Earl Bigod and the Battle of Fornham 17th Oct. 1173 - with Dr Sam Newton

Title-picture above: The great Bigod castle of Framlingham, viewed from the west scross the Castle Mere (©Dr Sam Newton 2004 , 2025). The curtain wall and towers (originally thirteen) were built in the 1190s by Hugh Bigod's son Roger on the site of his father's citadel-palace, demolished by royal order after the war of 1173-1174 . Much survives of the massive earth fortifications of the older castle bailey.

Earl Hugh Bigod and the Battle of Fornham 17th Oct. 1173 with Dr Sam Newton - an online study-day with Dr Sam Newton FSA

Friday 17th October 2025, from 10.15 - 11.15, 11.45 - 12.45, & 13.45 - c.15.00

An anniversary special on the Battle of Fornham St Genevieve (17th October 1173), on the crossing of the River Lark just north of Bury St Edmunds, which broke the power of the coalition of earls, including old Hugh Bigod, Earl of Norfolk, who had joined the rebellious Prince ('Young King') Henry's war against his father, King Henry II.

We shall look at the events leading up to the battle, with special attention to the part played by Hugh Bigod (then in his eighties) and his castles at Framlingham and Bungay, as well as the building of the royal castle of Orford, the sieges of Walton Castle (Old Felixstowe), Dunwich, and Haughley Castle, before the decisive battle itself.

Above: The Bigod Earls of Norfolk (©Dr Sam Newton 2020).

Some Suggestions for Optional Background Reading (not essential but of interest)

• Allen, J., V.Potter, & M.Poulter, The Building of Orford Castle: A Translation of the Pipe Rolls, 1163-78 (Orford Museum 2002)
• Allen Brown, R., “Framlingham Castle and Bigod, 1154-1216”, Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History 25 (1952), pp.127-148.
• Allen Brown, R., The Normans and the Norman Conquest (London 1969)
• Allen Brown, R., Castles from the Air (Cambridge 1989)
• Allen Brown, R., Castles, Conquest and Charters: Collected Papers (Woodbridge 1989)
• Barlow, F., The Feudal Kingdom of England 1042-1216 (Longman Group, 4th edition, 1988).
• Braun, H., Bungay Castle: Historical Notes and Account of the Excavations (Bungay Castle Trust 1991).
• Heslop, T.A., “Orford Castle: Nostalgia and Sophisticated Living”, Architectural History 34 (1991), pp.36-58.
• Heslop, T. A., Norwich Castle Keep: Romanesque Architecture and Social Context (University of East Anglia, 1994)
• Higham, R. & P. Barker, Timber Castles (London 1992; Exeter 2004)
• Liddiard, R. (ed.), Anglo-Norman Castles (Woodbridge 2003)
• Liddiard, R., Castles in Context (Windgather 2005)
• Wareham, A., “The Motives and Politics of the Bigod Family, c.1066-1177”, Anglo-Norman Studies 17 (1994), pp.223-242.
• Walker, M., ‘A Hard and Grievous Battle’ – The Siege of Haughley Castle and The Battle of Fornham in 1173 (Biddles Books 2023).
• Warren, W.L., Henry II (Methuen 1973, 1977).

About Dr Sam Newton FSA

Sam Newton was awarded his Ph.D at the University of East Anglia in 1991. He published his first book, The Origins of Beowulf and the pre-Viking Kingdom of East Anglia, in 1993, and his second, The Reckoning of King Rædwald, in 2003. He has also published several papers, some of which are available on his website or on Academia.

He has lectured widely around the country and abroad for over thirty years and has contributed to many radio and television programmes, especially Time Team (now back in business as Time Team Digital). He is Director of Wuffing Education and a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries.

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