Early history Dereham's name derives from the Old English word "deor" meaning "deer" or "wild animal" with the very common "-ham" ("village", "homestead", or to denote land that is closed in by water or other geographical features), so perhaps it referred to a place where deer or other animals were kept or grazed. According to local tradition, Saint
Wihtburh (aka Withburga), claimed to be the daughter of
Anna, King of the East Angles, founded a monastery there in the seventh century after seeing a vision of the
Virgin Mary, although the Venerable
Bede does not mention her, or her monastery, in his writings, despite reporting the story of her more famous sister
Æthelthryth /Etheldreda of Ely. Apart from reference to it in the
eleventh-century hagiography of Wihtburh, little is known of her foundation and no evidence survives today. An archaeological report by
Norfolk County Council indicates that the first "documentary evidence" of a settlement in this area is a reference in one of the versions of the
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle to the exhumation of the remains of St Wihtburh in AD 798, said to be 55 years after her death. But that reference is an eleventh-century addition to the Chronicle. Nonetheless, there is evidence for an early ecclesiastical site at Dereham. The
Domesday Book of 1086 states that in the eleventh century, "St Etheldreda held Dereham that was already an important market centre with three mills". The report adds that the growing community was centred around St. Nicholas Church, from the Norman era; the structure was altered during the 1200s, 1300s and 1400s. Because numerous medieval buildings were destroyed in fires during 1581 and 1679, the town appears to have a Georgian aspect. A
Neolithic polished
greenstone axe head was found near the town in 1986, with a Neolithic axe head, flint scraper and other tools and worked flints also found in local fields during the 1980s. There is evidence that the area was occupied during the
Bronze Age, with burnt flints from a pot boiler site being found in 1976 and another burnt mound site located in 1987. In 2000, an enamelled
bridle bit dating from the
Iron Age was discovered, with pottery sherds also being found by field walkers in 1983. The town is believed to be on the
Roman Road linking the
Brampton with the major east-west Roman Road of the
Fen Causeway. Some pottery and furniture remains have been found in local fields. In 2004, the largest number of Roman coins found in Norfolk was discovered in Dereham, over 1000 from the third century. A dig provided no evidence of Roman occupation, however. Many of the town's ancient buildings were destroyed in the serious fires that took place in 1581 and 1659. Notable buildings that survived the fire include the Church of
Saint Nicholas and the nearby
Bishop Bonner's cottage. Dereham was administered by the
Abbots, then the
Bishops of Ely, until the parish was taken from the church by
Queen Elizabeth I.
Napoleonic conflict In the late 1700s, Dereham church's bell tower was used as a prison for French
prisoners of war being transferred from
Great Yarmouth to
Norman Cross under the charge of the
East Norfolk Militia. On 6 October 1799, a French officer, Jean de Narde, managed to escape from the tower and, being unable to escape from the church yard due to guards being present, hid in a tree. The Frenchman was spotted and shot when he refused to come down and surrender. Jean is buried in the churchyard and his grave is marked by a memorial stone erected in 1858, which includes the following statement: "Once our foes but now our allies and brethren." This story is told in the documentary,
The Shooting of Jean DeNarde. Jean de Narde's link with Dereham is commemorated by a road named for him just off the B1146 as one approaches the town from the north. One of the windmills built during this era, the Grade II Listed
East Dereham Windmill (built in 1836) was known as the Norwich Road Mill or Fendick's Mill; it was constructed by James Hardy for Michael Hardy who owned a smock mill at Bittering. The windmill continued to use wind power until 1922 when it was converted to use engine power. The facility closed in 1937. It was restored and reopened as an exhibition centre in 2013.
Dereham Rifle Volunteer Corps In June 1859, a public meeting was held at the
Corn Exchange for the formation of a Dereham Rifle Volunteer Corps. The Reverend Armstrong made a short speech urging people to join; around thirty men did, the eldest was an elderly fat banker of 70 years and the youngest a seventeen-year-old. They were kitted out in a grey uniform. The Corps met regularly for drill and exercise. When the
Prince and
Princess of Wales, and the Queen of Denmark arrived at the town's railway station, the Dereham Rifles attended to form a
guard of honour. William Earle G. Lytton Bulwer, formerly a lieutenant and captain in the
Scots Fusilier Guards, was commanding the Dereham Corps in 1861. Dereham became the headquarters of 1st Administrative Battalion, Norfolk Rifle Volunteers in 1866. The
Quebec Street drill hall opened that year, and the Right Hon.
Lord Suffield was appointed Honorary Colonel on 18 May 1866.
First World War At the outbreak of war, the 5th Battalion,
Norfolk Regiment, kept their HQ in Quebec Street but were based in the Corn Exchange, and used the
Masonic Hall on Norwich Road as a store, with the Assembly Rooms being used for medical inspections. Dereham suffered damage during a
Zeppelin air raid during the night of 8 September 1915. Damaged buildings included the
headquarters of the 5th Norfolk Regiment at their premises on the corner of Church Street and Quebec Street. The raid also hit The White Lion public house on Church Street, seriously injuring two customers. The roof was destroyed and The White Lion never reopened as a public house. The old Vicarage was used as a
Red Cross hospital.
World War II Dereham was declared a Nodal Point during the
Second World War and was partially fortified to slow down any German invasion of the country. Several defensive structures were built. Additional
Air Ministry sidings were laid in the town in 1943. A
Cold War-era bunker was built underground near the Guild Hall.
Railways The railway arrived in Dereham in 1847, when a
single track line to opened. A second line was opened, in 1848, to . A line from Dereham to
Fakenham was opened in 1849; this line being extended to the coastal town of
Wells-next-the-Sea by 1857. The town's railways became part of the
Great Eastern Railway in 1862. Dereham had its own railway depot and a large complex of sidings, serving local industry. The line between Dereham and Wymondham was
doubled, in 1882, to allow for the increasing levels of traffic. Passenger services between Dereham and Wells were withdrawn in 1964 and the track between Fakenham and Wells was lifted soon after. The line from Dereham to Wymondham was returned to single track in 1965, with a
passing loop at . The line to King's Lynn was closed in 1968 and the last passenger train on the Dereham-to-Wymondham line ran in 1969, although the railway remained open for
freight until 1989. Dereham labels itself "The Heart of Norfolk" owing to its central location in the county, the
Tesco car park being cited as the exact centre. In the spring of 1978, the "Heart" was given the seven-mile £5m part-dual-carriageway
A47 bypass. A section of this road, between
Scarning and
Wendling, was built along the former railway line towards
Swaffham and King's Lynn. This section of railway had been used as a location for the filming of ''
Dad's Army'', where Captain Mainwaring is left dangling from a railway bridge after a flight on a
barrage balloon. Dereham railway station was also a filming location for the opening scene of the
BBC's 2018 series
Bodyguard. ==Transport==