5 notable people who are buried at Norwich Cathedral

1. Roger Bigod

Roger Bigod founded Thetford Priory (Image: Denise Bradley/ Newsquest)Roger Bigod was a knight who arrived in England with William I and was granted land throughout East Anglia, including in Bungay and Framlingham, following the Norman Conquest. 

Five of his descendants were earls of Norfolk and by 1166 the Bigods were the fifth richest family in England, ambitious and influential both at home and abroad.

Bigod built Bungay castle in about 1100 and founded The Priory of Our Lady of Thetford.

His son and grandson later built Framlingham Castle. 

When he died in 1107, the monks of Thetford claimed that his body belonged at the Priory of Our Lady but in a bid to enforce his power over the ruling families of Norfolk, Bishop de Losinga is said to have snatched his body and buried it in Norwich Cathedral.

2. Herbert de Losinga  

Bishop Herbert features on the Bauchon Window of Norwich Cathedral (Image: Norwich Cathedral)

Born in Normandy, Herbert de Losinga was the first Bishop of Norwich, founding Norwich Cathedral in 1096 when he was Bishop of Thetford.

In 1096 Herbert began to build his cathedral and monastery.

He also founded two hospitals, St Margaret's Church in King's Lynn, the Church of St Nicholas in Great Yarmouth and Norwich School.

Bishop Herbert died on July 22 1119 and his grave can be found in front of the cathedral’s high altar.

Every July the cathedral holds a special service in memory of him.

3. Pandulf Verraccio 

King John Absolved by Pandulph, 1797 line engraving by William Blake (Image: Public Domain)Pandulf Verraccio was a Roman ecclesiastical politician, papal legate to England and Bishop of Norwich.

Verraccio is one of the main characters in Shakespeare's play The Life and Death of King John.

His role centers upon the Investiture Controversy between King John and Pope Innocent III and the subsequent part he played in blocking the French invasion.

Verraccio died in Rome but his body was taken to Norwich for burial in the cathedral. 

4. Thomas Erpingham

A statue of Sir Thomas Erpingham in Erpingham Gate, Tombland (Image: Newsquest)

Born in Norfolk in 1357, Sir Thomas Erpingham was an English soldier who served three generations of the House of Lancaster, including Henry IV and Henry V.

During the reign of Richard II, he served as a soldier in places such as Spain and Scotland, and as one of Henry IV's closest associates, joined him on crusades in Lithuania, Prussia and the Holy Land. 

On October 25 1415, Erpingham commanded the archers in the Battle of Agincourt where he was positioned alongside the King.

Erpingham appears twice in William Shakespeare's play Henry V and is mentioned in Act II of Richard II.

He was a benefactor to the city of Norwich and built the main cathedral gate.

5. Edith Cavell

Edith Cavell was given a state funeral in Westminster Abbey before being buried in Norwich Cathedral (Image: Public Domain)Born in Swardeston, Edith Cavell is known as a pioneer of modern nursing. 

She trained and then worked as a nurse in London and  Manchester before accepting a position in Brussels as Matron of Belgium's first training hospital and school for nurses.

When the First World War broke out she was visiting her mother in Norfolk. On hearing that German troops were advancing on Belgium, she immediately returned to Brussels.

During the occupation of Belgium, she helped soldiers of all nationalities but her work in helping hundreds of Allied soldiers escape the Germans ultimately saw her arrested and executed by firing squad in 1915. 

The night before her execution, Cavell, who was 49 at the time said: "Patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone."

Her body was returned to the UK after the war, where she received a state funeral at Westminster Abbey before being laid to rest at Life’s Green, next to Norwich Cathedral’s St Saviour’s Chapel which was built as a memorial to Norfolk’s fallen in the First World War.