About
Situated in The Forum — Norwich's acclaimed contemporary civic building on Millennium Plain — the Royal Norfolk Regimental Museum tells the story of the Royal Norfolk Regiment and its antecedent formations from the regiment's raising in 1685 through to 1959, when it amalgamated with the Suffolk Regiment to form the 1st East Anglian Regiment, precursor of the Royal Anglian Regiment.
Norfolk has sent its men to war since the late seventeenth century, and the regiment that became the Royal Norfolk Regiment compiled one of the most distinguished records in the British Army. The 9th Regiment of Foot — as the Royal Norfolks were formally designated — fought at Blenheim under Marlborough, served through the American War of Independence, endured the Napoleonic campaigns from Portugal to Waterloo, and saw extensive service across the Victorian empire in India, Bermuda, Gibraltar, and South Africa. The two world wars brought the regiment to the peak of its fame: in the First World War alone over thirty battalions were raised from Norfolk, and in the Second World War the regiment was among those that fought through North Africa, Burma, and the north-west European campaign.
Nine Victoria Crosses were won by members of the Royal Norfolk Regiment — a record that reflects both the regiment's distinguished service and the exceptional courage of the men of Norfolk who carried its colours into battle. The museum honours each recipient with a dedicated display, placing their stories within the wider narrative of the campaigns in which they served.
Located within The Forum, the 2001 landmark building designed by architect Michael Hopkins on the site of the old Norwich library destroyed by fire, the museum shares its home with the BBC, the Norfolk and Norwich Festival, and a range of public and commercial tenants. Free admission, accessible city-centre location, and high-quality displays make it one of the most visited regimental museums in eastern England.
The museum is administered as part of the Norfolk Museums Service, which also operates Norwich Castle Museum and Art Gallery, Strangers' Hall, and several other sites across the county. This relationship ensures professional curatorial standards and allows access to a wider network of conservation, research, and educational resources.
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Plan Your Visit
⏱️ Recommended Visit Duration
📅 Best Times to Visit
Quietest: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Busiest: Saturday, Sunday
💡 Weekday mornings
💡 Visitor Tips
- The museum is located inside The Forum, Norwich's striking glass civic building — enter through the main Forum entrance on Millennium Plain and look for museum signage inside.
- Entry is completely free, making this an easy addition to a full day exploring Norwich's exceptional concentration of museums — Norwich Castle, the Bridewell, and Strangers' Hall are all within a 10-minute walk.
- The Kohima display is one of the most powerful accounts of Second World War infantry combat in any British regimental museum — allow extra time here.
- The nine Victoria Crosses are the centrepiece of the collection; read the individual citations carefully — each one tells a complete story of courage that deserves unhurried attention.
- Norwich train station is just a 10-minute walk away, making the museum easily accessible from London Liverpool Street (2 hours) and Cambridge (1 hour) without needing to drive.
- Family historians researching Norfolk ancestors who served in the regiment should contact the museum in advance — the archive holdings are substantial and research visits can be arranged.
- The Forum's own café on the ground floor is a pleasant spot for coffee before or after your museum visit, overlooking Millennium Plain.
- If visiting on a weekday morning, consider combining with a tour of Norwich Cathedral — the medieval cloisters and the Cathedral itself are among the finest Norman ecclesiastical buildings in England.
Highlights
The Nine Victoria Crosses
Nine Victoria Crosses awarded to members of the Royal Norfolk Regiment form the emotional heart of the museum collection. Displayed with original citations, portraits, and associated personal effects, the VCs span conflicts from the Indian Mutiny through to the Second World War. Each case presents the recipient's story in full — their background as men of Norfolk, the action that earned the award, and their fate.
Together the nine VCs represent an extraordinary tribute to the courage of Norfolk soldiers across more than ninety years of warfare, and they constitute one of the finest VC collections in any English regimental museum.
The Battle of Kohima Display
The Battle of Kohima (April–June 1944) in north-east India is widely regarded as the turning point of the Burma campaign, and the Royal Norfolk Regiment played a central role in the brutal close-quarter fighting that pushed the Japanese besieging forces from the Kohima ridge. The museum's Kohima display commemorates the regiment's part in this pivotal battle through maps, personal accounts, weapons, and photographs.
The famous epitaph of the Kohima War Memorial — 'When you go home, tell them of us and say: for your tomorrow, we gave our today' — is displayed prominently, honouring a battle that saved India from Japanese occupation.
First World War Collections
The Great War transformed Norfolk's regiment into a mass force of over thirty battalions, drawing men from across the county's farms, fishing communities, and market towns. The museum's First World War displays present this transformation through personal objects, letters, diaries, photographs, and equipment.
The Gallipoli and Mesopotamia campaigns — where Norfolk battalions suffered heavily in the heat and dust of the Middle Eastern theatre — receive particular attention alongside the more familiar Western Front story.
A roll of honour records the names of the thousands of Norfolk men who did not return, giving the statistics of attrition their proper human weight.
Regimental Colours and Silver
Faded battle Colours dating from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries hang in the museum's main gallery, their embroidered battle honours recording campaigns across three centuries: Blenheim, Guadaloupe, Badajoz, Ypres, and dozens more. The Colours are displayed alongside a selection of regimental silver — presentation pieces, campaign trophies, and mess furniture accumulated by the regiment during its years of colonial service and home garrison duty.
The combination of textile and silver artefacts presents the ceremonial culture of the regiment in its most complete and impressive form.
Collections
The Royal Norfolk Regimental Museum holds the definitive collection documenting the history of the Royal Norfolk Regiment (9th Regiment of Foot) from its raising in 1685 to its amalgamation in 1959. The collection encompasses nine Victoria Crosses with full documentation; an outstanding run of campaign medals, gallantry awards, and named medal groups from the Georgian era through to the Second World War; uniforms from late seventeenth century to 1959; weapons and equipment; regimental Colours; silver and ceremonial objects; extensive photographic and film archives; diaries, letters, and official documents; oral history recordings from veterans of the First and Second World Wars; and artefacts collected during the regiment's overseas service in India, Burma, Egypt, and South Africa.
The archives are a major resource for family historians researching Norfolk and East Anglian ancestors who served in the regiment.
Norfolk's Regiment: 1685–1959
The principal permanent display traces the regiment's history chronologically from its seventeenth-century foundations through the Georgian and Victorian eras to the two world wars and the 1959 amalgamation. Each era is covered through a combination of objects, documents, maps, and personal testimony, with particular depth for the First and Second World Wars.
📍 Main Gallery
Courage: The Victoria Cross Collection
A focused display presenting all nine VCs won by members of the regiment, with individual case displays for each recipient including the original medal, citation, and personal effects. The display is arranged chronologically from the first VC (1858) to the last (1944).
📍 VC Gallery
Themes
Time Periods
Current Exhibitions
No current exhibitions. Please check the museum website for updates.