A History of Norwich

by Frank Meeres

Norwich has a rich and fascinating history. An important Anglo-Saxon market town at the time of the Norman invasion, it grew to become one of the leading cities of England by the early Middle Ages and second only to London in the 16th and 17th centuries. It retained its importance until the Industrial Revolution when, although it was overtaken in size by the new manufacturing towns, it maintained its reputation as one of the most radical and progressive of cities. In this book the author skilfully combines the latest historical and archaeological findings with a quarter century of original research into the city archives to provide a lively narrative together with a superb selection of illustrations. From its beginnings he describes the city’s growth and government and the many dramatic episodes in its life. He looks at the lives of many of its famous residents but, above all, describes the life of the ordinary people through the centuries – how they earned their livings, their living conditions, problems of poverty and health, their schooling, and how they enjoyed their leisure time. This book will be warmly welcomed by local historians, while its attractive style and presentation will ensure its popularity with the general reader, whether resident or visitor.

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Lukerik · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought I'd better red something along these lines as I now live in Norwich. This is a good starter for ten. According to the author it “is a 90, 000-word distillation of an original text of almost 150, 000 words. A typescript of this longer version is available in the Norfolk Record Office.” Signs of this distillation are at times apparent and it could bear being longer, but on the whole it's a well-written book and very sensibly arranged. He finds space for many inspiring and amusing details. The funniest bit is the Victorian advice on how to avoid getting cholera. A well made volume with plenty of good illustrations including some old maps. The only thing I really felt was missing was a modern map of the city.

[Lisa Willett]

Pretty much all of history is covered in this book! Liked that you could dip in and out of book as you wish, as the time periods of history are subdivided into subjects such as crime & punishment, religion, buildings etc. It's only taken me 5 years to get round to reading it - lockdown is good for something! This will be a book I constantly refer back to when the grey matter fails me!