Great Yarmouth has a rich and varied history. From humble beginnings as a fishing town built on a convenient where the mouth of the River Yare meets the North Sea, the town soon became a bustling centre with walls and towers.

The Story of Great Yarmouth
In the Beginning there was the Sea
Once upon a time, many centuries ago there was no Yarmouth, Great or small to be found anywhere in Norfolk!

All that existed were the tributaries of three flowing rivers the Bure, the Yare and the Waveney - all mingling their waters into one estuary that linked the sea. This estuary almost reached as far as Norwich, now some twenty miles inland.

As with all streams and rivers once they begin to reach a quieter area of water they begin to shed their deposits of soil and sand particles, and thus over the period of many aeons this alluvium gradually collects and forms banks, further slowing the flow of water.

At the beginning of the fifth century A.D. a noticeable sandbank appeared at the centre of our tidal estuary and became an ideal place for fishermen to dry their nets and carry out small repairs to their craft. These fishermen had long harvested the rich waters off the Norfolk coast and were residents of many smaller villages that were scattered along the coastline – places such as Burgh (Castle), Bungay, Haddiscoe, Reedham all which now sit inland too.

As our sandbank began to grow these wise fisher-folk decided to encamp upon this island, as it was closer to the sea and began to build a small community that too began to grow. Over time the island began to become connected to the mainland and became a peninsula (a strip of land almost surrounded by water and connected to the mainland by an isthmus in our case the conjoined rivers now known collectively as the Yare.)

The fish being caught were herring and cod and brought in fabulous sums of money for all involved. As the wealth being generated through the fishing industry became widely known more people began to settle here, bringing a greater diversity of trades with them.

The Building of a Great Town
Eventually a sizeable village with permanent dwellings being built to replace the cruder huts and shelters of the early fishermen, and by the time of the Norman invasion in 1066 Yarmouth, as it was known, was one of the most prosperous towns in East Anglia.

One of the first buildings to erected was a small chapel dedicated to St. Benet, however in the eleventh century it was decided that a town of such importance needed to have a grander place for the towns-folk to worship at.

The then bishop of Norwich, Herbert de Losinga, decided to build a church at Yarmouth, this was duly done and it was called the St Nicholas. This church has been enlarged over the centuries and in 1252 it was totally rebuilt. During the Second World War the church was hit during an air raid and totally destroyed, and the inhabitants of Great Yarmouth again rebuilt it. (As a side-note St Nicholas church is regarded as the largest parish church in the country.)

Around the church a larger and grander town itself began to appear with wealthy merchants building themselves fine town houses. Shops and alehouses also began to appear to serve Great Yarmouth’s rapidly growing populace.

Local fishermen and merchants also used to hold a great annual fayre held in September, known as the Michaelmas Fayre, this fayre attracted merchants from all over England, France and the Low Countries (Holland, Belgium etc)

In the reign of Edward the third a great Town Wall was constructed, this wall was over 2,238 yards long (over 970 metres) and designed to guard Great Yarmouth on three sides, North, West and South, with the East being protected by the natural defences of the sea.

In total there were sixteen towers and ten gates leading in and out of the town, these gates were locked at nighttime and opened during the day to allow traffic and commerce to carry on.

Although much of the wall has vanished there are sections left dotted around the town with the Blackfriars Towers and wall a good example, these can be found along Blackfriars Road.

Heritage walks around the town are arranged, see our Heritage section, and give you a good opportunity to see much of the old Yarmouth.

The Black Death
Like many other towns and villages, even the great capitol city of London was not immune, Great Yarmouth was devastated by the Great Plague of 1348. A vast swathe was cut through Yarmouth and its surrounding area, as around 7,000 of its 10,000 inhabitants died.

It took many years for the town to recover but Yarmouth was very fortunate due to the fantastic abundance of the sea quickly restoring its former wealth and population.

Feuds over Fish
Great Yarmouth’s sandbank and the wealth from its fishing grounds prompted a violent period for the town when fishermen from other ports, especially those of the English Cinque ports, Dover, Hastings, Hythe, Romney and Sandwich, took exception to the Yarmouth residents building and living there.

This feud had been simmering for hundreds of years until it exploded into a battle where twenty-five ships belonging to Yarmouth were sunk and burnt, and this feud kept going until the reign of Elizabeth the first where the Cinque ports were stopped from interfering in the growth and trade of Yarmouth.

Royal Charters
As a very prosperous town Great Yarmouth has gained Royal favour, and a total of twenty- five Royal Charters have been granted, the most important being from King John in 1208, which constituted the town as a free borough.

For the kingly sum of £55 a year the town was granted many privileges and rights, such as the weekly market in the town centre.

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