Framlingham

Framlingham is an English market town and civil parish in Suffolk. Of Anglo-Saxon origin, it appears in the 1086 Domesday Book. The parish had a population of 3,342 at the 2011 Census and an estimated 3,705 in 2018.[1][2] Nearby villages include Earl Soham, Kettleburgh, Parham, Saxtead and Sweffling.

This article is about the town in England. For the Australian location, see Framlingham, Victoria. For the US town, see Framingham, Massachusetts.

Framlingham
Framlingham Castle
Framlingham Location within Suffolk
Population	3,342 (2011)
OS grid reference	TM283634
Civil parish	Framlingham
District	East Suffolk
Shire county	Suffolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	WOODBRIDGE
Postcode district	IP13
Dialling code	01728
Police	Suffolk
Fire	Suffolk
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	Central Suffolk and North Ipswich

Governance

An electoral ward of the same name exists. The parish stretches north-east to Brundish with a total ward population taken at the 2011 Census of 4,744.[3]

Features

The medieval Framlingham Castle is a major feature and tourist attraction. It is managed by English Heritage. There is a large lake or mere next to the Castle. The town is also home to the comprehensive secondary school Thomas Mills High School, the independent school Framlingham College, the Church of St Michael the Archangel and Framlingham Town F.C.

The town has the two oldest functioning Post Office pillar boxes in the UK, dating from 1856, located on Double Street and College Road respectively.[4] The pillar boxes are marked V. R. as of the reign of Queen Victoria. It is also home to one of the smallest houses in Britain, known as the "Check House". Converted into a two-storey residence of almost 29 square metres, the former bookmakers office[5] is in the Mauldens Mill Estate in the town centre. The ground floor measures 20 feet (6.1 m) by 7 feet 3 inches (2.21 m).[5] There is a traditional English market in the town square, Market Hill, every Tuesday and Saturday.

In 2006, Country Life magazine voted Framlingham the number one place to live in the country. Framlingham has a conservation area.

Education

Framlingham College is an independent, coeducational secondary school for boarders and day students. It opened as Albert Memorial College in 1865 in memory of Albert, Prince Consort. Its associated preparatory school is at Brandeston Hall.[6]

Thomas Mills High School dates back to 1751. It is a mixed secondary school taking pupils from age 11, and gained academy status in 2011.[7]

The local primary school is Framlingham Sir Robert Hitcham's Church of England Voluntary Primary School. This is the oldest of the three schools in the town, dating back to at least 1654. It now has 350 pupils and another 26 in its nursery.[8]

Transport

The Framlingham Branch line connected Framlingham with the main Ipswich to Lowestoft railway at Wickham Market. The railway station building stands adjacent to the Station Hotel. The line was closed to passenger traffic in the 1950s and to goods in the 1960s. The nearest railway stations today are Wickham Market (7 miles (11 km)) and Saxmundham (8 miles (13 km)), both on the East Suffolk Line.

The town is at the junction of the B1116, B1119 and B1120 roads. The local bus services are detailed at the link given in the references.[9]

Sport and leisure

Framlingham has a Non-League football club, Framlingham Town F.C., which plays at Badingham Road.

Notable people

In order of birth:

• Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk (1443–1524), who held office under four kings, died at Framlingham Castle.
• Sir Robert Hitcham (c. 1572–1636), was a member of Parliament, attorney general and philanthropist, who purchased Framlingham Castle in 1635.
• Theophilus Howard, 2nd Earl of Suffolk, KG (1584–1640), politician, owned Framlingham Castle until 1635.
• Rev. Nicholas Danforth (1589–1636) and family left Framlingham in 1634 for Massachusetts Bay Colony, where his land grant became the town of Framingham, Massachusetts.[10]
• Thomas Danforth, a Massachusetts Bay Colony magistrate and landowner, was born in 1623 in Framlingham, son of Nicholas.
• Samuel Danforth, poet, Puritan and evangelist to American Indians, was born in 1626 in Framlingham, son of Nicholas.
• Nicholas Revett, architect and theorist, was born in Framlingham in 1720.
• Alethea Lewis (1749–1787), the novelist, was brought up by her maternal grandfather in Framlingham.
• Edmund Goodwyn (1756–1832), physician born in Framlingham, who discovered the diving reflex[11]
• Robert Hindes Groome (1810–1889), composer, author and cleric, was born in Framlingham.
• Henry Thompson (1820–1894), a polymath and a surgeon who operated on the Belgian royal family, was born in Framlingham.
• Samuel Cornell Plant (1866–1921), master mariner and Senior Inspector, Upper Yangtze River[12]
• John Cordy Jeaffreson (1831–1901), writer and lawyer, was born in Framlingham.[13]
• Francis Stocks (1873–1929), county cricketer, died in Framlingham.
• Frederick Bird (1875–1965), county cricketer and cleric, was born in Framlingham.
• Michael Lord (born 1938), deputy speaker and MP for the town, took the title Baron Framlingham rather than "Lord Lord" on becoming a life peer.
• Charles Freeman (born 1947), former Head of History at St Clare's, Oxford, and teacher of Ancient History for Cambridge University's Extramural programme. Prolific author on ancient, Christian and early Mediaeval history.
• Alice Russell (born 1976), soul singer, grew up in Framlingham.
• Christina Johnston (born 1987), classical coloratura soprano, grew up in Framlingham and attended Framlingham College.
• Laura Wright (born 1990), classical/popular crossover soprano, grew up in Framlingham.
• Ed Sheeran (born 1991), singer–songwriter, grew up in Framlingham and attended Thomas Mills High School. The town is the subject of his hit single "Castle on the Hill".

See also

• RAF Framlingham, a Second World War bomber airfield near Framlingham
• Quay House

References

1. City Population site. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
2. "Town population 2011". Retrieved 14 September 2015.
3. "Ward population 2011". Retrieved 14 September 2015.
4. "A short introduction to the history of the British Pillar Box". Retrieved 11 May 2016.
5. S. Howes, 2011 Tiny UK house with a giant price-tag, Sydney Morning Herald 16 March 2011. Retrieved 28 March 2011
6. EduBase2 Retrieved 10 January 2017.
7. School site Retrieved 10 January 2017.
8. School site: Retrieved 10 January 2017.
9. Bus services Retrieved 4 January 2015.
10. Retrieved 3 January 2015. Biography
11. Vega, Jose L. (11 May 2017). "Edmund Goodwyn and the first description of diving bradycardia". Journal of Applied Physiology. 123 (2): 275–277. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00221.2017. ISSN 8750-7587. PMID 28495845.
12. What’s the link between these girls and a hardly-known Suffolk 'hero' honoured by China?, East Anglian Daily Times, 14 December 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
13. East Anglia's History... Retrieved 3 January 2015.

External links

• The Framlingham website
• Framlingham.com
• Framlingham: Local History
• The History of Framlingham, in the County of Suffolk: Including Brief Notices of the Masters and Fellows of Pembroke-Hall in Cambridge, from the Foundation of the College, to the Present Time, Robert Hawes & Robert Loder, published 1798
• The History, Topography, and Antiquities of Framlingham and Saxsted, in the County of Suffolk, R. Green, published 1834