Dereham

Dereham (), also known as East Dereham, is a town and civil parish in the Breckland District of the English county of Norfolk. It is situated on the A47 road, about 15 miles (25 km) west of the city of Norwich and 25 miles (40 km) east of King's Lynn.

The civil parish has an area of and, in the 2001 census, had a population of 15,659 in 6,941 households; the population at the 2011 census increased to 18,609. Dereham falls within, and is the centre of administration for, Breckland District Council.Office for National Statistics & Norfolk County Council (2001).
Census population and household counts for unparished urban areas and all parishes
'. Retrieved 2 December 2005. The town should not be confused with the Norfolk village of West Dereham, which lies about 25 miles (40 km) away.

Since 1983, Dereham has been twinned with the town of Rüthen in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is also twinned with Caudebec-lès-Elbeuf, France.
In spite of the reunification of Germany in 1990, the sign on the A47 at the entrance to Dereham from the Swaffham direction still refers to Rüthen being in West Germany; this sparks periodic comment in the local press.

History

Early history

It is believed that Dereham's name derives from a deer park that existed in the area, in perhaps the 7th century, since a rough translation of the name is 'enclosure for deer'. That is quite recent however, since it is known that the town pre-dates the Saxon era.

According to local tradition, Saint Wihtburh (aka Withburga), the youngest daughter of Anna, King of the East Angles, founded a monastery and a convent there in the seventh century after seeing a vision of the Virgin Mary, although the Venerable Bede does not mention her in his writings. The monastery is mentioned by Bede, but little further is known of it and no evidence survives today.

An archeological report by Norfolk County Council indicates that the first "documentary evidence" of a settlement in this area was not until AD 798, however. The Domesday Book of 1086 states that in the 11th Century, "St Etheldreda held Dereham that was already an important market centre with three mills". The report adds that the growing community was centred around St. Nicholas Church, from the Norman era; the structure was altered during the 1200s, 1300s and 1400s. Because numerous medieval buildings were destroyed in fires during 1581 and 1679, the town appears to have a Georgian aspect.Parish Summary: Dereham
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A Neolithic polished greenstone axe head was found near the town in 1986, with a Neolithic axe head, flint scraper and other tools and worked flints also found in local fields during the 1980s. There is evidence that the area was occupied during the Bronze Age, with burnt flints from a pot boiler site being found in 1976 and another burnt mound site located in 1987.

In 2000, an enamelled bridle bit dating from the Iron Age was discovered, with pottery sherds also being found by field walkers in 1983. The town is believed to be on the Roman Road linking the Brampton with the major east-west Roman Road of the Fen Causeway. Some pottery and furniture remains have been found in local fields.

In 2004, the largest number of Roman coins found in Norfolk was discovered in Dereham, over 1000 from the third century. A dig provided no evidence of Roman occupation, however.

Edmund Bonner, later to become the infamous 'burning bishop', was the Rector for Dereham from 1534 to 1538. Many of the town's ancient buildings were destroyed in the serious fires that took place in 1581 and 1659. Notable buildings that survived the fire include the Church of Saint Nicholas and the nearby Bishop Bonner's cottage. Dereham was administered by the Abbots, then the Bishops of Ely, until the parish was taken from the church by Queen Elizabeth I.

Napoleonic Conflict

In the late 1700s, Dereham church's bell tower was used as a prison for French prisoners of war being transferred from Great Yarmouth to Norman Cross under the charge of the East Norfolk Militia. On 6 October 1799, a French officer, Jean de Narde, managed to escape from the tower and, being unable to escape from the church yard due to guards being present, hid in a tree. The Frenchman was spotted and shot when he refused to come down and surrender. Jean is buried in the church yard and his grave is marked by a memorial stone erected in 1858, which includes the following statement: "Once our foes but now our allies and brethren."
This story is told in the documentary, "The shooting of Jean DeNarde". Jean de Narde's link with Dereham is commemorated by a road named for him just off the B1146 as one approaches the town from the north.

One of the windmills built during this era, the Grade II Listed East Dereham Windmill (built in 1836) was known as the Norwich Road Mill or Fendick's Mill; it was constructed by James Hardy for Michael Hardy who owned a smock mill at Bittering. The windmill continued to use wind power until 1922 when it was converted to use engine power. The facility closed in 1937. It was restored and reopened as an exhibition centre in 2013.

Dereham Rifle Volunteer Corps

In June 1859, a public meeting was held ar the Corn Hall for the formation of a Dereham Rifle Volunteer Corps. The Reverend Armstrong made a short speech urging people to join; around thirty men did, the eldest was an elderly fat banker of 70 years and the youngest a seventeen-year-old. They were kitted out in a grey uniform. The Corps met regularly for drill and exercise. When the Prince and Princess of Wales, and the Queen of Denmark arrived at the town's railway station, the Dereham Rifles attended to form a guard of honour.

William Earle G. Lytton Bulwer, formerly a lieutenant and captain in the Scots Fusilier Guards, was commanding the Dereham Corps in 1861. In June 1867, the Corps, recorded as the 15th Corps, attended a volunteer encampment at Hunstanton. The unit was, at that time, still under the command of Captain Bulwer and formed the tenth tent line. Dereham was the headquarters of 5th, 6th, 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 19th, 23rd and 24th Corps. The Right Hon. Lord Suffield was appointed Honorary Colonel on 18 May 1866. The Quebec Street drill hall opened in 1866.

First World War

At the outbreak of war, the 5th Battalion, Norfolk Regiment, kept their HQ in Quebec Street but were based in the Corn Hall, and used the Masonic Hall on Norwich Road as a store, with the Assembly Rooms being used for medical inspections.

Dereham suffered damage during a Zeppelin air raid during the night of 8 September 1915. Damaged buildings included the headquarters of the 5th Norfolk Regiment at their premises on the corner of Church Street and Quebec Street. The raid also hit The White Lion public house on Church Street, seriously injuring two customers. The roof was destroyed and The White Lion never reopened as a public house. The old Vicarage was used as a Red Cross hospital.

In December 1915, Zeppelin L14 dropped bombs between Bylaugh Park and Dereham. 75 bombs were dropped on Dereham, with several houses destroyed and 8 or 9 bombs dropped onto the Red Cross hospital established in the vicarage - although these bombs failed to detonate. Another bomb hit the guildhall and destroyed windows in the church. Four people were killed and six injured during the raid, with the coroner's report stating that the deaths were caused by bombs, “unlawfully dropped from a Zeppelin aircraft.”

World War II

Dereham was declared a Nodal Point during the Second World War and was partially fortified to slow down any German invasion of the country. Several defensive structures were built. One surviving pill box, in the railway station yard, is preserved as a memorial by the Royal British Legion; several others were built but are no longer visible. Additional Air Ministry sidings were laid in the town in 1943.

A Cold War era bunker was built underground near the Guild Hall.

Railways

The railway arrived in Dereham in 1847, when a single track line to Wymondham opened. A second line was opened, in 1848, to King's Lynn. A line from Dereham to Fakenham was opened in 1849; this line being extended to the coastal town of Wells-on-Sea by 1857. The town's railways became part of the Great Eastern Railway in 1862. Dereham had its own railway depot and a large complex of sidings, serving local industry. The line between Dereham and Wymondham was doubled, in 1882, to allow for the increasing levels of traffic.

Passenger services between Dereham and Wells were withdrawn in 1964 and the track between Fakenham and Wells was lifted soon after. The line from Dereham to Wymondham was returned to single track in 1965, with a passing loop at Hardingham. The line to King's Lynn was closed in 1968 and the last passenger train on the Dereham-to-Wymondham line ran in 1969, although the railway remained open for freight until 1989.
Dereham labels itself "The Heart of Norfolk" owing to its central location in the county, the Tesco car park being cited as the exact centre. In the spring of 1978, the "Heart" was given the seven-mile £5m part-dual-carriageway A47 bypass. A section of this road, between Scarning and Wendling, was built along the former railway line towards Swaffham and King's Lynn. This section of railway had been used as a location for the filming of ''Dad's Army'', where Captain Mainwaring is left dangling from a railway bridge after a flight on a barrage balloon. Dereham railway station was also a filming location for the opening scene of the BBC
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