Brancaster 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 below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

on the north coast of the English county of

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

. The civil parish of Brancaster comprises Brancaster itself, together with

Brancaster Staithe Brancaster Staithe is a village on the north coast of the English county of Norfolk. Brancaster Staithe merges with Burnham Deepdale, forming one village. Brancaster Staithe is in the civil parish of Brancaster, together with Burnham Deepdale and ...

and

Burnham Deepdale Burnham Deepdale is a village on the north coast of the English county of Norfolk. Burnham Deepdale is in the civil parish of Brancaster, along with Brancaster Staithe. The three villages form a more or less continuous settlement along the A1 ...

. The three villages form a more or less continuous settlement along the A149 at the edge of the Brancaster Manor marshland and the Scolt Head Island National Nature Reserve. The villages are located about 3 miles (5 km) west of

Burnham Market Burnham Market is an English village and civil parish near the north coast of Norfolk. It is one of the Burnhams, a group of three adjacent villages that were merged: Burnham Sutton, Burnham Ulph and Burnham Westgate. In 2022, Burnham Market ...

, 22 miles (35 km) north of the town of King's Lynn and 31 miles (50 km) north-west of the city of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

. The civil parish has an area of 8.27 square miles (21.43 km²) and in the 2011 census had a population of 797 in 406 households. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...

of King's Lynn and West Norfolk. Janet Lake, the clerk to Brancaster Parish Council, has recently reached 50 years of service in the post. The villages name means 'Roman site of Branodunum', where the original Romano-British name may be preserved in the first element. The name is from British bran(n)o, 'crow/raven' possibly used as a personal name, and duno-, 'fortification'. Alternatively, perhaps, 'broomy Roman site'. St Mary's church at Burnham Deepdale is one of 124 existing round-tower churches in Norfolk; it also has a carved Norman font.

Geography and geology

A petrified forest can be seen on the foreshore near Brancaster at low tide. It is about three-quarters of a mile west of the golf clubhouse and consists of material similar to compacted peat or brown coal ( lignite). Remains also wash ashore after storms and can be found along the high tide line. The material resembles black rubber but can be broken easily to reveal plant remains inside.

Governance

An electoral ward in the same name exists. This ward had a population at the 2011 Census of 1,293.

Branodunum – Roman settlement

There was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

fort and settlement here named Branodunum to the east of the modern village. The

Saxon Shore fort The Saxon Shore ( la, litus Saxonicum) was a military command of the late Roman Empire, consisting of a series of fortifications on both sides of the Channel. It was established in the late 3rd century and was led by the "Count of the Saxon Sho ...

(and the related civilian settlement, much of which was destroyed during the construction of a locally opposed housing development in the 1970s) is visible only as grass-covered mounds and remains mainly unexcavated.

Shipwreck on the beach

The wreck that used to be visible at low tide but has now been almost completely covered by the westerly drifting sand was the 1021grt

coaster Coaster (stylized as COASTER) is a commuter rail service in the central and northern coastal regions of San Diego County, California, United States operated by the North County Transit District (NCTD). The commuter rail line features eight s ...

''SS Vina'' which was used for target practice by the

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

before accidentally sinking in 1944. The ''Vina'' was built at

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by ''Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

by Ramage & Ferguson in 1894 and was registered at Grangemouth. She was a coast-hugging general cargo ship which would have worked the crossings between the east coast of England and through to the Baltic states. As she neared the end of her useful seagoing life in 1940, ''Vina'' was requisitioned as a naval vessel for wartime use as a blockship, carrying a crew of 12. With Great Yarmouth being a strategic port on the east coast, the ultimate fate for the ship would have been to have had her hold filled with concrete and explosives and she would have been sunk at the harbour mouth, blocking entry in the event of a Nazi invasion. Once this threat passed, she was taken out of blockship service and towed up the east coast towards Brancaster where she was used as a target for the RAF before the planned invasion of Normandy in 1944. Originally anchored further out to sea on the Titchwell side as a target for cannon shell trials, she dragged her anchor on 20 August 1944, in a north-westerly gale and ran ashore. Numerous efforts have been made to remove the wreck from the sandbank as the ship is not only a danger to navigation but also attracts holiday makers who walk out to the vessel's remains at low tide. Various parts have been removed and, in 1968, her bronze propeller was blown off by salvagers and floated across the harbour channel. Removal efforts have long been abandoned as uneconomic. Lives have been lost due to ill-advised attempts to reach the ''Vina'' as it is on the far side of a fast-flowing tidal harbour channel. Local lifeboats and RAF rescue helicopters have been pressed into service on many occasions. A warning sign on the wreck advises anyone reaching it to return to the beach immediately.

National Trust and the beach

The beach area and some of the marshes are managed by the National Trust.

Royal West Norfolk Golf Club

The village is home to the

Royal West Norfolk Golf Club Royal West Norfolk Golf Club is a golf club in Brancaster, Norfolk, England, about east of Hunstanton, between Brancaster Bay and the salt marshes. The links course opened in 1892. Simon Rayner is a professional at the club. The "Royal" club ...

., it was founded in 1892, its design being from Holcombe Ingleby. In 2014 it was listed as the 47th best golf course in the UK and Ireland by

Golf Monthly ''Golf Monthly'' is a monthly golfing magazine published by Future plc and based in Paddington in London. It publishes 13 issues a year and has a popular websitgolfmonthly.com The magazine's editor is Michael Harris. It is known for being the world ...

magazine.

Space programme

In the 1950s and 60s, Brancaster was considered as a possible location for the launching site for the

British space programme The British space programme is the British government's work to develop British space capabilities. The objectives of the current civil programme are to "win sustainable economic growth, secure new scientific knowledge and provide benefits to a ...

. This idea was expanded to include the village becoming the base for a facility that could be used by a spaceplane to undertake secret flights over the USSR. Development would have meant that the village would probably have been razed and the villagers rehoused. The eventual installation of oil rigs in the North Sea saw the idea shelved, as the risk, however slight, of atmospheric re-entry material hitting the rigs, was too great.

War Memorial

Brancaster's War Memorial is located in St. Mary the Virgin's Churchyard and is a stone Celtic cross. It lists the following names for the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

: * Captain Charles Simms-Reeve (1885-1915), 2nd Battalion, East Surrey Regiment * Petty-Officer Herbert W. Harrell (1878-1914), '' HMS Cressy'' * Staff-Sergeant Robert E. Loynes (1882-1918), 258th (Siege) Battery,

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

* Chief-Stoker P. Isaac Winterborne (1878-1917), '' HMS Vanguard'' * Lance-Corporal Albert J. West (1893-1916), 8th Battalion, East Surrey Regiment * Lance-Corporal Bede Guthrie (1896-1917), 1/5th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment * Lance-Corporal Charles R. Raven (1889-1917), 9th Battalion,

Royal Norfolk Regiment The Royal Norfolk Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army until 1959. Its predecessor regiment was raised in 1685 as Henry Cornwall's Regiment of Foot. In 1751, it was numbered like most other British Army regiments and named ...

* Lance-Corporal Charles W. Ranson (1893-1918), 1st Battalion,

Welsh Guards The Welsh Guards (WG; cy, Gwarchodlu Cymreig), part of the Guards Division, is one of the Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. It was founded in 1915 as a single-battalion regiment, during the First World War, by Royal Warrant of George V. ...

* Private Ernest Petchey (1887-1917), 7th Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment * Private Thomas W. Youngs (1892-1917), 7th Battalion,

Border Regiment The Border Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, which was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 34th (Cumberland) Regiment of Foot and the 55th (Westmorland) Regiment of Foot. After service i ...

* Private John W. Nudds (d.1917), 1st Battalion, East Surrey Regiment * Private Herbert R. Martin (1881-1916), 12th Battalion, East Surrey Regiment * Private Andrew M. King (d.1917), 1st Battalion,

Essex Regiment The Essex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment served in many conflicts such as the Second Boer War and both World War I and World War II, serving with distinction in all three. ...

* Private Herbert Woodbine (d.1918), 14th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment * Private Russel Southerland (1896-1917), 120th Company,

Machine Gun Corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front in the First World War. The Heavy Branch of the MGC was the first to use tanks ...

* Private John H. Britton (d.1916), 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Walter W. Fiddaman (1896-1916), 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Albert E. Pitcher (d.1916), 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Samuel Proudfoot (1892-1917), 1/5th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private William J. Billing (d.1916), 7th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Herbert Youngs (1895-1915), 7th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private Charles W. B. Matsell (d.1917), 9th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Private William J. Skipper (d.1916), 7th Battalion, Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) * Private Percy Williamson (d.1918), 11th Battalion,

Royal Sussex Regiment The Royal Sussex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1966. The regiment was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot a ...

* David Fernie * George Lake * Charles Purer * John Ramsay * Cyril Thompson-Large And, the following for the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

: * Captain A. J. Julian Cory-Wright (1917-1944), 181st (Field) Regiment,

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

* Flying-Officer Anthony D. H. Hawley (1923-1943),

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

* Lieutenant Johnathan F. Cory-Wright (d.1945),

Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the E ...

* Lieutenant David Gilliat (1922-1944),

Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry The Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry (RWY) was a Yeomanry regiment of the Kingdom of Great Britain and the United Kingdom established in 1794. It was disbanded as an independent Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial Army unit in 1967, a time when t ...

* Aircraftwoman-Second Class Phyllis M. Duffield (d.1942),

Women's Auxiliary Air Force The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF), whose members were referred to as WAAFs (), was the female auxiliary of the Royal Air Force during World War II. Established in 1939, WAAF numbers exceeded 180,000 at its peak strength in 1943, with over 2 ...

* Lance-Bombadier Herbert E. Sutherland (1914-1943),

Leicestershire Yeomanry The Leicestershire Yeomanry (Prince Albert's Own) was a yeomanry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1794 and again in 1803, which provided cavalry and mounted infantry in the Second Boer War and the First World War and provided two fie ...

, Royal Artillery And, the following for the

Berlin Blockade The Berlin Blockade (24 June 1948 – 12 May 1949) was one of the first major international crises of the Cold War. During the multinational occupation of post–World War II Germany, the Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' railway, ro ...

: * John Sharp, DFC Langley, C and Smith, L. (2003). Retrieved November 09, 2022. http://www.roll-of-honour.com/Norfolk/Brancaster.html

Notable people

* John Brancastre (died 1218), churchman and administrator, was Vicar of Brancaster and was probably born in the village. * John Weatherhead (1775–1797), Royal Navy officer, was born here, son of a Rector * Captain Sir William Bolton (1777–1830), Royal Navy officer, grew up at Brancaster, where his father was Rector. * Herbert Reeve (1868–1956), Rector of Brancaster 1924 to 1945 * Felicity Tree (1894–1978), socialite daughter of

Herbert Beerbohm Tree Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree (17 December 1852 – 2 July 1917) was an English actor and theatre manager. Tree began performing in the 1870s. By 1887, he was managing the Haymarket Theatre in the West End, winning praise for adventurous progr ...

, lived at Brancaster

References

http://kepn.nottingham.ac.uk/map/place/Norfolk/Brancaster

Resources

* Ordnance Survey (2002). ''OS Explorer Map 250 – Norfolk Coast West''. . * Office for National Statistics & Norfolk County Council (2001).
Census population and household counts for unparished urban areas and all parishes
'. Retrieved 2 December 2005. *'Suffolk Norfolk Life', No. 236, April 2009, pp 12–16; No. 251, July 2010, pp 32–35;& No. 263, July 2011, pp 32–36 (John Ramm)

External links

*
Brancaster Staithe and Burnham Deepdale
Guide to these two villages and the beautiful north Norfolk coast
Information from Genuki Norfolk
on Brancaster. {{authority control Villages in Norfolk Populated coastal places in Norfolk Civil parishes in Norfolk Beaches of Norfolk King's Lynn and West Norfolk