The River Dove is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...
in the
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
of
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 ...
. It is a tributary of the
River Waveney
The River Waveney is a river which forms the boundary between Suffolk and Norfolk, England, for much of its length within The Broads. The "ey" part of the name means "river" thus the name is tautological.
Course
The source of the River Wavene ...
starting near
Bacton going through
Eye to the Waveney.
Course
The Dove rises as several minor streams in the parish of
Bacton at around 63 metres above sea level. It descends to the west of the village and flows north, before turning east to pass through the village of
Finningham where it passes under the
Stowmarket
Stowmarket ( ) is a market town in Suffolk, England,OS Explorer map 211: Bury St.Edmunds and Stowmarket
Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton A2 edition. Publishing Date:2008. on the busy A14 trunk road between Bury St Edm ...
to
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 Episcopal see, See of ...
railway. At
Thorndon it merges with another stream and its course turns north. The river then skirts the eastern edge of the village of
Eye, running alongside the former
Eye Priory.
[Ordnance Survey of Great Britain]
Below Eye, it largely forms the western boundary of the parish of
Hoxne
Hoxne ( ) is a village in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk, England, about five miles (8 km) east-southeast of Diss, Norfolk and south of the River Waveney. The parish is irregularly shaped, covering the villages of Hoxne, Cross Street ...
in a meandering course to the west of Hoxne village. Here it is joined by Gold Brook, before emptying into the
River Waveney
The River Waveney is a river which forms the boundary between Suffolk and Norfolk, England, for much of its length within The Broads. The "ey" part of the name means "river" thus the name is tautological.
Course
The source of the River Wavene ...
at the county boundary with
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 Nor ...
.
[
]
Gold Brook
The stream known as Gold Brook flows around north from the parish of Southolt through Redlingfield
Redlingfield is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England. Located around six miles south-east of Diss, in 2011 its population (including Athelington) was 144, according to the 2011 census. Redlingfie ...
to Hoxne before emptying into the River Dove. As it enters Hoxne it is crossed by Goldbrook Bridge on the road to Cross Street. It is here that, according to legend, King Edmund the Martyr hid from the invading Danes. Whilst hiding under the bridge, a newly-wed couple saw his spurs glistening in the light and after capture by the Danes supposedly placed a curse on all bridal couples who should cross the bridge. Even up to the 19th century it is said that wedding parties would avoid the bridge rather than take the risk. According to the same legend, Edmund was then killed on the hill above the bridge.
History
The river passes alongside the town of Eye, known for its important medieval castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
. The name "Eye" is believed to derive from an old word for "island", as in medieval times the River Dove, its tributaries and marshland would frequently flood and render it effectively an island. The area around the river still floods frequently.Alfred Munnings
Sir Alfred James Munnings, (8 October 1878 – 17 July 1959) was known as one of England's finest painters of horses, and as an outspoken critic of Modernism. Engaged by Lord Beaverbrook's Canadian War Memorials Fund, he earned several presti ...
entitled ''A Suffolk Pastoral, the River Dove with a distant clover field''.
References
{{authority control
Dove
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
2Dove