Aldeburgh (England)

Aldeburgh ( AWL-bər-ə) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England, north of the River Alde. Its estimated population was 2,276 in 2019. It was home to the composer Benjamin Britten and remains the centre of the international Aldeburgh Festival of arts at nearby Snape Maltings, which was founded by Britten in 1948. It also hosts an annual poetry festival and several food festivals and other events. Aldeburgh, as a port, gained borough status in 1529 under Henry VIII. Its historic buildings include a 16th-century moot hall and a Napoleonic-era Martello Tower. A third of its housing consists of second homes. Visitors are drawn to its Blue Flag beach and fisherman huts, where fresh fish is sold, to Aldeburgh Yacht Club and to its cultural offerings. Two family-run fish and chip shops have been rated among the country's best. The independent Aldeburgh bookshop has been in business for more than seventy years, is locally thought to have been the site of the birthplace of George Crabbe (1754–1832) and has organised the annual Aldeburgh Literary Festival since 2002.