world.wikisort.org - United_Kingdom

Elsing is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is approximately 5 miles (8 km) miles north-east of the town of East Dereham and 12 miles (19 km) north-west of the city of Norwich. The nearest village is Lyng, 1 mile (1.6 km) to the north-east.

Elsing
St Mary's Church
Elsing Location within Norfolk
Area	6.34 km2 (2.45 sq mi)
Population	229 (2001 census)
• Density	36/km2 (93/sq mi)
OS grid reference	TG051166
District	Breckland
Shire county	Norfolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	DEREHAM
Postcode district	NR20
Police	Norfolk
Fire	Norfolk
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	Mid Norfolk
List of places UK England Norfolk 52.70833°N 1.03475°E / 52.70833; 1.03475

The civil parish has an area of 634 hectares and in the 2001 census had a population of 229 in 105 households. For the purposes of local government Elsing falls within the Upper Wensum Ward of Breckland District Council and the Elmham and Mattishall Division of Norfolk County Council.

History

Elsing in the Domesday Book is listed as "Helsinga"; this name derives from an Old Scandinavian person name with 'ingas', meaning a "settlement of the family or followers of a man called Elesa".[1] His image is depicted on the village sign together with a hunting hound.

At the Norman conquest, the manor was given to Earl Warren and then passed by inheritance to the Foliot, Hastings and Brown families. [2]

In the medieval era Elsing was a town with a population of over a thousand,^{[citation needed]} and had its own market and guildhall.

Notable buildings

St Mary's Church, built in 1347, has the widest pillarless nave in East Anglia.^{[citation needed]} There is a brass commemorating the life of Sir Hugh Hastings, the lord of the manor.^{[citation needed]}

The Hastings family built the moated Elsing Hall in 1470. The hall incorporates a priest hole used during the 16th century to hide Catholic priests from persecution.^{[citation needed]}

Other historic landmarks include the gardens at Elsing Hall, the Guildhall, the Rectory, The Mermaid Inn public house (c.1540) (now closed), and Elsing Mill on the River Wensum.^{[citation needed]}

BBC reporter Bob Simpson (1944 – 2006) lived in the village and is buried in the churchyard.[3]

References

• ^ Ordnance Survey (1999). OS Explorer Map 238 - East Dereham & Aylsham. ISBN 0-319-21869-4.
• ^ Office for National Statistics & Norfolk County Council (2001). Census population and household counts for unparished urban areas and all parishes. Retrieved 2 December 2005.

External links

• Media related to Elsing at Wikimedia Commons
• Elsing Mill

---