Wrentham 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the East Suffolk district, in the north-east of the

English county The counties of England are a type of subdivision of England. Counties have been used as administrative areas in England since Anglo-Saxon times. There are three definitions of county in England: the 48 ceremonial counties used for the purpo ...

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

. It is located about from the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

coast on the A12 trunk road, about south-west of

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...

, north of

Southwold Southwold is a seaside town and civil parish on the North Sea, in the East Suffolk District, East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It lies at the mouth of the River Blyth, Suffolk, River Blyth in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths ...

and south-east of

Beccles Beccles ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Suffolk District, East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . The town is located along the A145 r ...

. The village has several shops, two pubs and a village hall. The parish church is located to the west of the village, and near to it is the old circular brick animal pound, used in the 18th and 19th centuries to contain stray animals rounded up in the parish.

History

The Old Town Hall in Wrentham - east facade - geograph

The Old Town Hall, which was designed in the

Gothic Revival style Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

, was completed in 1862. During the winter of 1916–17 the 2/7th (Merionethshire & Montgomeryshire) Battalion of the

Royal Welch Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers () was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales's Division, that was founded in 1689, shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated a fusilier regiment and becam ...

was based at Wrentham. The

2012 Summer Olympics torch relay The 2012 Summer Olympics torch relay was run from 19 May until 27 July, prior to the 2012 Summer Olympics, London 2012 Summer Olympics. The torch bearer selection process was announced on 18 May 2011. As well as touring the United Kingdom the ...

passed through the village on 5 July. The village gave its name to a Ham-class inshore

minesweepers A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

called HMS Wrentham (M2779) which was launched on 8 February 1955. A hamlet in Alberta, Canada was named Wrentham after the village by the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

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 t ...

in the same name exists. This ward stretches east to the coast and west to Brampton with Stoven. The total population of this ward taken at the 2011 Census was 2,224. Wrentham is in the Suffolk Coastal constituency currently represented by

Therese Coffey Therese or Thérèse is a variant of the feminine given name Teresa. It may refer to: Persons Therese * Duchess Therese of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1773–1839), member of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and a Duchess of Mecklenburg * Therese of ...

The Church of St Nicholas

The parish church of Wrentham is dedicated to

Saint Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Patara (Lycia), Patara in Anatolia (in modern-day Antalya ...

. The church is around west of the village centre. The tower, porch and south aisle are 15th century but the north aisle is Victorian. The chancel is the oldest part of the church probably built around 13th century and is supported by red-brick flying buttresses. Both the nave and chancel are very wide. The south aisle contains wooden posts on the south wall to support the roof beams. In the north aisle there is a medieval stained glass window depicting St Nicholas, reputed to be one of the oldest pictures in England. The church had a major re-roofing and restoration during 1990–2000.Taken fro
The Sole Bay Team Ministry
27 January 2009.Taken fro

27 January 2009.Taken from 'A photographic and historical guide to the Parish Churches of East Suffolk' compiled by Adrian S. Pye. 27 January 2009. Page 296 The tower contains a ring of six bells hung for

change ringing Change ringing is the art of ringing a set of tuning (music), tuned bell (instrument), bells in a tightly controlled manner to produce precise variations in their successive striking sequences, known as "changes". This can be by method ringing in ...

. The bells are rung from the ground floor in an anti-clockwise direction. The bells were cast by a range of founders spanning three centuries. The treble (the smallest) and the third were cast by Thomas Gardiner of

Sudbury, Suffolk Sudbury (, ) is a market town and civil parish in the south west of Suffolk, England, on the River Stour near the Essex border, north-east of London. It is the largest town in the Babergh local government district and part of the South Suf ...

in 1723 and 1714 respectively. The second is the oldest bell in the tower, dating from 1606 and cast by John Clarke. The fourth and fifth were cast in 1906 by

Mears & Stainbank Mears or Meares may refer to: People * Ainslie Meares (1910–1986), Australian psychiatrist and authority on medical hypnotism *Anna Meares (born 1983), Australian cyclist * Ashley Mears (born 1980), American sociologist * Bob Mears (born 1933), A ...

and the tenor (the largest) was cast by Llewellins & James of

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

in 1905. The tower is affiliated to the

Suffolk Guild of Ringers The Suffolk Guild of Ringers for the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich is a society and charity supporting the Bell-ringer, bell ringers and Ring of bells, rings of bells in the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich who practice the art of ch ...

.Taken fro
Doves Guide
27 January 2009.

Notable residents

* John Phillips (c1576 – >1641), Anglican and Puritan cleric and an eminent divine. * Robert Brewster (1599 –1663), landowner of Parliamentarian sympathies, member of parliament for

Dunwich Dunwich () is a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England. It is in the Suffolk & Essex Coast & Heaths National Landscape around north-east of London, south of Southwold and north of Leiston, on the North Sea coast. In the Anglo-Saxon ...

and

. *

Philip Skippon Major-General Philip Skippon ( – 20 February 1660) was an English army officer and politician. He fought for the Parliamentary cause during the English Civil War as a senior officer in the New Model Army. Prior to the war, Skippon fought in ...

(1641 – 1691), traveller, writer, diarist, landowner and member of parliament for

William Wotton William Wotton (13 August 166613 February 1727) was an English theologian, classical scholar and linguist. He is chiefly remembered for his remarkable abilities in learning languages and for his involvement in the Quarrel of the Ancients and the ...

(1666 – 1727), theologian, classical scholar and linguist. *

William Johnson Fox William Johnson Fox (1 March 1786 – 3 June 1864) was an English Unitarian minister, politician, and political orator. Early life Fox was born at Uggeshall Farm, Wrentham, near Southwold, Suffolk on 1 March 1786. His parents were strict Calv ...

(1786 – 1864), religious and political

orator An orator, or oratist, is a public speaker, especially one who is eloquent or skilled. Etymology Recorded in English c. 1374, with a meaning of "one who pleads or argues for a cause", from Anglo-French ''oratour'', Old French ''orateur'' (14 ...

. *

James Ewing Ritchie James Ewing Ritchie (1 May 1820 – 1898) was an English journalist and writer. Born in Wrentham, Suffolk, the son of Reverend Andrew Ritchie, he was educated at Coward College and University College, London University College London ...

(1820 – 1898), journalist and writer. * Anne Dalgarno (1909 – 1980) Australian politician, nurse and community leader and member of

Australian Capital Territory Advisory Council The Australian Capital Territory Advisory Council was an elected body that operated from 1930 until 1974, when it was replaced by the Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly. The Council originally consisted of three elected members, being ...

References

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

History

Governance

The Church of St Nicholas

Notable residents

See also

References