East of England

East of England

Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire,
Peterborough, Norfolk and Suffolk

Some of the area in the East of England is also known by its historical name of East Anglia.

Landscape

The East of England is a very flat area, so it is important for agriculture. Much of the low lying areas form part of the fenland. Cambridgeshire flat area is broken only by the low Gog Magog Hills.

The East of England region has two major airports (London Luton and London Stansted) and the port of Harwich.

Important towns and cities

Cambridge is one of the most well-known cities in the world because of the famous university there.

Norwich is the chief city of Norfolk. It has a famous outdoor market, where people from the local rural (farmland) areas come to sell their produce. Unlike many cities, where department stores are very popular, Norwich has a variety of smaller specialist shops (shops that sell one specific thing), including the famous Mustard Shop. It sells mustard ( a thick yellow or brown sauce that tastes spicy and is eaten cold in small amounts, especially with meat ) and even has a museum.

Ipswich, Suffolk's chief town, is at the head of the river Orwell's estuary.

Great Yarmouth in Norfolk is a holiday and a port.

In the west, Newmarket attracts horse dealers to its annual auction.

Industry

Fishing is the region's most important industry. Cod, herring and flatfish are brought into Lowestoft in Suffolk, while at King's Lynn, situated on the relatively shallow bay of the Wash, the boats trawl for shellfish. Cromer is famous for its crabs. The Norfolk village of Orford is known for its smokehouses, where meats and fish are preserved.

Essex has ship building at Tilbury, and an oil refinery near Canvey Island, but most of the country is farmland, with lots of fruit orchards.

Farming

East Anglia is a great agricultural region. Farmers grow cereals, sugarbeet, fruit and vegetables, and they raise turkeys, sheep and cattle. Norfolk is well-known for its turkeys (they used to be marched to London in order to reach the market for Christmas, a journey which took three months) and now boasts the largest turkey farm in Europe.