St Marys Church sits on the edge of the town on the road to Dereham, and it is that unusual thing, an urban round-towered church. There are only about half a dozen of these left in East Anglia, because most urban churches underwent considerable renewal during the medieval period. However, at first glance it is obvious that the major rebuilding work here was done at a much later date. The little 13th Century church is flanked by two massive 19th century aisles. It is as if three churches had been joined together side by side. As if in sympathy, older headstones in the graveyard have also been collected together into bunches, to allow for easy mowing.
As you would expect, you step into an interior which is almost entirely Victorian, but it is actually more interesting than it first appears, because the massive rebuilding of this church happened in 1840. The aisles were built to accommodate an extra 220 seats in what was still a kind of preaching box: there is no view into the chancel from most of the church. The great wave of enthusiasm, generated by the Oxford movement and the Camden Society, to restore our parish churches to their medieval integrity with a focus on the altar, had still to reach this lonely place; and so, this is one of the last pre-Ecclesiological restorations in England.
The later Victorians would also leave their mark, with a pretty screen and some fairly middlebrow glass. But the unforgettable feature of the interior is the lovely poorbox of 1639, apparently carved in effigy of the Minister of the time. He is depicted holding a bag of money and with a smile on his face; his chest is carved with the familiar invocation to Remember the Poore. This encouragement of charity was an important part of the Puritan project of the time: it wasn't all smashing glass and beheading Kings. However, if you compare this naive little folk-carving with the fabulous art being produced as a result of the Renaissance at this time in the rest of Europe, you can't help thinking that we paid a high price for Puritanism.
There are some moving WWI memorials in the south aisle, and out in the graveyard there is a great curiosity: a wooden WWI cross memorial to Thomas Edward Adcock, the son of Mr. and Mrs. W. J. Adcock, of West End Terrace in Watton. A resident of Gorleston-on-Sea, he had enlisted in the Norfolk Regiment on 3rd August, 1914. This was the day before the War broke out, and he was 20 years old. Amazingly, he survived almost the entire Great War, to be killed just a month before the Armistice. His is one of 190 Commonwealth war dead bodies to lie at Underhill Cemetery near Ypres in Belgium, on the north-western edge of Ploegsteert Wood.
There are also 38 war graves in this churchyard from WW2 including 8 RNZAF graves, with all the services represented.
Please take a while to have a look around this stunning and interesting church.
The cache is not in the grounds of the church but is nearby, during the day there is parking available opposite the church. Please only approach this cache from the road side, but be careful as this road is well used.
You are looking for a small clip top box with room for a few trinkets and small TB’s.
“If anybody would like to expand this series please do, I would just ask that you could let Sadexploration know first at churchmicro@gmail.com so he can keep track of the Church numbers and names to avoid duplication.