About Dereham

Dereham is thought to have derived its name from the deer which roamed in earlier times and at one point it was known as Deerham.

It dates back to Saxon times and was probably founded in the seventh century when St Withburga founded a monastery.

She was the youngest daughter of Anna, King of East Angles who was killed in battle in 654.

After his death Withburga became a nun and settled with other holy women in Dereham, which they had picked as a site for a holy religious foundation.

When she died she was buried in Dereham Churchyard, but her body was stolen by monks sent by the Abbot of Ely.

It was re-interred near those of her royal sisters St Ethelreda and St Saxburga.

In the place where Withburga's body was wrenched from the earth a spring started to flow with healing properties.

Withburga is still remembered in Dereham.

By Norman times Dereham had become a thriving village and continued to prosper in the centuries which followed.

Among the major events in Dereham's history were the great fires in 1581 and 1659 and the escape and then shooting of a French prisoner of war called De Narde during the Napoleonic wars.

Several well known people were associated with the town including poet William Cowper, who settled in the town in the late 18th century, author George Borrow, who was born at Dumpling Green and antiquary John Fenn, who discovered and transcribed the Paston Letters and lived at Hill House.