Happisburgh
Encyclopedia
Happisburgh is a village
and civil parish
in the English
county
of Norfolk
. It is situated off the B1159 coast road
from Ingham
to Bacton
.
The civil parish has an area of 10.78 km² (4.2 sq mi), although this is declining due to cliff erosion. In the 2001 census
, before the creation of Walcott
parish, it had a population of 1,372 in 607 households. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the district
of North Norfolk
.
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In 1086, The Normans built a church on the site of the current one. It was demolished and rebuilt in the 15th century. The tower of St Mary's church is an important landmark to mariners warning of the position of the treacherous nearby sandbanks. In 1940 a German
bomber released a trapped bomb from its bays during its return to Germany and the shrapnel from the bomb can still be seen embedded in the aisle pillars of the church. The church's octagonal font, also of the 15th century, is carved with figures of lion
s and satyr
s.
The red-and-white striped lighthouse
, half a mile to the south of the church is the only independently operated lighthouse in Great Britain. It is also the oldest working lighthouse in East Anglia having been constructed in 1790. It is open to the public on occasional Sundays during the summer.
In 1866 the first lifeboat house was built on the cliffs above Old Cart Gap at a cost of £189. The location of the station here was prompted by its proximity to the treacherous Haisborough Sands
. It closed in 1926 and the lifeboat was withdrawn.
A small boathouse was built in a similar site (52.824326°N 1.5361011°E) during 1965 to house a D class inshore lifeboat
that went into service in June of that year. In 1987 the boathouse was replaced by a new, more modern building with better facilities for crews. This was further extended in 1998. A new D class lifeboat, Colin Martin, was placed on service on 13 September 1994.
In December 2002 the lifeboat launching ramp was washed away due to massive erosion. A temporary station was opened within three months at Old Cart Gap. The original station is now used for training and souvenir sales.
On 22 October 2003 a new D class lifeboat, D-607 Spirit of Berkhamsted, was placed on service.
The station has been honoured with an RNLI
Silver Medal.
The part of the village near the coast regularly experiences severe erosion and houses that used to be over 20 feet from the sea now sit at the edge of a cliff and will later fall into the sea. Sea defences were built in 1959 to stop the tide from eating away at the coast. Changes in government policy, however, have discontinued management of coastal erosion
in North Norfolk
. The Road (Beach Road) that leads into the sea is being constantly eroded due to the sea.
discovered flint tools near Happisburgh. The tools were dated to "somewhere between 866,000 to 814,000 years ago or 970,000 to 936,000 years ago", around 100,000 years earlier than the finds at Pakefield. The flints were probably left by hunter-gatherers of the human species Homo antecessor
who inhabited the flood plains and marshlands that bordered an ancient course of the river Thames
. The flints were then washed downriver and came to rest at the Happisburgh site.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
and civil parish
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
County
A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...
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...
. It is situated off the B1159 coast road
B1159 road
The B1159 is a road in Norfolk, England, running for about between Cromer and Caister-on-Sea, parallel to and at a short distance from the northeastern coast of Norfolk.From north to south the road passes through:*Overstrand*Sidestrand*Trimingham...
from Ingham
Ingham, Norfolk
Ingham is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It lies close to the village of Stalham, and is about 2 miles from Sea Palling on the North Sea coast....
to Bacton
Bacton, Norfolk
Bacton is a village and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It is on the Norfolk coast, some 20 km south-east of Cromer, 40 km north-west of Great Yarmouth and 30 km north of Norwich. Besides the village of Bacton, the parish includes the nearby settlements of Bacton Green, Broomholm,...
.
The civil parish has an area of 10.78 km² (4.2 sq mi), although this is declining due to cliff erosion. In the 2001 census
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
, before the creation of Walcott
Walcott, Norfolk
Walcott is a small village and civil parish on the North Norfolk coast in England between Mundesley and Happisburgh.The name derives from the Celtic word Walecote, which means village by the wood. The village is north east of Norwich, south east of Cromer and north east of London...
parish, it had a population of 1,372 in 607 households. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the district
Non-metropolitan district
Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially shire districts, are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties in a so-called "two-tier" arrangement...
of 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:...
.
St Mary's church
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
bomber released a trapped bomb from its bays during its return to Germany and the shrapnel from the bomb can still be seen embedded in the aisle pillars of the church. The church's octagonal font, also of the 15th century, is carved with figures of lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
s and satyr
Satyr
In Greek mythology, satyrs are a troop of male companions of Pan and Dionysus — "satyresses" were a late invention of poets — that roamed the woods and mountains. In myths they are often associated with pipe-playing....
s.
Lighthouse
The red-and-white striped lighthouse
Happisburgh Lighthouse
Happisburgh Lighthouse in Happisburgh on the North Norfolk coast is the only independently operated lighthouse in Great Britain. It is also the oldest working lighthouse in East Anglia....
, half a mile to the south of the church is the only independently operated lighthouse in Great Britain. It is also the oldest working lighthouse in East Anglia having been constructed in 1790. It is open to the public on occasional Sundays during the summer.
Lifeboat station
Haisborough Sands
Haisborough Sands is a sandbank off the coast of Norfolk, England at Happisburgh. The shoal is long and wide and lies parallel to the North east coast of Norfolk. The shoal is marked to the north-west by north by the Haisbro Light Buoy, North cardinal...
. It closed in 1926 and the lifeboat was withdrawn.
A small boathouse was built in a similar site (52.824326°N 1.5361011°E) during 1965 to house a D class inshore lifeboat
D class lifeboat
The D class lifeboat EA16 is a class of inflatable boat formally operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution of the United Kingdom and Ireland. It has been replace by the D class lifeboat -Utilization:...
that went into service in June of that year. In 1987 the boathouse was replaced by a new, more modern building with better facilities for crews. This was further extended in 1998. A new D class lifeboat, Colin Martin, was placed on service on 13 September 1994.
In December 2002 the lifeboat launching ramp was washed away due to massive erosion. A temporary station was opened within three months at Old Cart Gap. The original station is now used for training and souvenir sales.
On 22 October 2003 a new D class lifeboat, D-607 Spirit of Berkhamsted, was placed on service.
The station has been honoured with an RNLI
Royal National Lifeboat Institution
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is a charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of Great Britain, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, as well as on selected inland waterways....
Silver Medal.
Coastal erosion
Coastal erosion
Coastal erosion is the wearing away of land and the removal of beach or dune sediments by wave action, tidal currents, wave currents, or drainage...
in 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:...
. The Road (Beach Road) that leads into the sea is being constantly eroded due to the sea.
Archaeology
In 2010, Simon Parfitt and colleagues from University College LondonUniversity College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
discovered flint tools near Happisburgh. The tools were dated to "somewhere between 866,000 to 814,000 years ago or 970,000 to 936,000 years ago", around 100,000 years earlier than the finds at Pakefield. The flints were probably left by hunter-gatherers of the human species Homo antecessor
Homo antecessor
Homo antecessor is an extinct human species dating from 1.2 million to 800,000 years ago, that was discovered by Eudald Carbonell, Juan Luis Arsuaga and J. M. Bermúdez de Castro. H. antecessor is one of the earliest known human varieties in Europe. Various archaeologists and anthropologists have...
who inhabited the flood plains and marshlands that bordered an ancient course of the river Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
. The flints were then washed downriver and came to rest at the Happisburgh site.
Notable residents
- Charles William PeachCharles William PeachCharles William Peach was a British naturalist and geologist.-Biography:He was born at Wansford, Cambridgeshire; his father at the time was a saddler and harness-maker, and afterwards became an innkeeper, farming about eighty acres of land...
, naturalistNaturalistNaturalist may refer to:* Practitioner of natural history* Conservationist* Advocate of naturalism * Naturalist , autobiography-See also:* The American Naturalist, periodical* Naturalism...
and geologistGeologistA geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using... - Richard PorsonRichard PorsonRichard Porson was an English classical scholar. He was the discoverer of Porson's Law; and the Greek typeface Porson was based on his handwriting.-Early life:...
, classical scholar
See also
Local offshore sandbanks dangerous to shipping:- Hammond's KnollHammond's KnollHammond's Knoll is a six mile long sandbank off the coast of Norfolk, England at Happisburgh, to the east of Haisborough Sands. The sandbank at low tide has a depth of 6 fathoms at each end, and 3 fathoms in the centre.-Ships wrecked on Hammond's Knoll:...
- Haisborough SandsHaisborough SandsHaisborough Sands is a sandbank off the coast of Norfolk, England at Happisburgh. The shoal is long and wide and lies parallel to the North east coast of Norfolk. The shoal is marked to the north-west by north by the Haisbro Light Buoy, North cardinal...