The Marseille of the North

The Marseille of the North. . Great Yarmouth's wealth came from fish, wine and timber. These riches were quickly reflected in the town's buildings. St Nicholas church, for example, was the largest parish church in England when it was completed in 1119. The town's walls were similarly grand. Building work started in 1276 and took more than a century to finish. By the time they were finished there were 10 gates and 16 towers. Even today they are regarded as some of the best-preserved town walls in England. There's a circular walk around the walls today. It's only a mile long and starts at the town's railway station., King John granted the town a charter in 1208. This meant that in return for paying the king an annual fee the town could hold a market and charge traders. This added even more money to the town's coffers and by 1334 Yarmouth was raising more money in taxes than anywhere in England apart from York, Bristol and Newcastle., Great Yarmouth's fortunes ebbed and flowed over the next 400 years. The harbour silted up and a new port was built. The town suffered badly during the Black Death and there was a severe plague in 1665. But, by the time that Daniel Defoe visited in the 1720s, the town was on the up again. Defoe started his famous book, Robinson Crusoe, with a storm at sea off Great Yarmouth, and in his account of a tour around Britain he describes the town's port as the 'Marseilles of the North'., In the middle of the 18th century a new industry started here. Wealthy people discovered that the seaside was a place for rest and recreation, not hard work. The health benefits of sea air and salt water became fashionable and in 1759 the Bath House opened where guests could take seawater baths and drink tea. From these privileged beginnings, mass tourism was born.