View allAll Photos Tagged hidef

Gun Hill is the name of the piece of land middle right. Burnham Harbour is the channel of water leading up to Burnham Overy Staithe - north Norfolk aerial

Heveningham Country Fair aerial image - yesterday in Suffolk. A fabulous event. They kindly let you land there in exchange for a voluntary charity contribution #HeveninghamHall #aerial #image #Suffolk #AerialPhotography

Aerial view of Heveningham Hall

Aerial view of Cromer pier in north Norfolk - UK aerial image

Aerial view of a misty North Norfolk coastline - UK aerial image

aerial Cambridge University aerial image - St John's College, Magdalene College, Kitchen Bridge, Bridge of Sighs, Magdalene Bridge - aerial image

Finger tip numbing

As featured on NorwichMaid www.norwichmaid.com

Aerial view of the Clifton Suspension bridge above the Avon Gorge in Bristol - England aerial image

aerial view of the National Trust property: Bodiam Castle in East Sussex UK aerial image

Aerial view taken of Kirby Muxloe Castle, Leicestershire — one of the most striking examples of a late medieval fortified manor house. Built of deep red brick and surrounded by a wide moat, the castle was begun in 1480 by Sir William Hastings, a close ally of Edward IV. Construction was abruptly halted when Hastings was executed by Richard III in 1483, leaving the castle unfinished.

 

The surviving gatehouse and corner tower hint at the grandeur Hastings intended — a blend of defence and display at a time when castles were giving way to comfortable Tudor residences. The site later fell into decay, though its brickwork remains remarkably well preserved.

 

Today the ruins are cared for by English Heritage and open to the public, offering a fascinating glimpse into the transition between medieval fortress and Tudor country house.

Lancaster Castle, Lancashire – aerial view

 

Lancaster Castle occupies a commanding position above the River Lune and has been a centre of power, justice and confinement for nearly a thousand years. The site was already fortified in Roman times when a fort guarded the river crossing on the road north. After the Norman Conquest, a stone castle was established here in the late 11th century, traditionally associated with Roger of Poitou, one of William the Conqueror’s supporters.

 

Much of what is visible today dates from the 12th and 13th centuries, when the castle was rebuilt in stone as a major royal stronghold in the north-west of England. The massive curtain walls, corner towers and gatehouses reflect its defensive role during periods of unrest, including the Anglo-Scottish conflicts. The keep, known as the Adrian’s Tower, incorporates some of the earliest surviving masonry on the site.

 

From the late Middle Ages onwards, Lancaster Castle became increasingly associated with law and punishment rather than warfare. In 1352, it became the seat of the Duchy of Lancaster courts, a role that shaped its future. The castle is most notorious for the Lancashire Witch Trials of 1612 and 1634, when accused witches were imprisoned and tried here. In 1612 alone, ten people were executed following trials held at the castle.

 

During the 18th and 19th centuries, the castle was extensively remodelled as a working prison. Architect Thomas Harrison carried out major alterations from the 1780s, adding new prison blocks and courtrooms in a severe classical style that still dominates the inner wards. Executions continued at Lancaster until 1865, after which the castle remained an active prison well into the 20th century.

 

The prison finally closed in 2011, ending more than 800 years of continuous judicial use. Today, Lancaster Castle is a scheduled monument and Grade I listed site, combining medieval fortifications with later Georgian and Victorian prison architecture. Seen from above, the tight enclosure of towers, courts and cell blocks makes clear why this place was both a fortress and a formidable instrument of authority for centuries.

 

Lancaster Castle is owned by the Duchy of Lancaster, a private estate held in trust for the reigning monarch. That ownership goes back to the medieval period and has never changed. Today, the Duchy provides income to King Charles III in his role as Duke of Lancaster, but it is legally distinct from the Crown Estate.

 

Since 2014, the day-to-day management of the castle as a historic site has been carried out by Lancaster Castle Ltd, a company created specifically to operate the site. This followed the closure of the prison in 2011 and a subsequent agreement with the Duchy to bring the castle into wider public use.

 

Lancaster Castle Ltd operates the castle as a visitor attraction: tours, exhibitions, events and venue hire.

 

HM Courts & Tribunals Service continues to use parts of the castle for legal purposes. The Crown Court and Magistrates’ Court are still active, meaning the castle remains a working judicial building as well as a historic monument.

 

The Duchy of Lancaster retains overall ownership and strategic control through lease and governance arrangements.

Aerial view of Tenby & castle remains on the Pembrokeshire coast in Wales UU aerial image

aerial view of Beachy Head lighthouse in East Sussex - UK aerial image

Felixstowe aerial image - the CSCL Atlantic Ocean - Suffolk UK aerial image

Crowland Abbey, Lincolnshire — founded in the 8th century on land associated with St Guthlac, a hermit who settled in the Fens around 700 AD. The monastery grew into one of England’s great Benedictine houses, gaining wealth and influence through the Middle Ages. Rebuilt in grand style after fires and Viking raids, the abbey was a centre of pilgrimage, scholarship, and agricultural innovation. Following its dissolution in 1539 under Henry VIII, much of the complex fell into ruin, but the magnificent nave and west front survived and now form the parish church of St Mary and St Bartholomew.

 

Visible here are the soaring Perpendicular windows, the remnants of the south aisle, and the surrounding graveyard — reminders of nearly 1,300 years of continuous Christian worship on the site. The abbey’s stones bear traces of its turbulent history, from medieval prosperity to Reformation upheaval.

Aerial view of the Bacton Gas Terminal and the sweeping north Norfolk coastline, photographed on a bright summer day. The image looks south over the shoreline towards Mundesley, with the cliffs of Trimingham and Cromer fading into the distance. The broad band of golden sand along this stretch is one of the most dynamic and rapidly changing coastal landscapes in eastern England.

 

The Bacton Gas Terminal complex dominates the centre of the frame. Development here began in the late 1960s, with major expansions through the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s as successive North Sea fields came online. At its largest, the site consisted of several adjacent terminals operated by different companies, including Shell, Perenco, ENI, Britannia / ConocoPhillips, and National Grid. Gas arrives here via subsea pipelines from the southern North Sea, including the Leman, Indefatigable, Sean, Vulcan, Clipper, and Shearwater systems, and historically also via the BBL interconnector from the Netherlands.

 

Bacton’s importance within the UK’s energy infrastructure cannot be overstated. The site connects directly into the National Transmission System, and at peak flow has been capable of supplying around one-third of the UK’s gas demand, depending on market conditions and the decline of older offshore fields. Facilities on site include reception plants, slug catchers, drying and metering systems, high-capacity compression, blending modules, and large safety and emergency flare stacks. Over the decades it has been a critical entry point for both domestic production and imported continental gas.

 

In front of the terminal lies one of Norfolk’s most vulnerable coastlines. Erosion rates here have long been among the highest in the county, with the historic dune and cliff systems retreating under the combined pressures of North Sea storms, rising sea levels and changing sediment patterns. In 2019, a major £22 million sandscaping project was completed along the Bacton–Walcott frontage, inspired by Dutch “Building with Nature” methods. Around 1.8 million cubic metres of sand were deposited to create a wide, gently sloping beach designed to absorb wave energy and delay erosion. The broad sandy margin visible in this photograph is part of that engineered buffer, which continues to reshape with tides and storms.

 

Just inland sits a patchwork of north-east Norfolk farmland, with classic arable rotations of barley, wheat and sugar beet. The layout of the fields still reflects older parish boundaries and the pattern of small estate farms that once dominated the area. To the south, the clifftop settlement of Mundesley is recognisable with its spread of houses, holiday parks and the distinctive planned grid of modern caravan sites that cluster near the shoreline. The parish churches of Mundesley and Paston sit among the rooftops and trees.

 

Offshore on the horizon, faint rows of wind turbines mark the outer edge of the Sheringham Shoal and Dudgeon offshore wind farms, part of the increasingly complex energy landscape that surrounds this part of the coast.

 

A coastline where national energy infrastructure, vulnerable geology, coastal-engineering experiments, farming, and holiday villages all sit tightly together between the North Sea and the Norfolk countryside.

Aerial view of Malcesine on Lake Garda in Italy

Aerial view of St Margarets Church in Felbrigg - North Norfolk. Site of a Norfolk lost village. Norfolk UK aerial image

aerial view of the river Great Ouse running alongside Downham Market in Norfolk - UK aerial image

Aerial image above Holkham Bay looking towards Wells next the Sea

Photographed in full-frame detail using a Nikon D850, this is a high-resolution aerial image

aerial view of Norwich Cathedral after a fall of snow - Norfolk UK. (The shot was taken with a DJI Mini 2 drone. This is sub 250 gram.)

One of a series taken on a sunny April day in 2016. Great Yarmouth in Norfolk - aerial image

Lancaster Castle, Lancashire – aerial view

 

Lancaster Castle occupies a commanding position above the River Lune and has been a centre of power, justice and confinement for nearly a thousand years. The site was already fortified in Roman times when a fort guarded the river crossing on the road north. After the Norman Conquest, a stone castle was established here in the late 11th century, traditionally associated with Roger of Poitou, one of William the Conqueror’s supporters.

 

Much of what is visible today dates from the 12th and 13th centuries, when the castle was rebuilt in stone as a major royal stronghold in the north-west of England. The massive curtain walls, corner towers and gatehouses reflect its defensive role during periods of unrest, including the Anglo-Scottish conflicts. The keep, known as the Adrian’s Tower, incorporates some of the earliest surviving masonry on the site.

 

From the late Middle Ages onwards, Lancaster Castle became increasingly associated with law and punishment rather than warfare. In 1352, it became the seat of the Duchy of Lancaster courts, a role that shaped its future. The castle is most notorious for the Lancashire Witch Trials of 1612 and 1634, when accused witches were imprisoned and tried here. In 1612 alone, ten people were executed following trials held at the castle.

 

During the 18th and 19th centuries, the castle was extensively remodelled as a working prison. Architect Thomas Harrison carried out major alterations from the 1780s, adding new prison blocks and courtrooms in a severe classical style that still dominates the inner wards. Executions continued at Lancaster until 1865, after which the castle remained an active prison well into the 20th century.

 

The prison finally closed in 2011, ending more than 800 years of continuous judicial use. Today, Lancaster Castle is a scheduled monument and Grade I listed site, combining medieval fortifications with later Georgian and Victorian prison architecture. Seen from above, the tight enclosure of towers, courts and cell blocks makes clear why this place was both a fortress and a formidable instrument of authority for centuries.

 

Lancaster Castle is owned by the Duchy of Lancaster, a private estate held in trust for the reigning monarch. That ownership goes back to the medieval period and has never changed. Today, the Duchy provides income to King Charles III in his role as Duke of Lancaster, but it is legally distinct from the Crown Estate.

 

Since 2014, the day-to-day management of the castle as a historic site has been carried out by Lancaster Castle Ltd, a company created specifically to operate the site. This followed the closure of the prison in 2011 and a subsequent agreement with the Duchy to bring the castle into wider public use.

 

Lancaster Castle Ltd operates the castle as a visitor attraction: tours, exhibitions, events and venue hire.

 

HM Courts & Tribunals Service continues to use parts of the castle for legal purposes. The Crown Court and Magistrates’ Court are still active, meaning the castle remains a working judicial building as well as a historic monument.

 

The Duchy of Lancaster retains overall ownership and strategic control through lease and governance arrangements.

Took a stop on the side of the bike path and shot this as a slow hand held picture, over-exposing the sunshine coming through the tall trees. The tough contrast added to the abstract feel of the shot…

 

Comments and constructive feedback are always appreciated!

Aerial view of Brancaster Bay in Norfolk

Coast aerial image

A clear aerial view across the historic heart of York, showing centuries of urban growth centred around the unmistakable landmark of York Minster – one of Europe’s finest Gothic cathedrals, whose construction began in 1220 and was completed in 1472. The Minster dominates the medieval street pattern that still survives today: The Shambles, Stonegate, Petergate, Goodramgate, and the snaking line of Coney Street lead towards the river.

 

Running through the city is the River Ouse, crossing under Lendal Bridge and Ouse Bridge, both visible in the lower part of the image. The road layout and bridges reveal York’s historic importance as a Roman crossing point – the city began as Eboracum, a Roman fortress founded around AD 71. Later it became the Viking capital of Jórvík, and many of the current streets still follow the Viking and medieval lines.

 

To the lower right stands Clifford’s Tower, the surviving stone keep of York Castle, originally built by William the Conqueror in 1068. Just beyond the Minster, the Treasurer’s House, St William’s College, and the Deanery gardens are all visible, forming part of the Minster Precinct.

 

Spreading outward is the continuous patchwork of Georgian, Victorian and modern housing. The green spaces to the left include the Museum Gardens and the remains of St Mary’s Abbey, founded in 1088 and ruined during Henry VIII’s Dissolution in the 1530s. In the upper left, the blocky buildings of York St John University and the Bootham School sports grounds can be seen, while towards the upper right, redevelopment areas outline the city’s ongoing growth.

 

York receives over 8 million visitors each year, making it one of the UK’s most visited historic cities. From above, the layered history is striking: Roman fortress, Viking stronghold, medieval powerhouse, Victorian railway centre and today a major heritage and tourism city – all still clearly legible in its layout when seen from the air.

Aerial view of Orford Castle operated by English Heritage in Suffolk UK - aerial image

Aerial view of the North Norfolk coast taken off Sidestrand, looking east toward Mundesley. This stretch of coastline is one of the most dynamic in Britain, where the soft glacial cliffs are constantly shaped by sea and weather. The fertile fields of north Norfolk roll right to the cliff edge, contrasting with the deep blues of the North Sea beyond.

 

Erosion here can exceed two metres per year, revealing layers of ancient till and sand deposited during the last Ice Age. Villages such as Sidestrand and Trimingham have seen whole roads, farms, and gardens claimed by the sea over the past century. Today, careful monitoring, managed retreat, and local defences aim to balance the needs of the community with the forces of nature.

Ribblehead viaduct aerial view. Over 100 men lost their lives during its construction. North Yorkshire aerial image

aerial view of the priory at Castle Acre in Norfolk - UK aerial image

Aerial view of the River Deben winding through Woodbridge and Melton in Suffolk, captured on a bright winter’s day. The sun reflects off the water and exposed mudflats at low tide, tracing the river’s sinuous path towards the sea. In the foreground are the riverside boatyards, marinas, and the East Suffolk railway line, while beyond lie fields and marshes stretching into the distance. The light breaks dramatically through the clouds, illuminating the landscape with a silvery glow typical of the Deben in winter.

Aerial view of Fort Mahon - Ambleteuse in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France.

This aerial view shows Sotterley Hall, a Grade I listed country house set within historic parkland in north-east Suffolk, a few miles inland from the coast at Southwold and Beccles. The present house is an elegant early-18th-century brick mansion, remodelled in the Palladian style c.1740, though parts of the estate go back much further.

 

The Hall has been associated with the Barne family since the 18th century, when Miles Barne (1718–1780), a wealthy London merchant and MP, purchased Sotterley in 1744. The family greatly enlarged and remodelled the house and laid out the surrounding parkland in the mid-18th century, creating the designed landscape we see today. The park includes sweeping lawns, lakes, and avenues of trees, and is a fine example of the English landscape style.

 

The wider Sotterley Park is registered as a Grade II listed historic landscape on the Register of Parks and Gardens. It retains medieval origins, with evidence of a former deer park, as well as later additions by the Barnes. Within its bounds are several listed buildings, ancient woodland, and a number of fine veteran oaks and sweet chestnuts, some hundreds of years old.

 

The estate also contains the parish church of St Margaret’s, a beautiful medieval church with a distinctive round tower, standing within the park close to the Hall – an unusual and evocative survival of the medieval manorial landscape.

 

Today, Sotterley remains a private estate, but its parkland and architecture continue to illustrate the long history of Suffolk’s landed families and the layered development of English country house landscapes from medieval to Georgian times.

Norfolk aerial image - the River Yare running into the River Waveney and Breydon Water ... with Great Yarmouth on the horizon. UK aerial imagery

Flying over Hove, looking towards the river Adur and Shoreham in West Sussex - UK aerial image

Aerial view of Framlingham in Suffolk - aerial photograph

Cromer aerial image - Norfolk coast #Cromer #aerial #image #Norfolk #AerialPhotography

Aerial view

Aerial image - Overstrand to Cromer coastline, Norfolk

An aerial view looking west along one of Norfolk’s most dramatic stretches of coast — from Overstrand to Cromer. The cliffs here form part of the famous Cromer Ridge, a glacial feature left behind by the last Ice Age. These soft cliffs are made up of sands, gravels and clays deposited by retreating glaciers around 15,000 years ago, and they continue to erode today, retreating by roughly a metre each year in places.

 

Below the cliffs, wide sandy beaches stretch along the shore, broken by timber groynes built to slow the relentless process of longshore drift. The green expanse near the cliffs is the Royal Cromer Golf Club, whose fairways run perilously close to the cliff edge. Further along, the Victorian resort town of Cromer comes into view, its pier jutting proudly into the North Sea.

 

Cromer grew rapidly in the 19th century with the arrival of the railway, attracting visitors for its clean air, sea bathing and grand hotels. Overstrand, just to the east, became known as “The Village of Millionaires” thanks to its fine houses designed by architect Sir Edwin Lutyens. Both places now stand at the frontline of coastal change — a beautiful yet fragile landscape shaped by ice, sea and time.

Aerial view of Ely Cathedral in Cambs - UK aerial image

Scroby Sands aerial view -

 

Close-up of the jack-up barge WaveWalker 1 at Scroby Sands, Norfolk, where crews are dismantling the fire-damaged turbine.

 

WaveWalker 1 is a unique “walking” jack-up platform, jointly owned and operated by WaveWalker BV (a partnership between Fugro and Van Oord). Unlike conventional four-legged rigs, it has eight legs and can move, or “walk,” across the seabed while elevated — an innovation that makes it ideal for the shifting sands, tidal shallows, and intertidal zones off the Norfolk coast.

 

Key facts:

 

Built for nearshore, intertidal and shallow-water projects where floating vessels struggle.

 

Hull size: approx. 32 m × 32 m, with leg length up to 40 m.

 

Payload capacity up to 850 tonnes.

 

Equipped with heavy cranes for turbine and foundation work.

 

Can operate in standard four-leg jack-up mode or in full walking mode, moving around 40 m per hour depending on seabed conditions.

 

WaveWalker 1 has been deployed across Europe for offshore wind construction, cable installation, UXO clearance, and marine civil engineering. Its ability to remain stable while repositioning on shifting seabeds makes it particularly suited to the dynamic environment of Scroby Sands — a sandbank infamous for shipwrecks before it became the site of one of the UK’s first offshore wind farms.

 

Scroby Sands - the long-shifting sandbank off the Norfolk coast, with the offshore wind farm now established on it. Over centuries these sands have caused many wrecks and claimed ships — SS Hopelyn (1922), SS Eastward (1918), Sea Queen (1870) and more — making it a notorious hazard in coastal navigation.

 

The Scroby Sands Wind Farm, commissioned in March 2004, was built by Powergen Renewables Offshore (then a division of E.ON UK). Today it is wholly owned and operated by RWE Renewables UK Limited.

 

Some technical & operational facts:

 

The farm has a nameplate capacity of 60 MW, sufficient to power tens of thousands of homes.

 

It consists of 30 wind turbines, each rated at 2 MW.

 

The turbines (rotors, nacelles etc.) were designed and manufactured by Vestas, a Danish company.

 

The foundations are hollow steel piles (about 4 m in diameter), driven up to 30 m into the seabed, to ensure stability on the shifting sands.

 

Over time, the sandbank has moved, causing parts of the seabed to rise and isolate some turbines from direct vessel access. RWE and partners have addressed this by developing a world-first amphibious crew transfer vessel (CRC Walrus) that can drive on sand and reach stranded turbines.

 

In August 2023 one turbine at Scroby Sands caught fire. Personnel were safely evacuated, and the incident is subject to investigation.

Aerial view of Norwich covered in fresh snow.

 

River

 

River Wensum

The tight bend of the river passing beneath Fye Bridge.

 

Bridge

 

Fye Bridge

Medieval river crossing carrying Magdalen Street over the Wensum.

 

Main streets and areas

 

Fishergate

Running along the north bank of the river.

 

Cowgate

Following the south bank of the Wensum.

 

Magdalen Street

Crossing the river via Fye Bridge and heading north.

 

Surrounding character and buildings

 

Historic riverside housing tightly packed along both banks

 

Former industrial and warehouse plots, many now converted to flats

 

Small green riverside margins and mature trees along the Wensum bend

 

Dense medieval street pattern typical of this quarter of Norwich

Aerial view of Framlingham Castle - built in the 12th century and home to the Dukes of Norfolk for over 400 years. #FramlinghamCastle #aerial #image #Suffolk #aerialphotography

Southwold, Suffolk, seen from the air looking along the Denes and the long sweep of beach. The promenade runs behind a line of painted beach huts with the town’s red roofs spread inland beyond the seafront.

 

This is a small North Sea town and civil parish close to the mouth of the River Blyth. Offshore, the Battle of Solebay was fought on 6 June 1672 during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. Southwold Lighthouse was built by Trinity House in 1887 and the light began operating in 1890. The parish church of St Edmund, King and Martyr is one of Suffolk’s standout Perpendicular churches, built mainly in the 15th century over roughly the 1430s to the 1490s. Adnams was founded in 1872 and brewing has taken place on its Southwold site for centuries.

 

Population: 950 (2021 Census).

Aerial photograph of the British Sugar factory, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk — one of only four remaining sugar beet processing plants still operating in the UK. Opened in the late 1920s, it has grown into a vast, highly efficient industrial complex, handling over two million tonnes of beet every year during the autumn and winter campaign. The factory produces around a quarter of a million tonnes of refined sugar annually, together with valuable by-products including animal feed, lime for agriculture, and bioethanol.

 

The six tall silos store tens of thousands of tonnes of finished sugar, while the circular tanks and clarifiers handle beet juice and wastewater treatment. The surrounding lagoons and settling ponds are part of the site’s environmental management system. Steam billows from the main chimney as part of the energy recovery process — much of the plant’s heat is recycled to improve efficiency.

 

British Sugar’s Bury St Edmunds site plays a vital role in East Anglia’s long-standing beet industry, supporting hundreds of local farmers and marking nearly a century of continuous production.

Blythburgh Bridge over the River Blythe in Suffolk - UK aerial image

1 2 4 6 7 ••• 79 80