West Worldham
| West Worldham | |
| Hampshire | |
|---|---|
 St Nicholas Church | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SU741369 |
| Location: | 51°7’38"N, -0°56’31"W |
| Data | |
| Post town: | Alton |
| Postcode: | GU34 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | East Hampshire |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
East Hampshire |
West Worldham is a small village in Hampshire, sitting two miles south-east of Alton in the east of the county. Hartley Mauditt and East Worldham are nearby, which along with West Worldham form the Parish of Worldham.
West Worldham is a tiny place, containing some eighteen houses and a population of about 50;[1] about half the population of 1851, when it was 98.[2]
Of note are the Manor Farm and cottage and the late 12th century St Nicholas Church, both Grade II listed buildings.
Parish church
Adjacent to the Manor Farm is St Nicholas Church, a small church dated to the late 12th century. It fell into ruin and lost its roof before it was restored in the late Victorian period in 1888.[3]
This is a single-cell building, with two small lancets on the north side, and contains windows dated to the 15th and 16th century. The two doorways date to the 13th century, and the timber-framed porch on the south side to the 15th century.[3]
Today the church is one of eleven churches in the Northanger benefice.[1]
The interior is described as "plain, with a piscina in the east wall and 2 in the nave, an octagonal font, and 3 wall monuments of the late 18th century."[3]
History
Palaeolithic remains have been found here.[4]
An Iron Age hillfort, dated to around 100 BC, lay on the summit of King John's Hill, to the east of East Worldham.[4] The Romans built a road from Chichester to Silchester that passed below the hill over what is now Green Street and Pookles Lane.[4]
The village is believed to have been part of "Werildeham", mentioned in the Domesday Book.[5] At this time, Worldham manor was held by Marshal Geoffrey de Venuz.[4] However, the first mention of West Worldham as a village is in a document dated October 1277.[1] In the late 12th century, Richard de Annecy granted the newly built church of St Nicholas of Worldeham to Hamble Priory.
During its history, the name of Worldham has been spelled in many different ways, including Verilham, Worldham and Werldham in the 14th century and Wardelham in the 16th century.[6] An early recorded Lord of the Manor was Thomas Paynil, who "died possessed of West Worlddham lands and tenements". During the reign of Edward II, "John Paynel was seized in his demesne as of fee of certain tenements and lands afterwards called the manor of West Worldham and Matilda".[7] Godwin held Worldham during this period, and the land was assessed at 1 hide and 1 yardland.[8] In 1428, the village had "not ten domicilia tenantes".[1] During the Middle Ages, the area was a noted hunting ground, and the descendants of Geoffrey de Venuz established a private deer park and hunting lodge near here.[4]
The naturalist and ornithologist Gilbert White immortalised the localities of the region, including West Worldham, in his The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne (1789).[9]
In 1846, Henry Moody, curator of the Winchester Museum, recorded that West Worldham was "a perpetual curacy in the gift of Winchester College, worth according to the Parliamentary returns £38; but has since received two additional endowments of £200 from Queen Anne's Bounty, and £200 from the warden and fellows of Winchester College, who are the appropriators of the tythes, and patrons of the living."[10] By the early 20th century, the parish of Worldham remained under ownership of Winchester College and the Dutton Estate.[4]
In May 1944, a Junkers Ju 188 was shot down by a Mosquito nearby and its debris was scattered across the village, including the church wall.[1] Later, the inhabitants had to be evacuated when a bomb fell into the field opposite Manor Farm, and had to be defused and removed by the Royal Engineers.[1] In 1962, the Dutton Estate holdings were sold to seven tenant farmers who retained the land they farmed but sold the remaining woodlands and properties.[4]
Geography
About the village
Manor Farm is the main feature in West Worldham. It was owned for some time by the Broce family. The farmhouse is a Grade II listed building. Pullens Farmhouse is also a Grade II listed building, and although its inscription dates to 1652, it shows mediæval characteristics.[1]
Outside links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 "West Worldham". Worldham.org. http://worldham.org/villages/west-worldham/.
- ↑ Post Office Directory of Hampshire, Wiltshire, and Dorsetshire, with Maps Engraged Expressly for the Work, and Coorected to the Time of Publication (Public domain ed.). London: Kelly and Co.. 1855. pp. 183–. https://books.google.com/books?id=0uUNAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA183. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 National Heritage List : Church of St Nicholas (Grade @ listing)@"Church of St Nicholas, Worldham". British Listed Buildings. http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-143060-church-of-st-nicholas-worldham.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 "Parish Plan Publication". Worldham.org. http://worldham.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/101121-Parish-Plan-Publication-A4-FINAL-standard.pdf.
- ↑ Curtis, William (1906). The Town of Alton. Warren and Son. p. 91. https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_3xAVAAAAQAAJ. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ↑ British Archaeological Association. Central Committee; Archaeological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. Central Committee; Royal Archaeological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. Council; Royal Archaeological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, Royal Archaeological Institute (Great Britain) (1930). The Archaeological Journal. Longman, Rrown [sic], Green, and Longman. p. 319. https://books.google.com/books?id=OjUpAAAAYAAJ. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ↑ Grimaldi, Stacey (1874). Miscellaneous Writings Prose and Poetry from Printed & Manuscript Sources. s.n.. p. 72. https://archive.org/details/miscellaneouswr00grimgoog. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ↑ Moody, Henry (1862). Hampshire in 1086: an extension of the Latin and an English translation of the Domesday book, as far as it relates to Hampshire. Printed and published for H. Moody by J. T. Doswell. p. 44. https://books.google.com/books?id=W15HAAAAYAAJ&pg=PT44. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ↑ Bath and West and Southern Counties Society (1881). Journal (Public domain ed.). pp. 176–. https://books.google.com/books?id=lNhMAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA176. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ↑ Moody, Henry (1846). Antiquarian and Topographical Sketches of Hampshire. p. 109. https://archive.org/details/antiquarianandt00moodgoog. Retrieved 3 March 2012.