Nelson's Norfolk: 'I am myself a Norfolk man . . . and glory in being so.'

With these words, Nelson addressed cheering crowds outside the Wrestler's Inn at Yarmouth after his return from the Battle of the Nile. The great hero never forgot the county of his birth, and the county has many places through which we can remember him . . .

1. BARSHAM
Nelson's mother Catherine Suckling was born in the former Rectory on May 9, 1725. She was always with him, despite her death when he was just nine years old - "The thought of former days brings all my mother to my heart, which shows itself in my eyes," he later recorded. The house is near the Beccles-Bungay Road, close to the church, which has a stained glass window commemorating Trafalgar.

2. BARTON TURF
Barton Hall was the home of Nelson's sister Catherine and brother-in-law George Matcham, which he often visited during his stay at Burnham Thorpe. The Matchams were staying at Merton, Nelson's home, when he left for Portsmouth on September 1805, never to return.

3. BECCLES
Horatio's father Edmund was curate at St Michael's Church from 1745 to 1747. He was married to Catherine in the church on May 11, 1749. On the day of Nelson's funeral, January 9, 1806, the church bells tolled from ten in the morning until two in the afternoon. Roos Hall, a three storey stepped gable house outside the town on the Barsham to Bungay Road, was the home of the Suckling family for over 400 years.

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4. BRADENHAM
Nelson's father was born here on March 19 1722. Lilias Rider Haggard's great, great grandfather, William Haggard, let Bradenham Hall to Thomas Bolton and his wife, Nelson's sister Susannah, in 1811. Emma and Horatia were invited for Christmas, and Emma signed the parish register as a witness two days later at the marriage of Eliza Bolton. This was the last family gathering for Emma and her last visit to Norfolk. Susannah died at Bradenham Hall in 1813, when Thomas moved to Burnham Market. The couple are buried at Burnham Thorpe church.

5. BRANCASTER
This was another place that Nelson was said to have learnt to sail, it being a sea port at the time. Thomas Bolton's brother was Rector of Brancaster and it was here that Nelson's nurse, Mrs High, lived. She married the landlord of the Ship Inn.

6. BURNHAM THORPE
Nelson's birthplace, The Parsonage, was knocked down in 1803, but in the old grounds (signposted from the road) you can see the pond that Nelson dug. In the village is the Lord Nelson pub which Horatio frequented (it was then known as the Plough Inn) and the Church of All Saints, where his father Edmund was rector.
More about Burnham Thorpe
Map of Burnham Thorpe
A walk around Burnham

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7. HAPPISBURGH
One hundred and nineteen of the crew of the Invincible, part of the Copenhagen fleet of 1801, are buried in the north churchyard. Arriving late at Yarmouth, she set off three days behind, hugging the coastline. Passing through the 'Hazeborough Gatway', the ship grounded on the Hammonds Knowl Bank. At the mercy of sea and wind, she sank the following morning. 400 of the 552 crew drowned. Some survivors were taken to the naval hospital at Yarmouth, where Nelson visited them on his return. The spelling Hazeborough is taken from the naval dispatch of the sinking. Other naval charts of the time show it also as 'Haisborough' and 'Haisboro'.

8. HILBOROUGH
Nelson's father Edmund presided at the 14th century Church of All Saints for eight years, before going to Burnham in 1755. Nelson's brother William was also a vicar there. There are several memorials to the Nelson family in the church, and Edmund and Catherine's first two sons, Edmund and Horatio, are buried next to the altar. Nelson's contemporary, Wellington, lived for a time at Hilborough Hall.

9. HOLKHAM HALL
During his visits home his chief amusement was to go over to Holkham, the owner of which was a friend of Nelson's father the Rev. Edmund Nelson, there joining Mr Coke to take part in the coursing, a frequent and favourite pastime at Holkham.
However, this sport taxed his strength, and he had to give it up in favour of less active country pursuits. In a letter to his brother he writes "It was not my intention to have gone to the coursing meeting, for, to say the truth, I have rarely escaped a wet jacket and a violent cold". He was barred from shooting parties at Holkham, partly owing to his health, but mostly because he was very careless with a gun. He remained a poor shot, and it is on record that he only succeeded once in killing a partridge.

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10. HOUGHTON HALL
Between King's Lynn and Fakenham, was built for Nelson's great, great uncle Sir Robert Walpole, the first Prime Minister of Great Britain, who bequeathed 10 Downing Street to the nation.

11. NORTH WALSHAM
Nelson was a pupil at Paston Grammar School (right) at North Walsham from autumn 1768 to March 1771, when he went to sea. While there he was involved in an episode in keeping with his character. In the master's garden was a pear tree, the fruit of which many pupils lusted after, but dare not steal. Seeing that nobody was brave enough, Horatio, then 11, volunteered to secure the prize. One night, he was lowered by some sheets tied together from his dormitory window, and stole away with the fruit, which he shared between his friends, saving none for himself. A five guinea reward to catch the thief was offered, but such was the affection in which Nelson was held that no boy gave him away. The school - now Paston Sixth Form College - has many items of Nelson memorabilia. Frances Paston, the wife of the founder of the school, was a friend of Horatio's mother, and she is buried inside Burnham Thorpe Church.

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12. NORWICH
In the Guildhall is the sword that was presented to Nelson by the defeated Spanish admiral at the Battle of St Vincent. "I beg leave to present the sword to the City of Norwich... as a memento of my affection for my native county". Nelson attended Norwich Grammar School in 1767.
Norwich paid 700 guineas in 1847 for the Thomas Milnes statue of Nelson (right) , which was moved in 1856 from the Market Place to Cathedral Close, facing the school.
At the other end is a statue of Nelson's contemporary, Wellington.
Inside Blackfriars Hall is a full length painting of Nelson, thought to be the last for which he sat. The painting, commissioned by the city Corporation, is by Sir William Beechey. Nelson was a godfather to one of Beechey's children, and gave him the hat he had worn at Aboukir at the Battle of the Nile, which Beechey in turn passed on to the Norwich Castle Museum. Suckling House - opposite St Andrew's Hall - was the home of Robert and John Suckling, ancestors of Nelson's mother Catherine. The Great Hall and remains of the Great Parlour are now the bar and cafe areas of Cinema City.

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13. SWAFFHAM
While Nelson was away at sea his wife Fanny - who had spent many years in the Caribbean - took lodgings at Swaffham to escape the chill of the North Norfolk coast. The baptismal register at Swaffham reads, "Baptism of Horatio son of Edmund Nelson, Clerk Rector of Hillborough and Vicar of Sporle, and Catherine his wife". This was the first Horatio, born at Swaffham on July 28, 1751, who died four months later.

14. WELLS
During his Five Years on the Beach, Nelson would ride to Wells to pick up newspapers by which he could stay in touch with the outside world. Inland from the quay is the Buttlands, where Fanny once rented a home while Nelson was at sea. Nelson is said to have visited The Crown Hotel (right) many times, and there are many pictures of him there to this day.

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15. WOLTERTON HALL
Near Erpingham between Aylsham and Cromer, this fine Georgian country house was home to the Walpole family, distant cousins of Nelson on his mother's side, whom he visited regularly.

16. WOODTON
Woodton Hall, nine miles south of Norwich, was the home of Maurice Suckling, who took Nelson to sea. Maurice's early fame resulted from a victory against a French fleet off Cape St Francois in 1759.

17. YARMOUTH
Nelson often sought the shelter of the 'Yarmouth Roads' before setting off on naval engagements, and on several occasions landed victoriously at the port. Nelson arrived at Yarmouth on November 6, 1800, two years after his victory at the Battle of the Nile. On stepping ashore, the Admiral was greeted with wild cheering and gun salutes and after entering the carriage prepared for him, the horses were removed from the shafts and replaced with people, who drew him in triumph to the Wrestler's Inn on Church Plain, now Hardy's. Here the Mayor, Samuel Baker, presented him with the freedom of the borough. When administering the oath, the town clerk noticed that Nelson placed his left hand on the book. Shocked, the official said, "Your right hand, my lord." "That," replied the Admiral, "is at Teneriffe". On his departure, the widowed landlady, a Mrs Suckling, requested permission to change the name of the inn to the Nelson Arms. Nelson suggested otherwise, "Being that I have but one!"

After the Battle of Copenhagen Nelson again returned to Yarmouth. He walked across the Denes to the Naval Hospital -- now the site of Sainsburys -- where he spent three hours with wounded seamen. Seeing a man with an empty sleeve like his own, he remarked, jokingly, "There Jack, you and I are spoilt for fishermen!"

When in Yarmouth for any time, Nelson stayed at the Star Hotel, an Elizabethan house on Hall Quay, even having a room named after himself. When extensions were made to the Post Office, the hotel was taken apart and shipped to America.

The Maritime Museum: The museum, on the seafront, has letters from Nelson, prints, portraits and objects from the Victory.
Norfolk Museums website
Nelson's Monument, which is 144 ft high, bears the figure of Britannia, looking inland towards Nelson's birthplace. It was erected in 1817.
More about Nelson's Monument at Yarmouth

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