Cranworth
Cranworth is a village and civil parish in the Breckland district of the English county of Norfolk.
Cranworth is located north-east of Watton and west of Norwich.
History
Cranworth's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for an enclosed part of land with cranes and herons.In the Domesday Book, Cranworth is recorded as a settlement of 42 households located in the hundred of Mitford. In 1086, the village formed part of the estates of King William.
Geography
According to the 2021 census, Cranworth has a population of 468 people which shows an increase from the 419 people recorded in the 2011 census.St. Mary's Church
Cranworth's parish church is dedicated to Saint Mary and dates from the Thirteenth Century. St. Mary's is located off Woodrising Road and has been Grade I listed since 1960.St. Mary's churchtower is topped with a medieval spire whilst the interior was heavily restored in the Victorian era. The church holds various memorials to members of the Gurdon family who lived at nearby Letton Hall.
St. Mary's Churchyard holds the grave of Pilot Officer Noel G. Cromie who was killed in a flying accident when his Miles Martinet lost power over The Wash.
Notable residents
- Robert Rolfe PC, Baron Cranworth- lawyer and politician, born in Cranworth.
Governance
Cranworth is part of the electoral ward of Shipdham & Scarning 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
Cranworth War Memorial is a stone memorial in St. Mary's Churchyard with also lists war dead from Letton and Southburgh. The memorial lists the following people from Cranworth and Southburgh:| Rank | Name | Unit | Date of death | Burial |
| LCpl. | Frederick C. Ward | 63rd Bn., Machine Gun Corps | 3 Sep. 1918 | Vis-en-Artois Memorial |
| LCpl. | Robert R. Tuttle | 1st Bn., Norfolk Regiment | 17 Sep. 1916 | Delville Wood Cemetery |
| Dvr. | William F. Lyon | Army Service Corps | 5 Feb. 1919 | Maubeuge Cemetery |
| Pte. | Victor Edwards | 8th Bn., Border Regiment | 5 Jul. 1916 | Thiepval Memorial |
| Pte. | Ernest W. Graves | 6th Bn., The Buffs | 19 Mar. 1918 | Cite Bonjean Cemetery |
| Pte. | F. Samuel Sidell | 1st Bn., Royal Irish Fusiliers | 24 Aug. 1918 | Ploegsteert Memorial |
| Pte. | Frederick J. Green | 61st Bn., Machine Gun Corps | 21 Mar. 1918 | Pozières Memorial |
| Pte. | John Hagan | 2nd Bn., Norfolk Regiment | 22 Apr. 1916 | Basra Memorial |
| Pte. | Lionel W. Green | 1/5th Bn., Norfolk Regt. | 19 Apr. 1917 | Gaza War Cemetery |
| Pte. | Jonathan Berry | 7th Bn., Norfolk Regt. | 20 Nov. 1917 | Feuchy Cemetery |
| Pte. | Sidney Hipkin | 9th Bn., Norfolk Regt. | 8 Oct. 1918 | Montbrehain Cemetery |
| Pte. | Bartlett J. Hart | 1st Bn., Queen's Royal Regiment | 25 Sep. 1917 | Tyne Cot |
And, the following for the Second World War:
| Rank | Name | Unit | Date of death | Burial/Commemoration |
| AS | Geoffrey G. Ebbage | HMS Calcutta | 1 Jun. 1941 | Chatham Naval Memorial |
| Gnr. | George W. F. Graves | 71 Regt., Royal Artillery | 3 Dec. 1942 | St. Andrew's Churchyard |
| Pte. | Albert C. Clarke | 1st Bn., Hampshire Regiment | 30 Jul. 1944 | Bayeux War Cemetery |