Merston

Merston
St Giles’ Church
Merston Location within West Sussex
OS grid reference	SU895028
Civil parish	Oving
District	Chichester
Shire county	West Sussex
Region	South East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Chichester
Postcode district	PO20
Police	Sussex
Fire	West Sussex
Ambulance	South East Coast
UK Parliament	Chichester
List of places UK England West Sussex 50°49′05″N0°43′51″W / 50.8180°N 0.7308°W / 50.8180; -0.7308

Merston is a small village, an Anglican parish ^[1] and former civil parish, now in the civil parish of Oving, in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It lies just south of the A259 road 2.4 miles (3.9 km) southeast of Chichester. ^[2]

History

Merston was listed in the Domesday Book (1086) in the ancient hundred of Boxgrove as having 16 households, meadows, plough land, and three mills. The tenant in chief was Earl Roger of Shrewsbury. ^[3]

In 1861, Merston Anglican parish's population was 79, and the parish was 710 acres (290 ha). ^[1]

In 1931 the parish had a population of 85. ^[4] On 1 April 1933 the civil parish was abolished and merged with Oving. ^[5]

Parish church

The 13th-century St Giles church is a Grade I listed building. ^[6] The font is 12th-century. The parish is now in the parish of North Mundham with Merston in the Diocese of Chichester, and St Giles is closed for services. ^{[1] [7]} The church's original registers are held by West Sussex Record Office in Chichester. ^[8] The church is open to visitors. ^[9]

RAF Merston

Nearby was RAF Merston, a World War II airfield. ^[10] The airfield was in use from 1939 to 1945. ^[11]

References

1. "GENUKI: Merston, Sussex" . Retrieved 16 June 2019.
2. Ordnance Survey
3. "Open Domesday: Merston" . Retrieved 16 June 2019.
4. "Population statistics Merston AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time . Retrieved 10 May 2023.
5. "Relationships and changes Merston AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
6. Historic England. "St Giles Church (Grade I) (1276899)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 6 February 2024.
7. "Church of England Heritage Record: Merston St Giles" . Retrieved 6 February 2024.
8. "GENUKI: The Parish Church of St Giles" . Retrieved 6 February 2024.
9. "Oving parish council: St Giles Church" . Retrieved 10 March 2024.
10. "Merston". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust . Retrieved 16 June 2019.
11. Lee, David (2005). Action Stations Revisited: The Complete History of Britain's Military Airfields. Vol. 3: South East England. Manchester, England: Crécy. pp. 224–225. ISBN   9780859791106.

External links

Media related to Merston at Wikimedia Commons