The warren lodges of the Brecks

For more than 600 years the Brecks was famed for its rabbits which were farmed for their meat and fur.

Thetford & Brandon Times: The Warren's found in Thetford forest.Thetford WarrenByline: Sonya DuncanCopyright: Archant 2018 The Warren's found in Thetford forest.Thetford WarrenByline: Sonya DuncanCopyright: Archant 2018 (Image: Archant 2017)

Across the landscape stood 25 warrens in which the rabbits were nurtured, protected and trapped by a warrener.

Some of these warrens, including Thetford and Lakenheath, had perimeters which stretched between eight and 10 miles.

At the highest point of the warren a lodge was built.

Many of these warrens were owned by monasteries and 19 of them date back to the Medieval period.

Thetford & Brandon Times: Thetford Warren Lodge. In 1935 the wings were destroyed by fire. Picture: Norfolk Museum Services Thetford Warren Lodge. In 1935 the wings were destroyed by fire. Picture: Norfolk Museum Services (Image: Archant)

Although many have since disappeared, two of these lodges stand proud as a reminder of a lost industry.

Thetford & Brandon Times: The Warren's found in Thetford forest.Mildenhall WarrenByline: Sonya DuncanCopyright: Archant 2018 The Warren's found in Thetford forest.Mildenhall WarrenByline: Sonya DuncanCopyright: Archant 2018 (Image: ARCHANT EASTERN DAILY PRESS (01603) 772434)

Thetford Warren was believed to have been built in the late 13th century by the monks of Thetford priory. And the Abbey at Bury St Edmunds was receiving income from Mildenhall warren in 1323.

One corner of the 500-year-old Langford Warren Lodge, in Thetford Forest at Ickburgh, also remains.

Thetford & Brandon Times: Mildenhall Warren Lodge in the 1930s. Picture: Mildenhall Museum Mildenhall Warren Lodge in the 1930s. Picture: Mildenhall Museum (Image: Archant)

Thetford & Brandon Times: Mildenhall Warren Lodge pictured in the lare 1950s. Picture: Mildenhall Museum Mildenhall Warren Lodge pictured in the lare 1950s. Picture: Mildenhall Museum (Image: Archant)

Thetford & Brandon Times: The Warren's found in Thetford forest.Ickburgh WarrenByline: Sonya DuncanCopyright: Archant 2018 The Warren's found in Thetford forest.Ickburgh WarrenByline: Sonya DuncanCopyright: Archant 2018 (Image: Archant 2017)