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BRANDISTON
•••
Brant’s Tun. - According to Dr.
Ekwall, the
place-names expert, this was
the
TUN or
settlement
of a local leader
named Brant, some
time
in the Dark Ages. I was sorry
to find that
the little church
of St.
Nicholas,
now,
sadly,
redundant,
does
not feature
in the main
list of Norfolk
Churches in
W.A.
Dutt's "Norfolk"
guide.
It is relegated to the section on
"Churches of Minor Interest",
along
with several
in our
locality, including
Haveringland, Felthorpe, Great
Witchingham and
others.
White's
1845 Directory of Norfolk
deals
with Brandiston
more kindly;
it tells
of recent "thorough
repairs" to
the
church, and
also mentions a former
church, dedicated
to
St. Swithin, which one
stood in
the same churchyard.
This directory
refers
to the short, round tower,
which gives the
building
a squat
appearance. For most
of the
year the church is concealed
by
the
foliage
on the trees
which surround it; only in
winter
can the grey walls
be seen
by passers by,
still
half hidden by the
bare branches.
Many cyclists
on the
annual sponsored
ride must have missed
Brandiston,
for only those equipped
with a map are likely to discover it.
Nearby
are Church
Farm, the Hall with its lovely gardens, and
the Hall
Cottages beyond, forming a community
in this remote
corner of Norfolk,
with its own character, its own beauty, and its
own share of history.
Although the road leading in from
Gibbs Palmers is blessed
with
a few ageing
"cats' eyes", the other approaches
are narrow byways,
with the odd tuft of grass growing down the middle - a feature which
intrigued our American visitors last year!
The lane which leads from Barn Cottages wind
between high banks
in places, where violets and other wild flowers abound. In one spot
there is a lovely patch of blue dwarf periwinkle - "Vinca Minor" if you
buy it at.
the Garden Centre! This is a reminder of the cottage gardens that
bordered this little road long ago.
Nearer the
Hall this road is often flooded in
winter, as we found
it one
January day. After a morning of freezing fog the sun came out,
and as we man-handled our bikes along the muddy verge to avoid the water
we spotted a grey squirrel
high
above us. It was hurrying back and forth among the top branches of the
trees in the Hall grounds - a cheering sight on a wintry day, and surely
in. keeping
with that peaceful locality.
John Kett.
From the Parish magazine September 1989.
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