Hindringham is a village and a civil parish in 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 village is north east of the town of

Fakenham Fakenham is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It is situated on the River Wensum, about north west of Norwich. The town is the junction of several local roads, including the A148 from King's Lynn to Cromer, the A1067 to Norwic ...

, west of

Cromer Cromer ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish on the north coast of the English county of Norfolk. It is north of Norwich, north-northeast of London and east of Sheringham on the North Sea coastline. The local government authorities are Nor ...

and north of

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The nearest railway station is at

Sheringham Sheringham (; population 7,367) is an English seaside town within the county of Norfolk, United Kingdom.Ordnance Survey (2002). ''OS Explorer Map 252 - Norfolk Coast East''. . The motto of the town, granted in 1953 to the Sheringham Urban Distr ...

for the

Bittern Line The Bittern Line is a railway branch line in Norfolk, England, that links to . It passes through the Broads on its route to an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the north Norfolk coast. It is named after the bittern, a rare bird found in t ...

which runs between

, Cromer and Norwich. The nearest airport is

Norwich International Airport Norwich Airport is an international airport in Hellesdon, Norfolk, England, north of Norwich. In 2017, Norwich Airport was the 28th busiest airport in the UK and busiest in the East Anglia region. Norwich Airport has a CAA Public Use Aero ...

History and Origins

The name Hindringham means "The land of the people living behind the hills". Hindringham is mentioned 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 ...

of 1086 where it is listed as Hidringham, Hindringaham, and Indregeham. A series of archaeological test pits were dug between 2007 and 2015 The report was published in 2019.

Prominent landmarks

St Martin Parish Church

The Parish church is dedicated to St Martin and dates from the 14th century. It stands prominent and tall behind a long line of red-roofed flint cottages. A wall separates the churchyard from the six-foot drop to the road. The chancel is offset to the south against the nave. The font dates from the 15th century and is decorated with a Crucifixion, Instruments of the Passion and a Holy Trinity symbol along with heraldic shields. The church has an ancient chest which is thought to be one of the oldest in England, dating from the end of the 12th century. It is a Grade I listed building.

Hindringham Hall

Hindringham Hall is a 16th-century moated brick and flint house located roughly quarter of a mile to the North West of the village centre. It was built by Martin Hastings, a courtier in the service of

Henry FitzRoy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset Henry FitzRoy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset, (15 June 1519 – 23 July 1536), was the son of King Henry VIII of England and his mistress, Elizabeth Blount, and the only child born out of wedlock whom Henry VIII acknowledged. He was the ...

, the illegitimate son of

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

by his mistress

Elizabeth Blount Elizabeth Blount (// – 1540), commonly known during her lifetime as Bessie Blount, was a mistress of Henry VIII of England. Early life Blount was the daughter of Sir John Blount and Catherine Pershall, of Kinlet, Bridgnorth, Shropshire. Si ...

. A lease written in 1562 refers to the house 'now being builded and edified'. It had fallen into decline until restored in 1900 by Gerald Gosselin from Bengeo Hall,

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

. The interior was completely refurbished, the exterior largely being retained. The moat and associated fish ponds date from the 12th century. They are fed from the

River Stiffkey The River Stiffkey is a chalk stream running through an area of north Norfolk, England from its source near Swanton Novers to flow out into the North Sea on the north Norfolk coast near the village of Stiffkey. The river has been dredged histori ...

, which runs through the grounds. Before the Dissolution of the Monasteries the ponds were managed by the monks 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 ...

Priory, and comprised an important food source for it. Though somewhat silted up, they remain amongst the best preserved in

East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...

. The extensive gardens are the work of the current owners, and include a significant rose collection. They were shortlisted for the Historic Houses 2020 Garden of the Year award. They are open to the public on certain days during the Summer months.

Hindringham Lower Green tower windmill

The village has a windmill although it is actually situated in the nearby hamlet of Lower Green.

Amenities

The village has a mixed non-denominational

Primary School A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

under the control of the Norfolk education authority. Hindringham has a popular sports and social club and this acts as the clubhouse for Hindringham FC on matchdays.

Sports and recreation

Hindringham FC

The village football club, Hindringham F.C. was originally formed in 1910 and re-formed in 1986. The club has worked its way up to senior status in the Football Association National Pyramid since the re-formation. They were elected from the North East Norfolk League to the

Anglian Combination The Anglian Combination (known as the Hadley & Ottaway Anglian Combination under the terms of a sponsorship deal) is an English football league that operates in the East Anglia area. The league specifically covers Norfolk and northern Suffolk ...

in 1998 and eventually won promotion to the Premier Division from Division 1 in the 2006–07 season and in dramatic fashion. With only a win good enough in their final game away at Sprowston Wanderers, a goal in second half stoppage time sealed a 1–0 victory and a runner's-up spot. Hindringham stayed in the Premier Division for two seasons before finally being relegated in the 2008–09 season. They had been relegated the previous season but the withdrawal of Halvergate United and Lowestoft Town from the division meant that the club stayed in the Premier Division for another season. They have been in Division 1 ever since the 2008-09 relegation. From the 2005–06 to the 2007–08 season, the club ran a successful youth team which won their league the first season and made two cup final appearances during this time. (Captain Yotis Alamanous Vice Captain Adrian Belton) Hindringham's last home match in front of the old clubhouse was a 6–1 defeat to Norwich St.Johns in Division 1 on 24 April 2010. In May 2010 the old clubhouse was demolished and a new clubhouse opened in March 2011. The clubhouse used to also act as the village pub but is now solely a clubhouse. The building is called 'The Pavilion'. Because of the ongoing work to the clubhouse, the 2010–11 season up to March saw Hindringham play their home games at Kelling Road, Holt and Clipbush Park, Fakenham. Some home games were played on the opposition's ground. The first game after the completion of the new clubhouse was on 12 March 2011 against Sprowston Athletic. Hindringham won 3–0. The club's home ground can either be called The Elms or Wells Road. During their early Anglian Combination years up to the late 2000s, first team matches regularly attracted crowds of around 30–50 with some matches managing to attract crowds close to 100. In an Anglian Combination Division 1 match against Sheringham in May 2005, an attendance of over 100 was recorded. The attendance was confirmed by the then chairman of the club later on. The team play in black and white striped shirts, black shorts and black socks. Their away kit is black and royal blue striped shirts and royal blue shorts and socks. Hindringham's main rivals are Fakenham Town, Holt United and Wells Town. Other clubs nearby include Walsingham (who Hindringham have traditionally played in an annual pre-season cup competition) and Binham.

References

# Office for National Statistics & Norfolk County Council, 2001.
Census population and household counts for unparished urban areas and all parishes
.

External links

{{authority control Villages in Norfolk Civil parishes in Norfolk North Norfolk