Great Bealings is a small village in
Suffolk
Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...
, England. It has about 302 people living in it in around 113 households. Its nearest towns are
Ipswich
Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...
( away) and
Woodbridge (). Nearby villages include
Little Bealings
Little Bealings is a village in Suffolk, England. It has a population of approximately 470 people living in around 185 households. The population had fallen to 420 at the 2011 Census. Its nearest towns are Ipswich ( away) and Woodbridge ( awa ...
,
Playford,
Culpho
Culpho (pronounced Cul-fo) is a hamlet and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, about northeast of the centre of Ipswich and west of Woodbridge.
Culpho's population is less than 100, so the Office for National Statistics i ...
,
Hasketon
Hasketon is a village and civil parish in the East Suffolk District of Suffolk, England.
Its church, St. Andrews, is one of 38 existing round-tower churches in Suffolk. St. Andrews stands more or less at the centre of its scattered parish, a ...
and
Grundisburgh
Grundisburgh is a village of 1,584 residents situated in the English county of Suffolk. It is in the East Suffolk district, six north-east from Ipswich and north-west of Woodbridge located on the B1079. Flowing through the village are the ri ...
. The village does not have an obvious centre, and the population is split between two areas — one around Lower Street to the East of the village, and the other at Boot Street/Grundisburgh Road to the West of the village. St Mary's, the village church, is about in the middle of these two centres of population.
The village shares a playing field with Little Bealings, which is located behind the joint Village Hall, and includes a grassed plateau, a fenced and hard surfaced multi-sports court, children's play equipment, and a
boules
''Boules'' () is a collective name for a wide range of games similar to bowls and bocce (In French: jeu or jeux, in Croatian: boćanje and in Italian: gioco or giochi) in which the objective is to throw or roll heavy balls (called in France, ...
piste. It is named after
John Ganzoni, Lord Belstead, who lived in the village for many years, and whose Charitable Trust Fund supported the project.
The River Lark passes through the middle of the village, and is crossed by the main road with a
humpback bridge
A humpback bridge (or hump bridge) is a name for a type of bridge, specifically an arch bridge, where the span is higher than the ramps on either side, forming a hump-like arrangement. Examples include Chinese and Japanese moon bridge
A moon b ...
.
[Great Bealings History](_blank)
/ref>
History
In the Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
there is mention of the Saxon Hall, owned by Halden, with Anund the priest in attendance. This was on the meadow by the church and was owned by several families such as the de Peche, Clench, and Majors, who knocked it down in 1775 to use the material to aid the construction of Bealings House.
The village has always had a strong agricultural
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...
base with several small farm
A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...
s. In White's gazetteer of Suffolk in 1855, the listed tradesmen are: brickmaker, two boot makers, builder, wheelwright
A wheelwright is a craftsman who builds or repairs wooden wheels. The word is the combination of "wheel" and the word "wright", (which comes from the Old English word "''wryhta''", meaning a worker or shaper of wood) as in shipwright and arkw ...
, blacksmith
A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...
, gardener, shopkeeper, and miller
A miller is a person who operates a Gristmill, mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Mill (grinding), Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surname ...
as well as several farmers and gentlemen
A gentleman (Old French: ''gentilz hom'', gentle + man) is any man of good and courteous conduct. Originally, ''gentleman'' was the lowest rank of the landed gentry of England, ranking below an esquire and above a yeoman; by definition, the ra ...
.
Historical writings
In 1870–72, John Marius Wilson
John Marius Wilson (c. 1805–1885) was a British writer and an editor, most notable for his gazetteers. The ''Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales'' (published 1870–72), was a substantial topographical dictionary in six volumes. It was a c ...
's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales
The ''Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales'' is a substantial topographical dictionary first published between 1870 and 1872, edited by the Reverend John Marius Wilson. It contains a detailed description of England and Wales. Its six volumes h ...
described the village as:
: ''BEALINGS (Great), a parish in Woodbridge district, Suffolk; on a branch of the Deben river
The River Deben is a river in Suffolk rising to the west of Debenham, though a second, higher source runs south from the parish of Bedingfield. The river passes through Woodbridge, turning into a tidal estuary before entering the North Sea at F ...
, and on the East Suffolk railway, near Bealings station
Bealings railway station was a station in Little Bealings, Suffolk on the line between Ipswich and Lowestoft. It was down the line from Ipswich. While the station was shut on 17 September 1956, the line remains open, and both the station build ...
, 2¼. miles W by S of Woodbridge. Post Town, Little Bealings, under Woodbridge. Acres, 1,029. Real property, £2,091. Pop., 338. Houses, 88. The property is divided among a few; and much of it belongs to-Lord Henniker. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Norwich
The Diocese of Norwich is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Church of England that forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England.
History
It traces its roots in an unbroken line to the diocese of the Bishop of the East A ...
. Value, £250.* Patron, Lord Henniker. The church is good.''
In 1887, John Bartholomew
John Bartholomew (25 December 1831 – 29 March 1893) was a Scottish cartographer.
Life
Bartholomew was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. His father, John Bartholomew Sr., started a cartographical establishment in Edinburgh, and he was educated ...
also wrote an entry on Great Bealings in the Gazetteer of the British Isles with a much shorter description:
: ''Bealings, Great, par., E. Suffolk, 2½ miles W. of Woodbridge, 1036 ac., pop. 287.''
Notable residents
*The Seckford family had been landowners in the time of Edward I
Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...
, with local benefactor Thomas Seckford
Thomas Seckford Esquire (1515 – 1587) was a senior lawyer, a "man of business" at the court of Queen Elizabeth I, a landowner of the armigerous Suffolk gentry, Member of Parliament,M.K. Dale, 'Seckford (Sakford), Thomas (1515/16-87), of Gray ...
rebuilding Seckford Hall as the country residence in 1530. He was a close advisor to Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen".
El ...
. His parents are buried in Great Bealings Church.
*Admiral Pelham Aldrich
Admiral Pelham Aldrich, CVO (8 December 1844 – 12 November 1930) was a Royal Navy officer and explorer, who became Admiral Superintendent of Portsmouth Docks.
Biography
He was born in Mildenhall, Suffolk, the son of Dr. Pelham Aldrich and El ...
, who was Admiral-superintendent, Portsmouth
The Admiral-superintendent, Portsmouth was the Royal Navy officer in command of the Naval Dockyard. Portsmouth from 1832 to 1971; prior to this date a resident Commissioner of the Navy Board had had oversight of the yard, since 1649. In May 1971 c ...
, and attended several surveying expeditions around the world, was a resident and is buried in the churchyard and became the namesake of Mount Aldrich
Mount Aldrich () is a massive, somewhat flat-topped mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a p ...
.
*Major Edward Moor
Edward Moor (1771–1848) was a British soldier and Indologist, known for his book ''The Hindu Pantheon'', an early treatment in English of Hinduism as a religion.
Biography
He was a soldier for the East India Company, joining in 1782 as a ca ...
. He served with the East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
, being wounded three times, rising to the rank of brevet-captain. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society
Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...
and an author on Indian mythology. He wrote the mystery, ''Bealings Bells'', published in 1841, about an apparently haunted system of bell-pulls. In the 1820s, with the help of his son the Reverend Edward James Moor, he built a low pyramid
A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilat ...
southeast of Bealings House, about ten feet (three metres) high, of mixed found materials (including mill-wheels) but incorporating at the apex the triple-headed figure of Shiva
Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
and in a niche the seated figure of Brahma
Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...
. These were found by Moor on Malabar Point, Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
, and appear to be 11th century. His son-in-law William Page Wood, 1st Baron Hatherley
William Page Wood, 1st Baron Hatherley, PC (29 November 1801 – 10 July 1881) was a British lawyer and statesman who served as a Liberal Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain between 1868 and 1872 in William Ewart Gladstone's first ministr ...
PC, a lawyer and statesman who served as a Liberal Lord Chancellor
The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. The ...
from 1868 to 1872 in William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...
's first ministry, is buried in the churchyard.
*General Sir Richard Thomas Farren
General Sir Richard Thomas Farren (1817–1909) was a British Army officer who became General Officer Commanding Eastern District.
Military career
Farren was commissioned as an ensign in 1834. He commanded the 47th (Lancashire) Regiment of Fo ...
GCB, a British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
officer who became General Officer Commanding Eastern District lived in Bealings House form before 1891 and was buried in the churchyard on 4 January 1910 aged 92 years. There is a memorial to him within the church.
*Winifred Beech
Winifred Fortescue (7 February 1888 – 9 April 1951) was a British writer and actress. The wife of Sir John Fortescue, librarian and archivist at Windsor Castle and reputed British Army historian, she became formally styled Winifred, Lady For ...
, the author and wife of Sir John Fortescue John Fortescue may refer to:
* Sir John Fortescue (judge) (c. 1394–1479), English lawyer and judge, MP for Tavistock, Totnes, Plympton Erle and Wiltshire
* Sir John Fortescue of Salden (1531/1533–1607), third Chancellor of the Exchequer of Eng ...
, was born in Great Bealings rectory, the daughter of Rector Howard Beech, in 1888.
*John Ganzoni, 2nd Baron Belstead
John Julian Ganzoni, 2nd Baron Belstead, Baron Ganzoni, (30 September 1932 – 3 December 2005) was a British Conservative politician and peer who served as Leader of the House of Lords under Margaret Thatcher from 1988 to 1990.
Background a ...
, Baron Ganzoni PC, a Conservative politician and peer who served as Leader of the House of Lords
The leader of the House of Lords is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom who is responsible for arranging government business in the House of Lords. The post is also the leader of the majority party in the House of Lords who acts as ...
under Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...
from 1988 to 1990, is buried in the churchyard.
*Cynthia Cooke
Cynthia Felicity Joan Cooke, (11 June 1919 – 20 April 2016) was a British military nurse and nursing administrator who served as Matron-in-Chief of the Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service, the nursing branch of the Her Majesty's Nav ...
(1919-2016), military nurse and nursing administrator who served as Matron-in-Chief of the Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service
Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service (QARNNS) is the nursing branch of the British Royal Navy. The Service unit works alongside the Royal Navy Medical Branch.
As of 1 January 2006, according to former Ministry of Defence junior minist ...
, the nursing branch of the Her Majesty's Naval Service
His Majesty's Naval Service is the United Kingdom's naval warfare and maritime service. It consists of the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Royal Fleet Auxiliary, Royal Naval Reserve, Royal Marines Reserve and Naval Careers Service. The term Naval Ser ...
. She was appointed a Commander of the Order of St John
The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of ...
in 1974, and a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
in the 1975 Birthday Honours.
Rectors of the Parish
Plaques in the church list the following Rectors:
:
Images of Great Bealings
Image:GreatBealingsChurch.JPG, St Mary's church from over the Lark
Image:GreatBealingsChurchClose.JPG, And from its churchyard
Image:BealingsOldVicarage.JPG, The old vicarage - Lord Belstead's home until his death
Image:BealingsBridge.JPG, The hump-backed bridge
Image:BealingsLarkFromBridge.JPG, The River Lark from the bridge
Image:BealingsWarMemorial.JPG, The war memorial
Related pages
*Little Bealings
Little Bealings is a village in Suffolk, England. It has a population of approximately 470 people living in around 185 households. The population had fallen to 420 at the 2011 Census. Its nearest towns are Ipswich ( away) and Woodbridge ( awa ...
* Bealings railway station
* Seckford Hall
External links
The Great Bealings web site
The Weather from Great Bealings
References
{{Authority control
Villages in Suffolk
Civil parishes in Suffolk