Beccles

Introduction

Beccles is built on a river cliff, overlooking the Waveney valley. This attractive market town dates from the time of the Angles and unusually, is still known by the same name by which it was recorded in Domesday. At the time of Domesday, a fishing port thrived at the river mouth. Today the town is better known for printing and tourism. Admiral Horatio Nelson's father, Edmund, was once the curate at the church and was married here to Catherine Sucking (a local woman) in 1754. Unusually, the church has a detached tower (28 metres high) which contains 10 bells and was built in 1515. The tower has clock-faces on only three sides. Local legend tells that this is because the builders "didn't want to give the time of day to Norfolk", though the fact that the clock-less side faces nothing but marshland may be a more likely explanation.

Beccles Brew Co was founded in a domestic garage in the town in 2019; in 2020 the brewery moved to new, larger premises in Brampton. But this is not the first time the town name has been used by a local brewery - see Beccles Brewing Co and Beccles Brewery for some historic uses of this name.…

Gallery

Acknowledgements

Some details from "Suffolk Airfields in WW2" by Graham Smith.