History highlights Ipswich as the birthplace of Cardinal Wolsey, but the story of Suffolk's county town starts much earlier than that. A port since the time of the Romans. By the 7th Century the Anglo Saxons had expanded it into the largest port in the country. In 1200 King John granted the town a civic charter.

Thomas Wolsey arrived on the scene in 1475, the son of a wealthy butcher. He was educated at Magdalen College in Oxford and became a priest in 1498. He quickly rose in influence, becoming chaplain to Henry VII and then Archibishop of York, a cardinal and Lord Chancellor under Henry VIII. Under Henry VIII he had charge of foreign policy and was powerful in judicial circles.

Through these roles he amassed an enormous wealth which enabled him to found a grammar school in Ipswich and Cardinal's College (later Christ Church) in Oxford. Despite this Wolsey was hated in higher circles. This was due to his arrogance and the fact that he had worked his way up, having been born just to a lowly butcher, this caused resentment among some nobles. Thus they were easily able to turn Henry VIII against him. When he failed in his attempts with the Pope to annul the king's marriage to Catherine of Aragon he was stripped of most of his offices. Later he was charged with treason but died while on the journey from York to London to see the King. The grammar school in Ipswich was never completed and all that now remains is the brick gateway close to the waterfront.

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Ipswich Museum is housed in a Victorian building located in the High Street (just a short walk from Ipswich's Town Centre and with a good multi-storey car park nearby). Her you will be able to trace the town's history from Anglo-Saxon times thru the Second World War and right up to the present.
In addition there are natural history, a wildlife gallery gallery (including lifesize reconstruction of a woolly mammoth). Replicas of Sutton Hoo treasures and rolling display of temporary exhibits throughout the year. Admission FREE.