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Norwich

Cathedral city and administrative headquarters of Norfolk, eastern England, on the River Wensum, 160 km/100 mi northeast of London; population

(2001 est) 121,700. Industries include financial and insurance services, tourism, television and radio broadcasting, engineering, printing, high-technology and biotechnology industries, and the manufacture of shoes, mustard, clothing, chemicals, and confectionery. It is the largest medieval walled city in England.

History

First fortified by the Saxons in the 9th century, Norwich was settled in medieval times by Flemish weavers and it became the centre of the worsted

trade in the

14th century. As northern manufacturing towns expanded during the Industrial Revolution, Norwich lost some of its importance. Despite this, the city expanded considerably in the 19th century, more than doubling its population to around 80,000. During World War II Norwich was heavily damaged

Features

Norwich has a Norman castle, a cathedral founded in 1096, a 15th-century guildhall, over 30 medieval churches, Tudor houses, and a Georgian Assembly House that was restored in 1950 as an arts centre. The Norwich Provision Market dates from the 11th century, and is the largest open-air market in England, with over 200 stalls. The City Hall (1938) has a clock tower which is 56 m/184 ft high. The University of East Anglia (1963) includes the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts (1978), designed by Norman Foster, and the Sainsbury Laboratory for Molecular Research (1987) - in association with the John Innes Institute - designed by Denys Lasdun. The nearby Norwich Research Park at Colney is a major centre for biotechnology. It is Europe's largest single-site concentration of research activity into food, diet, health, and the environment. The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital opened in 2001 on the same site.

The Bridewell Museum is devoted to local trades and industries, including exhibitions on the history of Norwich's food industries. A library, the Forum (2001), was built with funds from the city council, the Millennium Commission Lottery Project, and local businesses.

Architecture The city has an irregular street plan dating from Saxon times, and some cobbled streets are preserved. Fragments of the ancient walls remain. The Guildhall (1413), a flint-and-stone building, contains a display of civic regalia including a sword presented to the city by Admiral Horatio Nelson. The 15th-century St Andrew's Hall and Blackfriars' Hall were originally the nave and chancel of the church of the Dominicans. Other features include Tombland, the marketplace of the original Anglo-Saxon settlement; the 15th-century Maid's Head Hotel; the Stranger's Hall, a 14th-century merchant's house, now a folk museum; Suckling House, a 16th-century banqueting hall; Erpingham Gate (1420); Ethelbert Gate (1272), commemorating a riot between monks and citizens; the Bridewell, built in 1370, now a museum of local industries; Pull's Ferry, an ancient water gate; and the 13th-century Bishop's Bridge, one of the oldest bridges in England. Theatres include the Maddermarket, home of the Norwich Players, and the Theatre Royal.

Churches The largely Norman cathedral was founded by Bishop Losinga. It has a 15th-century octagonal

spire (96 m/315 ft high), the second highest in England after that of Salisbury Cathedral. The Cathedral's cloisters, dating from 1297, are the only two-storey monastic cloisters surviving in England. Norwich's medieval churches are mostly built of flint in late Decorated or Perpendicular style. The largest is St Peter (Mancroft), built in 1430-1455. Its tower is 31 m/102 ft, and it has a peal of 13 bells. Its east window contains 15th-century glass, and the church contains the tomb of the writer and physician Thomas Browne, whose statue stands on the Haymarket nearby. St Andrew's church, rebuilt in 1506, contains a memorial tablet to Abraham Lincoln. The 15th-century church of St Peter (Hungate) is now an ecclesiastical museum. The church of St Julian, associated with the mystic Julian of Norwich, was rebuilt following World War II bomb damage.

University of East Anglia The Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts houses a collection of paintings given to the University of East Anglia in 1973 by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury. It includes modern European paintings as well as a collection of ethnographic art. The building was designed to display openly its steel structure, one of the first examples of its kind.

Castle and castle museum The original Norman castle, built soon after the Norman Conquest to dominate East Anglia, was destroyed in the Earl of Norfolk's rebellion against William I, and the present building, an almost cubic block, dates from about 1120. It was captured by Flemish forces in 1174 and by French troops in the reign of King John. It was given to the county of Norfolk by George III and was used as a jail until 1887. Refaced in 1834-39, the keep was opened in 1894 as the Norwich Castle Museum. It contains a large collection of ceramic teapots and the art gallery contains a collection of paintings by the Norwich School, including John Sell Cotman and John Crome.

Parks The chief parks are Eaton Park and Earlham Park. Other parks and open spaces include Mousehold Heath, Chapelfield Garden (the central public garden of Norwich), and Waterloo Park.

Industries Norwich Union (insurance company), Anglia Television, BBC TV East, Radio Broadland, and Radio Norfolk are all based in Norwich.

Norfolk (UK) Norwich Cathedral