Historic Places

Mottisfont Abbey.

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With the first blue sky for a couple of weeks, it was nice to take a walk and get some photos without grey skies.

Mottisfont Abbey is a historical priory and country estate in Hampshire, now operated by the National Trust. The site features a historic house museum with changing art exhibitions, the abbey has a rich history that dates back to the 12th century, initially founded as a house for Augustinian canons. Over the centuries, it has transitioned from a monastic building to a country house, particularly during the 18th century when it was remodelled in the Gothic Revival style. The abbey is now recognised not only for its architecture but also for its beautiful gardens, which showcase a collection of old and rare roses, drawing visitors from around the world to experience its tranquil beauty and historical significance.

Two paintings from the current Town and Country: A Journey Through the Seasons are part of the current art exhibition at Mottisfont. These two were my favourites.

Both by Lesley Fortherby.

Tichborne Hampshire.

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Tichborne Village in Hampshire stands on the Itchen as it passes on its way from Cheriton to Winchester.

St Andrew’s Church, standing on a small hill, is a Grade I listed building and was founded in the mid 11th Century. It was likely the church for the larger area known as the Manor of Cheriton. The Tichborne family, who had held their estate since at least 1135, came to be closely associated with St Andrew’s and carried out significant additions to it in the early 14th century.

The inside of the church has several monuments to the Tichborne family. These are very grand for a parish church.

St Catherine’s Hill

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St Catherine’s Hill, Winchester, is a 58-hectare chalk grassland. It is a nature reserve managed by Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. There are ramparts of the Iron Age hill fort cut into the 70m high hill, buried ruins of the Norman chapel that gives the site its name and several rectangular burial mounds along Plague Pit Valley, which mark the location of mass graves. It offers views over Winchester, the Itchen Valley and the surrounding countryside. As part of the management of the chalk grassland, cattle are used to help prevent scrub from building up.

Recovered from the Deep.

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The Mary Rose was Henry VIII, flagship, built in 1511. She famously sank in the Solent in 1545 in full view of Southsea Castle. She took most of her crew of 500 souls with her. She was rediscovered in 1971 and raised in 1982. The part of the wreck that had become buried in the silt survived, and thousands of recovered Tudor artefacts, including personal items and weapons, were recovered.

In 1982, at the age of 22, I watched the raising operation of the Mary Rose live on TV with my grandfather. I remember his comment at the time. “What a waste of money to get a load of firewood off the seabed”!

The museum in Portsmouth Dockyard demonstrates that the salvage of the Mary Rose was a unique opportunity to snapshot into Tudor history. Over 19000 artefacts, along with the remains of the ship and crew, were recovered from the wreck site.

Archaeologists recovered 137 whole longbows and 172 part bows. There were also 3,500 arrows. Before the recovery of the Mary Rose, there were just 5 surviving longbows from medieval England known to exist.

link to the Museum,

About the Trust

A lost village.

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Today, being the last day of 2025, we decided to have a day out and headed to the village of Imber on Salisbury Plain. About an hour and a half’s drive from home, but well worth the trip.

All the residents of the village of Imber were evicted from their homes during ww2 in 1943 with just 47 days’ notice. The village and land formed part of the training grounds for American troops. Land was first purchased for military training on Salisbury Plain in late 1890s. Within 5 years, the total area in the hands of the War Department had risen to 43,000 acres. Permanent barracks were started at Tidworth in 1905. After the First World War, the War Department resumed buying land on Salisbury Plain. The Larkhill Royal School of Artillery was built in 1920. The village of Imber and its surrounding terrain were acquired between 1928 and 1932. The villagers became tenants of the War Department. After the evictions at the end of the war, it was never returned and remains, to this day, a training ground for urban warfare within the larger military training area of the Plain.

Today, the village is open for visits on a few days a year.

A walk around the village’s old homes and more modern killing houses.

The church of St Giles occupies the site of an earlier building dating from the mid-12th century. The nave was rebuilt towards the end of the 13th century, and around 1400,the addition of the north and south aisles, plus the tower and north porch. At this time, the nave roof was reconstructed. The chancel was rebuilt in 1849, at which time the north-east vestry was built.

A new walk.

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Were the River Test meets Southampton Water is the small town of Eling. Eling is now part of the city of Southampton, has a long history of its own. The quay dates back over a thousand years; a medieval tidal mill was the centre of settlement it was once a hub for industries such as shipbuilding and timber. Today, the mill is open to the public, the area has light industry, and private boat mooring.

A walk early this morning, started from Eling and followed Southampton Water down towards Marchwood. The unofficial path follows the water opposite the city’s container terminal, giving both views of the workings of the docks and mudflats.

Engineers need a head for heights for pilon work!

Some interesting wildlife on the walk. Starting with Little Egret.

Egyptian geese. This goose is related to the Shelduck. It was introduced to ornamental ponds, but escaped into the wild, where it’s now successfully breeding. In 2009, it was officially declared a non-native species.

Very distant Kingfisher.

Female Reed Bunting.

Scarlet Ibis, not very clear pictures, but this bird was some distance off. A surprise sighting of a non-native Scarlet Ibis! It seems several of these South American natives escaped from a local bird park a few months ago.

Holland 1.

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A museum visit today.

Holland 1 was the first submarine commissioned by the Royal Navy. She was the first in a five-boat batch of the Holland-class submarine, launched in 1901. She sank 12 years later in 1913 when under tow to be scrapped following her decommissioning. She was recovered in 1982. She was preserved and put on display at the  Royal Navy Submarine Museum, Gosport.

Museum film below.

Warrior.

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I 1st remember seeing HMS Warrior as a hulk from the bridge at Pembroke Dock in Wales. That was back in the 1970s. She was towed there on 13 March 1929, where she served as a floating oil jetty. For the next fifty years, the ship lay just offshore from an oil depot at Llanion Cove. In August 1979, Warrior began her 800-mile journey to a temporary home in the Coal Dock at Hartlepool, where the £9 million restoration project, largely funded by the Manifold Trust, commenced.

Launched in 1860, HMS Warrior was Britain’s first iron-hulled, armoured battleship. She was the pride of Queen Victoria’s fleet and the largest and fastest ship of her time

This innovative ship signalled a significant evolution in the Royal Navy, being powered by steam and marking the first departure from traditional wooden ships.

Today, she is open to the public at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.

HMS Warrior is a real mix between modern and old.