Oxborough

Oxborough is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, well known for its church and manor house Oxburgh Hall. It covers an area of 13.024 km2 (5.029 sq mi) and had a population of 240 in 106 households in the 2001 census,[2] reducing to a population of 228 in 111 households at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of local government, it falls within the district of Breckland.

For other uses, see Oxborough (disambiguation).

Oxborough

St. John's church
Oxborough
Location within Norfolk
Area13.24 km2 (5.11 sq mi)
Population228 (2011)[1]
• Density17/km2 (44/sq mi)
OS grid referenceTF742012
Civil parish
  • Oxborough
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townKING'S LYNN
Postcode districtPE33
PoliceNorfolk
FireNorfolk
AmbulanceEast of England

The Oxborough dirk, a Bronze Age ceremonial oversize dagger was discovered nearby in 1988. It was acquired for the nation and is now on display in the British Museum.[3]

Churches

St. John's church, in the centre of the village, is partially ruined. Its Bedingfeld Chapel of 1496 contains two rare terracotta tombs, unique in England, which commemorate members of the Bedingfeld family of Oxburgh Hall.[4][5] In 1948, the tower and spire of the church collapsed onto the church below in high winds, destroying the south side of the nave.[6] The surviving chancel and Bedingfeld chapel were subsequently repaired to become the main church buildings, leaving the destroyed nave as a grassed area.

At the Reformation, the Bedingfeld family retained their Roman Catholic faith as recusants; the Hall contains a priest hole. Following the Catholic emancipation, a new Roman Catholic chapel dedicated to St Margaret and Our Lady, was built in the grounds of Oxburgh Hall. It contains a large triptych altarpiece constructed of 16th century panels from Antwerp.[7]

Remains of an earlier Norman church, St. Mary Magdalene, also survive within the grounds of the Old Rectory at Oxborough Hythe, a hamlet south west of the main village.[8][9]

  • The ruined nave
  • The east end
  • The north wall
  • Oxburgh Hall
  • Roman Catholic chapel of St Margaret and Our Lady
  • Ruin of the church of St. Mary Magdalene, Oxborough Hythe

Oxburgh Hall
Main article: Oxburgh Hall

Oxburgh Hall is the ancient ancestral home of the Bedingfeld family, and is now owned by the National Trust.

References
  1. "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  2. Census population and household counts for unparished urban areas and all parishes Archived 2017-02-11 at the Wayback Machine. Office for National Statistics & Norfolk County Council (2001). Retrieved 20 June 2009.
  3. "British Museum - Ceremonial bronze dirk". britishmuseum.org. Retrieved 4 June 2010.
  4. "St. John's church, Oxborough". Norfolk Churches. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  5. "Church of St John". Historic England. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  6. "St. John's church, Oxborough". Norfolk Churches. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  7. "Roman Catholic chapel of St Margaret and Our Lady". Norfolk Churches. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  8. "Remains of Church of St Mary Magdelene". Historic England. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  9. "The Old Rectory Oxborough" (PDF). Fine & Country. 2017.


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