HUNSTANTON

Hunstanton Hall, Norfolk. Photographer John Fielding

The Hunstanton Estate - A 900+ Year Legacy

Since Ralph fitz Herluin—the forebear of the Hunstanton estate—there have been approximately thirty-five heirs and thirty-two generations of descendants to the present day. The surname “le Strange,” spelt with a lowercase “l,” entered the family through Ralph’s son-in-law, Roland le Strange, who married Matilda le Brun, daughter of Ralph and his wife Helewisa de Plaiz (herself the daughter of Hugh).

In the early 12th century, second names were only just coming into use and were often descriptive rather than hereditary. Matilda’s byname “le Brun” likely referred to brown hair or eyes. Helewisa’s name “de Plaiz” appears to have been adopted more consistently by some of her descendants in later generations.

Architecturally, the present Hunstanton Hall is said to contain 14th-century cores. Yet an important consideration is that Ralph fitz Herluin was also styled “Ralph of Hunstanton.” Such a designation strongly implies residence and lordship there. It would be unlikely for him to bear the place-name without maintaining a manor house on the site. The Hall stands on the flattest ground within the estate, close to a reliable spring about a mile away—ideal terrain for a moated medieval manor, whether timber-built or in early stone.

When Ralph’s fifth great-grandson, Hamon le Strange (1289–1317), undertook building works around 1310, this likely contributed to the 14th-century fabric identified today. It is entirely plausible that earlier foundations—perhaps dating back to Ralph’s time—were incorporated or repurposed in successive rebuildings.

Ralph fitz Herluin, meaning Ralph “son of Herluin,” remains partly enigmatic, as little is known of his father. However, Ralph is clearly recorded in the Domesday Book as holding two estates at Hunstanton, one of considerable value. He is also styled “Ralph de Hunstanton” in a Castle Acre charter, reinforcing the likelihood that he resided in a manor house on or near the present site of Hunstanton Hall.

Following the deaths without issue of Ralph’s sons, Reginald and Simon, the estate passed to his daughter Matilda and her husband, Roland le Strange. Their eldest son, John le Strange (I), inherited the estate. Alongside his brothers—Hamon, Guy, and Ralph—he later established the family’s military presence in Shropshire, some 200 miles to the west, guarding key frontier positions along the Welsh Marches while the agricultural life of Hunstanton continued.

Some accounts attribute the construction of the current Hall to 1310, yet without acknowledging the earlier lineage. It is more likely that an earlier manor—whether timber or stone—existed from Ralph’s time in 1086, its foundations gradually evolving into the structure seen today.

The estate itself remains in the possession of the le Strange family. However, the ancestral home was sold in 1949 by Bernard le Strange, the 32nd heir, in order to preserve the wider estate from the burden of heavy post-war taxation and death duties introduced under 20th-century fiscal reforms.