Elsing
| Elsing | |
| Norfolk | |
|---|---|
 St Mary's Church, Elsing | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TG051166 |
| Location: | 52°42’29"N, 1°2’6"E |
| Data | |
| Population: | 263 (2021) |
| Post town: | Dereham |
| Postcode: | NR20 |
| Dialling code: | 01362 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Breckland |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Mid Norfolk |
Elsing is a village in Norfolk four miles north-east of East Dereham and twelve miles north-west of Norwich, close to the course of the River Wensum.
The 2021 census recorded Elsing's population as 263.
History
Elsing's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for the settlement of Elesa's people.[1]
In the Domesday Book of 1086, Elsing is listed as a settlement of 20 households in the Hundred of Eynesford. In 1086, the village was part of the estates of William de Warenne.[2]
Elsing Hall was built in the late fifteenth century as a fortified manor house for the Hastings family of Gressenhall. The agricultural land surrounding the hall has yielded many mediæval artefacts including a pilgrim's badge, a French jeton and parts of a crossbow, with a good example of a sixteenth-century priest hole inside. The hall was heavily restored in the mid-Nineteenth Century by Thomas Jeckyll.[3]
Some sources suggest that mediæval Elsing had a large population with its own marketplace and guildhall.
Elsing Mill was first built in 1809 and operated as a paper mill until 1818. The mill subsequently reopened in 1854 as a grain mill and remained open until 1970. Today, the mill building is a private residence.[4]
Parish church
Elsing's parish church, St Mary's was built in the fourteenth century, largely as a mausoleum for Sir Hugh Hastings. St. Mary's is located within the village on Church Road and is a Grade I listed building.[5]
St. Mary's holds a good collection of Mediæval stained-glass, including depictions of Sir Hugh Hastings alongside St George and King Edward III.[6]
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Elsing) |
References
- ↑ Place-Names
- ↑ Elsing in the Domesday Book
- ↑ "mnf3009 - Norfolk Heritage Explorer". https://www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk/record-details?mnf3009.
- ↑ "Norfolk Mills - Elsing watermill". https://www.norfolkmills.co.uk/Watermills/elsing.html.
- ↑ National Heritage List 1342548: Church of St Mary (Grade I listing)
- ↑ "Norfolk Churches". http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/elsing/elsing.htm.