“The records gleaned of James Flegg indicate that he was a prosperous yeoman of substantial estate in East Dereham, Scarning, East Bradenham and Shipdham.

His long extended life was passed in the reigns of six sovereigns, Henry VI (1422-1461), Edward IV (1461-1483), Edward V (1483), Richard III (1483-1485), Henry VII (1485-1509), and Henry VIII (1509-1546). He thus witnessed the famous Wars of the Roses (1455-1485) so disastrous to the old feudal nobility of England, and the despotic but efficient rules of Henry VII and Henry VIII, under whom the country became prosperous by freedom from civil wars and a great increase in manufacturing and foreign commerce; this period was also marked by extensive rebuilding throughout England.”1662