Somerleyton

Somerleyton (/ˈsʌmərleɪtən/ SUM-ər-lay-tən) is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Somerleyton, Ashby and Herringfleet, in the East Suffolk district, in the north of the English county of Suffolk. It is 4.5 miles (7.2 km) north-west of Lowestoft and 5.5 miles (8.9 km) south-west of Great Yarmouth. The village is closely associated with Somerleyton Hall and was largely rebuilt as a model village in the 19th century at the direction of Samuel Morton Peto. The parish was combined with Herringfleet and Ashby to create the parish of "Somerleyton, Ashby and Herringfleet" on 1 April 1987.

The village is on the edge of The Broads national park with the River Waveney forming the western boundary of the former parish. This forms the county border with Norfolk and the Suffolk village of Blundeston is to the east. The village has a population of around 300.

At the time of the Domesday Book, the manor of Somerleyton was held by the king. It was named Sumerledetuna and was recorded as having 17 families living in the village. The manor was owned by the Jernegan family from the early 14th century. The family built Somerleyton Hall in around 1579.

The hall was bought by Sir Thomas Wentworth in the early 17th century and was substantially remodelled by the Wentworth family as a mansion house. This included a 52 hectares (130 acres) deer park which was established by 1652. The estate was occupied by Parliamentarian troops a number of times during the Civil War and was purchased by Admiral Sir Thomas Allin in 1669. It remained in Allin's family until it was acquired by railway developer Samuel Morton Peto, who oversaw the latest rebuilding in 1843. The hall and the park and gardens are Grade II* listed buildings.

Peto directed the rebuilding of the village at the same time, creating a model village based on Blaise Hamlet near Bristol. The development of both the hall and village was designed by John Thomas. The rebuilding process bankrupted Peto and the estate was sold to Sir Francis Crossley, a carpet manufacturer from Halifax, West Yorkshire. The title of Baron Somerleyton was created for Crossley's son, Savile in 1916.

A memorial to two airmen killed in a friendly fire incident during World War II is on Waddling Way, an un-metalled road east of the village which runs towards Flixton. A Royal Air Force DeHavilland Mosquito nightfighter being flown by two American Navy pilots was mistakenly shot down by British anti-aircraft fire.

In the 1950s, Christopher Cockerell designed and tested the first hovercraft at his boatyard in the village. A column was erected in the village in 2010 on the 100th anniversary of Cockerell's birth.

In 1971 the civil parish had a population of 319.