Fornham St Martin

Fornham St Martinis avillageandcivil parishin theWest Suffolkdistrict ofSuffolkin eastern England. Located on the northern outskirts ofBury St Edmundsoff east and west from theA134,in 2005 its population was 1300.Itsparish councilis shared with neighbouringFornham St Genevieve,and is known as Fornham St Martin cum St Genevieve Parish Council. Fornham St Martin is one of a trio of contiguous villages by theRiver Lark.The other villages are Fornham St Genevieve andFornham All Saints.

Fornham St Martin
Village sign Fornham St Martin
Fornham St Martin Location withinSuffolk
Population	1,300 (2005) 1,319 (2011)
District	West Suffolk
Shire county	Suffolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Bury St Edmunds
Postcode district	IP28, IP31
Police	Suffolk
Fire	Suffolk
Ambulance	East of England

Near the current Lark Valley Drive, asmock windmillused to stand. It collapsed in 1927.

The village has onepublic house,the Woolpack, but no shops. Its school closed in the early 1950s.

History

The word Fornham means 'Troutvillage' derived from theOld Englishwordsfornemeaning trout andhāmmeaning village with the addition of the dedication toMartin of Tours.The village is recorded in theDomesday Bookwith 27 households in 1086 made up of 3 villagers, 11 freemen, 10 smallholders, 3 slaves along with 2cobs,4 cattle, 12 pigs, and 80 sheep.

TheBattle of Fornham,a significant battle inEnglish history,took place in Fornham Park and the surrounding area in 1173. This was part of theRevolt of 1173–74where King Henry II, led by Robert de Lucy fought the Flemish rebels for his son,Henry the Young King,led byRobert de Beaumont, 3rd Earl of Leicester.Scribesof the time variously estimated that between 3000 and 10,000Flemishmercenarieswere slaughtered and lie beneath the fields, woodland and ditches.

The village appears onJohn Speed's 1610 map as "Fernham mertin" and in 1870–72,John Marius Wilson'sImperial Gazetteer of England and Walesdescribed the town asa parish in Thingoe district, Suffolk in theDiocese of Ely;on theriver Lark,1¾mileNorthofBury St Edmundsand related that it had 74 houses, apost office,achurchand afree school.

ArchitectRobert Abrahamwas involved with the expansion ofFornham Hallin the 19th century.

Church

Fornham St Martin Church (OSgrid TL8566) with King George's playing field across the way at the south end of B1106 to the village. The churchyard contains a number of notable burials:

• Vice-AdmiralJames Rivett-CarnacCB CBE DSC DL (1891–1970) - Royal Navy officer who became Commander-in-Chief of the New Zealand Division.
• Major General SirHarry OrdGCMG CB (1819–1885) - Colonial Governor of several posts including Bermuda, Straits Settlements and Western Australia.
• Sir William Gilstrap, Bt. (1816–1896) - Prominent maltster and philanthropist who endowed the Gilstrap library in Newark, Nottinghamshire.

Gallery

• 
  Early medieval sword (1100-1200) iron with silver inscription found by River Lark. Possibly frombattle of Fornham.
• 
  Clay Drift and Springhill Covert (2008)
• 
  River Lark north of Tollgate Bridge (2011)
• 
  Reservoir at Springhill Covert (2008)
• 
  The Wool Pack (2004)
• 
  Field at Fornham St Martin (2009) showing jackdaws over arable land and smoke from British Sugar factory nearby
• 
  St Martin's church Fornham St Martin (2006)
• 
  The War Memorial at Fornham St. Martin (2015)
• 
  Church of St Martin, Fornham St Martin. Chancel (2012)
• 
  Church of St Martin, Fornham St Martin. Font (2012)
• 
  Church of St Martin, Fornham St Martin. Stained glass window (2012)
• 
  View west from Clay Drift (2008). Arable land and woods.

See also

• Fornham All Saints
• Fornham St Genevieve

Media related toFornham St Martinat Wikimedia Commons