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Bressingham

Coordinates: 52°23′09″N 1°02′59″E / 52.38574°N 1.049713°E / 52.38574; 1.049713
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Bressingham
Church of St. John the Baptist, Bressingham
Bressingham is located in Norfolk
Bressingham
Bressingham
Location within Norfolk
Area15.76 km2 (6.08 sq mi)
Population872 (2021)
• Density55/km2 (140/sq mi)
OS grid referenceTM0780
Civil parish
  • Bressingham
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townDISS
Postcode districtIP22
Dialling code01379
PoliceNorfolk
FireNorfolk
AmbulanceEast of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Norfolk
52°23′09″N 1°02′59″E / 52.38574°N 1.049713°E / 52.38574; 1.049713

Bressingham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.

Bressingham is located 2.1 miles (3.4 km) north-west of Diss and 19 miles (31 km) north-east of Norwich.

History

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Bressingham's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for the homestead/village of Briosa's people.[1]

Bressingham is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as consisting of 47 households, which placed it in the largest 20% of settlements. At this time, Bressingham was divided between the land of William I (2 acres of meadow, 6 pigs and woodland) and Bury St Edmunds Abbey (16 acres of meadow, 26 pigs and woodland).[2]

From 1804, Bressingham had a thriving Amicable Society with upwards of thirty members agreeing to a rudimentary form of life insurance. The society conducted its meetings in the Chequers pub.[3]

A Methodist Church was built in Bressingham in 1900.[citation needed]

Geography

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According to the 2021 census, Bressingham has a population of 872 people which shows a slight decrease from the 887 people recorded in the 2011 census.[4]

Bressingham Parish is bordered to the south by the River Waveney and is bisected by the A1066, between Thetford and Diss.

Amenities within the village include a village shop[5] and Bressingham Village Hall. The local playing field is operated by Diss Town Football Club.

Church of St. John the Baptist

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Bressingham's parish church is dedicated to Saint John the Baptist and was constructed in the late-13th century.[6] The church was significantly remodelled in the 16th and 19th centuries and boasts both elaborate pew carvings, which have been damaged by iconoclasts in the 16th century and stained-glass installed by J & J King. Additionally, within the church there is a set of royal arms dating from the reign of King Charles II and a 19th century funeral bier.[7] The church has been Grade I listed since 1959.[8]

Bressingham Steam Museum and Gardens

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Bressingham Steam Museum & Gardens is located within the village which boasts a set of gardens initially started by Alan Bloom MBE and an impressive collection of steam locomotives.

Governance

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Bressingham is part of the electoral ward of Bressingham and Burston for local elections and is part of the district of South Norfolk.

The village's national constituency is Waveney Valley which has been represented by the Green Party's Adrian Ramsay since 2024.

War memorial

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The Bressingham Parish War Memorial is found on the junction between School Road and High Road. The memorial was erected in 1922 and was built by a firm based in Diss called Messers Cooley and Son.[9] It commemorates the following individuals who died in the First World War:[10]

Rank Name Unit Date of Death Other Commemoration/ Burial
Sgt. Charles W. Parsley 9th Battalion, Norfolk Regiment 3 Apr. 1917 Vermelles British Cemetery
Cpl. George H. Hoskins 144th (Siege) Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery 26 Feb. 1919 St. John the Baptist's Churchyard, Bressingham
Pte. Herbert C. Kent 2nd Battalion, Cheshire Regiment 8 Oct. 1918 Kirechkoi Military Cemetery, Exochi
Pte. Victor J. M. Rawlinson 9th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment 27 Oct. 1918 Military Cemetery, Le Cateau
Pte. Harry Flatman 20th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment 26 Mar. 1918 Arras Memorial
Pte. John Fortis 1st Battalion, Norfolk Regiment 15 May 1917 Orchard Dump Cemetery, Arleux-en-Gohelle
Pte. George H. Hall 3rd Battalion, Norfolk Rgt. 15 Jan. 1915 St. John the Baptist's Churchyard, Bressingham
Pte. Frank V. Rodwell 7th Battalion, Norfolk Rgt. 3 Jul. 1916 Aveluy Wood Cemetery
Pte. John H. Rolfe 7th Bn., Norfolk Rgt. 19 Aug. 1916 Eastern Cemetery, Boulogne
Rfn. Thomas E. Goodswen 8th (Post Office Rifles) Battalion, London Regiment 29 Oct. 1918 Communal Cemetery, Tournai

And: George Garland and William R. Leighton. And, the following for the Second World War:

Rank Name Unit Date of Death Other Commemoration / Burial
Pte. Douglas C. Hall 5th Battalion, Norfolk Regiment 26 Sep. 1943 Chungkai War Cemetery

And: Basil T. Harvey and Alec C. Witton.

References

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  1. ^ "Key to English Place-names". kepn.nottingham.ac.uk. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  2. ^ Domesday Book. (1086). Retrieved October 30, 2022. https://opendomesday.org/place/TM0780/bressingham/
  3. ^ Bressingham & Fersfield. (2021). Retrieved October 30, 2022. https://bressinghamandfersfield.org/2021/history/6203/(
  4. ^ "Bressingham (Parish, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  5. ^ "Bressingham Village Shop - High Rd, Roydon, Diss IP22 2AT". www.locaji.co.uk. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  6. ^ "CHURCH OF ST JOHN THE BAPTIST, Bressingham - 1373587 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  7. ^ "The Norfolk Churches Site". www.norfolkchurches.co.uk. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  8. ^ "CHURCH OF ST JOHN THE BAPTIST, Bressingham - 1373587 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  9. ^ "Bressingham War Memorial, Bressingham - 1442118 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  10. ^ "Bressingham WW1 and WW2 Memorial". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
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bressinghamandfersfield.org The website of Bressingham and Fersfield's Parish Council

Media related to Bressingham at Wikimedia Commons