Hellesdon
| Hellesdon | |
| Norfolk | |
|---|---|
 St Paul's Church, Hellesdon | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TG200105 |
| Location: | 52°38’55"N, 1°15’3"E |
| Data | |
| Population: | 11,126 (2021) |
| Post town: | Norwich |
| Postcode: | NR6 |
| Dialling code: | 01603 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Broadland |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Norwich North |
Hellesdon is a village in Norfolk, four miles north-west of Norwich and ten miles south of Aylsham. The A1067 between Fakenham and Norwich, passes through Hellesdon.
The 2021 census recorded a population of 11,126 people.
History
Hellesdon has signs of very early settlement. A variety of flint instruments have been unearthed in and around the suburb, thought to date back at least 4,000 years. A collection of bronze axe heads were found near Hellesdon Hall and a skeleton dating from around 600 AD was discovered next to Hellesdon Lodge, in Low Road.[1][2]
Hellesdon's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for the hill of Hægal.[3] Hellesdon is recorded in tradition as the location, Hægelisdun, where King Edmund was killed by Viking invaders in 869, although there is no consensus on the location of this event.[4]
In the Domesday Book, Hellesdon is listed as a settlement of 29 households in the Taverham Hundred. In 1086, the village was part of the East Anglian estates of Godwin Healfdene.[5]
A mediæval stone cross stands in St. Mary's Churchyard to mark the boundary of the City of Norwich, the cross was restored in 1902.[6]
Hellesdon was one of several manors owned in the fifteenth century by Sir John Fastolf, the original of Shakespeare's Falstaff, and as with other of his properties; his death in 1459 led to something close to a private war between the Paston family and John de la Pole, 2nd Duke of Suffolk for its possession.
In the 1880s, what became the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway reached Hellesdon, linking the area with nearby Norwich and Melton Constable; the station closed in 1952 and the line followed in its fate in 1959.
In the eighteenth century, a workhouse was built in Hellesdon.[7]
In 1915, Mann Egerton established an aircraft factory in Hellesdon which built Short Bombers and Sopwith Camels for the First World War. The factory closed in 1919 and was demolished in 1984.[8]
During the Second World War, anti-tank and anti-aircraft defences were built in Hellesdon to defend Norwich against a possible German invasion.[9]
From 1930 to 1964, motorcycle speedway team the Norwich Stars raced at the old Firs raceway. Ove Fundin was World Speedway Champion on a number of occasions in the early 1960s. The stadium was sold for housing in 1964, bringing the Norwich Stars speedway team to an end.
In 1959, a post was built for the Royal Observer Corps in the parish which was eventually closed in 1991.[10]
St. Mary's Church
Hellesdon parish church is dedicated to St Mary and dates from the fifteenth century. St Mary's is located on Low Road and has been Grade II listed since 1984.[11] The church holds regular Sunday services.[12]
St. Mary's was restored in the Victorian era and features a stained-glass window installed by A.L. Wilkinson to replace bomb damage from the Norwich Blitz.[13]
Church services are also held at St. Paul's Church which is an iron Nissen Hut featuring a stained-glass window installed by William Morris.[14]
About the village
Hellesdon has a number of small independent shops, along with some large retailers
There are two pubs in Hellesdon: The Whiffler and The Bull (whose original name was restored in 2022 after local opposition to its brief renaming as The Chestnut Tree).[15] Former pubs include The Man On The Moon, which is now Hellesdon's doctor's surgery; The Bignold Arms is now a fish restaurant and takeaway; The Firs became a Tesco Express; and The Falcon became a Co-op until the latter closed in 2019.
Society
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There is a library and a community centre for use by local clubs, such as Hellesdon Horticultural Association and the Hellesdon Community Choir.
- Football: Hellesdon FC, who play at the community centre
Hellesdon was one of the places in Norfolk depicted by the Norfolk School artist, John Middleton.
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Hellesdon) |
References
- ↑ - Norfolk Heritage Explorer
- ↑ Norfolk Heritage Explorer
- ↑ Hellesdon (Parish-Summary) - Norfolk Heritage Explorer
- ↑ Hellesdon: Norfolk Churches
- ↑ Hellesdon in the Domesday Book
- ↑ Norfolk Heritage Explorer
- ↑ Norfolk Heritage Explorer
- ↑ Norfolk Heritage Explorer
- ↑ Norfolk Heritage Explorer
- ↑ Norfolk Heritage Explorer
- ↑ National Heritage List 1170678: Church of St Mary
- ↑ "Hellesdon: St Mary" (in en). https://www.achurchnearyou.com/church/5402/service-and-events/events-all/.
- ↑ "Norfolk Churches". http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/hellesdonmary/hellesdonmary.htm.
- ↑ "Norfolk Churches". http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/hellesdonpaul/hellesdonpaul.htm.
- ↑ "The Bull is back: Historic name restored at pub" (in en). 2022-06-20. https://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/news/business/22317390.bull-back-historic-name-restored-pub/.