Burnham Norton Priory : perspectives on the Carmelites in Norfolk

The Carmelites, or Whitefriars, founded their fourth house in England between 1245 and 1247 at a coastal site in Burnham Norton, North Norfolk, then known as Bradmer.

The priory relocated to its present site slightly farther inland in 1253, and was considerably enlarged during the fourteenth century.

Despite its rural location Burnham Friary regularly hosted the Provincial Chapter until its suppression in 1538.

Just a few fragments of this significant priory remain visible today, including a much-restored fourteenth-century gatehouse, the ruinous west front of the church and a considerable length of the precinct wall. In 2017 and 2018 the Norfolk Archaeological Trust, with a range of local partner organisations, investigated the site and its history as part of the Heritage Lottery Fund-supported Imagined Land project.

The aim was to offer the people of the Burnhams the chance to explore and celebrate the heritage of the friary site through practical research and creative activities.

Archaeological and historical research was presented at two well-attended study days organised in April 2018 as part of the Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group's contribution to the project.

This publication draws together and expands upon this material, and is intended as a catalyst for discourse and future research.