as of their inability to dispute it with him, for in 1244 he brought a writ against the burgesses for depriving him of his customary tolls in Little Yarmouth, which alarmed them so much, that, two years after, we find them soliciting the king for a new exclusive charter, that all merchandises and wares, as well fish as other commodities, should be sold at Yarmouth only by the hands of the importers thereof.

Whatever were King Henry’s motives for thus confining the trade, and injuring the property which John de Baliol undoubtedly had in it, I know not, but he granted the burgesses their request, and gave them a new charter agreeable to their desires; notwithstanding which, I find the bailiff of Lothingland took the usual customs the very next year, and also continued to do so whilst the manor remained in the hands of the Baliols, and consequently fresh disputes about the customs were continually arising.

In 1259 John de Baliol died, and was succeeded by his son, John de Baliol, afterwards king of Scotland, and it appears that the usual disputes were in agitation during the time he held this manor; but upon his acquiring the kingdom of Scotland, the burgesses of Yarmouth were obliged to submit to so powerful an opponent, for we find, he levied the following customs; for every foreign ship, eighteen pence; and of every English ship trading to or from the port of Yarmouth, fourpence; of every cart or horse-load of merchandize passing through his manor a half-penny; and for every last of herrings imported for a foreign merchant, fourpence; of every stall, fourpence; and of every window where bread was placed to sell, fourpence. The last is a remarkable article for a tax; and I can account for it no other way than by supposing the men of Yarmouth used to make bread and send it to be sold at Little Yarmouth and Gorleston for the supply of their herring fleet, in case of necessity.

The manor of Lothingland and fee-farm of Yarmouth being in the hands of the Baliols, by virtue of the above-mentioned exchange, were now in the actual possession of John de Baliol, king of Scots; but upon this king’s renouncing his homage to King Edward 1st, all his English estates became forfeited, and by his resignation afterwards of his person, his dignity, his kingdom, and all his private states, the said manor of Lothingland, and the fee-farm of Yarmouth, once more reverted to the crown. This was accounted by the burgesses of Yarmouth as a most happy deliverance, they thereby getting rid of a troublesome and powerful neighbour, who not only vigorously supported the rights of his manor, but interfered also with their trade, and was willing to become a partner in their gains; for the Baliols, both father and son, had for many years, by their bailiffs, greatly infringed on the liberties of Yarmouth, by taking customs in that port, contrary to its charters, to the great injury of the burgesses which they were under the necessity of submitting to as being unable to contend with such powerful adversaries. But after the above forfeiture the burgesses of Yarmouth adjudging it to be a seasonable opportunity for having their grievances redressed, made application to King Edward 1st in the 34th year of his reign, to have the charter granted by his predecessor Henry 3rd more clearly explained, and to be expressed in such manner as should leave no room for farther disputes.

The king in order to compromise the difference between the respective parties, requested the assistance of his council; and notwithstanding the opposition from Little Yarmouth and Gorleston, yet it appearing upon enquiry that as the manor of Lothingland and fee-farm of Yarmouth were now in the hands of the said King Edward, and that certain privileges had been granted to the burgesses of Great Yarmouth by the charter of Henry 3rd, therefore his said Majesty, in the year above-mentioned, complied with the request of the burgesses, and both explained and ratified the said charter of King Henry. [6]The manor of Lothingland continued in the crown but a short time; for king Edward 1st in his 34th year, anno 1306, gave it, with all Baliol’s English estates, to John de Britainy, Earl of Richmond, his sister’s son. [7a]

The burgesses of Yarmouth, however well pleased they might at first appear with the loss of their old neighbours, quickly found that they had acquired nothing by the exchange, for John de Britainy was no less determined upon a vigorous defence of the rights of his manor than his predecessors; and as he was a much more powerful opponent, so, in the end, he was a much more troublesome one. Previous, however, to the settlement of the manor of Lothingland upon this nobleman, the burgesses of Yarmouth had obtained from king Edward a charter confirming that of his father, and commanding that all fish and other merchandize brought up the river should be sold at Yarmouth only, and that no person whatever should purchase any goods as they were carrying up the stream. Thus, in spite of the absurdity and injustice of making all commercial transactions centre in themselves, under the pretence of their being a free burgh by charter, the men of Yarmouth effectually hindered those of Little Yarmouth and Gorleston from sharing in the trade, which their situation rendered them as equally capable of carrying on to advantage as their neighbours. Such was the state of affairs between the contending parties, when the grant of the manor of Lothingland was given to the Earl of Richmond. Though it appears he took no cognizance of their disputes till the 2nd of Henry 3rd, anno 1328, yet he could not remain so long ignorant of them; though it is probable the distance of his residence (Richmond Castle, in Yorkshire) from this place and the small account a nobleman of his large possessions must naturally make, of so trifling an addition to them, might render him unwilling to engage in an expensive suit, which at best, could procure him very insignificant advantages. However, after repeated application from the inhabitants of Gorleston and Little Yarmouth, and the rest of the tenants of Lothingland, [7b] about the 8th and 19th of Edward 2nd, the Earl, about the year above mentioned, exhibited a petition to king Edward 3rd.; in which he alleged, that half the haven of Yarmouth belonged to him in right of his manor; and that he ought to have as his ancestors, who held this manor before him, undoubtedly had, the arriving, discharging, and laden of ships, goods and merchandizes, and a free buying and selling for his tenants of Little Yarmouth and Gorleston, as had been the case till king Henry 3rd by his charter to the burgesses, granted that these things should belong solely to Great Yarmouth, and the aforesaid free buying and selling should be done there only; and as the burgesses of Yarmouth claimed all their restrictive power from this charter, the earl wisely considered, that without removing the cause, the effect must still subsist; therefore, in the same petition he attacked the charter itself, and represented to the king, that it had not been rightly granted king Henry not being timely apprized of the destructive tendency such a grant must necessarily have upon the fishing trade, how contrary its dictates were to the common rights of mankind, and, particularly, how injurious to the crown itself, as the original proprietor of the manor of Lothingland. So severe an attack upon the Yarmouth palladium, roused the burgesses from their wonted security, and they were summoned to appear personally before the king and his Council, to make their defence against the Earl and to produce their charters, records, and reasons to the contrary. The burgesses accordingly appeared, and urged in their behalf, that the claims demanded by the Earl were erroneous and ill-grounded: and exhibited several grants given them by preceding kings, as the charter of king John, that of Henry 3rd, the confirmation of the same by Edward 1st, and the decisions in favour of the burgh, in the 8th and 19th of Edward 2nd, in the Exchequer and other courts, all tending to confirm the rights they claimed, and to invalidate the earl’s assertions; in which they had ever been victorious.

The burgesses of Yarmouth founded the merits of their cause on the charter which had incorporated them. The men of Lothingland, on ancient customs before those charters existed; alledging that the Manor was part of the ancient demesne of the crown, and that the customs and privileges claimed by the Earl of Richmond and his tenants, are the same as were demanded in the times of Canute and Harold, and the succeeding kings of England, being owners of the said Manor, and by many other pleadings, they asserted their lawful right to those privileges, both by prescription and long-continued possession; but, after hearing the controversy, the cause was determined in favour of Yarmouth, and the burgesses triumphed once more over their rival neighbours.

The ill success of this application did not deter the Earl from making another, which had the same great end in view, the wresting from the burgesses their great Charter of Incorporation; but, after many pleadings and decisions, before the king and council, the parliament and the judges, the Earl had no better success than before; for in the end it only served to strengthen the designs of the men of Yarmouth, by the entire overthrow of the adverse party; the affair being at length finally determined in favour of the burgesses, 5th Edward 3rd, anno 1332.

The men of Lothingland, who had, probably, formed the highest expectations of success, from the great power and credit of their patron, the Earl of Richmond now saw themselves left entirely to the mercy of the elated burgesses, who, on all occasions, exerted their power over them with a malevolence considerably inflamed by the late dissensions; they had also the mortification to see that power fixed upon the strongest and most unalterable basis, by an extensive charter, confirming all their former rights, and adding many valuable liberties to those they already enjoyed.

Thus ended this litigious and destructive controversy, in which the inhabitants of Lothingland had been engaged for more than one hundred years. The motives which actuated each party were strictly the same; the one strove for the continuance of those liberties which Henry’s charter had deprived them of; the other, to retain the rights they had acquired, so beneficial to themselves, at the expense of their neighbours. It is not to be doubted, that this was considered by the men of Yarmouth as an object of the highest importance. A grant which gave a restrictive trading power to one place, in prejudice to another, must, of course, draw within its gates all those who wished to advance their interest, or enlarge their property.

The well-being of any commercial town must depend upon the conveniency of its situation for traffic, but, in this case, their opponents were equally fortunate as themselves; the same stream flowing equally between them, and the same conveyance which brought emolument to the one, would have carried opulence to the other. To the final determination of this controversy in their favour, the town of Yarmouth is chiefly indebted for the prosperity it now enjoys; whilst its rivals, Gorleston and Little Yarmouth, are sunk into obscure villages, and particularly the latter, of which hardly anything more than the name remains. In the following year, the earl of Richmond, who had gone over into France, to settle some matters relative to the estate which he there held as earl of Britainy, died in that kingdom, without issue, and was succeeded to his manors and estates by John de Dreux, son of Arthur, earl of Britainy; and he dying in 1342, they were granted by Edward III. to John, duke of Britainy, and earl of Montford in France; who was advanced to this dignity on account of his adherence to the interest of king Edward in that kingdom, for which cause the king of France had seized upon his possessions. [8]After the above decision, which established the burgesses of Great Yarmouth, in the peaceable possession of all their ancient privileges, the animosities and disturbances, which had agitated the contending parties for a century past, appear to have subsided; and they maintained a more friendly intercourse with each other, without any material interruption, until the reign of Queen Elizabeth; but, in the 12th year of the reign of that princess, new dissensions arose, which were combated with a considerable degree of violence and animosity, between the burgesses of Great Yarmouth, and Sir Henry Jerningham and his tenants, the men of Little Yarmouth and Gorleston, concerning divers liberties claimed by Great Yarmouth, respecting the free fair holden at the said town; and also concerning a parcel of waste ground, lying on the south side of the haven’s mouth, near the town of Gorleston; which, some time ago, when the course of the haven extended to the south of Corton, was situate between the neck of the haven and the main sea; and because the said haven had at this time a shorter neck or passage to the sea, obtained by the town of Great Yarmouth, at an immense expense, and was brought further to the north, consequently the above-mentioned waste ground must lie to the south of the haven’s mouth, as then situated; and as Sir Henry Jerningham was owner, not only of the town of Gorleston, but also of the greater part of Lothingland in which Gorleston is situated, the claim of the burgesses of Yarmouth must materially affect the property of Sir Henry. In order therefore, to restore peace and tranquility to the several parties, the matter in dispute was referred to the arbitration of Sir Christopher Heydon, and Sir William Butts, knights, by virtue of a commission from the Star-Chamber, who finally determined the difference in such a fair and equitable manner, as met with the approbation of both parties.

But, notwithstanding this affair was so amicably adjusted, fresh disputes arose, shortly after, between the town of Great Yarmouth and some neighbouring towns, respecting a fair that was held at Gorleston; and as Queen Elizabeth, at that time, happened to be at Norwich, her majesty deputed several lords of her retinue to proceed to Yarmouth, and survey the premises; which orders being accordingly executed, they made a report thereof to the Queen; and the following letter from the Privy Council, was sent to the Sheriff and Justices of the county of Suffolk, respecting the same.

A copy of the letter sent from the Lords of the Queen’s Majesty’s Privy Council, to the Sheriff, and also the Justices of Suffolk, in August, 1578, after that the Lord Treasurer, the Lord of Leicester, and others of the Council, had viewed and seen the town; (all these noblemen were elegantly entertained at the priory, at the town’s expense) the Queen being at Norwich, on her tour at the time. [9a]

After our hearty commendations—Whereas the town of Great Yarmouth is situated upon the frontiers of the sea, in the county of Norfolk, near the county of Suffolk; and great care has been taken by the ancestors of our Sovereign Lady, the Queen’s Majesty, for the maintenance and preservation of the said town, and divers liberties and privileges have been granted, by the progenitors of her majesty, to that intent and purpose; amongst which there is one privilege, granted unto the burgesses of the town of Great Yarmouth, that no fair or market should be kept or holden at any place or places within seven leuks [9b] of the said town, either of fish in general, or herrings in particular, or any other kind of merchandizes, but only at the town of Great Yarmouth: which said grants and liberties are thought very necessary to be continued and protected, for that the Yarmouth men do expend great costs and charges upon the haven belonging to the said town. We understanding, nevertheless, that divers and sundry persons heretofore have sought, and do daily seek, to keep and hold a fair, for buying, selling, and delivering herrings, and other fish, and divers other merchandizes, at the town of Gorleston, in the county of Suffolk, which is within the mouth of the said haven of Yarmouth. We have therefore, thought good to charge and require, you that you give due information unto the inhabitants of the said town of Gorleston, and to all other persons repairing thither, that they suffer no such fair or market, or any buying, selling or delivering of herrings, or any other fish or merchandise, at the said town, or at any other place within the said haven of Great Yarmouth, but only at the said town, or in the road of the said town, at any time or times, from the beginning of the herring fair or fishing, now, next ensuing, until the end of the said herring fair or fishing, as they tender Her Majesty’s pleasure, and will answer the contrary at their perils. And if you shall receive information of any person or persons, either seller or buyer, that shall be obstinate, or act contrary to this Her Majesty’s command, you shall bind the said persons to appear before us, to answer their contempt in that behalf. And, finally, we desire you to use all the good means you can, to see the design of this our letter put in due execution. And so we bid you heartily farewell.

Your loving friends, &c.

From Thetford, the 27th August, 1578.

In consequence of this letter the men of Gorleston, Lowestoft, and other towns upon the coast, in the county of Suffolk, presented a petition to Her Majesty’s Privy Council, praying to have this letter recalled. Whereupon the burgesses of Yarmouth sent up immediately to the Privy Council, William Harebrowne and Thomas Damett, with their charters and decrees, to answer the complaints presented by the above-mentioned towns; and succeeded so far in their application as to obtain the following decree, which was issued forth by the Lords of the Privy Council, and which finally determined the dispute. [10]

A Decree, made by the Lords and others of the Queen’s Majesty’s Privy Council, upon a matter in controversy between the town of Great Yarmouth, in the county of Norfolk, and the towns of Little Yarmouth and Gorleston, and other towns, in Suffolk, after divers hearings of both parties; and put in writing and subscribed the four and twentieth day of February, in the one and twentieth year of the reign of our Sovereign Lady, the Queen’s Majesty, Elizabeth, and in the year of our Lord one thousand, five hundred and eighty.

Whereas, upon complaint exhibited before us by Henry Gunvyle, of Gorleston, and John Hoo, of Gunton, gent.; William Frenche, of Lowestoft, and John Fox, of Aldborough, merchants; as well in their own names, as also in the names of the inhabitants of the said towns, and of other coast towns of Suffolk, against the bailiffs, burgesses, and commonalty of the town of Great Yarmouth, in the county of Norfolk; the substance of which complaint and controversy consisteth in this: Whether, by the liberties belonging to the said town of Great Yarmouth, all kinds of merchandize, and also herrings and all other fish, being brought into the haven of Great Yarmouth, should, be unladen and discharged at the said town of Great Yarmouth, or elsewhere (saving only to Gorleston and Little Yarmouth, their own proper merchandize, and fish, brought in their own bottoms, and none other; but excepting such ships belonging to these towns as are laden with wool, leather, wool-skins, and other merchandize, whereof great custom ought to be paid, and to be discharged in the port where the Queen’s Majesty’s trone [11] and seal called the Coquet do remain). Which liberty is challenged by the said town of Great Yarmouth: and, for support thereof, there have been shewed forth sundry charters, judgments, and decrees, all affirming the said liberties to belong to Great Yarmouth; and not by any allegations for the other parties, justly disproved.

And, forasmuch, as upon the deliberate hearing of the allegations of both parties, concerning the said controversy, there hath not been shewn before us any sufficient matter to make void the said liberties, challenged by the said town of Great Yarmouth, by virtue of their charters: We do therefore order and decree that the said town of Great Yarmouth, and the bailiffs, burgesses, and commonalty thereof, shall stand possessed of, and quietly hold and enjoy, the said liberties, by them claimed according to their said charters; and that no delivering, buying, or selling of herrings, or any other fish, or any merchandizes, coming into the said haven be made, kept, or holden, but only at the said town of Great Yarmouth, or where the bailiffs, burgesses, and commonalty of the said town will appoint the same to be done, and not elsewhere: excepting only to the said towns of Little Yarmouth and Gorleston, and the inhabitants thereof, liberty to land and receive, at the said towns, all such herrings, and other fish, and merchandizes, as shall be their own, and taken and brought into that haven in their own boats and vessels, without any colouring, fraud, or covyn (saving those ships belonging to the said towns of Little Yarmouth and Gorleston, as are laden with wool, leather, wool-skins, and other things, whereof great customs ought to be paid, which shall be discharged in the port of Great Yarmouth, and at the same place where the Queen’s Majesty’s trone and seal, called the Coquet) do remain, and not elsewhere.

And, for the better publication and observation of this our order and decree, we do not only will and require the said complainants to publish the tenor thereof, in the said coast towns, but, also, have ordered, that the justices of assizes of the said county, shall be by us required to give in charge to the Justices of the Peace there, to have good regard, that the same may be performed, and put in the execution, without any manner of disturbance; and, that if any person or persons shall wilfully disobey this order, that then the next justice of the peace of the said county, shall take sufficient bond of the said party to appear before us, and to answer his contempt in that behalf. And this our order and decree shall stand and remain in full force, until such time as the said complainants, or any other persons, in behalf of the said towns, shall justly shew, and prove before us, such good matter as may move us to revoke this our present or derand decree.

Given at Westminster, the day and year above written,

(Signed,)

Lord Burleigh, Lord Lincoln, Lord Sussex, Lord Warwick,
Lord Leicester, Lord Hunsdon, Sir Francis Knolly’s,
Sir James Crofte, Sir Christopher Hatton, Sir Francis
Walsingham, Sir Walter Mildmay; T. Wilson, Secretary.

Afterwards in the year 1616 we find the bailiffs of Great Yarmouth petitioning for leave to extend their jurisdiction, or power, on the west side of the haven; but it does not appear, that they ever acquired any authority there till the 20th of Charles II., when Southtown was incorporated with Great Yarmouth; for about that time Sir Robert Paston, being desirous of adjusting the differences which had for so many years subsisted between the town of Great Yarmouth and Little Yarmouth (or Southtown) and Gorleston, brought a bill into the House of Commons in the year 1664, for incorporating the former with Southtown, which was accordingly effected.And, again, in the 36th of Charles II. a new charter was granted to Great Yarmouth, wherein the said incorporation was confirmed, and other grants and privileges subjoined; and was afterwards confirmed again by another charter, granted in the reign of Queen Anne, and remains incorporated to this day.

It appears from what has been premised, that this island, as part of the ancient demesne of the crown, was held in the time of Edward the Confessor, by Earl Guert; in the time of William the Conqueror, by Earl Warren; [12a] and in the time of Henry III., by Roger Fitz-Osbert [12b] afterwards it descended to the Baliols; but, upon John de Baliol’s renouncing his homage to Edward I. and thereby forfeiting all his English estates, it again reverted to the crown, and king Edward I. in the 34th year of his reign gave the island to his nephew John de Britainy, earl of Richmond, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth the greatest part of the island belonged to Sir Henry Jerningham [12c] In the reign of Charles II. the part contiguous to Gorleston was in the hands of Sir Robert Paston, knight.

History informs us, that the island of Lothingland has experienced a variety of vicissitudes from the irruptions of the sea; and that the coast which is washed by the German Ocean, was, in former ages, very different in its appearance from which it is at present. A large arm of the sea, at the time when the Romans were in Britain, extended itself, on the north side of the island, several miles westward of the ground whereon Yarmouth is now situated; and the mouth of the Yare, or, rather, arm of the sea, at that time, was very large, and discharged itself into the ocean by two channels, (being separated by the sand-bank on which Yarmouth was afterwards built) the one near Caister, and the other near Gorleston. It is highly probable that before the Christian era, this extraordinary effect of the secret operations of the ocean, had not commenced; and that previous to that period, the Yare discharged itself into the sea by one channel only.

The reason why this sand-bank was not formed before that time, is one of those secrets of Providence which, to us, continues unexplored.

The north-east winds appear to have been the apparent cause of forming the sand-bank at the mouth of that river; and is an inconvenience to which it is subject, even at this present time.

The original name of the bank was, the Cerdick Sand; from Cerdick, a warlike Saxon, who, about the year 495, landed here; and who, after having routed the opposing Britons, and greatly harassed the Iceni with a very grievous war, sailed to the western parts of Britain, where he founded the kingdom of the West Saxons.

The mouth of the former of these channels being entirely choaked up by the north-east winds, the whole stream fell, afterwards, into the latter; and this last-mentioned channel having its entrance so frequently blocked up by the sand-banks formed by these winds, that its course was greatly altered, and extended a considerable distance to the south of Gorleston, before it was able to discharge itself into the sea. These obstructions still continuing, the mouth of the haven kept proceeding still further to the south, till, at last, it reached even to the south of Corton, before it was able to force its passage into the ocean.

The mouth of the haven, from these obstructions, being carried thus far to the south, and having such numerous sands and shallows formed therein, especially between the 10th and 20th of Edward III, that its navigation became extremely dangerous, and but few ships of burthen could enter there with safety; and, consequently, was so detrimental to Yarmouth, that it greatly affected the trade, which for many years had subsisted there, as well as the commerce of the adjacent country.

Whereupon, the bailiffs, burgesses, and commonalty of Great Yarmouth, presented a petition to king Edward III, in the 20th year of his reign, for liberty to cut a new mouth to the haven, nearer to Yarmouth than it was at that time; which petition being granted, a new communication with the ocean was accordingly opened, and confined with piers, opposite to the parish of Corton. This great undertaking was accomplished at an immense expense, and was confined to this place for the space of twenty-six years; (46th of Edward III), when it began again to be so much choked up with sand, that no vessels of any considerable burden could enter, but were obliged to unload their cargoes in an adjoining place, called Kirkley Road, which was near the mouth of the said haven. The king, being informed of the great difficulties which the town of Great Yarmouth laboured under, from the dangerous state of its haven, and how utterly unable they were thereby rendered of paying the fee-farm rent due to his majesty, from the great quantity of merchandise that was obliged to be unladen in the adjoining place called Kirkley Road, and which, by that means, escaped paying the usual customs to Yarmouth, his majesty, in consideration of these misfortunes, was pleased to grant a charter for uniting the said Road of Kirkley unto the port and haven of Yarmouth; [13a] upon condition, that the said burgesses of Great Yarmouth would pay to the king and his successors, an additional rent of 100s. yearly: and also granted unto the said burgesses full power to demand and receive the same duties in the said Kirkley road, as in the port and haven of Yarmouth, for ever. [13b]

It is very evident, to an attentive observer, that the whole of the flat country, which lies between Caister and Burgh, extending about four miles, and forms a considerable part of the water called Braydon, was once covered by the German Ocean; and that the mouth of the Yare, at that time, was an estuary, or arm of the sea, and extended, with considerable magnitude, for many miles up the country. Tradition, the faithful preserver of many a fact which history has overlooked or forgotten, confidently and invariably asserts it; and the present appearance of the ancient bed of the river, from Yarmouth to Harleston, in Norfolk, tends to confirm it. Probably the points of land whereon Beccles, Bungay, and Homersfield are situated, and which protruded themselves into the ancient river, might serve as convenient situations for placing beacons and other signals, announcing the approach of an enemy, at the time when the Romans, Saxons, and Danes invaded and gained possession of the island; and might, from thence give birth to the origin of those towns. The case may be the same in respect to other places situated on points of land on the borders both of the Yare and the Waveney. What is here suggested may receive farther confirmation from an inspection of the above ancient map of Garienis Oestium, or mouth of the Yare, as given in the Ives’s Garianonum, [14a] which represents this part of the country as it appeared in the year one thousand; and which, also, affords considerable assistance in forming a just conception of the ancient boundaries of these rivers, at the time when the Romans and other foreign invaders were in possession of this island.

The mouth of the Waveney on the south of the island, was also at this time very large, and discharged itself into the ocean between Lowestoft and Kirkley. [14b] The conflux of waters arising from the communication which these two rivers had with the sea, the one at Yarmouth and the other at Lowestoft, was so great, when they formed a junction as to render the Waveney navigable some miles beyond Harleston in Norfolk. [14c]

After that the sea had considerably receded from the river between Lowestoft and Kirkley, yet it still preserved a small communication with it; and therefore, whenever a violent storm arose from the north-west, at the time when the waters were increased by the spring tides, it would flow into the river with great violence, and threaten the adjacent country with an inundation. To guard against these irruptions of the ocean, and prevent the damages that would otherwise ensue, a break-water was erected between Lowestoft and Kirkley, as a security for the low grounds and marshes which laid contiguous to the river.

For it appears, that on the 6th February, 1652, a verdict was given by the jury, on a commission of sewers, of the number of acres of low grounds in the several towns in Norfolk and Suffolk, which were subject to inundations from the sea-breach between Lowestoft and Kirkley; wherein it was found that in the parishes of Ellingham and Kirby only, there were 482 acres, and one rood of low ground subject to those inundations, the annual value whereof was £87 18s. 10d., and which paid to the charge of the said breach £7 4s. 9d.; and it was also found, by the said commission of sewers, that, in the manor of Earsham there were 418 acres of low grounds liable to inundation from the said sea-breach, valued at £330 and paid £13 10s. 6d. towards repairing the same. [14d]And at a commission of sewers, held at the Swan Tavern, at Lowestoft, the 21st February, 1660, before Sir Thomas Meadows, Knight; Henry Bacon, John Duke, John Garnies, William Cooke, William Cooke, the younger; John Playters, Francis Brewster, William Gooch, John Baispoole, Esquires; Robert London, Thomas London, Philip Hayward, Christopher Reeve, Glover Denny, Gisleham Wollhouse, Henry Jenkenson and Anthony Jenkenson, gentlemen, commissioners; the two following questions were proposed, viz.:

1st. Whether the work at the sea-breach between Lowestoft and Kirkley should stand in its present state until an engineer shall come or not?

2nd. Whether the fortifications (or fence of the sea-breach) shall be made at Mutford Bridge, or at the sea?

When it was resolved by the Court and ordered, “That the work and fortifications shall be proceeded upon forthwith without delay; and that the said work and fortification shall be made and done at the sea-shore, where the bank or wall formerly was made, or thereabouts.”

It was further ordered by the Court, “That the sum of six hundred pounds should forthwith be raised, for a defence and fortification to be made against the sea-breach at Lowestoft.”

And whereas it appeared to the Court, “That the causeway at Mutford Bridge was decayed and broken down, in consequence of the sea-breach at Lowestoft, and made unpassable for foot-passengers, and very dangerous to others; it was therefore ordered, That the same should be repaired immediately out of the first money to be raised, but not to exceed the sum of ten pounds.” It was also ordered, “That Henry Bacon, Esquire, should treat with Sir Cornelius Vermewden, or any other engineer at London, to come down to Lowestoft, and view the work and fortification to be made there against the sea-breach, and to take his opinion concerning the same. That Gisleham Wollhouse, of Olton, gent., be treasurer, and Thomas Verdon, of the same place, gent., be surveyor.”

Warrants were also issued to the sheriffs of both counties, to warn a jury, to take a view of all such breaches and other decays, within the limits of the said commission, and to make presentiments of the same; and, accordingly, amongst many other matters, they presented the sea-breach near Lowestoft, and that it was necessary that a defence against the sea should be made there, otherwise it would be injurious to the owners of the lands betwixt the said sea-breach and Ditchingham Dam. Also, they found the grounds liable to be taxed to the sea-breach, as far as the former jurors found them, viz.: to Yarmouth on the Suffolk side, and to Braydon on the Norfolk side. They also found the grounds hereinafter mentioned, as liable to be taxed to the said sea-breach, although omitted in the former levy, viz.:

It was further ordered by the Court,

That against the next sessions of sewers, to be holden at the Swan Tavern, Lowestoft, the 21st June next, a levy be prepared, to be sent to the several towns chargeable to the sea-breach at Lowestoft, at double the proportion which was formerly charged, viz. from the said sea-breach to Beccles Bridge and Gillingham Dam, in the whole level, chargeable at two shillings in the pound; and from the said Bridge and Dam to Ditchingham Dam, sixteen pence in the pound; and those towns which were not charged upon the former levy, to be added to this.

Also, that the clerk of this commission do issue out warrants to the several petty constables within the towns charged towards the sea-breach at Lowestoft, to collect and pay their several sums to Mr. Gisleham Wollhouse, treasurer, at the White Lion, at Beccles, the 4th day of July next.

The proportion of the several towns charged to the sea-breach at Lowestoft, being the second levy at two shillings in the pound to Beccles Bridge, and sixteen pence in the pound from thence to Bungay Bridge and Ditchingham Dam. [16]

There were several other sessions of sewers held under this commission at Lowestoft, Beccles and Loddon, before the business was finally settled. (After the isthmus was formed, the breakwater became useless.)

But as all communications between the sea and the river has ceased for upwards of sixty years, consequently, the apprehensions which the adjoining country were exposed to, have long subsided. The last irruption of the sea which happened at this place was on the 14th December, 1717, occasioned by a violent storm of wind and high tide, when the sea forced its way over the beach, which separated it from the river, with such irresistible violence as to carry away Mutford Bridge, at a mile-and-a-half distance from the sea-shore; and all the fish which were in the eastern part of the river were destroyed by the salt water. [17a] Lothingland, most probably, ceased to be an island and became a peninsula about the year 1712; for at that time there was only a small communication with the sea at the part between Lowestoft and Kirkley, which now forms the isthmus. [17b] Soon after that period the sea entirely withdrew itself, and the eastern point of the river, through a deficiency of water, gradually receded to the west. The tract of land between the ocean and the river, which forms this isthmus, is about a quarter of a mile in breadth, and is able to resist the most sudden and violent attacks of the boisterous ocean.

I shall conclude these remarks on the island of Lothingland, with subjoining a few observations on the place of the greatest antiquity therein, viz. the ancient Garianonum of the Romans, now called Burgh Castle.

In the celebrated Notitia Imperii, [17c] or Survey of the Roman Empire, it appears that the troops who garrisoned this station, were a body of cavalry, called the Stablesian Horse. [17d] They were stationed at this place under the command of a proepositus, who was particularly styled Gariennonensis, signifying the commander at the mouth of Garienis, or river now called the Yare. In ascertaining the number of troops which formed this garrison, we must have recourse to conjecture. A camp so considerable, Garianonum so strongly fortified, and of such great importance must necessarily require a large body of men to defend it. The Roman troops in Britain amounted to about fourteen thousand horse; and seventy-two thousand foot; and these being distributed into near one hundred and forty fortresses, the mean proportion of men to each, is about one hundred horse and four hundred and eighty or five hundred foot: but some stations could not accommodate so many, and others required more, and, also some consisted of horse only, and some wholly of infantry; consequently it is impossible to assert—positively the exact number of troops which composed this garrison.

Sir Henry Spelman, in his Iceni, and also Bishop Gibson, in his Camden, and from them, some writers of inferior note, have placed the Garianonum at Caistor; but Camden himself has fixed its situation at Burgh Castle; and Ives, in his account of this station, has confirmed the opinion of the latter with the greatest appearance of truth.

Upon a stream, whose largeness and rapidity must have rendered it formidable to passing armies; upon a shore, peculiarly exposed to the depredations of lawless pirates; and upon the boundary of a country possessed by a brave and hardy people, Garianonum must have been a station of the utmost importance to the Romans; it gave them weight and consequence in the eyes of the Britons, who were destitute of every idea respecting mural fortifications; it established their influence, extended their territories, and afforded them a secure retreat, and an impregnable defence against the warlike Iceni, who, animated with the spirit of our immortal Boadicea, frequently rose in arms against the invaders of their native soil. In each of these views did the politic Romans consider their new-erected camp; in every respect it answered their designs, and in every particular corresponded with their wishes. From hence they commanded the estuary of the Yare, the German Ocean, and the interior country; and from hence they derived a power and consequence sufficient to awe and intimidate the Britons, and to prevent their making any military attempt against them.

Being destitute of express records, and unable to penetrate the clouds which ignorance and inattention have fabled over our Anglo-Roman antiquities, it is from the tenor of general history alone that we are enabled to fix a time for the building of this fortress: without such a consultation our utmost researches would fail us, and we should have only the miserable alternative of either guessing at the period or passing it by unnoticed.

That portion of Anglo-Roman history which more immediately respects Garianonum is short and limited; it commences with the reign of Claudius, and it extends no further.

This emperor, who assumed the purple at fifty years old, had neither the spirit, courage, nor perseverance of his great predecessor; yet, ambitious of following the steps of Julius, he formed the design of completing what CÆsar had begun, and of reducing Britain to a Roman province. In pursuance of this plan, he arrived here about the year of Christ, 45, having previously sent Aulus Plautius with troops sufficient to effect his intention. After the emperor had continued here six months he returned to Rome, and triumphed for conquests never obtained and for victories never won. [18]

After the emperor’s departure, Plautius remained here near four years, and carried on the Britannic war with spirit and success.

Next in command was the proprÆtor, Publius Ostorius Scapula, an experienced officer, in whom conduct and courage were equally united. To him the Romans were indebted for the subjection of the Iceni, to him they were obliged for the retention of their conquests, and to him we owe the foundation of Garianonum.

No part of the policy of this General claims our attention so much as the erecting this fortress: it was the most effectual method of curbing the high spirit of liberty inherent in the native Britons, of dissolving their alliances, breaking their power, and dividing their resources; and without these mural encampments, neither conquest nor security could have attended the Roman banner in Britain. From this period, therefore, we date the rise of Garianonum, built by the command and by the soldiers of Ostorius, and garrisoned by a cohort of veteran troops lately returned victorious from a battle with the Iceni.

Round our now well-cultivated fields, then cold, bleak, and woody, the Romans diverted themselves with the pleasures of the chase; and cross our now green and fertile meadows, they navigated their vessels and caught their fish.

Upon a rising hill, near the confluence of the rivers Yare and Waveney, and overlooking a large extent of Marshes which once formed the estuary it commanded, stands Burgh Castle, the ancient Garianonum of the Romans. In the construction of this camp the Romans pursued their usual method of security in building, and practised their favourite military architecture. It formed an irregular parallelogram, the parallel sides of which were equally right lines, and equally long, but the corners were rounded. Those camps, which were one-third longer than they were broad, were esteemed the most beautiful, but here the proportion is as two to one.

The principal wall of this station, in which is placed the Porta PrÆtoria, is that to the east, 14 feet high, 214 yards long, and 9 feet broad; the north and southern walls are just the same height and breadth, and just half the length; the western side has no remains of any wall, nor can we determine, with certainty, whether it ever had any; the sea might possibly be considered as a sufficient barrier on that side, and the steepness of the hill, as a collateral security.

Four massive round towers defend the eastern wall; the northern has one; and another, now thrown down, stood opposite on the southern. These towers were added after building the walls, and served not only to ornament and strengthen them, but as turres exploratorii, each having on the top a round hole two feet deep, and as many in diameter, evidently designed both for the erection of standards and signals, and for the admission of light temporary watch-towers, under the care and for the use of the spectators. The south-west corner of the station forms the pretorium, raised by the earth taken out of a vallum which surrounds and secures it, and which is sunk eight feet lower than the common surface of the area.

Near this was placed the south tower, which, being undermined a few years since by the force of the water running down the vallum after some very heavy rains, is fallen on one side near its former situation, but remains perfectly entire. The north tower having met with a similar accident is reclined from the wall at the top about six feet, has drawn a part of it, and caused a breach near it. The whole area of the station contains four acres and two roods, and, including the walls, five acres, two roods and twenty perches.

The mortar made use of by the Romans in this work was composed of lime and sand, unrefined by the sieve, and incorporated with common gravel and small pebbles. It was used two different ways; one cold, in the common manner now in use; the other, rendered fluid by fire and applied boiling hot. From the artful mixture of both in the same building, and from the coarse materials of the composition, this cement is extremely hard and durable, very difficult to break, and for several days indissoluble in water. The Romans, raising the wall to a convenient height with the former sort, at the end of every day’s work poured the latter upon it, which immediately filled up the interstices, and when cold, proved a most powerful adhesive. The Roman bricks made use of at Burgh are of a fine red colour and very close texture; they are about one foot and a half long, one foot broad, and an inch and a half thick. It does not, however, appear that the Romans had any exact standard for the size of their bricks: in different stations their dimensions are considerably varied. We ought, however, to observe that either in the choice of their materials, or in their method of preparing them, they far excel those of later days, being much harder and less porous than ours, and for durableness more resembling stone, for which they were undoubtedly substituted.

In the area of this camp, and in many of the fields around it, vast numbers of Roman coins have been, and are still, found; but none of them rise higher than the reign of Domitian, [19] and the generality of them are much later. Few are found of any other metal than copper, and they are seldom curious, either for design or execution.

The fields adjoining to the eastern wall of Garianonum was the place allotted for depositing the ashes of the dead, and for the performance of the funeral rites. Here great numbers of Roman urns have been found, and innumerable pieces of them are everywhere spread over it: but neither the workmanship nor the materials of these urns have anything to recommend them: they are made of a coarse blue clay, brought from the neighbouring village of Bradwell, ill-formed, brittle, and porous. One of these urns, when the pieces were united, contained more than a peck and a half of corn, and had a large thick stone operculum on the top of it; within was a considerable number of bones and ashes, several fair pieces of Constantine and the head of a Roman spear. Here also was found a cockleare, or Roman spoon: it was of silver, and had a long handle very sharp at the point, that being used to pick fish out of the shell, as the bowl, or other end, served to take up liquids and small meat. Rings, keys, buckles, sibulÆ, and various other reliquiÆ of the Romans, are continually ploughed up in the fields adjoining to the station.

The intestine feuds of Italy called the Romans from their Britannic conquests between the years 418 and 427. They gathered all the treasures which could be found in Britain, some part of which they hid, perhaps in hopes of returning again in better days, and of recovering their effects from whence they had deposited them; or it might proceed from an ambitious design of informing posterity, that the Romans were once masters of this place. [20a] The Britons, forsaken by their Roman guards, and exposed to the ravages of their merciless northern neighbours, frequently hid their money when threatened with fresh invasions; and if death or exile was the fate of the owners the secret was lost, and the treasure remained till an accidental plough or pick-axe once more brought it to light. Thus both Romans and Britons may have contributed to the great number of ancient coins discovered in the eastern parts of this county.

A Roman spur, which belonged to the Stablesain Horse, was found some years ago, in the area of this station; and is now in the possession of Mr. John Jex, Lowestoft. [20b] Sigebert, one of the heptarchial kings, and fifth monarch of the East Angles, ascended the East Anglian throne in the year 636. The Christian faith had made some faint progress in his dominions during the reign of his father, Redwald. To reinstate some of his subjects in their belief, and to convert others, was the great object of Sigebert’s ambition: and to assist him in this design, he brought over from France a priest of Burgundy, named Felix, whom he procured to be consecrated bishop of the East Angles, and fixed the episcopal see at Dunwich. [20c]Whilst Felix, under the patronage of the king, was spreading the gospel among the East Angles, Furseus, an Irish Monk, came over to his assistance; and collecting a company of religious persons, under the monastic rule, placed them at Burgh Castle, then called Cnobersburgh. [21a]

Sigebert may be considered as the founder of this early monastery; but being afterwards slain in a battle with Penda, king of Mercia, the walls of the Roman camp afforded to Furseus and his monks a comfortable asylum; and like the Roman soldiers, they lived in tents or huts within the area. At this early period, regular edifices for the service of religion were unknown: churches were erected with hurdles, and covered with straw; and such buildings were fully sufficient for the devotion of a people, who in compliment to their next prince, might return to Paganism. The death of Sigebert deprived Furseus of a great and zealous patron; and to avoid the troubles which succeeded it, he left his monastery at Burgh, and retired into France.

The monks, however, appeared to have been endued with more constancy and resolution; for by the favours granted to this religious society, by some of the latter kings of the East Angles, we find they remained there for several years: but how long they continued at Burgh, or when they left it, is uncertain.

It appears that in the reign of Edward I. the prior of Bromeholme held the manor of Burgh, of our lord the king, in capite; and the prior and monks of Bromeholme continued lords of this manor till the dissolution of their house, 26 Henry VIII.; when, with their revenues, it again reverted to the crown, who possessed it till Queen Mary sold it to William Roberts, town-clerk of Yarmouth.

Roger de Burgh gave the advowason of this church to the priory of St. Olave, at Herringfleet for perpetual alms; and King Henry III, confirmed the donation to them. The prior presented to the rectory, and had a reserved pension of four marks out of it, which is still paid to the owner of St. Olave’s. After the dissolution of the priory the patronage of the church came to the crown. [21b]The church is a small building, consisting of a nave, chancel, and round tower, and is dedicated to St. Peter. It is a rectory, anciently valued at ten marks; in the king’s books at £6 13s. 4d.; and being of the sworn value of £44 6s. 1d., is discharged of first-fruits and tenths. The parsonage house adjoins to the north-west corner of the churchyard, and has thirty-nine acres of glebe belonging to it.

The present rector is the Rev. John Bellward, to whom the author here acknowledges himself much indebted for his kindness to him many years since.