Norfolk
Norfolk is the largest county in East Anglia. Bordered in the north by the Wash, its sweeping coastline stretches for over 90 miles, looking out over the North Sea to the north and east.
Windmill on the Norfolk Broads © Brian Young
Inland, the landscape gently rises from east to west, with an abrupt fall down to the flat Fens area, bordering Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire. The low lying coastline provides many stunning long white sandy beaches and quiet seaside towns. It was from these shores that one of Britain's most famous seafarers emerged, Admiral Lord Nelson. He was born in Burnham Thorpe and attended King Edward VI's Grammar School in Norwich.
To the east of the county is a wide flat landscape containing over 200 miles of interconnecting waterways. This beautiful area, known as the Norfolk Broads, was the result of extensive digging for peat in the Middle Ages. As the UK's largest protected wetland, it attracts two million visitors a year, who come to soak up the expansive views and enjoy its wildlife from the comfort of their pleasure boats.
It is one of the most untouched rural areas in England, with over 90% of its landscape given over to farming. With over 50 nature reserves and the beautiful broads, the area is a virtual paradise for wildlife lovers and boating devotees. Norfolk is also home to a host of historic buildings, from majestic windmills to stately residences, such as the magnificent Royal Sandringham estate. Its towns and villages are brimming with traditional flint cottages and period houses. Norfolk is also famous for its many medieval round tower churches. Built in this shape due of the extensive use of flint, enabling the round shape to be easily constructed.
'...Peggotty said, with greater emphasis than usual, that we must take things as we found them, and that, for her part, she was proud to call herself a Yarmouth Bloater.'
County Town: | Norwich - distance from London: 115 miles (185 km) |
Nearby Counties: | Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Suffolk |
Train Operators: | National Express East Anglia |
Nearest Airport: | Norwich (International) |
Major Roads: | A47, A140 |
Highest point: | Near Roman Camp, Sheringham, 336 feet |
Rivers: | Ant, Bure, Burn, Chet, Little Ouse, Nar, Ouse, Stiffkey, Tas, Thet, Waveney, Wensum, Wissey, Yare |
Key Landmarks: |
Norfolk Broads, Thetford Forest, The Wash, Blakeney Point, Norwich Cathedral |
County Flower: | Common Poppy |
Local Delicacies: | Cromer crabs - known for their tender flesh and high proportion of white meat. Norfolk Dumplings - called 'swimmers' as they're made with a bread dough, not suet. |
The Meaning of Norfolk
First recorded in 1043. An Anglo-Saxon term meaning 'the place of the North folk'.
Map of Norfolk
East Anglia
