Guestwick
Encyclopedia
Guestwick is a village and a civil parish
in the English
county of Norfolk
. The village is 19.6 miles (31.5 km) south-west of Cromer
, 18.7 miles (30.1 km) north-west of Norwich
and 131 miles (210.8 km) north-east of London
. The village lies 10.2 miles (16.4 km) west of the nearby town of Aylsham
. The village lies far from any High roads. The nearest railway station is at Sheringham
for the Bittern Line
which runs between Sheringham
, Cromer and Norwich. The nearest airport is Norwich International Airport
.
. In the parish there is a scattering of farms and isolated properties. The Parish largely relies on near-by settlements of Foulsham
and Reepham
for its facilities. Guestwick is situated south of the North Norfolk
coast which is only 13.6 miles (21.9 km) or 20 minutes by car.
, Guestwick is mentioned but as the settlement of Guistthwaithe and is described as an area of pasture land used by the people of the nearby village of Guist. By the beginning of the 11th century it has been recorded that the settlement had its own church and so had become independent. The village has an Old Station House, which belonged to the former Midland and Great Northern Railway which ran from Norwich
to Sheringham
on the North Norfolk Coast.
period.
To the north of the church can be found the Congregational Chapel which is one of the earliest in England. It was built in 1652 but has been altered in 1809 and again in 1840. The one time minister John Godwin was the father of the political philosopher William Godwin
and the grandfather of Mary Godwin who became Mary Shelley
who is best known for her Gothic novel
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus
(1818).
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
. The village is 19.6 miles (31.5 km) south-west of Cromer
Cromer
Cromer is a coastal town and civil parish in north Norfolk, England. The local government authority is North Norfolk District Council, whose headquarters is in Holt Road in the town. The town is situated 23 miles north of the county town, Norwich, and is 4 miles east of Sheringham...
, 18.7 miles (30.1 km) north-west of Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
and 131 miles (210.8 km) north-east of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The village lies 10.2 miles (16.4 km) west of the nearby town of Aylsham
Aylsham
Aylsham is a historic market town and civil parish on the River Bure in north Norfolk, England, about north of Norwich. The river rises near Melton Constable, upstream from Aylsham and continues to Great Yarmouth and the North Sea, although it was only made navigable after 1779, allowing grain,...
. The village lies far from any High roads. The nearest railway station is at Sheringham
Sheringham railway station
Sheringham railway station is a timber halt in the town of Sheringham in the English county of Norfolk. The station is the terminus of the Bittern Line, operated by National Express East Anglia, and is 49 km north of...
for the Bittern Line
Bittern Line
The Bittern Line is a railway line from Norwich to Cromer then Sheringham in Norfolk, England. It is one of the most scenic in the East of England traversing the Norfolk Broads on its route to the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the North Norfolk Coast. The line is part of the Network Rail...
which runs between Sheringham
Sheringham
Sheringham is a seaside town in Norfolk, England, west of Cromer.The motto of the town, granted in 1953 to the Sheringham Urban District Council, is Mare Ditat Pinusque Decorat, Latin for "The sea enriches and the pine adorns"....
, Cromer and Norwich. The nearest airport is Norwich International Airport
Norwich International Airport
Norwich International Airport , also known as Norwich Airport, is an airport in the City of Norwich within Norfolk, England north of the city centre and on the edge of the city's suburbs....
.
Location
There are two settlements that make up the parish of Guestwick. Guestwick Green in the south west of the parish and Guestwick which is centered around the parish church of Saint PeterSaint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
. In the parish there is a scattering of farms and isolated properties. The Parish largely relies on near-by settlements of Foulsham
Foulsham
This article is about the place. For the publishing company see W. Foulsham & Company Limited.Foulsham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The Village is miles west south west of Cromer, miles north west of Norwich and miles north east of London. The village lies...
and Reepham
Reepham
Reepham may refer to:*Reepham, Lincolnshire*Reepham, Norfolk*Reepham railway station...
for its facilities. Guestwick is situated south of the North Norfolk
North Norfolk
North Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, United Kingdom. Its council is based in Cromer. The council headquarters can be found approximately out of the town of Cromer on the Holt Road.-History:...
coast which is only 13.6 miles (21.9 km) or 20 minutes by car.
History
In the Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, Guestwick is mentioned but as the settlement of Guistthwaithe and is described as an area of pasture land used by the people of the nearby village of Guist. By the beginning of the 11th century it has been recorded that the settlement had its own church and so had become independent. The village has an Old Station House, which belonged to the former Midland and Great Northern Railway which ran from Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
to Sheringham
Sheringham
Sheringham is a seaside town in Norfolk, England, west of Cromer.The motto of the town, granted in 1953 to the Sheringham Urban District Council, is Mare Ditat Pinusque Decorat, Latin for "The sea enriches and the pine adorns"....
on the North Norfolk Coast.
Saint Peter’s Parish Church
The Parish church of Saint Peter has a Saxon-Norman tower constructed of carstone set in the angle between the chancel and the north aisle. Originally it was set in the center and the arches to its chancel and nave are still there although they are filled with masonry now. In the south aisle there are two windows with examples of 15th century Norwich Glass. The altar rails and altar table are from the GeorgianGeorgian era
The Georgian era is a period of British history which takes its name from, and is normally defined as spanning the reigns of, the first four Hanoverian kings of Great Britain : George I, George II, George III and George IV...
period.
To the north of the church can be found the Congregational Chapel which is one of the earliest in England. It was built in 1652 but has been altered in 1809 and again in 1840. The one time minister John Godwin was the father of the political philosopher William Godwin
William Godwin
William Godwin was an English journalist, political philosopher and novelist. He is considered one of the first exponents of utilitarianism, and the first modern proponent of anarchism...
and the grandfather of Mary Godwin who became Mary Shelley
Mary Shelley
Mary Shelley was a British novelist, short story writer, dramatist, essayist, biographer, and travel writer, best known for her Gothic novel Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus . She also edited and promoted the works of her husband, the Romantic poet and philosopher Percy Bysshe Shelley...
who is best known for her Gothic novel
Gothic fiction
Gothic fiction, sometimes referred to as Gothic horror, is a genre or mode of literature that combines elements of both horror and romance. Gothicism's origin is attributed to English author Horace Walpole, with his 1764 novel The Castle of Otranto, subtitled "A Gothic Story"...
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus
Frankenstein
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is a novel about a failed experiment that produced a monster, written by Mary Shelley, with inserts of poems by Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley started writing the story when she was eighteen, and the novel was published when she was twenty-one. The first...
(1818).