Bungay () is a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...

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 ...

and

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected t ...

in the East Suffolk district of

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . It lies in the Waveney Valley, west of

Beccles Beccles ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Suffolk District, East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . The town is located along the A145 r ...

on the edge of

The Broads The Broads (known for marketing purposes as The Broads National Park) is a network of mostly navigable rivers and lakes in the English counties of Norfolk and Suffolk. Although the terms "Norfolk Broads" and "Suffolk Broads" are correctly used ...

, and at the neck of a

meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the Channel (geography), channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erosion, erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank (cut bank, cut bank or river cl ...

of the

River Waveney The River Waveney is a river which forms the boundary between Suffolk and Norfolk, England, for much of its length within The Broads. The earliest attestation of the name is from 1275, ''Wahenhe'', from ''*wagen + ea'', meaning the river by a q ...

. In 2011 it had a population of 5,127.

History

The origin of the name of Bungay is thought to derive from the

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

title ''Bunincga-haye'', signifying the land belonging to the tribe of Bonna, a Saxon chieftain. Due to its high position, protected by the

and marshes, the site was in a good defensive position and attracted settlers from early times. Roman artefacts have been found in the region.

Bungay Castle Bungay Castle is a Grade I listed building in the town of Bungay, Suffolk.town sign, was originally built by the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; ; ) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and locals of West Francia. The Norse settlements in West Franc ...

but was later rebuilt by

Roger Bigod, 5th Earl of Norfolk Roger Bigod (c. 1245 – bf. 6 December 1306) was 5th Earl of Norfolk. Origins He was the son of Hugh Bigod (Justiciar), Hugh Bigod (1211–1266), Justiciar, and succeeded his father's elder brother Roger Bigod, 4th Earl of Norfolk (1209� ...

and his family, who also owned

Framlingham Castle Framlingham Castle is a castle in the market town of Framlingham, Suffolk, England. An early motte and bailey or ringwork Norman castle was built on the Framlingham site by 1148, but this was destroyed (Slighting, slighted) by Henry II of Engl ...

. The castle contains a unique surviving example of mining galleries, dating to the siege of the castle in 1174. They were intended to undermine and thus collapse the castle's tower and

keep A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residen ...

. The Church of St. Mary was once the church of the

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

Bungay Priory Bungay Priory was a Benedictine nunnery in the town of Bungay in the England, English county of Suffolk. It was founded c. 1160-1185 by the Countess Gundred, Countess of Norfolk, Gundreda, wife or widow of Hugh Bigod, 1st Earl of Norfolk, upon l ...

, founded by Gundred, wife of Roger de Glanville.Page, W. (1975), 'Houses of Benedictine nuns: Priory of Bungay', ''A History of the County of Suffolk: Volume 2'', pp. 81–83
available online
. Retrieved 30 April 2011. The 13th-century

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders in the Catholic Church. There are also friars outside of the Catholic Church, such as within the Anglican Communion. The term, first used in the 12th or 13th century, distinguishes the mendi ...

Thomas Bungay Thomas Bungay ( or '; ),. also known as (; ) and formerly also known as , was an Kingdom of England, English Franciscan friar, scholar, and alchemist. Life Thomas was born in Bungay, a market town in Suffolk. He was educated at Oxford Universi ...

later enjoyed a popular reputation as a magician, appearing as

Roger Bacon Roger Bacon (; or ', also '' Rogerus''; ), also known by the Scholastic accolades, scholastic accolade ''Doctor Mirabilis'', was a medieval English polymath, philosopher, scientist, theologian and Franciscans, Franciscan friar who placed co ...

's sidekick in Robert Greene's Elizabethan comedy ''

Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay ''Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay'', originally entitled ''The Honorable Historie of Frier Bacon and Frier Bongay'', is an Elizabethan era stage play, a comedy written by Robert Greene. Widely regarded as Greene's best and most significant play, ...

''. The 11th-century church of Holy Trinity, with its round tower, lies southeast of St. Mary's churchyard, while the 19th-century red brick

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church of St. Edmund is immediately south of St Mary's churchyard. The town was almost destroyed by a great fire in 1688. The central

Buttercross A buttercross, butter cross or butter market cross is a type of market cross associated with English market towns and dating from medieval times. The name originates from the fact that the crosses were located in market places, where people ...

was constructed in 1689 and was the place where local farmers displayed their butter and other farm produce for sale. Until 1810, there was also a

Corn Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...

Cross A cross is a religious symbol consisting of two Intersection (set theory), intersecting Line (geometry), lines, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of t ...

, but this was taken down and replaced by a pump. Bungay was important for the printing and paper manufacture industries. Joseph Hooper, a wealthy

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

graduate who fled

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

when his lands were seized after the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

, rented a mill at Bungay in 1783 and converted it for paper manufacture. Charles Brightly established a printing and stereotype foundry in 1795. Then in partnership with John Filby Childs, the business became Brightly & Childs in 1808 and later Messrs. Childs and Son. Charles Childs (1807–1876) succeeded his father as the head of the firm of John Childs & Son. The business was further expanded after 1876 as R. Clay and Sons, Ltd. The railway arrived with the Harleston to Bungay section of the Waveney Valley Line opening in November 1860 and the Bungay to Beccles section in March 1863. Bungay had its own railway station near Clay's Printers. The station closed to passengers in 1953 and freight in 1964. In 1910 Bungay became an

urban district An urban district is a division generally managed by a local government. It may also refer to a city district, district, urban area or quarter Specific urban districts in some countries include: * Urban districts of Denmark * Districts of Germa ...

in the administrative county of East Suffolk, the district contained the parish of Bungay. On 1 April 1974 the district and parish were abolished and became part of

Waveney Waveney may refer to: * River Waveney, a river that forms the boundary between Suffolk and Norfolk, England * Waveney District, a local government district in Suffolk, England * Waveney (UK Parliament constituency) * Waveney class lifeboat, a class ...

district in the

non-metropolitan county A non-metropolitan county, or colloquially, shire county, is a subdivision of England used for local government. The non-metropolitan counties were originally created in 1974 as part of a reform of local government in England and Wales, and ...

of Suffolk. A

successor parish Successor parishes are Civil parishes in England, civil parishes with a parish councils in England, parish council, created in England in 1974. They replaced, with the same boundaries, a selected group of Urban district (England and Wales), urban d ...

was formed covering the same area as the former district and its parish. In 2019 it became part of East Suffolk district.

Modern Bungay

Local firms include St. Peter's Brewery, based at St. Peter's Hall to the south of the town. In 2008, Bungay became Suffolk's first

Transition Town The terms transition town, transition initiative and transition model refer to grassroots, grassroot community projects that aim to increase self-sufficiency to reduce the potential effects of peak oil, Global warming, climate destruction, and eco ...

and part of a global network of communities that have started projects in the areas of food, transport, energy, education, housing and waste as small-scale local responses to the global challenges of climate change, economic hardship and limited cheap energy.

Reeve

Bungay is the only town in the United Kingdom still to have a town reeve, though there are surviving

portreeve A portreeve (, sometimes spelt Port-reeve) or port warden is the title of a historical official in England and Wales possessing authority (political, administrative, or fiscal) over a town. The details of the office have fluctuated and evolved co ...

s in

Laugharne Laugharne () is a town on the south coast of Carmarthenshire, Wales, lying on the estuary of the River Tâf. The Ancient borough#Charters, ancient borough of Laugharne Township () with its #Laugharne Corporation, Corporation and Charter is a ...

and Ashburton. The reeve runs the town trust, from which each reeve selects the following reeve.

Black Shuck

St Mary's Church was struck by lightning on Sunday 4 August 1577. According to legend, an apparition appeared during the thunderstorm, consisting of a black Hell Hound which dashed around the church, attacking members of the congregation. It then suddenly disappeared and re-appeared in Holy Trinity Church, Blythburgh away, injuring members of the congregation there. The dog has been associated with

Black Shuck In English folklore, Black Shuck, Old Shuck, Old Shock or simply Shuck is the name given to a ghostly Black dog (ghost), black dog which is said to roam the coastline and countryside of East Anglia, one of many such black dogs recorded in folklore ...

, a dog haunting the coasts 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 ...

, Suffolk, and

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

. An image of the Black Dog has been incorporated in the

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

of Bungay and has been used in the titles of various enterprises associated with Bungay as well as several of the town's sporting events. An annual race, The Black Dog Marathon, begins in Bungay and follows the course of the River Waveney, and the town's football club is nicknamed the "Black Dogs". Black Shuck was also the subject of a song by The Darkness.

Sport

The local football club, Bungay Town, play in the

Anglian Combination The Anglian Combination (currently known as the Fosters Solicitors Anglian Combination for sponsorship reasons) is an English association football, football league that operates in East Anglia. The league specifically covers Norfolk and northern ...

, having previously been members of the

Eastern Counties League The Eastern Counties Football League, currently known as the Thurlow Nunn League for sponsorship purposes, is an English football league at levels 9 and 10 of the English football league system. It currently contains clubs from Norfolk, Suffolk ...

. The team plays its home games at the Maltings Meadow Sports Ground. Godric Cycling Club is based in Bungay.Waveney Rural Community Partnership – Sports Information
. Retrieved 10 May 2010. It organises a number of events each year, including weekly club runs.

Notable residents

Bungay was home to several literary figures. Thomas Miller (1731–1804), the bookseller and antiquarian, settled in the village. His publisher son, William Miller (1769–1844), was born there. The author

Elizabeth Bonhôte Elizabeth Bonhôte, née Mapes (baptised 11 April 1744 – 11 June 1818) was an English novelist, essayist and poet. Her most successful work was ''Bungay Castle (novel), Bungay Castle'', a Gothic romance written after her husband had bought the ...

, née Mapes, (1744–1818) was born and grew up there, marrying Daniel Bonhôte and writing the notable book ''

Bungay Castle Bungay Castle is a Grade I listed building in the town of Bungay, Suffolk.Canadian Dictionary of Biography'', was as prolific as the Brontës, Edgeworths and Trollopes, settled in the village 1802–08. Their daughters included

Agnes Strickland Agnes Strickland (18 July 1796 – 8 July 1874) was an English historical writer and poet. She is particularly remembered for her ''Lives of the Queens of England'' (12 vols, 1840–1848). Biography The daughter of Thomas Strickland and his wi ...

, a historian. The noted French writer, politician, diplomat and historian, '' François-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand'' while exiled from France, 1792 – 1800, during the Revolution spent a period living at the Music House, No. 34 Bridge Street. This is recorded on a blue plaque. Others were

Catharine Parr Traill Catharine Parr Traill (born Strickland; 9 January 1802 – 29 August 1899) was an English-Canadian author and naturalist who wrote about life in Canada, particularly what is now Ontario (then the colony of Upper Canada). In the 1830s, Canada ...

, who concentrated on children's literature, and

Susanna Moodie Susanna Moodie ( Strickland; 6 December 1803 – 8 April 1885) was an English-born Canadian author who wrote about her experiences as a settler in Canada, which was a British colony at the time. Family Susanna Moodie was born in Bungay, on th ...

, who emigrated to Canada and wrote ''Roughing it in the Bush'' (1852) as a warning to others. The novelist Sir

H. Rider Haggard Sir Henry Rider Haggard (; 22 June 1856 – 14 May 1925) was an English writer of adventure fiction romances set in exotic locations, predominantly Africa, and a pioneer of the lost world literary genre. He was also involved in land reform t ...

(1856–1925) was born nearby in Bradenham and presented St. Mary's Church with a wooden panel, displayed behind the altar. Religious writer Margaret Barber (1869–1901), author of the posthumously published best-selling book of meditations, ''

The Roadmender Margaret Fairless Barber (pseudonym, Michael Fairless; 7 May 1869 – 24 August 1901), was an English Christian writer. Her book of meditations, ''The Roadmender'' (1902), became a popular classic. Life Barber was born in Rastrick, Brighouse, We ...

'', settled in Bungay. In 1954, the electrical industry pioneer

Caroline Haslett Dame Caroline Harriet Haslett Order of the British Empire, DBE, Justice of the peace, JP (17 August 1895 – 4 January 1957) was an English electrical engineer, electricity industry administrator and champion of women's rights. She was the fir ...

retired to the town to live with her sister Rosalind Messenger. More recently, Formula 1 motor racing president

Bernie Ecclestone Bernard Charles Ecclestone (born 28 October 1930) is a British business magnate, motorsport executive and former racing driver. Widely known in journalism as the "F1 Supremo", Ecclestone founded the Formula One Group in 1987, controlling the c ...

was brought up in Bungay and internet activist

Julian Assange Julian Paul Assange ( ; Hawkins; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. He came to international attention in 2010 after WikiLeaks published a series of News leak, leaks from Chels ...

was confined to nearby Ellingham Hall, Norfolk in 2010–11. Authors

Elizabeth Jane Howard Elizabeth Jane Howard (26 March 1923 – 2 January 2014), was an English novelist. She wrote 12 novels including the best-selling series ''The'' ''Cazalet Chronicle''. Early life Howard's father was Major David Liddon Howard (1896–1958), a ...

and

Louis de Bernières Louis de Bernières (born 8 December 1954) is an English novelist. He is known for his 1994 Historical fiction, historical war novel ''Captain Corelli's Mandolin''. In 1993 de Bernières was selected as one of the "20 Best of Young British Nove ...

have lived in the town. Artist Michael Fell lived in the town in the 1980s and 1990s. Blind artist Sargy Mann moved to Bungay in 1990 and lived there until his death in 2015. Poet

Luke Wright Luke James Wright (born 7 March 1985) is an English former cricketer. He was a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium bowler. Wright joined Sussex in 2004, having started his career at Leicestershire. He was named in England's squad for t ...

has lived in Bungay since 2010. Children's author and illustrator

James Mayhew James John Mayhew (born 1964 in Stamford, Lincolnshire) is an English illustrator and author of children's books, storyteller, artist and concert presenter/live art performer. Early life and education The son of RAF pilot John Byrne Mayhew and ...

lives in Bungay. Darts professional

Andrew Gilding Andrew Gilding (born 7 December 1970) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked world number twenty-eight. Nicknamed "Goldfinger", Gilding won his maiden PDC ...

lives in Bungay. Gilding won the PDC's

UK Open The Ladbrokes UK Open is a ranking major darts tournament held annually at the Butlins Minehead Resort by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) in England. The event is often referred to as the "FA Cup of darts" as it has an unseeded open dr ...

tournament in 2023, defeating Michael van Gerwen 11-10 in the final at Butlin's Minehead Resort.

Arms

References

External links

* {{Authority control Towns in Suffolk Market towns in Suffolk Civil parishes in Suffolk