Norfolk is an ideal holiday location for history lovers as it is packed with fascinating local attractions and places of historical interest. When staying at your luxury holiday lodge at The Poplars, Burnham Market, there’s plenty nearby for you to explore and learn about if history is your thing.
Below, we explore the relationship between Norfolk and the legendary Lord Nelson, and highlight where you can go to experience this bit of local history for yourself.
Lord Nelson in Norfolk
Norfolk is also known as Nelson’s County, due to it being the birthplace of our country’s greatest naval hero. Nelson Vice Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson is Norfolk’s most famous son, and here at The Poplars you’re only a short drive from discovering Horatio Nelson’s birthplace, Burnham Thorpe.
A stroll around the village will allow you to discover the site of the Parsonage where Nelson was born and raised. The original building was knocked down in 1803, however the wall is home to a bronze plaque which states that The Old Rectory stood twenty metres back and was indeed the birthplace of Admiral Lord Nelson.
His father, Edmund Nelson, was Rector of the village church, All Saints Church which can still be seen from the heart of the village. In 1890, the church underwent a restoration and the Admiralty donated wood from the HMS Victory to the church from which the lectern, altar and rood screen were made. If you do visit the church, it is worth noting that there is a bust of Lord Nelson and the tombs of his parents are located in the chancel.
A little further along the main road through the village, you will be greeted by the traditional village sign which informs you that Burnham Thorpe is indeed the birthplace of Horatio Nelson. Illustrated with a portrait of Lord Nelson along with an artist’s impression of the Parsonage, his family home.
The village pub, aptly named The Lord Nelson, was built in 1637. Originally known as The Plough, it was renamed in 1798 in honour of the victory at the Battle of the Nile. Nelson held a dinner here in the village pub for the men of the village prior to his departure to join HMS Agamemnon.
An interesting fact is that the pub has no bar – real ale is served from a tap room. The look of the pub has been preserved over the years and many features remain the same as back in Nelson’s time including stone floors, wooden settles (including one which the Admiral himself sat on) and plenty of Nelson memorabilia on the walls.
At the top of the village green there is a carving of Lord Nelson which was more recently introduced in December 2021 by Henry Hepworth-Smith and commissioned by the Burnham Thorpe Playing Field. This life-size carving which draws tourists from across the country was sculpted by a local chainsaw artist from Fakenham.
Mr Hepworth-Smith is a completely self-taught carver that only started sculpting 18 months prior to this wonderful statue of one of Britain’s greatest heroes, which was originally a diseased and dangerous maple tree. The transformation from an unsightly stump of Norwegian maple has been welcomed by all those that live in the village, and it has seen an increase of visitors to discover the creation.
Being just under 2 miles away from The Poplars luxury lodge development, it is a true local place of interest, and we highly recommend visiting this wonderful historical Norfolk village when you are staying here.