Great Witchingham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, along the River Wensum. The civil parish also includes the smaller village of Lenwade.

Great Witchingham is located north-east of Dereham and north-west of Norwich.

History Great Witchingham's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for the larger homestead of Wic's people.

In the Domesday Book, Great & Little Witchingham are listed together as a settlement of 92 households hundred of Eynesford. In 1086, the village was part of the East Anglian estates of King William I, Count Eustace of Boulogne, St Benet's Abbey, William d'Ecouis, Reginald, son of Ivo and Walter Giffard.

During the reign of King Henry I, a Cluniac monastic cell was founded in the village which had been destroyed by the Fifteenth Century. The site was excavated in 1935.

Witchingham Old Hall was founded in the Sixteenth Century or Seventeenth Century and was eventually demolished in the Nineteenth Century.

In October 1944, a V-2 rocket landed in the parish causing a large crater which was subsequently turned into a pond.

Geography According to the 2021 census, Great Witchingham has a population of 542 people which shows an increase from the 496 people recorded in the 2011 census.

The River Wensum and the A1067, between Fakenham and Norwich, both run through the parish.

St. Mary's Church Great Witchingham's parish church is dedicated to Saint Mary and dates from the Fourteenth Century. St. Mary's is located outside of the village on Heath Lane and has been Grade I listed since 1961. The church is still open for Sunday services about twice a month.

St. Mary holds a Fifteenth Century font with some of its original paint remaining as well as a lecturn topped with an eagle which was brought to the church from New College, Oxford in the Nineteenth Century.

Great Witchingham Hall

Great Witchingham Hall is a Grade II* listed country house built in the 16th or 17th century but extensively remodelled in the 19th century. It is built in two and three storeys of red brick with stone and plastered brick dressings and a steeply pitched slate roof. The Hall was owned and occupied by country squire Oliver Le Neve between 1678 and 1711. Le Neve is significant for his 1698 mortal duel with Sir Henry Hobart of Blickling Hall, the last duel fought in Norfolk.Nicolson, Adam (2012); Gentry: Six Hundred Years of a Peculiarly English Class, Part III: The Great Century 1610-1710, "Honour: The le Neves, Great Witchingham, Norfolk", HarperCollins. The south wing was added in 1812 by Timothy Tompson and the north frontage redesigned in 1872 for Charles Kett Tompson, High Sheriff of Norfolk for 1827. After the latter's death it passed to his son-in-law, Viscount Canterbury. It later became the seat of William James Barry J.P. (1864–1952), High Sheriff of Norfolk for 1912, and his son Lieutenant-Colonel Gerald Barry (1896–1977). The dilapidated post-Second World War property was bought in 1950 by Bernard Matthews, and after being initially used for turkey rearing and processing, became the head office of his turkey business, Bernard Matthews Farms.Bernard Matthews Contact Page

The GWR 6959 Modified Hall Class No.6966 was named Witchingham Hall. Out shopped from Swindon Works on 31 May 1944 as part of Lot No.350, it was initially allocated to 82D Westbury, and finally to 81F Oxford. Withdrawn on 30 September 1964, it was sold by British Railways to Birds scrap metal merchants of Risca, Newport, South Wales and disposed of on 28 February 1965.

Amenities Great Witchingham Cricket Club play home games at Walcis Park and operate three senior XIs, several women's teams and a youth setup. The First XI play in the East Anglian Premier Cricket League.

Governance Great Witchingham is an electoral ward for local elections and is part of the district of Broadland.

The village's national constituency is Broadland and Fakenham which has been represented by the Conservative Party's Jerome Mayhew MP since 2019.

Notable people

John Wilson, British angler

War Memorial Great Witchingham War Memorial was rebuilt in 2014 and is a brick memorial with sandstone plaques, it was opened by Jonathan Meyrick, Bishop of King's Lynn. The memorial lists the following names for the First World War: +RankNameUnitDate of deathBurial/CommemorationCpl.Frederick J. Nelson9th Bn., Essex Regiment22 Aug. 1918Méaulte CemeteryCpl.Reginald L. Watkins1st T.M. Bty., Royal Field Artillery29 Aug. 1917Ramscappelle CemeteryGnr.William R. B. Brown214th Bty., Royal Garrison Artillery5 Sep. 1917Vlamertinge CemeteryPte.Leonard Nelson1st Bn., East Yorkshire Regiment17 Apr. 1917Hollybrook MemorialPte.James H. Starling13th Bn., Essex Regiment28 Apr. 1917Arras MemorialPte.Arthur King23rd Bn., Royal Fusiliers13 Nov. 1916Thiepval MemorialPte.Leonard J. Gray2nd Bn., Hampshire Regiment29 Jun. 1915Helles MemorialPte.Charles R. Moy6th Bn., King's Own Yorkshire L.I.7 Sep. 1915Ypres Reservoir CemeteryPte.Frank Smith2nd Bn., Lincolnshire Regiment13 Nov. 1916Heilly Station CemeteryPte.John Starling MM1st Bn., Norfolk Regiment4 Sep. 1916Delville Wood CemeteryPte.Stanley J. Bowes4th Bn., Norfolk Regt.19 Apr. 1917Jerusalem MemorialPte.James White5th Bn., Norfolk Regt.19 Apr. 1917Gaza War CemeteryPte.Horace W. Massingham9th Bn., Norfolk Regt.26 Sep. 1915Loos MemorialPte.Edgar H. Waters5th Bn., Northumberland Fusilers26 Oct. 1917Tyne CotPte.Herbert T. Williamson11th Bn., Suffolk Regiment25 Oct. 1918Delsaux Farm CemeteryRfn.Albert Watkins2nd Bn., King's Royal Rifle Corps6 Jul. 1917Ramscappelle CemeterySpr.Arthur Arthurton104th Coy., Royal Engineers16 Jul. 1917Lijssenthoek CemeteryStew.William G. HutchinsHMS Ariadne26 Jul. 1917Plymouth Naval Memorial The following names were added after the Second World War: +RankNameUnitDate of deathBurial/CommemorationSgt.Edwin H. WrightNo. 40 (Bomber) Squadron RAF31 Dec. 1942Malta MemorialSgt.George E. Milk560 Coy., Royal Engineers12 Sep. 1944Kranji War MemorialLSgt.Thomas H. Sutton18 (B.D.) Coy., R.E.14 Sep. 1941Khayat Beach CemeteryGnr.Cyril B. A. Walter118 Regt., Royal Artillery21 Sep. 1944Kranji War MemorialOSig.Jack A. W. BransbyHMS Anking4 Mar. 1942Chatham Naval Memorial The following name was added after the Conflict in Afghanistan: +RankNameUnitDate of deathBurial/CommemorationPte.Robert G. Foster1st Bn., Royal Anglian Regiment23 Aug. 2007Cremated

Footnotes

Notes

References

External links

gwvh.org.uk - Great Witchingham Village Hall Project GWPC - Great Witchingham Parish Council Website