Mundesley


Mundesley is a coastal village and a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is north-north east of Norwich, south east of Cromer and north east of London. The village lies north-north east of the town of North Walsham. The nearest railway station is at North Walsham for the Bittern Line which runs between Sheringham and Norwich. The nearest airport is Norwich Airport. The village sits astride the B1159 coast road that links Cromer and Caister-on-Sea, and is at the eastern end of the B1145 a route which runs between King's Lynn and Mundesley. Mundesley is within the Norfolk Coast AONB. It has a resident population of around 2,695, measured at 2,758 in the 2011 Census. The River Mun or Mundesley Beck flows into the sea here.

History


Mundesley has an entry in the Domesday Book of 1085, with the town's name recorded as Muleslai. The main landholder was William de Warenne, and the survey also lists a church.

Second World War

The Mundesley war memorial is dedicated to sailors and volunteers who cleared the North Sea of mines during and after the Second World War. Next to the church is a World War II gun emplacement, which now stands near the edge of the cliff, due to coastal erosion.

Governance

An electoral ward in the same name exists. This ward includes Bacton and had had total population at the 2011 Census of 4,191.

Tourism

Mundesley is a popular seaside holiday destination due to its sandy beaches and has a number of holiday chalet and caravan parks and hotels. Just to the south of Mundesley on the road to Paston is a popular windmill, Stow Mill. The village was a popular seaside resort in Victorian times, benefiting from its own railway station which closed in 1964.

Golf course

The village has an historic golf course in the Mun Valley, designed with the help of six-times Open Champion Harry Vardon. Vardon convalesced at the nearby sanitorium while recovering from tuberculosis and his association with the course spanned many years. It is said that he scored his only hole-in-one on what is now the sixth. The course was reduced to nine holes when land was required for wartime farming, which was very important in that era.

Village amenities

The village centre offers shops including a butchers, florists, arts and crafts, chemist and convenience stores. Mundesley also has its own medical centre and primary school. There is an adventure island crazy golf park close to the seafront. There is a very small maritime museum which is also the local lookout of the National Coastwatch Institution, a charity offering 365 days lookout in over 50 stations along the British coast.

Public houses and hotels

There are three pubs in Mundesley. One of the oldest is the Ship Inn situated on the sea front. Its first landlord is listed as being Paul Harrison in 1836. Its flint construction is characteristic of the older parts of the village. The Manor Hotel, also on the sea front, has a public bar in the main building. A little inland, on the road to Paston, is the Royal Hotel, where Lord Nelson is said to have lived for a while. Plentiful lodging is available. The Link’s and Seaward Crest chalet parks are very close and are very popular.

Parish church

All Saints Church in Mundesley was fully restored between 1904 and 1914. It is located on the cliffs above the sea.