East Anglia

East Anglia is a region of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is one of three constituent parts of the East of England and comprises much of the area also applied to the ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles. The region's name is derived from the Angles – a tribe that originated in Angeln, northern Germany. The region today comprises four areas of local government: the administrative counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire and the unitary authority area of the city of Peterborough.

Southill is part of the ancient hundred of Wixamtree. In 1805, the village was "SOUTH HILL, or SOUTHILL, Bedfordshire, 2 miles from Shefford. On a monument in the church is an inscription to the memory of the Hon. John Byng, Vice Admiral of the Blue, who fell a martyr to political persecution, March 14, 1757. Near Southill is Wardon, or De Sartes abbey, founded by Walter Espec, in 1135, for Cistercian monks. The emphasis of Cistercian life is on manual labour and self-sufficiency, and many abbeys have traditionally supported themselves through activities such as agriculture and brewing ale.

In following the Carver family of East Anglia, we are introduced to interesting characters in the clergy, the military and even the nobility during the period of Reformation in English history. One man who links this period to Australia is Benjamin Carver and his fall from grace when tried for the highway robbery of Thomas Knowles D.D. an established Church of England minister. In his defense, a character witness, William Rouse (Rose) advised that Benjamin Carver's father John and brother William were both ministers of religion, and as it happens that they were ministers of a nonconforming Independent Church, which was at odds with the mainstream Church of England, particularly after the Birmingham riots of 1791. Benjamin arrived in Australia in 1792 and appeared to have receive favourable treatment by the authorities.

Nonconformity in Norfolk

Extract from Nonconformity in Norfolk

"In 1194 King Richard I granted a charter which allowed for all assemblies and courts in the City of Norwich to be led by men of the citizen's own choosing. Over the years that followed Norwich developed the widest civic power base of any city in England, London included.

Being a commercial centre Norwich contained a large number of merchants and craftsmen which meant a high density of literate and numerate citizens. Such men, accustomed to taking responsibility for their own civic and business affairs, are also liable to want to take responsibility for all other areas of their lives, including their religion. So we can see seeds being sown which would, over the years, produce a radical, independent-spirited population. It is interesting to notice that whilst independence in civic matters often results in religious nonconformity, there is also a reciprocal effect as nonconformity in turn can lead to a politically radical spirit.

Perhaps the biggest single contribution to the spread of democracy in England has been its Nonconformist tradition."

17th and 18th Century Burney Collection Newspapers...

Available through LINC Libraries in Tasmania

• • Daily Courant

  • Daily Gazetteer

  • Daily Post

  • Evening Post

  • General Advertiser

  • Lloyd's Evening Post and British Chronicle

  • London Chronicle

  • London Evening Post

  • London Gazette

  • Morning Chronicle and London Advertiser

  • St. James' Chronicle or, British Evening Post

  • Whitehall Evening Post, or London Intelligencer

  • And hundreds of others