Until 1895, Bramshaw was divided into two parts, one half in Wiltshire, and one half in Hampshire. The village of Bramshaw is stretched out for several miles along the B3079 road, with the church to the north, the hamlet of Brook to the south and Stock's Cross at its centre.
Bramshaw Commons, owned by the National Trust, comprise some 575 hectares (1,420 acres) of manorial wastes and commons.[6] It is some of the best surviving examples of lowland heath in Europe, still managed by the common grazing of ponies, pigs, donkeys, cattle and sheep.[6] The parish also contains the highest point in the New Forest at Pipers Wait, some 129 metres above mean sea level.[5] The site of a 14th-century Royal Hunting Lodge ("Studley Castle"), a Scheduled Monument, can be seen nearby.[7][6] The site of former stocks and gallows can be seen at Stocks Cross, at the intersection of Furzley Lane and the B3079.[6] The gallows were still in use in 1831, when records show that they were repaired.[6]
Pigs grazing on the road at BramshawStock's Cross – site of a former stocks and gallowsTelegraph Hill, the site of a former Admiralty signal station
Bramshaw appears twice in the Domesday Book for Wiltshire, when the lands were held by Wulfnoth and a certain Edmund.[8]Odo of Bayeux was overlord of these lands in Bramshaw at the time of the Survey. The name Bramshaw probably derives from an Old English word for "bramble bush wood."[9] It may be that it is Bramshaw being referred to in 1418 in a legal record, (appearing as Bremelelsthaw).[10]
The manor of Bramshaw, together with that of Britford, appears to have been granted by one of the Norman kings to the family of de Lacy sometime during the 12th century.[11] In the 15th century, it was sold to Robert Lord Hungerford.[11] It switched hands during the Wars of the Roses, but in 1485 it was back in the hands of the Hungerford family, being awarded to Mary Hungerford, wife of Sir Edward Hastings.[11] Their grandson, the third Earl, sold the manor of Bramshaw (which from this time seems to have been also known as "Moore Closes") in 1561.[11] It was sold several times in the next 150 years, until it was purchased in 1713 by Richard Paulet, in whose family the manor remained until 1887.[11]
Saint Peter's church belonged at an early date to the Premonstratensian priory of Britford.[11] In 1158, however, Henry II granted the church to Salisbury Cathedral, when it was appropriated to the resident canons, and from that date the patronage was in the hands of the Dean and chapter of Salisbury.[11] The current church dates from the 13th century, albeit with many later additions.[12] The earliest part of the church is the west end of the nave, which is of mid-13th-century date,[11] and there is a cambered beam roof of late 15th century date.[12] Much of the rest of the church, including the chancel and vestry, are of 19th century construction.[11]
Bramshaw was partly in Wiltshire and partly in Hampshire until the "County of Southampton Act 1894" placed it all into Hampshire.[5] The county boundary ran through the churchyard,[13] and through the church, which had its nave in Wiltshire and its chancel in Hampshire.[5] There were separate parish councils, one for Bramshaw (Hampshire) and one for Bramshaw (Wiltshire), which survived as Bramshaw (West) and Bramshaw (East) until 1932 when they were unified.[13]
Bramshaw village school was founded in 1812 and closed in July 1977.[14] Through those 165 years it served the children of Bramshaw and nearby hamlets in the New Forest, Brook, Fritham and Furzley. Children passed through Bramshaw School, usually on their way to labouring and servant jobs in the forest and on the estates.
The school began life as a Boys' School, registered as a National School in 1812 with the Girls' and Infants' School being registered in 1819. At that time it was described as 'privately owned', only being registered as a Public Elementary School in 1851 when it began to be supported with government funding. George Eyre (1772–1837), owner of the local Warrens Estate.[15] founded the school, 'demonstrating a paternalistic attitude to the labourers and their children, while providing a picturesque addition to the village scene'.[16] The school remained connected to the Eyre family until the death of the Mrs Eyre in 1933.[17]
After the Education Act 1944 introduced the eleven plus examination, older boys and girls moved to a new Secondary Modern School at Bartley, leaving two classes of 5 to 7 and 7 to 11-year-olds. When the school closed in 1977, 5 to 8+ year olds went to Copythorne First School while children from 8+ to 12+ went to Bartley Middle School. The school building has become a private dwelling.
Odstock is a village and civil parish 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Salisbury in Wiltshire, England. The parish includes the village of Nunton with its nearby hamlet of Bodenham. The parish is in the valley of the River Ebble, which joins the Hampshire Avon near Bodenham.
Fordingbridge is a town and broader civil parish with a population of 6,000 on the River Avon in the New Forest District of Hampshire, England, near the Dorset and Wiltshire borders and on the edge of the New Forest, famed for its late medieval seven-arch bridge.
Buttermere is a small village and civil parish on the eastern boundary of Wiltshire, England, about 4.5 miles (7 km) south of Hungerford and 10 miles (16 km) southeast of Marlborough. The village stands above the steep escarpment of Ham Hill, and at 257 metres (843 ft) above sea level it is the highest village in Wiltshire and probably the highest in Wessex.
Lyndhurst is a large village and civil parish situated in the New Forest National Park in Hampshire, England, about nine miles (14 km) south-west of Southampton. Known as the "Capital of the New Forest", Lyndhurst houses the New Forest District Council and Court of Verderers. It is also a popular tourist attraction, with many independent shops, art galleries, cafés, museums, pubs and hotels. As of 2001 Lyndhurst had a population of 2,973, increasing to 3,029 at the 2011 Census.
Cadnam is a village situated in Hampshire, England, within the boundaries of the New Forest National Park. The village has existed since the medieval period, when it was an important crossroads between Southampton and the towns of Dorset.
Hordle is a village and civil parish in the county of Hampshire, England. It is situated between the Solent coast and the New Forest, and is bordered by the towns of Lymington and New Milton. Like many New Forest parishes Hordle has no village centre. The civil parish includes the hamlets of Tiptoe and Everton as well as part of Downton. The parish was originally much larger; stretching from the New Forest boundary to Hurst Castle.
Ashmansworth is a village and civil parish in the Basingstoke and Deane district of the English county of Hampshire.
North Baddesley is a large village and civil parish in Hampshire, England. It is situated 3 mi (5 km) east of the town of Romsey and 6 mi (10 km) north of Southampton. It occupies an area of approximately 9.15 km2 (3.53 sq mi), and is home to a population of just over 10,000 people, reducing to 7,000 at the 2011 Census. It is located in the Test Valley; a river famous for trout fishing.
Whitsbury is a village and civil parish in Hampshire, England, close to Fordingbridge. Whitsbury is a part of a group of villages on the edge of the Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Martin is a village and civil parish in the New Forest district of Hampshire, England. The nearest town, Fordingbridge, is 7 miles (11 km) to the south-east, and the cathedral city of Salisbury is 12 miles (19 km) to the north-east.
Copythorne is a village and civil parish in Hampshire, England, within the boundaries of the New Forest National Park.
Bartley is a village in Hampshire, England, within the boundaries of the New Forest National Park, seven miles (11 km) west of Southampton.
Fritham is a small village in Hampshire, England. It lies in the north of the New Forest, near the Wiltshire border. It is in the civil parish of Bramshaw.
Studley is a small village in the county of Wiltshire, England, belonging to the civil parish of Calne Without.
Britford is a village and civil parish beside the River Avon about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south-east of Salisbury in Wiltshire, England. The village is just off the A338 Salisbury-Bournemouth road. The 2011 Census recorded a parish population of 592.
Wingfield is a small village and civil parish in the county of Wiltshire, England, about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) south of Bradford-on-Avon and 2.2 miles (3.5 km) west of Trowbridge.
Landford is a village and civil parish 10 miles (16 km) southeast of Salisbury in Wiltshire, England. To the south and east of the parish is the county of Hampshire and the New Forest National Park. The parish includes the small village of Nomansland and the hamlets of Hamptworth and Landfordwood.
Netley Marsh is a village and civil parish in Hampshire, close to the town of Totton. It lies within the New Forest District, and the New Forest National Park. It is the supposed site of the battle between an invading Anglo Saxon army, under Cerdic and a British army under the probably fictitious king Natanleod in the year 508.
Hyde is a village and civil parish in the New Forest near Fordingbridge in Hampshire, England.
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