Witchcraft in Gt Yarmouth

Matthew Hopkins

Great Yarmouth has had it's fair share of witchcraft in years gone by.  In 1645 Matthew Hopkins, the Witchfinders General, visited Great Yarmouth to find these witches.  Yarmouth Assembly actually invited him here to find witches.  Eleven people went to The Tolhouse (which is now a Museum) to be tried before the court there.  Two of these eleven people were men.  Five of the eleven people tried were hanged.  These were:-

• Alice Crissell
• Bridgetta Howard
• Maria Blackborne
• Elizabeth Dudgeon
• Elizabeth Bradwell.

Mary and Rebecca Town were sisters and were accused of black magic.  They were hanged in 1692.  Mary Town was baptized in St Nicholas Church (now St Nicholas Minster).  She was finally exonerated 20 years after her hanging.  In September of 1646 there were no trials against witchcraft.  And there was only one case in April 1647.

Regarding Matthew Hopkins, he was a witchfinder general from 1644 until 1647, so his career only spanned three years.  He died on 12 August 1647 and is buried in St Mary's Church in Mistley Heath, Essex.  It is strange to think that he thought that a wart or mole to be a mark of the devil.  Just in Bury St Edmunds he had 68 people put to death.  You can't imagine the fear these people must have gone through, can you?

Anna Sewell

Anna Sewell

Anna Sewell's Birthplace in Gt Yarmouth

Anna Sewell was the author of Black Beauty.  She was born on 30th March 1820 in Great Yarmouth.  She was born into a Quaker family and had one brother called Phillip.  At the age of 12 the family moved to Stoke Newington in London.  This was where she started going to school for the first time.  At the age of 14 she had an accident, falling over injuring both her ankles.  This left her unable to stand or walk for any length of time.  She was mainly confined to the house, and managed to get around on horse and cart.  This, at least, gave her a little bit of freedom.  This was no doubt where she got her love of horses from.

Black Beauty was written in Old Catton, near Norwich, Norfolk.  It was published in 1877.  Unfortunately, Anna died just 5 months after its publication on 25th April 1878.  So unfortunately she never got to see its real success.  The cause of her death was hepatitis.  She is buried in Lammas, which is near Buxton in Norfolk.   She was buried on 30th April 1878.

There is a memorial fountain to her in Norwich.  This was erected in 1917 by her cousin, Ada Sewell.

Gt Yarmouth Suspension Bridge disaster

On 2nd May 1845 the greatest tragedy Great Yarmouth has ever seen occured.  The day started off like any other normal day.  There were trains travelling into Yarmouth from Norwich full of tourists and holiday-makers ready to see a spectacle on the River Bure.

Nelson the clown was a performer with William Cooke's circus.  In a highly publicized campaign, William had taken to swim in a barrel pulled by 4 geese.  The route he took was to undertake was from Haven Bridge on Hall Quay to the Suspension Bridge on North Quay.  There were hundreds of people gathered along the river banks to watch this.  As Nelson got nearer to the Bridge, around 400 people had gathered on the Suspension Bridge to watch him sail under it.  As he passed under the bridge, people gathered on the other side of it to watch him go past, when disaster struck.  The bridge collapsed as people shifted from one side of the bridge to the other.  79 people tragically lost their lives, most of which were children.  The rods that supported the bridge snapped and the chains broke.  58 of the 79 people that lost their lives were under the age of 16.

There is now a memorial where the tragedy happened, which is a fitting tribute to all those that lost their lives.

Great Yarmouth Minster

Gt Yarmouth Minster

A stained glass window

Gt Yarmouth Minster is no doubt a magnificent and highly popular place for locals and visitors alike.    It is the Parish Church of St Nicholas and is the largest Parish Church in Gt Yarmouth.  It was founded in 1101 AD by Herbert De Losinga.  The Church was finally completed in 1119.  This was also the last year of Herbert De Losinga's life.  He was the Bishop of Norwich.    In Medievil days, Gt Yarmouth was the fourth richest town in the Country, and the Minster had 19 guilded chapels, tapestries and stained glassed windows.

In 1649 the Church was divided into three sections.  This was because the Puritons demanded the use of the Church.  The Anglican Church used the south side, and the Puritons and the Presbytarians made use of the north aisle.  The Puritons was led by Rev Bridge.  All three demoninations held their services at the same time.  You can only imagine what this would have been like for the congregation, can't you?

The Church was enlarged in 1190.  This was largely due to replacement of Norman work with 8 arches each side of the Nave.   In 1286 the chancel aisles were added.  This was during the reign of Edward I.  And thirdly the transepts were build.  The Church was completed in 1332.  This was in the reign of Edward III.  Work began on a further enlargement in 1330 to a western transept.  The walls were 4 foot high when the work was stopped.  This was due to the outbreak of the black death in 1348.

From the birth of the Church up until 1536 the Church was used as a Priory of the Benedictine.  This was established by Bishop Losinga.  But sadly, under the reign of Henry VIII the monasteries were dissolved.

During WW2, the roof of the Minister and all the interior furnishings were destroyed when there was a fire caused by enemy bombing.  The current restoration began in 1957 with the help of the War Damage Commission.  There were 53 men from the Yarmouth area who aided in the restoration of the Church.  The Minster has since been restored to its original shape.  The Bishop of Norwich reconsecrated the Church in 1961.

On 9 December 2011 St Nicholas Church was designated a Minster by the Lord Bishop of Norwich.  It's official title now is The Minster Church of St Nicholas.

Great Yarmouth Minster Official Website