Brockdish Explained

Country:	England
Coordinates:	52.37°N 1.247°W
Os Grid Reference:	TM224794
Official Name:	Brockdish
Population:	681
Area Total Km2:	9.15
Region:	East of England
Civil Parish:	Brockdish
Postcode District:	IP21
Postcode Area:	IP
Post Town:	DISS
Static Image Name:	St.Peter And St.Paul Brockdish - geograph.org.uk - 295413.jpg
Static Image Caption:	St.Peter and St.Paul's Church, Brockdish

Brockdish is a village and civil parish in the South Norfolk district of Norfolk, England. The village is situated on the River Waveney (south of which is Suffolk), and is about 3 miles (5 km) south-west of Harleston.

History

Brockdish's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for enclosed land adjacent to a stream.^[1]

In the Domesday Book, Brockdish is described as consisting of 39 households belonging to William I and Bury St Edmunds Abbey.

In 1996, the village was bypassed after the completion of a section of the A143.

Geography

According to the 2001 census the parish (including Thorpe Abbotts) had a population of 605 in 265 households, the population increasing at the 2011 Census to 681.^[2]

Brockdish is the highest point on the River Waveney from which canoes and kayaks can access the water, the entry point being at the foot of the common.

St. Peter and St. Paul Church

Brockdish's Parish Church is dedicated to Saint Peter and Saint Paul and is of Norman origin. The church was significantly remodelled in the Victorian Era in a faux-Medieval style.^[3]

Place of Interest

Brockdish originally had two public houses until the closure of 'The Greyhound' in 2000, leaving the remaining pub: 'The King's Head'.^[4]

Brockdish Primary School closed in 2016 due to falling pupil numbers, and was, at once, Norfolk's smallest primary school. Pupils today attend primary education in Pulham Market or Harleston.^[5] Today, the school building is put to use as the Waveney Heritage Centre, a charity dedicated to forwarding local history.^[6] Pupils usually pursue secondary education at Harleston Sancroft Academy.

Notable residents

• Clementia Taylor, women's rights activist and political radical
• Elaine Murphy, Baroness Murphy

War memorial

Brockdish War Memorial is a Gothic cross constructed out of Portland stone, located in St. Peter and St.Paul's Churchyard. It holds the following names for First World War:

• Second-Lieutenant Cecil W. M. White (1895–1915), 9th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment
• Able-Seaman Edgar A. Butcher (1884–1918), Anson Battalion, Royal Naval Division
• Pioneer Harry Wilkinson (1894–1918), Royal Engineers
• Private Ernest E. Shemming (1887–1917), 4th Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment
• Private Alfred E. Whiting (1883–1916), 7th Battalion, Border Regiment
• Private Robert W. Whiting (1888–1917), 1st Battalion, East Surrey Regiment
• Private William J. Day (1899–1917), 7th Battalion, East Surrey Regiment
• Private Frederick A. Licence (1891–1918), 2nd Battalion, Essex Regiment
• Private Frederick J. Read (1891–1916), 9th Battalion, Essex Regiment
• Private Alfred J. Fisher (1897–1918), 428th (Agricultural) Company, Labour Corps
• Private Albert V. Day (1894–1916), 1/9th (Queen Victoria's Rifles) Battalion, London Regiment
• Private William J. Read (1885–1917), 1/9th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment
• Private John N. Hines (1878–1915), 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment
• Private Marshall H. Norman (1882–1916), 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment
• Private George H. Bloomfield (1894–1917), 2nd Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment
• Private William B. Hines (1881–1916), 7th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment
• Private Alfred Foulger (1893–1917), 8th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment
• Private William Allum (1893–1917), 2nd Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment
• Rifleman Frank V. Barkway (1896–1916), 12th Battalion, Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own)

And, the following for the Second World War:

• Private Clifford H. Debenham (1888–1941), 2nd Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment
• Private Bertie J. Flatman (1920–1943), 5th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment

Further reading

• The Moated Grange: A History of South Norfolk Through the Story of one Home, 1300-2000 (2015), by Elaine Murphy, Baroness Murphy

External links

• Brockdish & Thorpe Abbotts website

Notes and References

1. University of Nottingham. (2022). Retrieved November 11, 2022. http://kepn.nottingham.ac.uk/map/place/Norfolk/Brockdish
2. Web site: Parish population 2011. 9 September 2015.
3. Knott, S. (2010). Retrieved November 11, 2022. http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/brockdish/brockdish.htm
4. Kings Head Brockdish. (2022). Retrieved November 11, 2022. https://www.kingsheadbrockdish.co.uk/
5. Murphy, R. (2016). Norfolk's smallest primary school closes its doors for the last time. In Eastern Daily Press.
6. Waveney Heritage Centre. (2022). Retrieved November 11, 2022. https://www.waveneyheritage.com/