St James South Elmham 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 ...

in the north of the

English county The counties of England are areas used for different purposes, which include administrative, geographical, cultural and political demarcation. The term "county" is defined in several ways and can apply to similar or the same areas used by each ...

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 ...

. It is north-west of the market town of

Halesworth Halesworth is a market town, civil parish and electoral ward in north-eastern Suffolk, England. The population stood at 4,726 in the 2011 Census. It lies south-west of Lowestoft, on a tributary of the River Blyth, upstream from Southwold. T ...

and south-west of

Bungay Bungay () is a market town, civil parish and electoral ward in the English county of Suffolk.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . It lies in the Waveney Valley, west of Beccles on the edge of The Broads, and at the neck of a meand ...

in the East Suffolk district. It is one of the parishes around Bungay known as the Saints.St James South Elmham
Healthy Suffolk, 2016. Retrieved 2021-03-02. The parish had a population of 205 at the

2011 United Kingdom census A census of the population of the United Kingdom is taken every ten years. The 2011 census was held in all countries of the UK on 27 March 2011. It was the first UK census which could be completed online via the Internet. The Office for National ...

. It is an isolated parish in a rural area and borders the parishes of St Cross South Elmham,

All Saints and St Nicholas South Elmham All Saints and St Nicholas, South Elmham is a civil parish in the north of the English county of Suffolk. It is south of the market town of Bungay and the same distance north-west of Halesworth and east of Harleston. The parish is in the Ea ...

Rumburgh Rumburgh is a village and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk. It is north-west of the market town of Halesworth in the East Suffolk District. The population of the parish at the 2011 United Kingdom census was 327. The village is ...

Wissett Wissett is a village and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk. It is north-east of the market town of Halesworth in the East Suffolk district. Historically, it was in the Blything Hundred.Chediston Chediston is a village and a civil parish on the B1123 road, in the East Suffolk district, in the English county of Suffolk. It is located 2 miles west of Halesworth, its post town. The population of the civil parish as of the 2011 census was 19 ...

and

Metfield Metfield is a village in Suffolk, England, but its name is derived from Medefeld or 'Meadow feld' (see ''Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place Names''). It is situated close to the border with Norfolk, being approximately 5 miles south eas ...

. The village is spread along the road between

All Saints' South Elmham All Saints' South Elmham is a village and former civil parish in the north of the English county of Suffolk. The parish was combined with St Nicholas South Elmham in 1737 to form the parish of All Saints and St. Nicholas, South Elmham. It is ...

and Metfield.South Elmham St. James
Suffolk Heritage Explorer,

Suffolk County Council Suffolk County Council is the administrative authority for the county of Suffolk, England. It is run by 75 elected county councillors representing 63 divisions. It is a member of the East of England Local Government Association. History Establ ...

. Retrieved 2021-03-02. The parish church is dedicated to St James and dates from the 12th-century. It has a 13th-century tower and contains a number of Norman windows and a 12th-century font with a 15th-century cover. The church is a Grade I listed building;Church of St James
List entry,

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked wit ...

. Retrieved 201-03-02.Knott S (2008
St James, South Elmham St James
Suffolk Churches. Retrieved 2021-03-02. a medieval moated site close to the church is a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

.Moated site 150m south of St James' Church
List entry,

. Retrieved 201-03-02. Parts of

RAF Metfield Royal Air Force Metfield or more simply RAF Metfield is a former Royal Air Force station located just to the southeast of the village of Metfield, Suffolk, England. Metfield was built as a standard, Class-A bomber design airfield, consisting ...

, a

World War II 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 ...

airfield built in 1943 and used by the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

, extend into the west of the parish. An explosion in July 1944, caused by the mishandling of a number of bombs, shook the surrounding area, including St James.Metfield
American Air Museum in Britain. Retrieved 2021-03-02. Other than the church few services remain in the village. It has a village hall and a recreation ground which was transferred to the control of the parish council in 2020.Noble J (2020
Village recreation ground taken over by parish in bid to improve usage
''

East Anglian Daily Times The ''East Anglian Daily Times'' is a British local newspaper for Suffolk and Essex, based in Ipswich. History The newspaper began publication on 13 October 1874, incorporating the ''Ipswich Express'', which had been published since 13 August ...

'', 2020-11-05. Retrieved 2021-03-02. A community orchard is located to the west of the village. The village

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

, the ''White Horse'', closed in 1991.St James South Elmham White Horse
Suffolk Pubs,

Campaign for Real Ale The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is an independent voluntary consumer organisation headquartered in St Albans, England, which promotes real ale, cider and perry and traditional British pubs and clubs. With just under 155,000 members, it is th ...

. Retrieved 2021-03-02.

References

{{authority control Villages in Suffolk Civil parishes in Suffolk Waveney District