The Anglo-Saxon settlement of Suffolk, and East Anglia generally, occurred on a large scale,[6] possibly following a period of depopulation by the previous inhabitants, the Romanised descendants of the Iceni.[7] By the fifth century, they had established control of the region. The Anglo-Saxon inhabitants later became the "north folk" and the "south folk", from which developed the names "Norfolk" and "Suffolk".[8]
Suffolk was divided into four separate Quarter Sessions divisions, which met at Beccles, Bury St Edmunds, Ipswich and Woodbridge.[9] In 1860, the number of divisions was reduced to two, when the Beccles, Ipswich and Woodbridge divisions merged into an East Suffolk division, administered from Ipswich, and the old Bury St Edmunds division became the West Suffolk division.[10] Under the Local Government Act 1888, the two divisions were made the separate administrative counties of East Suffolk and West Suffolk;[11]
This section appears to be slanted towards recent events. In particular, this section is excessively focussed on listing individual news reports, rather than providing a broad overview of notable archaeology in the county. Please try to keep recent events in historical perspective and add more content related to non-recent events.(January 2025)
In the east of the county is Sutton Hoo, the site of one of England's most significant Anglo-Saxon archaeological finds, a ship burial containing a collection of treasures including a sword of state, helmet, gold and silver bowls, jewellery and a lyre.[16]
The Hoxne Hoard, to date the largest assembly of late Roman silver and gold discovered in Britain, was found near the village of Hoxne in 1992.
While carrying out surveys before installing a pipeline in 2014, archaeologists for Anglian Water discovered nine skeletons and four cremation pits, at Bardwell, Barnham, Pakenham and Rougham, all near Bury St Edmunds. Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman and medieval items were also unearthed, along with the nine skeletons believed to be of the late or Post-Roman Britain. Experts said the five-month project had recovered enough artefacts to fill half a shipping container, and that the discoveries had shed new light on their understanding of the development of small rural communities.[17]
In 2019 an excavation of a 4th-century Roman burial in Great Whelnetham uncovered unusual burial practices. Of 52 skeletons found, a large number had been decapitated, which archaeologists claimed gave new insight into Roman traditions. The burial ground includes the remains of men, women and children who likely lived in a nearby settlement. The fact that up to 40% of the bodies were decapitated represents "quite a rare find".[18]
A survey in 2020 named Suffolk the third best place in the UK for aspiring archaeologists, and showed that the area was especially rich in finds from the Roman period, with over 1500 objects found in the preceding year.[19]
In July 2020, metal detectorist Luke Mahoney found 1,061 silver hammered coins, estimated to be worth £100,000, in Ipswich. The coins dated back to the 15th–17th century, according to experts.[20]
In 2020, archaeologists discovered a 7th century Anglo-Saxon cemetery with 17 cremations and 191 burials in Oulton, near Lowestoft. The graves contained the remains of men, women and children, as well as artefacts including small iron knives, silver pennies, wrist clasps, strings of amber and glass beads. According to Andrew Peachey, who carried out the excavations, the skeletons had mostly vanished because of the highly acidic soil. They were preserved as brittle shapes and "sand silhouettes".[21][22]
Suffolk Pink
16th century cottage in Ixworth, with pargetting and traditional Suffolk Pink limewash
Villages and towns in Suffolk are renowned for historic, pink-washed halls and cottages, which has become known far and wide as "Suffolk Pink". Decorative paint colours found in the county can range from a pale shell shade, to a deep blush brick colour.[23]
According to research, Suffolk Pink dates back to the 14th century, when these shades were developed by local dyers by adding natural substances to a traditional limewash mix. Additives used in this process include pig or ox blood with buttermilk, elderberries and sloe juice.
Locals and historians often state that a true Suffolk Pink should be a "deep dusky terracotta shade",[24] rather than the more popular pastel hue of modern times. This has caused controversy in the past when home and business-owners alike have been reprimanded for using colours deemed incorrect, with some being forced to repaint to an acceptable shade. In 2013, famous chef Marco Pierre White had his 15th-century hotel, The Angel, in Lavenham, decorated a shade of pink that was not traditional Suffolk Pink. He was required by local authorities to repaint.[25][26]
In another example of Suffolk taking its colours seriously, a homeowner in Lavenham was obligated to paint their Grade I listed cottage Suffolk Pink, to make it match a neighbouring property. The local council said it wanted all of the cottages on that particular part of the road to be the same colour, because they were a single building historically (300 years earlier).[27]
The historic Suffolk Pink colour has also inspired the name of a British apple.[28]
Suffolk is also home to nature reserves, such as the RSPB site at Minsmere, and Trimley Marshes, a wetland under the protection of Suffolk Wildlife Trust. The clay plateau inland, deeply intercut by rivers, is often referred to as 'High Suffolk'.[29]
The west of the county lies on more resistant Cretaceouschalk. This chalk is responsible for a sweeping tract of largely downland landscapes that stretches from Dorset in the south west to Dover in the south east and north through East Anglia to the Yorkshire Wolds. The chalk is less easily eroded so forms the only significant hills in the county. The highest point in the county is Great Wood Hill, with an elevation of 128 metres (420 ft).[30]
This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: 2021 census data is now available at nomis. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2025)
According to estimates by the Office for National Statistics, the population of Suffolk in 2014 was 738,512, split almost evenly between males and females. Roughly 22% of the population was aged 65 or older, and 90.84% were White British.[32]
Historically, the county's population has mostly been employed as agricultural workers. An 1835 survey showed Suffolk to have 4,526 occupiers of land employing labourers, 1,121 occupiers not employing labourers, 33,040 labourers employed in agriculture, 676 employed in manufacture, 18,167 employed in retail trade or handicraft, 2,228 'capitalists, bankers etc.', 5,336 labourers (non-agricultural), 4,940 other males aged over 20, 2,032 male servants and 11,483 female servants.[33]
A traditional nickname for people from Suffolk is "Suffolk Fair-Maids", referring to the supposed beauty of its female inhabitants in the Middle Ages.[34] Another is "Silly Suffolk", often assumed to be derived from the Old English word sælig in the meaning "blessed", referring to the long history of Christianity in the county.[35] However, use of the term "Silly Suffolk" can actually be dated to no earlier than 1819, and its alleged medieval origins have been shown to be mythical.[36]
The Willis Building in Ipswich, a landmark office building in the town
The majority of agriculture in Suffolk is either agronomy or mixed farming. Farm sizes vary from anything around 80 acres (32 hectares) to over 8,000. Soil types vary from heavy clays to light sands. Crops grown include winter wheat, barley, sugar beet, oilseed rape, winter and spring beans and linseed, although smaller areas of rye and oats can be found growing in areas with lighter soils along with a variety of vegetables.[37]
The continuing importance of agriculture in the county is reflected in the Suffolk Show, which is held annually in May at Ipswich. Although latterly somewhat changed in nature, this remains primarily an agricultural show.[38]
Suffolk has a comprehensive education system with fourteen independent schools. Unusually for the UK, some of Suffolk had a 3-tier school system in place with primary schools (ages 5–9), middle schools (ages 9–13) and upper schools (ages 13–16). However, a 2006 Suffolk County Council study concluded that Suffolk should move to the two-tier school system used in the majority of the UK.[40] For the purpose of conversion to two-tier, the three-tier system was divided into four geographical area groupings and corresponding phases. The first phase was the conversion of schools in Lowestoft and Haverhill in 2011, followed by schools in north and west Suffolk in 2012. The remainder of the changeovers to two-tier took place from 2013, for those schools that stayed within local government control, and did not become Academies and/or free schools. The majority of schools thus now (2019) operate the more common primary to high school (11–16).
Many of the county's upper schools have a sixth form and most further education colleges in the county offer A-level courses. In terms of school population, Suffolk's individual schools are large with the Ipswich district with the largest school population and Forest Heath the smallest, with just two schools. In 2013, a letter said that "...nearly a fifth of the schools inspected were judged inadequate. This is unacceptable and now means that Suffolk has a higher proportion of pupils educated in inadequate schools than both the regional and national averages."[41]
The Castle Partnership Academy Trust in Haverhill is the county's only All-through Academy Chain. Comprising Castle Manor Academy and Place Farm Primary Academy, the Academy Trust supports all-through education and provides opportunities for young people aged 3 to 18.
The county has one university, the University of Suffolk, which became an independent institution with degree awarding powers and university status in 2016.[42] The university operates at five sites, with its central hub in Ipswich. Others include Lowestoft, Bury St. Edmunds, and Great Yarmouth in Norfolk.[43] The university is organised in four academic schools[44] and in 2022/23 had 13,700 students. 88% of the student body are aged over 21 and 46% of university students are male.[45]
Culture
Arts
Snape Maltings Concert Hall; formerly a Victorian maltings, now converted into a world-famous concert venue
Founded in 1948 by Benjamin Britten, the annual Aldeburgh Festival is one of the UK's major classical music festivals. Originating in Aldeburgh, it has been held at the nearby Snape Maltings since 1967.[46] Since 2006, Henham Park, has been home to the annual Latitude Festival. This mainly open-air festival, which has grown considerably in size and scope, includes popular music, comedy, poetry and literary events. The FolkEast festival is held at Glemham Hall in August[47] and attracts international acoustic, folk and roots musicians whilst also championing local businesses, heritage and crafts. In 2015 it was also home to the first instrumental festival of musical instruments and makers.[48] More recently, LeeStock Music Festival has been held in Sudbury.[49] A celebration of the county, "Suffolk Day", was instigated in 2017.[50]
The Suffolk flag is a banner of arms of the coat of arms which were attributed to Edmund the Martyr, a medieval king of East Anglia. It consists of two gold arrows passing through a gold crown or with heraldic description as Azure two Arrows in saltire, points downwards, enfiled with an ancient Crown Or.
A TV series about a British antiques dealer, Lovejoy, was filmed in various locations in Suffolk.[64] The reality TV series Space Cadets was filmed in Rendlesham Forest, although the producers fooled participants into believing that they were in Russia.[65] Several towns and villages in the county have been used for location filming of other television programmes and cinema films. These include the BBC Four TV series Detectorists,[66] an episode of Kavanagh QC, and the films Iris andDrowning by Numbers. During the period 2017–2018, a total of £3.8million was spent by film crews in Suffolk.[67]
Knype Hill is the fictional name for Southwold in George Orwell's 1935 novel A Clergyman's Daughter, while the character of Dorothy Hare is modelled on Brenda Salkeld, the gym mistress at St Felix School in the early 1930s.[71]
Richard Curtis and Danny Boyle's 2019 romantic comedy Yesterday was filmed throughout Suffolk, using Halesworth, Dunwich, Shingle Street and Latitude Festival as locations.[72] The television series of Anthony Horowitz's Magpie Murders was filmed extensively in Suffolk during 2021.
The 2021 film The Dig, based on the excavation of Sutton Hoo in the 1930s and starring Ralph Fiennes and Carey Mulligan was mostly shot on location.
Hip hop DJ Tim Westwood is originally from Suffolk and the influential DJ and radio presenter John Peel made the county his home.[81] Contemporary painter Maggi Hambling, was born and resides in Suffolk. Norah Lofts, author of best-selling historical novels, lived for decades in Bury St. Edmunds. Sir Peter Hall the founder of the Royal Shakespeare Company was born in Bury St. Edmunds, and Sir Trevor Nunn the theatre director was born in Ipswich. The actor Sir John Mills spent periods of his youth in the county. The designer David Hicks lived for a number of years in Suffolk. Model Claudia Schiffer and her husband, the film director Matthew Vaughn, have owned a house in Suffolk since 2002.
The popular Victorian novelist Henry Seton Merriman lived and died in the village of Melton. Between 1932 and 1939 George Orwell lived at his parents' home in the coastal town of Southwold, where a mural of the author now dominates the entrance to Southwold Pier.[91] He is said to have chosen his pen name from Suffolk's River Orwell. Arthur Ransome lived alongside the river during the 1930s, sailing his boats from Pin Mill and along the Shotley Peninsula. The county was also home to wild swimmer and environmentalist Roger Deakin.
Edmund of East Anglia
King of East Anglia and Christian martyrSt Edmund, after whom the town of Bury St Edmunds is named, was killed by invading Danes in the year 869. St Edmund was the patron saint of England until he was replaced by St George in the 13th century. 2006 saw the failure of a campaign to have St Edmund named the patron saint of England. In 2007 he was named the patron saint of Suffolk, with St Edmund's Day falling on 20 November. His flag is flown in Suffolk on that day.
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