Little London, Tadley
| Little London | |
| Hampshire | |
|---|---|
 The Plough Inn, Little London. | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SU621594 |
| Location: | 51°19’48"N, 1°6’30"W |
| Data | |
| Post town: | Tadley |
| Postcode: | RG26 |
| Dialling code: | 01256 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Basingstoke and Deane |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
North East Hampshire |
Little London is a village in the north of Hampshire, sitting between the northern hills of the Hampshire Downs and the gravel plains of the Kennet valley, to the south of Tadley, on the little road south from Silchester and the Berkshire border. It is seven miles north of Basingstoke and fifteen miles south of Reading.
The village backs onto Pamber Forest, a 500 acre woodland (which has been designated a site of special scientific interest); a remnant of the much larger ancient Royal Forest of Pamber. The village is recorded as having been established for at least 400 years.
History
Until the mid-19th century the village was a local centre for brick-making, the local clays being recognised as particularly good since the Roman period. Examples of clay roof tiles produced in this area for the nearby Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum (by modern Silchester) can be seen at Reading Museum.
A major part of the village was confiscated from the Englefield family and given to the Benyon family during the late Tudor period. Other parts were gifted in payment to Queen's College, Oxford. It is assumed that this was in return for education, although it may not have been. This legacy can be seen by the names of farms, pubs and houses in the area.
The village has grown organically from a few houses, being effectively one street with no social centre. Its current population is of only a few hundred. It is a desirable location, with higher house prices than in much of rural Hampshire.
The village has one pub, The Plough.
History
'Little London' is a common village name, assumed by some to have its origins in the quantity of seasonal Londoners who would camp for the harvest season. However, in common with many 'Little Londons' approximately fifty miles or so from London, it has also been claimed that the name was given by settlers escaping the Great Plague of London of 1665. Alternatively, it could have been corrupted from 'Little Loddon', the name of a stream that marks the southern extent of the village.
Little London at Tadley would have been established by the Welsh cattle drovers in the second half of the 16th century. It was on a main drovers route into London, like that at Oakley in Buckinghamshire. Such a village could be a temporary home for the long distance drovers, moving their cattle to London, and the great fairs and markets. Tadley was on the route to the fairs of Blackbush, Farnham, Croydon and Kingston, and London's Smithfield market. The drovers had a licence to travel, granted by Elizabeth I, and were regarded as "foreigners" by the local parishioners who could not travel without a "settlement certificate".[1]
Parish church
The parish church is the Church of St. Stephen, on Silchester Road
The church is part of the Deanery of Basingstoke and the Diocese of Winchester. It is linked to the parish of Bramley.
There was also a Methodist Chapel on Silchester Road, built in 1867 which closed c1980 and was converted to a Bed and breakfast.[2]
Community
The main facility for the community is St Stephens Hall, on Silchester Road.
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Little London, Tadley) |