Norfolk – Romans and Vikings, Horn sheep and peat mining

In pre-Roman times, the higher part of what is now Norfolk was particularly populated. There are large deposits of flint there. The oldest artifacts are over 600,000 years old; Mining has been documented for over 4,000 years. In the Bronze Age the region was a centre of metal processing. What is now Norwich was already an important place in Celtic times.

After the Roman conquest, the Celtic Iceni revolted against the occupiers in AD 47 and 60/61.

In the 5th century the Angles invaded, settled along the rivers and founded the kingdom of East Anglia, which also included Suffolk and neighbouring lands. Viking raids began in the 9th century and destroyed Norwich and Thetford in 1004.

Wool processing developed in the Middle Ages, leading to great prosperity and the founding of numerous churches through the export of Norfolk Horn sheep's wool to the continent, until the plague partially depopulated the region in 1349.

In the Middle Ages, peat was mined in the boggy region along the east coast of Norfolk around Great Yarmouth and used as heating material. As the coastline slowly sank, a system of canals and lakes emerged that was declared a national park. The approximately 200 km of navigable waterways are now popular tourist destinations.