YARMOUTH (GREAT), a parish and sea-port and borough and market-town, having separate jurisdiction, locally in the eastern division of the hundred of Flegg, county of NORFOLK, 23 miles (E. by S.) from Norwich, and 123 (N. E.) from London, containing, according to the last census, 18,040 inhabitants. This place, which, from its extensive and prosperous trade and many other advantages and privileges, may be considered the most flourishing port on this part of the coast, derives its name from its situation at the mouth of the river Yare, which here falls into the ocean. It occupies ground originally covered by the sea, which, on its receding, left a bank of sand, whereon a few fishermen settled, the first of whom, denominated Fuller, imparted name to the higher portion, still called Fuller's hill. As the bank increased in extent and density, the population augmented; but the channel of the northern branch of the Yare, on which the first settlers fixed their habitations, becoming choked up with.., sand, they, in 1040, removed to the southern branch." The earliest authentic record of Yarmouth is in Domesday-book, in which it is described as " the king's demesne, and having seventy burgesses." Its fishery attracting, at an early period, many residents, a charter was granted, at the request of the inhabitants, by Henry III., allowing them to enclose the burgh, on the land side, with a wall and moat; the former was two thousand two hundred and forty yards in length, and had sixteen, towers and ten gates. A castle, having four watch towers, and upon which a fire beacon was placed hi 1588, was also built about this time in the centre of the town: in the last-named year a mound, called South Mount, was thrown up and crowned with heavy ordnance, and the place was then considered impregnable. The castle having been demolished in 1621, and the changes introduced into the system of warfare rendering further defences necessary, strong parapets were constructed in front of the town, and cannon planted on them, facing the sea: the circuit of the fortifications thus completed was nearly two miles and a half. The only military operation in which the inhabitants have been ever actually engaged was their gallantly repulsing Kett, when, in his rebellion, he attempted, at the head of twenty thousand men, to take the town by assault. But though Yarmouth has been only slightly visited by the scourge of warfare, it has suffered severely from the plague, to which, in 1348, upwards of seven thousand persons fell victims; in 1579, upwards of two thousand; and more than two thousand five hundred in 1664. The town occupies an extent of one hundred and fifty-three acres, on the western bank of a peninsula formed by the river Yare and the sea, and is connected with South Town, or Little Yarmouth, which is on the opposite bank, by a drawbridge. It is divided into eight wards, and is of a quadrangular form, about a mile long, and half a mile broad: it consists of four good streets parallel with each other, a handsome new street leading to the quay, on which is a noble range of buildings, and a. great number of narrow rows intersecting the principal streets at right angles: it is lighted with gas, and well supplied with fresh water, and the streets are kept remarkably clean. The theatre, a neat and commodious edifice, erected in 1778, near the market-place, is open during the summer months; and races take place, annually in August, on the Denes, a fine down south of the town. The bathing-houses on the beach, near the jetty, possess every accommodation for visitors; and adjoining is a public room, built in 1788, where balls and concerts occasionally take place. There are very pleasant walks on the quay and beach; and the extensive sea view, enlivened by the number of vessels in the roads, is a source of considerable gratification to the frequenters of this sea-port, which is resorted to as a wateringplace. The barracks on the South Denes, near the beach, form a magnificent quadrangular range of buildings, designed by Mr. Pilkington, and erected at a cost of £120,000; the building was used as a naval hospital during the war. The armoury in South Town will contain, exclusively of other military and naval stores, ten thousand stand of arms. Between the barracks and the entrance to the harbour, a grand fluted column, one hundred and thirty feet high, and surmounted by a statue of Britannia, has been erected to the memory of Admiral Lord Nelson, and, as a land-mark, well supplies to seamen the loss of Gorleston steeple, which was blown down in 1813. On the quay is the custom-house, with the usual officers of collector, comptroller, surveyor, landing waiters, &c., attached, and a coast waiter at Lowestoft; and within a short distance is a public library, with a good collection of books;. there are also subscription readingrooms adjoining the library. A handsome suspension chain bridge; of eighty-six feet span, has been constructed by Robert Cory, Esq., at the northern part of the quay over the river Bure; and a new road, in communication with this bridge, recently completed under an act of parliament, will materially shorten the distance between this town and Norwich. Yarmouth is not a manufacturing town, though a considerable establishment for winding and throwing silk has been recently formed in connexion with a larger concern at Norwich, and for which buildings have been erected on the site formerly occupied by the barracks, at the north of the town. The premises are very extensive; the machinery is worked by a very powerful steam-engine, and the shaft, or chimney, which rises to a height of one hundred and twenty-five feet, is a conspicuous object at a considerable distance both at sea and land. There are extensive yards for ship-building, with corresponding rope-walks, and several large breweries. A considerable business is carried on coastwise in malt, corn, flour, coal, timber, and other articles. A direct trade prevails with the Baltic, the Mediterranean, Portugal, and other parts of the continent; and a regular communication by steam-vessels is kept up internally with Norwich, and coastwise with London and the North of England. But the principal source of trade by which this town is supported is the herring fishery, which, is usually productive to a remarkable extent. The fish, when cured, or dried, for both of which processes there are very extensive establishments, are not only sent to all parts of the kingdom, but exported in considerable quantities to other parts of the world, particularly the West Indies, where they are much used as food for the negroes. Many vessels from other parts of the coast fish here, and some, at a defined distance from other countries, especially France and the Netherlands. The situation of Yarmouth, in a commercial point of view, affords unusual advantages. The Yare is here navigable for vessels of two hundred and fifty tons burden; and to Norwich, a distance of thirty-two miles, for smaller vessels, without the intervention of locks. The Waveney, which falls into the Yare, is navigable by Beccles to Bungay, a distance of twenty miles; and the Bure, which also joins the Ware, by Horstead to Aylsham, thirty miles, and another branch to North Walsham, twenty-five miles hence, thus opening an extensive and valuable channel of inland communication. Many attempts have been unsuccessfully made to form a safe harbour, at the enormous expense of above £240,000; but the present one, which is the seventh that has been constructed, was projected and executed, at an expense of about £4200 only, by Joas Johnson, a native of Holland, and affords secure anchorage in all weathers; it was defended by two batteries, one on the beach to the north, and the other on Gorleston hill. At the entrance of the Yare are two piers; that oil the south is one thousand two hundred and thirty feet long, and forms an agreeable promenade; and that on the north is four hundred feet in length, erected on wooden piles, and secured by iron railing. The quay, which in length and beauty of construction ranks the first in England, is a very great ornament to the town, and its centre is; formed into a beautiful walk, planted on each side with trees. A duty of fifteen-pence per chaldron, producing about £8000. per annum, is levied on all coal brought to the port, and applied, under the direction of twelve commissioner's, to keeping the jetties and piers in repair, and deepening and clearing the river; the commissioners are chosen, three each, by the corporations of Yarmouth and Norwich, and by the magistrates of Norfolk and Suffolk. The number of vessels belonging to this port is upwards of five hundred, exclusively of small craft. The navigation of the coast is very dangerous; but the Roads, in which are two floating lighthouses, are frequently resorted to by the North Sea fleet, and merchant vessels are constantly repairing to them for shelter. The market is on Wednesday and Saturday; and fairs are held on the Friday and Saturday in Easter week, and on the Monday and Tuesday at Shrovetide. Prior to the reign of King John, the town was governed by a provost appointed by the Crown; but a charter of incorporation granted by that monarch, in the ninth year of his reign, empowered the burgesses to choose their own magistrates, called bailiffs, of whom four were elected, who were authorised to hold a court of hustings, now called the Burgh court. These privileges were extended by charters granted by succeeding sovereigns, of which that of Edward II., granted ironage to the burgesses, and that they should not be put on any assizes, juries, or inquisitions, out of the borough. Richard II. united Kirtley-road to Yarmouth; Henry VII. granted power to elect justices of the peace; Elizabeth granted a charter to hold an admiralty court weekly, with power to try all maritime causes, except piracy; James I. confirmed the foregoing, adding the power to try pirates, and defined the admiralty jurisdiction to be from Winterton Ness, in Norfolk, to Easton Ness, in Suffolk, and seven leagues eastward from all sea-banks and shores; ship-owners are also exempted from paying harbour dues at Dovor, Ramsgate, Rye, and other harbours on the coast. The charter granted by Queen Anne, in 1702, under the authority of which the corporation now acts, altered the title of bailiff to that of mayor. The members of the corporation are, a mayor, high steward, recorder, sub-steward, eighteen aldermen (including the mayor), and thirty-six common council-men, assisted by a town clerk, registrar of the admiralty court, four proctors, who are also attornies of the Burgh court, a water-bailiff, marshal and gaoler, six Serjeants at mace, and pier master. The mayor is chosen, on the 29th of August annually, by the common council-men; and should there not be a sufficient number present, the deficiency is supplied by freemen he is sworn in on the 2yth of September. The aldermen are elected for life, by the members of the body, from the common council; and vacancies in the latter body are filled up from the freemen, the common council nominating two of them, and the aldermen one. The other officers are elected by the corporation in council. The mayor, high steward, recorder, and deputy mayor, and such aldermen as have passed the chair, are justices of the peace. All offences may be determined at the sessions of oyer and terminer, which are held twice a year by the magistrates, who have the power of life and death, Yarmouth not being included in the circuit. In the admiralty court, held every Monday, or Tuesday, at which the mayor presides as judge and admiral, all maritime causes are heard and determined, in the same manner as in the high court of admiralty, an appeal from the court lying only to the delegates; the last admiralty sessions were held in 1823, when two men were convicted of piracy. A borough court, for determining all manner of trespasses and civil contracts arising in the town of which the mayor is judge, is also held every Monday, or Tuesday; and a court of requests, for the recovery of debts under 40s, every Monday, there are thirty-six commissioners,of whom the mayor and aldermen form a part, and vacancies are filled up by the remaining commissioners; the jurisdiction extends throughout the borough and liberties. A court leet and a court of pie powder are also held. The jurisdiction of the corporation, by the charter of the 20th of Charles II., extends to South Town, or Little Yarmouth, in the county, of Suffolk, and, as conservators of the Yare, Waveney, and Bure, for ten miles upon each of those rivers. The inhabitants are not liable to serve on juries for the county, nor to the payment of county rates, as the corporation supports the gaol, and maintains the prisoners; and writs, unless accompanied with a non omittas, can only be executed under the warrant of the mayor, and by one of his officers. The freedom is obtained by birth, servitude of seven years to a freeman, and gift of the corporation; all sons of freemen become free on attaining twenty years of age, but cannot vote until they are twenty-rone, The town hall, near the centre of the quay, is an elegant building of the Tuscan order, with a handsome portico in front; it is also the mansion-house, and under the control of the mayor for the time being. The council-chamber, in which public meetings and assemblies are held, is a splendid room, ornamented with a fine portrait of George I. in his robes; the card-room is spacious, and contains paintings by Butcher, of the quay, the Roads, and the market-place, and a portrait of Sir Robert Walpole, who was high steward. The borough first sent members to parliament in the reign of Edward I.: the elective franchise is vested in the freemen, in number about two thousand; the mayor is the returning officer. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the archdeaconry and diocese of Norwich, and in the patronage of the Dean and Chapter of Norwich. In Domesday-book mention is made of a church dedicated to St. Benedict, probably founded by the barons of the cinque-ports. The present church, situated in the north-east part of the town, was founded by Herbert de Lozinga, Bishop of Norwich, about 1101, and appropriated to the prior and monks of the Holy Trinity at Norwich, who had a cell here he erected only the cross, which constitutes the present nave and transepts; the aisles were added in 1250, and in the following year it was dedicated to St. Nicholas. It is a handsome cruciform structure, in the early, decorated, and later, styles of English architecture, with a central tower and spire, four turrets at the west end surmounted with pinnacles, and with an elegant south porch. Seventeen oratories, each with an image, altar, lights, &c., and supported by a guild, were founded in it: on the tower was formerly a wooden spire, which appeared crooked from whatever side viewed, but it was replaced by the present one in 1S04. The chapel of ease, dedicated to St. George, a handsome edifice, built in 1716, is supported by a duty of one shilling per chaldron on all coal consumed in the parish; two ministers are appointed to serve it by the mayor and corporation. The commissioners for building churches, aided by a subscription raised among some of the inhabitants, have commenced the erection of a new church, or chapel, near the White Iron Gates, on the north side of the road leading to the jetty. There are places of worship for Particular Baptists, the Society of Friends, Independents, Primitive and Wesleyan Methodists, Unitarians, and Roman Catholics. The free grammar school, in the market-place, commonly called the children's hospital school, was founded by the corporation, in 1651, and was part of St. Mary's hospital: it is now a free school for reading, writing, and arithmetic only; thirty boys and twenty girls are clothed, maintained, instructed, and apprenticed, and seventy boys and thirty girls are instructed only. There is also a Lancasterian school on the Chapel Denes, supported by subscription and a school in the market-place, under the superintendence of the minister of the parish and twentyfour directors, supported by subscription and the produce of money at interest. In the Sunday school ninety boys and fifty girls are instructed. The fishermen's hospital, of a quadrangular form, contains twenty apartments for the accommodation of that number of fishermen and their wives, who receive each a weekly stipend, and some coal annually; the wife is obliged to leave on the death of the husband: it is supported by an annual grant from the Crown. Besides the cell belonging to the Holy Trinity at Norwich, and the hospital of St. Mary, here were two lazar-houses, and houses of Black, Grey, and White friars, many fragments of which remain, as well as of the ancient wall of the town. Yarmouth gives the inferior title of earl to the Marquis of Hertford.