Pentney
| Pentney | |
|---|---|
 Pentney village sign in the midst of a rare springtime snowfall during 2008 |
|
 Pentney
|
|
| Pentney shown within Norfolk | |
| Area | 10.39 km2 (4.01 sq mi) |
| Population | 544 (2011) |
| • Density | 52/km2 (130/sq mi) |
| OS grid reference | TF720138 |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | KING'S LYNN |
| Postcode district | PE32 |
| Dialling code | 01760 |
| Police | Norfolk |
| Fire | Norfolk |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
Pentney is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, located about 8 miles (13 km) south east of King's Lynn placing it about halfway between King's Lynn and Swaffham on the A47 road. It covers an area of 10.39 km2 (4.01 sq mi) and had a population of 387 in 184 households at the 2001 census, increasing to 544 at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of local government, it falls within the district of King's Lynn and West Norfolk. It is in the valley of the River Nar, a tributary of the River Great Ouse.
The age of the village is unknown, but it dates at least to the 3rd or 4th centuries CE, from which time there is evidence of a Romano-British local pottery industry. A Roman road and settlement in Pentney ran close to the river Nar The name suggests that Pentney was at one time an island: one theory for the etymology is Penta's / Penda's Island, from the Anglo-Saxon Pendan-ig, the ig being equivalent to Old Norse ey = island (Pentney is on drained waterlands).
About a mile west of the village, on the north bank of the River Nar, is the gatehouse, all that remains of the Augustinian Pentney Priory, also known as Priory of the Holy Trinity, St Mary and St Magdalene, established around 1130. It was founded by Robert De Vaux, one of the Norman nobles who came to England with William I. on lands that had belonged to Hacon the Dane, evicted by William. De Vaux installed a number of Augustine Canons to come and settle at Pentney to pray for the souls of him and his family. It soon established itself, and continued for centuries, as a significant and prosperous presence in Pentney for its farming and teaching activities.
The gatehouse itself – "the finest in Norfolk and a smaller copy of that at Thornton Abbey" – dates from the 14th century and is a three-storey multi-unit lodging built of flint rubble with Barnack stone dressing.
...
Wikipedia