Brancaster is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

on the north coast of the English county of

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

. The civil parish of Brancaster comprises Brancaster itself, together with Brancaster Staithe and Burnham Deepdale. The three villages form a more or less continuous settlement along the A149 at the edge of the

Brancaster Manor Brancaster Manor is a saltmarsh owned by the National Trust near Brancaster, Norfolk covering 810 ha (2,000 acres).Ryan (1969) p 165 It was originally purchased by the Brancaster Memorial Trust in 1964,Rodgers ''et al'' (2010 ) p.167 and ...

marshland and the

Scolt Head Island Scolt Head Island is an offshore barrier island between Brancaster and Wells-next-the-Sea in north Norfolk. It is in the parish of Burnham Norton and is accessed by a seasonal ferry from the village of Burnham Overy, Overy Staithe. The shingle be ...

National Nature Reserve. The villages are located about 3 miles (5 km) west of Burnham Market, 22 miles (35 km) north of the town of

King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, no ...

and 31 miles (50 km) north-west of the city of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

. The civil parish has an area of 8.27 square miles (21.43 km²) and in the 2011 census had a population of 797 in 406 households. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

King's Lynn and West Norfolk King's Lynn and West Norfolk is a local government district with borough status in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in the town of King's Lynn. The population of the Local Authority at the 2011 Census was 147,451. History The district was ...

. Janet Lake, the clerk to Brancaster Parish Council, has recently reached 50 years of service in the post. The villages name means 'Roman site of Branodunum', where the original Romano-British name may be preserved in the first element. The name is from British bran(n)o, 'crow/raven' possibly used as a personal name, and duno-, 'fortification'. Alternatively, perhaps, 'broomy Roman site'. St Mary's church at Burnham Deepdale is one of 124 existing

round-tower church Round-tower churches are a type of church found mainly in England, mostly in East Anglia; of about 185 surviving examples in the country, 124 are in Norfolk, 38 in Suffolk, six in Essex, three in Sussex and two each in Cambridgeshire and Berkshi ...

es in Norfolk; it also has a carved Norman font.

Geography and geology

A petrified forest can be seen on the foreshore near Brancaster at low tide. It is about three-quarters of a mile west of the golf clubhouse and consists of material similar to compacted peat or brown coal (

lignite Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, is a soft, brown, combustible, sedimentary rock formed from naturally compressed peat. It has a carbon content around 25–35%, and is considered the lowest rank of coal due to its relatively low heat ...

). Remains also wash ashore after storms and can be found along the high tide line. The material resembles black rubber but can be broken easily to reveal plant remains inside.

Governance

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

in the same name exists. This ward had a population at the 2011 Census of 1,293.

Branodunum – Roman settlement

There was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

fort and settlement here named

Branodunum Branodunum was an ancient Roman fort to the east of the modern English village of Brancaster in Norfolk. Its Roman name derives from the local Celtic language, and may mean "fort of the raven". History The fort, built in the 230s, became later ...

to the east of the modern village. The

Saxon Shore fort The Saxon Shore ( la, litus Saxonicum) was a military command of the late Roman Empire, consisting of a series of fortifications on both sides of the English Channel, Channel. It was established in the late 3rd century and was led by the "Count ...

(and the related civilian settlement, much of which was destroyed during the construction of a locally opposed housing development in the 1970s) is visible only as grass-covered mounds and remains mainly unexcavated.

Shipwreck on the beach

The wreck that used to be visible at low tide but has now been almost completely covered by the westerly drifting sand was the 1021grt

coaster Coaster (stylized as COASTER) is a commuter rail service in the central and northern coastal regions of San Diego County, California, United States operated by the North County Transit District (NCTD). The commuter rail line features eight s ...

''SS Vina'' which was used for target practice by the RAF before accidentally sinking in 1944. The ''Vina'' was built at

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

by Ramage & Ferguson in 1894 and was registered at

Grangemouth Grangemouth ( sco, Grangemooth; gd, Inbhir Ghrainnse, ) is a town in the Falkirk council area, Scotland. Historically part of the county of Stirlingshire, the town lies in the Forth Valley, on the banks of the Firth of Forth, east of Falkirk ...

. She was a coast-hugging general cargo ship which would have worked the crossings between the east coast of England and through to the

Baltic states The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...

. As she neared the end of her useful seagoing life in 1940, ''Vina'' was requisitioned as a naval vessel for wartime use as a blockship, carrying a crew of 12. With

Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...

being a strategic port on the east coast, the ultimate fate for the ship would have been to have had her hold filled with concrete and explosives and she would have been sunk at the harbour mouth, blocking entry in the event of a Nazi invasion. Once this threat passed, she was taken out of blockship service and towed up the east coast towards Brancaster where she was used as a target for the RAF before the planned invasion of Normandy in 1944. Originally anchored further out to sea on the Titchwell side as a target for cannon shell trials, she dragged her anchor on 20 August 1944, in a north-westerly gale and ran ashore. Numerous efforts have been made to remove the wreck from the sandbank as the ship is not only a danger to navigation but also attracts holiday makers who walk out to the vessel's remains at low tide. Various parts have been removed and, in 1968, her bronze propeller was blown off by salvagers and floated across the harbour channel. Removal efforts have long been abandoned as uneconomic. Lives have been lost due to ill-advised attempts to reach the ''Vina'' as it is on the far side of a fast-flowing tidal harbour channel. Local lifeboats and RAF rescue helicopters have been pressed into service on many occasions. A warning sign on the wreck advises anyone reaching it to return to the beach immediately.

National Trust and the beach

The beach area and some of the marshes are managed by the National Trust.

Royal West Norfolk Golf Club

The village is home to the Royal West Norfolk Golf Club., it was founded in 1892, its design being from

Holcombe Ingleby Holcombe Ingleby (18 March 1854 – 6 August 1926) was an English solicitor and Conservative Party politician. He was mayor of the borough of King's Lynn in Norfolk, and for eight years a Member of Parliament (MP) for King's Lynn. Born on 18 ...

. In 2014 it was listed as the 47th best golf course in the UK and Ireland by

Golf Monthly ''Golf Monthly'' is a monthly golfing magazine published by Future plc and based in Paddington in London. It publishes 13 issues a year and has a popular websitgolfmonthly.com The magazine's editor is Michael Harris. It is known for being the world ...

magazine.

Space programme

In the 1950s and 60s, Brancaster was considered as a possible location for the launching site for the British space programme. This idea was expanded to include the village becoming the base for a facility that could be used by a spaceplane to undertake secret flights over the USSR. Development would have meant that the village would probably have been razed and the villagers rehoused. The eventual installation of oil rigs in the North Sea saw the idea shelved, as the risk, however slight, of atmospheric re-entry material hitting the rigs, was too great.

War Memorial

Brancaster's War Memorial is located in St. Mary the Virgin's Churchyard and is a stone

Celtic cross The Celtic cross is a form of Christian cross featuring a nimbus or ring that emerged in Ireland, France and Great Britain in the Early Middle Ages. A type of ringed cross, it became widespread through its use in the stone high crosses er ...

. It lists the following names for the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

: * Captain Charles Simms-Reeve (1885-1915), 2nd Battalion,

East Surrey Regiment The East Surrey Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1959. The regiment was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot, the 70th ...

* Petty-Officer Herbert W. Harrell (1878-1914), ''

HMS Cressy Four ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS ''Cressy'', after the Battle of Crécy. * was a 74-gun third rate launched in 1810 and broken up in 1832. * was an 80-gun screw propelled third rate launched in 1853 and sold in 1867. * was a a ...

'' * Staff-Sergeant Robert E. Loynes (1882-1918), 258th (Siege) Battery,

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

* Chief-Stoker P. Isaac Winterborne (1878-1917), '' HMS Vanguard'' * Lance-Corporal Albert J. West (1893-1916), 8th Battalion, East Surrey Regiment * Lance-Corporal Bede Guthrie (1896-1917), 1/5th Battalion,

Gloucestershire Regiment The Gloucestershire Regiment, commonly referred to as the Glosters, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 until 1994. It traced its origins to Colonel Gibson's Regiment of Foot, which was raised in 1694 and later became the ...

* Lance-Corporal Charles R. Raven (1889-1917), 9th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Lance-Corporal Charles W. Ranson (1893-1918), 1st Battalion,

Welsh Guards The Welsh Guards (WG; cy, Gwarchodlu Cymreig), part of the Guards Division, is one of the Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. It was founded in 1915 as a single-battalion regiment, during the First World War, by Royal Warrant of George V ...

* Private Ernest Petchey (1887-1917), 7th Battalion,

Bedfordshire Regiment The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment was the final title of a Line infantry, line infantry regiment of the British Army that was originally formed in 1688. After centuries of service in many conflicts and wars, including both the World War ...

* Private Thomas W. Youngs (1892-1917), 7th Battalion, Border Regiment * Private John W. Nudds (d.1917), 1st Battalion, East Surrey Regiment * Private Herbert R. Martin (1881-1916), 12th Battalion, East Surrey Regiment * Private Andrew M. King (d.1917), 1st Battalion, Essex Regiment * Private Herbert Woodbine (d.1918), 14th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment * Private Russel Southerland (1896-1917), 120th Company,

Machine Gun Corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front in the First World War. The Heavy Branch of the MGC was the first to use tank ...

* Private John H. Britton (d.1916), 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Walter W. Fiddaman (1896-1916), 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Albert E. Pitcher (d.1916), 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Samuel Proudfoot (1892-1917), 1/5th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private William J. Billing (d.1916), 7th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Herbert Youngs (1895-1915), 7th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Charles W. B. Matsell (d.1917), 9th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private William J. Skipper (d.1916), 7th Battalion,

Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) was a line infantry regiment of the English and later the British Army from 1661 to 1959. It was the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, behind only the Royal Scots in the British Arm ...

* Private Percy Williamson (d.1918), 11th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment * David Fernie * George Lake * Charles Purer * John Ramsay * Cyril Thompson-Large And, the following for the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

: * Captain A. J. Julian Cory-Wright (1917-1944), 181st (Field) Regiment,

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

* Flying-Officer Anthony D. H. Hawley (1923-1943),

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

* Lieutenant Johnathan F. Cory-Wright (d.1945), Scots Guards * Lieutenant David Gilliat (1922-1944), Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry * Aircraftwoman-Second Class Phyllis M. Duffield (d.1942),

Women's Auxiliary Air Force The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF), whose members were referred to as WAAFs (), was the female auxiliary of the Royal Air Force during World War II. Established in 1939, WAAF numbers exceeded 180,000 at its peak strength in 1943, with over 2 ...

* Lance-Bombadier Herbert E. Sutherland (1914-1943),

Leicestershire Yeomanry The Leicestershire Yeomanry (Prince Albert's Own) was a yeomanry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1794 and again in 1803, which provided cavalry and mounted infantry in the Second Boer War and the First World War and provided two fie ...

, Royal Artillery And, the following for the Berlin Blockade: * John Sharp, DFC Langley, C and Smith, L. (2003). Retrieved November 09, 2022. http://www.roll-of-honour.com/Norfolk/Brancaster.html

Notable people

John Brancastre John Brancastre or John de Bramcastre (died 1218) was an English churchman and administrator, who became archdeacon of Worcester. Life He was included among the keepers of the great seal by Thomas Duffus Hardy, under the dates of 1203 and 1205; bu ...

(died 1218), churchman and administrator, was Vicar of Brancaster and was probably born in the village. *

John Weatherhead John Weatherhead (1775 – 29 July 1797) was an officer of the Royal Navy. He served during the long campaign in the Mediterranean as part of a division under the command of Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood, Samuel Hood. He was with Horatio Nel ...

(1775–1797), Royal Navy officer, was born here, son of a Rector * Captain Sir William Bolton (1777–1830), Royal Navy officer, grew up at Brancaster, where his father was Rector. * Herbert Reeve (1868–1956), Rector of Brancaster 1924 to 1945 *

Felicity Tree Felicity, Lady Cory-Wright (born Felicity Constance Tree; 7 December 1894 – 15 September 1978) was an English baronetess and high society figure. A daughter of the actors Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree and Helen Maud Holt, she appeared regularly ...

(1894–1978), socialite daughter of

Herbert Beerbohm Tree Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree (17 December 1852 – 2 July 1917) was an English actor and theatre manager. Tree began performing in the 1870s. By 1887, he was managing the Haymarket Theatre in the West End, winning praise for adventurous progra ...

, lived at Brancaster

References

http://kepn.nottingham.ac.uk/map/place/Norfolk/Brancaster

Resources

* Ordnance Survey (2002). ''OS Explorer Map 250 – Norfolk Coast West''. . * Office for National Statistics & Norfolk County Council (2001).
Census population and household counts for unparished urban areas and all parishes
'. Retrieved 2 December 2005. *'Suffolk Norfolk Life', No. 236, April 2009, pp 12–16; No. 251, July 2010, pp 32–35;& No. 263, July 2011, pp 32–36 (John Ramm)

External links

*
Brancaster Staithe and Burnham Deepdale
Guide to these two villages and the beautiful north Norfolk coast
Information from Genuki Norfolk
on Brancaster. {{authority control Villages in Norfolk Populated coastal places in Norfolk Civil parishes in Norfolk Beaches of Norfolk King's Lynn and West Norfolk