Bawburgh () 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the

South Norfolk South Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, England. The largest town is Wymondham, and the district also includes the towns of Costessey, Diss, Harleston, Hingham, Loddon and Long Stratton. The council was based in Long S ...

district of

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

, England, lying in the valley of the River Yare about west of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

city centre. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 466, increasing to 595 at the 2011 census. Bawburgh is very close to the relatively new

Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) is a large National Health Service (NHS) academic teaching hospital in the Norwich Research Park on the western outskirts of Norwich, England. The university hospital replaced the former Norf ...

and the

Bowthorpe Bowthorpe is a suburban village to the west of Norwich, in the county of Norfolk, England. Geography Bowthorpe is primarily a residential area, but includes a large industrial estate (Bowthorpe Industrial Estate; occupied by mix-use commercia ...

Estate. The name is first recorded as ''Bauenburc'' in 1086 and is from

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

'stronghold of a man called Beawa.' The mill at the centre of the village was the original site of the manufacture of

Colman's Colman's is an English manufacturer of mustard and other sauces, formerly based and produced for 160 years at Carrow, in Norwich, Norfolk. Owned by Unilever since 1995, Colman's is one of the oldest existing food brands, famous for a limited ra ...

mustard. There is a pub called The King's Head. Bawburgh is a significant location in the legend of

St Walstan Walston (recorded as Walstan in some sources) was an Anglo-Saxon prince, known for the miracles which occurred during and after his life after he became a farm worker. He is a patron saint of farm animals and agricultural workers, who once v ...

, the 10th-11th century patron saint of farm labourers. According to legend, Walstan was born at Bawburgh (or possibly Blythburgh in Suffolk) into a Saxon noble family circa 970, but at the age of 12 gave up his privileged life, choosing instead to work as a farm labourer in Taverham. His initial journey on foot from Bawburgh to Taverham took Walstan through Costessey, where he donated his noble garments to two passing peasants. After many years, Walstan's imminent death was foretold by an angel and he asked a priest for the last rites; no water was available but a miraculous spring welled up on the spot. On his death, Walstan's body was returned to Bawburgh on a cart drawn by two white oxen. The oxen stopped at Costessey, where a second spring gushed forth and at Bawburgh, where a third spring appeared. St Walstan's Well at Bawburgh is the only one of the legendary springs that remains identifiable. Walstan's body was taken into the church and Bawburgh became the centre of a cult of pilgrimage, with several miracles recorded.

Church of St Mary & St Walstan

The church of Bawburgh St Mary and St Walstan is one of 124 existing

round-tower church Round-tower churches are a type of church found mainly in England, mostly in East Anglia; of about 185 surviving examples in the country, 124 are in Norfolk, 38 in Suffolk, six in Essex, three in Sussex and two each in Cambridgeshire and Berks ...

es in

. St Walstan's Day is celebrated on an annual basis with a church service and walk to the nearby St Walstan's Well. The church is a Grade I listed buildin

There is a canonical sundial on the south wall.

War memorial

Bawburgh's War Memorial is located in St. Mary and St. Walstan's Churchyard and holds the following names for the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

: * Corporal William J. Child (1895–1917), 6th Battalion, Durham Light Infantry * Lance-Corporal Alphonso E. Allison (1893–1916), 7th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment * Rifleman Cyril S. Harmer (1892–1918), 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles * Private Herbert H. Woods (1882–1917), 4th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment * Private Dan W. Allison (1888–1914), 1st Battalion,

Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot guards#United Kingdom, 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 in the Ki ...

* Horace A. Allison * Herbert H. Gould And, the following for the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

: * Leading-Airman Percy W. Clitheroe DSM (1916–1941), ''

HMS Victorious (R38) HMS ''Victorious'' was the third after ''Illustrious'' and ''Formidable''. Ordered under the 1936 Naval Programme, she was laid down at the Vickers-Armstrong shipyard at Newcastle upon Tyne in 1937 and launched two years later in 1939. Her c ...

'' * Corporal Herbert H. Mortimer (1913–1944), 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment

References

External links

St Mary's and St Walstan's on the European Round Tower Churches WebsiteVillage Website
{{authority control South Norfolk Villages in Norfolk Civil parishes in Norfolk