Interesting facts about Congham Hall and the local area...
In 1616, a young woman named Mary Smith was burnt as a witch. Her heart can still be viewed today in the front of an old building in Tuesday Market Place, King’s Lynn.
In 1216, King John is said to have lost the crown jewels in The Wash, due to the unexpected incoming tide, on his way from King’s Lynn, then the premier port of the realm.
Horatio Nelson was born in the nearby village of Burnham Thorpe on 29th September 1758 and he is quoted as saying “I am a Norfolk man and glory in being so.”
Gwyneth Paltrow trod on Holkham beach for the last shot in Shakespeare in Love and Hollywood has moved a bit further around the coast to Cley Marshes. This time, it is Keira Knightley wearing the corset and playing the leading role of Georgiana in “The Duchess”.
During the filming of the ITV drama “The Kingdom” Stephen Fry is quoted as saying: “I think Norfolk is a magical part of the world. Norfolk has a wonderful landscape; it is a great place to come to clear the cobwebs out of your mind. It has big skies and towering cloud scapes.”
Pensthorpe in Norfolk was home to the BBC’s Springwatch 2008
The north coast of Norfolk is now referred to as “Chelsea-on-Sea” because of the number of Londoners owning second homes in the area.
There are more medieval churches in Norfolk than any other county in England.
Norfolk is the driest county in the UK.
The famous Norfolk Broads, a popular pleasure boating destination, are made up of a multitude of broad, shallow lakes lying along five major rivers. The lakes are the result of peat “harvesting” during the middle ages.
The Royal family’s favourite residence, Sandringham House and Gardens, is only a short distance from Congham Hall.
Hunstanton is the only eastern resort that actually faces west so you will see some spectacular sunsets here.
In Holt, you will find a superb range of rare breed meat, all very local and traceable, at the Sausage Shop – don’t miss their saltmarsh-grazed local lamb when it’s in season.
Did You Know...
