The Docking Benefice

Bircham Newton

All Saints’ Church,

Bircham Newton

The use of Newton in a place name means a town near water, and there is abundant water under the chalk here. The book of Domesday in 1087 includes a church in Bircham Newton, which was endowed with twenty acres of land. William the Conqueror had deprived Tave of the Lordship and granted it to Ralph de Bellafago. This tiny church with an equally tiny tower must closely challenge Bittering Parva as one of the smallest churches in the county. In spite of its size, it has all the dignity and charm that one expects of a parish church. The church is thought to be a 13th century extension of an older church building that dated back to Saxon times. There are a few architectural pieces of evidence to support this idea. The church is small and quite simple in design, but there are a couple of points of interest for the casual visitor. In one corner of the sanctuary you will find an effigy of a priest on a stone coffin lid. Given its design the coffin lid probably dates to the early years of the 14th century. Above the arch you can see the sun and a crescent moon, and within the crescent there is the head of a child. It is this child’s head that is the unique feature of the tomb; it suggests that the priest died at the same time as the child, possibly in an epidemic, and so they were buried together. The priest holds a human heart in his hands. The Nelson Connection The Nelson connection will be seen on the white marble plaque on the south wall. It remembers “John James Stephens, 4th child of Revd. Philip Ward and Horatia Nelson, his wife, who died in 1829, aged 2 years”. Horatia was Lord Nelson’s daughter and wife of the Rector of Bircham Newton and Bircham Tofts between 1825 and 1831 (Bircham Newton and Bircham Tofts became a united benefice in 1719). St Andrew’s Church, Bircham Tofts The use of Tofts in a place name shows that this is a settlement founded by the Scandinavians. Sadly the church at Bircham Tofts is now a roofless ruin with both tower and nave open to the sky. Unfortunately this church has become a ruin within living memory, the roof was removed by faculty about 1952. The ruin is dangerous and has been secured so it can no longer be accessed by the public. In early times Bircham Tofts was a separate community with an independent history. In the Domesday survey it was given under the name of Stofstan or Stony Tofts. One freeman held it under Stigand, Archbishop of Canterbury, and on Stigand’s expulsion of 1066 it was granted to Odo, Bishop of Bayeux. Regular services were held here continuously in the 1930’s and up to 1941 so it is sad to see how quickly a church can be lost. It emphasises the value of caring for those that remain.

Directions to All Saints’ Bircham Newton

Contacts

Church Wardens William Bennion Michael Lancefield Ian Watts Treasurers Michael Lancefield Sheila Sargent PCC Secretary Rosalie McPherson Any enquiries please contact Michael Lancefield T: 01485 518073