Our pastGreat Massingham Village History
The origins of Great Massingham are thought to go back as far as the 5th Century AD, when the area was inhabited by a group of Angles and Saxons in the wake of the Roman withdrawal. Their leader's name was said to be Maesron and this ‘family’ of settlers were called Maersings, hence the home of the Maersings: Maersingham, later spelt as we know it today.
The Augustinian Priory
An Augustinian Priory existed from the 11th century and there is a recorded visit by King Edward I on March 29th 1302 on his way to the shrine in Walsingham. Some of the original priory stonework can still be seen in Abbey House, formerly the main residence of Abbey Farm, which existed as a working farm until relatively recently.
Domesday & the Churches
The parish is mentioned in the Domesday report of 1086, but no reference is made to a church or priest. Less than 100 years later there were 2 churches in the village: St Mary's and All Saints. There are no traces of All Saints now.
The church represented the focal point of village life for hundreds of years, and would have been used for various meetings other than religious occasions. The porch, added around 1300, was used as a school room.
Sir Robert Walpole
Sir Robert Walpole, England's first Prime Minister in 1720, was educated in this “school room” as a young boy. His descendants still live in Houghton Hall, just 3 miles north of Great Massingham.
Agriculture & Village Life
Agriculture has been the mainstay of village life for many hundreds of years and still plays an important role. The area is extensively farmed, predominantly arable, but several large pig farms have sprung up in recent years; in fact this region was one of the first in the country to begin raising pigs on an industrial scale.
Only one shop and pub today but not too long ago there was a whole range of shops and trades carried on within the village: a blacksmiths, butchers, bakers, a general store, and as many as 5 pubs: the Fox & Pheasant, The Old Swan, the Royal Oak, The New Inn, and The Rose & Crown (now The Dabbling Duck), which is the only one still trading. The other pub buildings have all been converted to residential use.
RAF Massingham
The Royal Air Force commandeered one of the largest farms in the village to build an airfield soon after the outbreak of World War II. The airfield was returned to agricultural use in 1957, although it is still in use for private flying. More detail on its operations can be found at greatmassingham.net/raf-massingham.
