Saxlingham is a village that is located civil parish

Civil parish

In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

 of Field Dalling

Field Dalling

Field Dalling is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, situated about west of Holt and about miles from the coast.The parish also includes the village of Saxlingham, which is east of the village of Field Dalling...

 in the English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 county of Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

.
The village is 13.1 miles west of Cromer

Cromer

Cromer is a coastal town and civil parish in north Norfolk, England. The local government authority is North Norfolk District Council, whose headquarters is in Holt Road in the town. The town is situated 23 miles north of the county town, Norwich, and is 4 miles east of Sheringham...

, 26 miles north-west of Norwich

Norwich

Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...

 and 126 miles north-east of London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. The village lies 3.6 miles west of the nearby town of Holt

Holt, Norfolk

Holt is a market town and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The town is north of the city of Norwich, west of Cromer and east of King's Lynn. The town is on the route of the A148 King's Lynn to Cromer road. The nearest railway station is in the town of Sheringham where access to the...

.The nearest railway station is at Sheringham

Sheringham railway station

Sheringham railway station is a timber halt in the town of Sheringham in the English county of Norfolk. The station is the terminus of the Bittern Line, operated by National Express East Anglia, and is 49 km north of...

 for the Bittern Line

Bittern Line

The Bittern Line is a railway line from Norwich to Cromer then Sheringham in Norfolk, England. It is one of the most scenic in the East of England traversing the Norfolk Broads on its route to the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the North Norfolk Coast. The line is part of the Network Rail...

 which runs between Sheringham, Cromer and Norwich. The nearest airport is Norwich International Airport

Norwich International Airport

Norwich International Airport , also known as Norwich Airport, is an airport in the City of Norwich within Norfolk, England north of the city centre and on the edge of the city's suburbs....

.

History

Saxlingham is mentioned in the Domesday Book

Domesday Book

Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...

 of 1086 where it is listed under the names ‘Saxelinghham' and 'Saxelingaham'. The main tenant of the manor was Bishop William Peter de Valognes.

The Parish Church of Saint Margaret

The Parish Church of Saint Margaret

Margaret the Virgin

Margaret the Virgin, also known as Margaret of Antioch , virgin and martyr, is celebrated as a saint by the Roman Catholic and Anglican Churches on July 20; and on July 17 in the Orthodox Church. Her historical existence has been questioned; she was declared apocryphal by Pope Gelasius I in 494,...

 was constructed mainly in the 15th Century. The Church was extensively restored by a benefactor, Sir Alfred Jodrell, in 1896 giving it the appearance of far more recent construction. Inside is a font which dates from the 15th century and an example of an ironbound chest dating from the same period. In a niche

Niche (architecture)

A niche in classical architecture is an exedra or an apse that has been reduced in size, retaining the half-dome heading usual for an apse. Nero's Domus Aurea was the first semi-private dwelling that possessed rooms that were given richly varied floor plans, shaped with niches and exedras;...

 is an alabaster

Alabaster

Alabaster is a name applied to varieties of two distinct minerals, when used as a material: gypsum and calcite . The former is the alabaster of the present day; generally, the latter is the alabaster of the ancients...

 figure of an Elizabethan lady kneeling on a tasselled cushion. She was the daughter of Sir Christopher Heydon

Christopher Heydon

Sir Christopher Heydon was an English soldier, Member of Parliament, and writer on astrology.-Background:Born in Surrey, Heydon was the eldest son of Sir William Heydon of Baconsthorpe, Norfolk, and his wife Anne, daughter of Sir William Woodhouse of Hickling, Norfolk...

. To the east of the church is the former ruin of Heydon Hall, the home of Sir John Heydon before he decamped to Baconsthorpe Castle

Baconsthorpe Castle

Baconsthorpe Castle is a fortified manor house, now a ruin, to the north of the village of Baconsthorpe, Norfolk, England. Norfolk, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building, and is a Scheduled Ancient Monument....

. It was recently restored and renamed, and is now a private residence.