# Foulden, Norfolk

Foulden /ˈfaʊldən/ is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.
Foulden is located 12 miles (19 km) north west of Thetford and 29 miles (47 km) west of Norwich, along the River Wissey.

## History

Foulden's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for a hill with an abundance of domesticated birds.
In the Domesday Book, Foulden is listed as a settlement of 64 households located in the hundred of South Greenhoe. In 1086, the village was divided between the East Anglian estates of Alan of Brittany, William de Warenne and Walter Giffard.
Foulden Hall is a Sixteenth Century moated manorhouse located within the parish boundaries. The house was updated with a Victorian facade in the Nineteenth Century.
In November 1981, Foulden was struck by an F0/T1 tornado, as part of the record-breaking nationwide tornado outbreaks at the time.

## Geography

According to the 2021 census, Foulden has a population of 441 people which shows an increase from the 430 people recorded in the 2011 census.
The River Wissey runs roughly west to east through the parish and the modern village sits overlooking the valley. Around the river some areas of fen (known as Borough Fen) survive and Foulden Common, a Site of Special Scientific Interest, is a large expanse of land in the north of the parish. Some of the parish is now planted with conifers and is part of Thetford Forest, managed by the Forestry Commission.

## All Saints' Church

Foulden's parish church dates from the Fourteenth Century and is located within the village on School Road. The church has been Grade I listed since 1960.
All Saints' churchtower collapsed in the Eighteenth Century and suffered iconoclastic attacks by Sixteenth Century Puritans. The church also holds many memorial tombs from the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. Today, the church is still in the care of the Diocese of Norwich but does not hold regular church services.

## Amenities

Foulden village hall was built in the 1970s by the residents of the village and is available for private hire.

## Notable Residents

* John Lawley- (1859-1922) Commissioner of the Salvation Army, born in Foulden
* Company Sergeant Major John Robert Osborn VC- (1899-1941) Canadian soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross, born in Foulden

## Governance

Foulden is part of the electoral ward of Bedingfield for local elections and is part of the district of Breckland.
The village's national constituency is South West Norfolk which has been represented by Labour's Terry Jermy MP since 2024.

## War Memorial

Foulden War Memorial is a stone plinth with an octagonal shaft topped with a cross. The memorial lists the following names for the First World War:
| Rank | Name | Unit | Date of Death | Burial/Commemoration |
| Capt. | William A. Cecil MiD MC | 2nd Bn., Grenadier Guards | 16 Sep. 1914 | Soupir Cemetery |
| Dvr. | Frederick Twite | 209th Coy., Royal Engineers | 26 Apr. 1917 | Cabaret-Rouge Cemetery |
| Dvr. | Horace J. Parnell | 124th Bde., Royal Field Artillery | 21 Apr. 1918 | Couin British Cemetery |
| Pte. | William G. Thompson | 1st Bn., Black Watch | 25 Sep. 1915 | Loos Memorial |
| Pte. | Stanley Twite | 8th Bn., King's Royal Regiment | 28 Mar. 1918 | Arras Memorial |
| Pte. | John Ward | 7th Bn., Norfolk Regiment | 12 Oct. 1916 | Grévillers Cemetery |
| Pte. | George Dixon | 9th Bn., Norfolk Regt. | 15 Sep. 1916 | Thiepval Memorial |