Front-line Suffolk E-Book

Michael Foley

• Herausgeber: The History Press
• Kategorie: Sachliteratur, Reportagen, Biografien
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 177

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2007

Beschreibung

Suffolk's coastline faces east, and through most of its history has therefore been one of the areas of this country that has been at risk from invasion during times of conflict. This title delves into history of military Suffolk, from Saxon shore forts to castles or castle sites, Napoleonic martello towers and Second World War airfields.

Leseprobe

To Danielle, Antony, Carl, Kaby and Ricky

Half-title page photograph: Sergeant A.F. Saunders of 9th Service Battalion Suffolk Regiment won a VC for supporting the retreat of another battalion with a few men and two machine guns. (Author’s Collection)

Frontispiece: Wingfield Castle was owned by the De la Poles in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. They became Dukes of Suffolk. (Author’s Collection)

Title page photograph: A military camp at Woodbridge in the early years of the twentieth century. (Author’s Collection)

Contents

Title

Dedication

Map

Introduction

Acknowledgements

1. Pre-Norman Conquest Suffolk

2. From the Normans to Napoleon

3. The Napoleonic Era to the Twentieth Century

4. The Twentieth Century

5. The Second World War to the Present

Bibliography

Copyright

Map

An old map of the county of Suffolk. (Author’s Collection)

An old Second World War mine now used as a collection box for the Shipwrecked Mariners’ Society at Southwold. (Author’s Collection)

Introduction

Suffolk, along with other coastal counties of Britain, has for centuries stood in the frontline of defence against invasion by Britain’s enemies. From the earliest recorded times the Suffolk coast has been attacked by raiders from the continent. Although it escaped early invasions it was finally taken by the Romans and later by a variety of other tribes and nationalities that came later, but who had often landed in other parts of the country.

Although the counties further south mainly had to deal with the prolonged threat from Britain’s longest-running enemy France, owing to its position, Suffolk played a large part in the Dutch wars of the seventeenth century and of course it was a target for German invasions in two world wars. It is hardly surprising then that the county is covered with visible remains and holds the memories of conflict that stretch back as far as the beginnings of history.

Michael Foley

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my thanks to the following for their help in researching this book: Kerry Meal of the Lowestoft Record Office, whose prompt and thorough work saved me many hours of research, and Alan Filtness for helping me to get to and find some of the places and items photographed in the book.

I would also like to thank Wermer Bergmans of www.fighter-planes.com, Nick Challoner and Joan Francis for the use of their photographs, and Felixstowe Postcards for helping me find some photographs missing from my own collection.

Although every attempt has been made to find the copyright owners of all the illustrations used in this book, anyone whose copyright has been unintentionally breached should contact the author through the publishers.

The ruins of Mettingham Castle, once the site of a secular college. It was demolished in the eighteenth century. (Author’s Collection)

ONE

Pre-Norman Conquest Suffolk

The history of conflict in Suffolk goes back centuries. It is believed that attacks on the east coast could have been taking place as early as the fifth century BC by raiders from Belgium. By 100 BC many of these raiders had begun to settle and they encroached on the kingdom of the Trinovantes tribe whose capital was at Colchester, but whose land stretched as far north as Ipswich.

When Caesar invaded Britain in 55 BC part of the agreement he made with the British tribes was that the Belgic people would stop harrying the Trinovantes. This agreement lasted for only a few years after the Romans left and the Trinovantes were finally driven out of much of their old land in Essex and Suffolk. The later Claudian invasion was then fought against the Belgic tribes who, by then, controlled much of Suffolk and Essex. The Romans quickly took control of the country but their rule was not entirely without difficulties. The Iceni tribe whose lands lay in northern Suffolk and Norfolk later revolted and destroyed Colchester and London. This led to the wrath of the Romans being visited on much of East Anglia in revenge. It also led to the construction of a number of forts in the area so that greater control could be exercised over the local population.

An old postcard of the Bury St Edmunds Pageant showing the Iceni. (Author’s Collection)

Although most of the Roman defences were temporary structures there were also later much larger and more permanent forts built at places such as Walton and Burgh. Depending on your point of view these may have been part of the chain of Saxon Shore Forts that were built to protect the country from Saxon raiders. It is now believed, however, that many German mercenary tribesmen were already settled in Britain as part of the Romans’ defensive force. The history of Roman Suffolk is in a constant state of change as new finds, such as those of a waterfront settlement at Stoke Ash in 2004, provide new information regarding the overall picture in Roman Suffolk.

With the departure of the Romans the Saxons began to invade and settle the area, which led to the beginning of a line of a number of Saxon kings who controlled East Anglia. They were often conquered by the rulers of other Saxon kingdoms in Britain, or deposed through assassinations, and even when attaining the crown through marriage they were often little more than puppet rulers. Suffolk, at that time, was part of the kingdom of East Anglia, along with Norfolk. One of the kingdom’s main defences was the Devil’s Dyke, a bank 12–18ft high in places with a ditch 17ft deep.

The next wave of conflict came when the first Vikings arrived in 841 on a raid. By 865 a large Viking army under Ivor the Boneless arrived and took over much of East Anglia. The most famous story involving the Danes in East Anglia is that of Edmund, the king of the area until defeated by the Danes in 869. He was supposedly caught while hiding under a bridge and killed. The dividing line between fact and the legend became blurred, but despite this Edmund became the patron saint of England until St George made his appearance during the Crusades.

It was not until the early tenth century that East Anglia again became part of a united England, but by the end of that century the Danes were once more in control and were paid Danegeld to keep the peace. Although the Danes were finally defeated, raiding did not stop completely. Under Edward the Confessor, Harold was earl of East Anglia before becoming the last Saxon King of England. Even after his defeat at Hastings in 1066 the Danes still raided until 1069.

BURGH CASTLE

It may seem strange that I have included a Roman fortification that is in fact in Norfolk in a book about Suffolk, but most older books about the county will include Burgh. This is because for a large expanse of history Burgh actually was in Suffolk. The land including the castle was owned by Robert De Burgh and after him Gilbert de Wifeham who surrendered it to Henry III. The king then gave it to the priory of Bronholme, which lay within Norfolk.

The castle must have, at some time, reverted to Suffolk, as there are examples of eighteenth-century prints that describe it as being in the county. That is where it seemed to have stayed, in the parish of Lothingland, until relatively recent times when the Local Government Act of 1972 transferred it back to Norfolk.

An eighteenth-century drawing of Burgh Castle. (Author’s Collection)

An old print showing the position of Burgh Castle in relation to the River Waveney. (Author’s Collection)

An old postcard of Burgh Castle church. (Author’s Collection)

There is evidence that there may well have been an Iron Age hill fort in the Burgh area, although the best-known defence is of later Roman construction. A Mr Ives, in a book of 1776 thought that the original fort was built in AD 49 by Publius Oftorius Scapula who conquered the Iceni. This would be much too early to make it one of the Saxon Shore Forts.

Burgh Castle was a coastal defence fort, although it now lies a few miles inland, as the sea has retreated rather than encroached. It is one of the only remaining Roman buildings in the county and three of its walls survive. It is thought that Burgh may be the Roman fort known as Gariannonum but a more recent find of another fort further north may now place this in some doubt. The dispute over this has been argued among historians since the eighteenth century when Camden supported Burgh’s claims to be Gariannonum while Sir Henry Spelman argued that Gariannonum was in fact at Caister. Burgh may have been one of the Saxon Shore Forts, but again this seems to be a matter of opinion, as what remains is believed to have been built in about 290 – still too early for a Saxon Shore Fort. Some historians believe that the furthest north of the Saxon Shore Forts was in Essex at Bradwell.

Burgh fort was around 5 acres in size. The walls are roughly 6ft thick and 15ft high. There were six bastions at the corners and between. These seem to have been built later than the walls. There may have been later occupation by the Saxons and by a monastery. There was also a small castle mound in one corner dating from medieval times.

CLARE

Clare was the site of an Iron Age fort with a double rampart and a ditch. It is thought by some to have been originally a Trinovantes fort. It was known as Erburg in Saxon times and covered an area of around 7 acres. There are still two visible banks about 9ft high.

The Trinovantes were driven out of much of their land by the Belgae and another explanation of the fort at Clare, by Rainbird Clarke, was that it was in fact an Iceni stronghold built to stop the Belgae encroaching any further into their land. Yet another view is that it is a much later fifth-century Roman fort built to stop Saxon invaders. There have been several Roman finds in the area. Perhaps further investigations will lead to a more certain history of the defences.

HADLEIGH

The area around Hadleigh is believed to have been settled by Saxon invaders during the fifth and sixth centuries. They were farmers and cleared much of the thick forest from the area. The Danes came much later and in 870 Guthrum’s Danish army defeated Edmund, supposedly at Hoxne, and killed him when he refused to renounce Christianity.

Guthram’s army moved on to other parts and had been in a camp in Wessex, which had supposedly been infiltrated by King Alfred in disguise. After hearing the Danes’ plans Alfred fought and defeated them. Guthrum became a Christian and the King of East Anglia, taking the name Athelstan. The Danes then agreed to settle in the east under the Danelaw system. There is a belief that the town of Hadleigh was founded by Guthram and that he died there. It is also believed to be his burial site.

HAUGHLEY CASTLE

It is thought that the Haughley area may have been an early Druid site. Because of this the Romans built a camp there. According to Hollingsworth this was known as Sitmagus and was a large Roman garrison of 3,000 men.

IPSWICH

Ipswich was originally known as Gippeswick and was settled by the Saxons, as it was a convenient site for those Saxons crossing the sea from Europe and sailing up the River Orwell. It may have even been the first Anglo Saxon town in England.

It was sacked by the Danes in 991 on their way to fight the battle of Maldon, a century after Danelaw was established. The attacking force was made up of Danes and Norsemen. In 1010 the town was seized by Thurkil the Tall. The River Orwell was obviously an inviting highway for water-borne invaders. Because of the threat from the Danes a protective ditch was dug round the town.

IXWORTH

Ixworth may have been an important Iceni settlement. Earthworks near Ixworth which include ditches and part of an enclosure seem to point to the remains of a Roman fort. This may have been one of the forts built after the revolt by the Iceni, which would have been used to control the members of the tribe who still lived there. It is believed that the fort may have been a station known as Sitomagus. The site is situated at an important junction of the Roman road system in the county

LOWESTOFT

Recent finds of ancient remains in the area of Lowestoft seem to have proved that human habitation of the area dates back much further than had previously been thought. The remains are believed to be around 700,000 years old. It was previously believed that humans only lived around the Mediterranean that long ago. This could make Lowestoft the earliest known occupied site in Britain.

Although the famous ship burial at Sutton Hoo is common knowledge, there was a lesser-known ship burial discovered near Lowestoft at Ashby in 1830. The ship was 54ft long and is believed to date from around the fifth century. This seems to show that there was a Saxon settlement in the area quite soon after the Romans left.

It is thought that as well as the Saxon Shore Forts themselves there may also have been several signal stations along the coast. It is thought that one of these may have been at Corton near Lowestoft.

SHOTLEY

In 885 King Alfred supposedly sent his ships to fight the Vikings and sixteen Danish ships were captured. Alfred’s ships were larger than the Viking longboats and held more men. The battle may have taken place close to Shotley, as there are rumours of sunken longships in the area. On the way back to Kent, Alfred’s fleet was itself captured by more Viking ships.

SUTTON HOO

Sutton Hoo was the site of a ship burial that contained the richest hoard of Saxon treasure ever found in England. It was within a royal cemetery, which overlooked the east bank of the Debden. The ship barrow was a very large mound. The dozen or so mounds in the area were well known but what they contained lay undiscovered until Mrs Penny, who owned the land, decided to investigate.

It is not clear to whom the monument was dedicated but it seemed to date from around 600. There was in fact no body in the barrow. It was at first thought to be a monument to Redwald, then later that it could have been dedicated to Anna, a Christian king of East Anglia who died repelling an invasion by Penda of Mercia. Most people now accept that it was a monument to Redwald.

WALTON

The Roman forts of the Saxon Shore were believed to have been built to combat raids from Saxons as the Roman rule in Britain neared its end. Some believe that this may not be the case, as the forts seem too big to be used to fend off a few pirates. Some believe that they may have been built by Carasius, who had declared himself Emperor of Britain, to defend against an attack from Rome. A further connection of Carasius with Suffolk is that a large hoard of coins bearing his image was found in the county in 2005. There were 258 coins of Carausius and 347 of Allectus, another usurper. The majority of historians seem to believe that the Saxon Shore Forts were placed at strategic points on the coast between Bradwell in Essex and Pevensey in Sussex. Others, though, argue that they may actually have stretched as far north as the Humber and that they included one at Walton.

A romantic view of what a Viking warrior may have looked like, from an early twentieth-century boys’ comic. (Author’s Collection)

An old print of a romantic view of a Roman soldier. (Author’s Collection)

Walton Castle stood on cliffs near Felixstowe and commanded views of the Stour, Orwell and Debden, but has disappeared as a result of coastal erosion. It is now only remembered from old drawings. The fort probably dated from the third century and the drawings of it show that it was rectangular in shape with corner bastions. A report from the eighteenth century described the remains as 100yds long with walls 12ft thick. Much of it had by then already fallen from the cliffs to the beach below. Unconfirmed reports claim that at very low tides the ruins can still be seen. The Saxon Shore forts were able to send out ships to intercept raiding ships. They would also have a troop of cavalry, which could attack any raiders who managed to get ashore.

Pottery found in the area suggests that there were already Saxons living in the area at the time the forts were in existence, and it may be that these were mercenaries paid by the Romans to defend the forts. It is thought that these mercenaries may have been responsible for encouraging other Saxons to come to England later, which may have led to the Saxon invasion.

An eighteenth-century print of the already few remains of Walton Castle. (Author’s Collection)

There was actually no such place as Felixstowe until the fourteenth century. Before this the whole area was known as Walton. There have been several finds of Roman remains in Felixstowe. There seems to have been a settlement and there may have been a second fort. Rushmere Heath near Felixstowe was where Ufketel supposedly fought the Danes.

TWO

From the Normans to Napoleon

The Norman invasion changed the face of England dramatically. Not only did the form of government change, so too did the architecture. One of the biggest changes to the English countryside was the arrival of the castle. East Anglia had around forty, either built from earth and wood, or more permanent structures of stone. Strangely, though, the only castle mentioned in the Domesday Book in Suffolk was at Eye. It was from these castles that the Normans kept control of the countryside.

The Norman invasion did not stop raids from outside entirely. There were still others with claims to the throne and when a huge Danish fleet arrived in 1069 many of the defeated English joined the Danes to fight William, but they were again defeated. Despite William’s power, however, there was no end to attempted revolts by a number of powerful men under both William the Conqueror and subsequent monarchs. One of the names that seems to appear in these revolts on a regular basis was Bigod.

An old print of William the Conqueror, who drastically changed Britain’s history. (Author’s Collection)

Conflict changed throughout the medieval period, and although defensive structures such as castles were still similar to what the Normans built, they were to be defended and attacked with more lethal weapons: artillery. By the time the Dutch began to attack the coast in the seventeenth century warfare had changed beyond recognition.

It was not only on land that war had changed. The days when Alfred built ships that were bigger than the Viking longboats were past. Henry VIII had begun to form a real navy and Suffolk was a centre of shipbuilding. The ships named after the county showed the progress in the war machines of the sea: HMS Suffolk built in 1698 had seventy-four guns and a crew of 440, the next HMS Suffolk built in 1761 also had seventy-four guns, but now the crew was nearer 600.

The Dutch Wars and the Civil War of the seventeenth century were a time of uncertainty for the people of Suffolk. There were several occasions when a threatened invasion by the Dutch seemed to be a certainty on a poorly defended coast. The naval victories of the English fleets off the coast seemed to be a blessing until the towns of the county were swamped with wounded English sailors and Dutch prisoners.

ALDEBURGH

The word Aldeburgh means old fort and it is believed that it may have been a Roman site. Aldeburgh later obtained a more modern defence in the shape of three batteries which included twenty guns, but by the year 1625 there were only eight left and these were very old.

In 1667, after the Dutch defeat at Landguard Fort, the Dutch fleet anchored off Aldeburgh. There were serious concerns that the Dutch were about to invade. There were already a number of militia units in the town under the command of Sir Robert Brooke who was an MP and a Lieutenant Colonel. Other members of the militia also arrived but the Dutch made no attempt to land.

BUNGAY

Bungay Castle was around 70ft square and at one time had the thickest walls of any castle in England. It was built as competition for the royal castle at Orford. It was taken from the owner Hugh Bigod, Bigod the Bold, in 1140 by King Stephen. This was because Bigod had supported Matilda’s claim to the crown against the king. Bigod later got the castle back and was rewarded for his treachery by being made Earl of Suffolk as a bribe to keep him loyal.