England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Foulden All Saints

The Parish

The parish of Foulden lies in western Norfolk roughly 8 miles southwest of the market town of Swaffham. Foulden sits about 2 miles northeast of the A134 road which links Kings Lynn with Thetford and sits on the edge of the Fenland area of the county just east of the course of the River Wissey. Foulden is built around an oblong of lanes with a cross-bar forming a slightly leaning "B" shape, most properties straggle along the western limb of that oblong. Whilst Foulden is predominantly arable a substantial of the parish acreage sits as Foulden Common, an area which would have been exploited mainly for low-intensity grazing and for products such as broom. In contrast early gazetteers estimate that over 60% of the parish was set to crops such as cereals, beet and nowadays oil-seed. In addition today much of the east of the parish has been converted to managed forestry that area being on the poorer soils found in Breckland. Foulden is drained westwards by the River Wissey which heads off into the Fens only to meet with the extensive man-influenced drainage channels of that area, eventually the Wissey meets the Great Ouse where water turn northward to meet the North Sea through King's Lynn and The Wash. Foulden is sited at around 10 metres above the sea with much of the west of the parish almost at sea-level, eastwards land rises only gently to reach the 50 metre contour to the northwest of Hilborough. Parish in the west of the county were more extensive than those in the east and Foulden was no exception, covering almost 3,400 acres which would have supported a population of close to 500 parishioners. The Domesday record for Foulden, a modest rural village today, is contrasting as 64 households were recorded enough to place Foulden in the largest 20% of settlements by population in the book, shared between 3 landholders its assets of 11 ploughs, some small meadows, 2 mills and 2 fisheries are, however, more in line with today's status.

The Church

All Saints' church sits towards the southern end of the village on the western side of School Road. Like many Norfolk churches this is a product of the 14th century, the church does, however, appear slightly lop-sided due to the collapse of its western tower which fell in the 18th century and never replaced except by a token 20th century bellcote. The main body of nave & chancel together with both aisles are a mixture of the early 14th century Decorated style and the later Perpendicular fashion, the chancel has the greater concentration of the latter. This gives evidence for the church being built in a single building campaign supposedly at the behest of Sir John de Crake and supposedly replacing an early church dedicated to St Edmund which sat on the banks of the nearby River Wissey. The 15th century, also in Perpendicular style, saw the insertion of the clerestory, the addition of the northern porch and the re-roofing of the chancel. Whilst the bellcote is of the 20th century Pevsner gives to record of any Victorian restoration, a somewhat rare event in this area. Outside the gates there is a small triangular parking space for a single vehicle otherwise on-street parking in the broader sections of School Road is advised. The churchyard is open & uncluttered with no obstacles whatsoever for the photographer.