The Estate Churches of Norfolk

Not only does Norfolk have the highest number of churches in the country, it also has the highest number of country houses, by a country mile. The rich agricultural industry and prosperous trade in goods such as wool from now-lost ports such as Cley-next-the-Sea provided the means for the development of the vast estates we enjoy exploring today. In the 14th century Norfolk was the most densely populated and most intensively farmed region in England and saw the wool trade boom of the 15th and early 16th centuries. Later agricultural developments spearheaded by Charles “Turnip” Townshend of Raynham Hall and Thomas Coke, 1st Earl of Leicester, known as "Coke of Norfolk" of Holkham Hall generated great wealth which was used to further expand already substantial estates. Villages demolished to make way for these growing estates were moved to a new location outside the park gates. Examples include Houghton, Felbrigg and Gunton. In the middle of the 19th century, over a hundred Norfolk families owned estates greater than 2,000 acres (3.1 sq. mi). Many estates have an associated church, either within the grounds or just outside, and the memorials demonstrate the deeply entwined histories.