A HISTORY OF HAMPSHIRE 



FAWLEY 



Falegia (xi cent.) ; Fallele (xii-xiv. cent.) ; Falle 

 (xiv cent.). 



Fawley parish is a low tract of land 9,850 acres in 

 extent, stretching from the eastern limit of the New 

 Forest to Southampton Water. It is separated from 

 the true forest country by the table-land of Beaulieu 

 Heath, the spurs of which extend into Fawley. 

 Arable and pasture land, with fine woods of oak and 

 pine, characterize the coast districts, but a large tract 

 of uncultivated moorland stretches eastward from the 

 banks of the Dark Water and occupies the centre of 

 the parish. The larger portion of this moor bears 

 the name ' Badminston Common ' ; further west it is 

 called ' Hugh's Common.' The latter is the name 

 sometimes applied to the little inclosed plot of land, 

 right in the centre of the moor, which from time to 

 time has been sold in small allotments since about the 

 year 1858. Mud cottages were at first erected, but 

 these have been replaced by small red-brick houses. 

 The settlement forms a sharp contrast to the surround- 

 ing country. Its usual nEme is ' Blackfields.' On 

 the outskirts of the moor are several large farm-houses, 

 which indeed characterize the whole district. In 

 some cases a few cottages have sprung up in the 

 neighbourhood of these farms, but except in the cases 

 of Fawley and Langley there is nothing which can 

 claim to be called a village. There are 2,544^ acres 

 of arable land in the parish, i,779f of permanent 

 grass, and 1,211 acres covered by woods and planta- 

 tions. 1 The soil is sandy, and the chief crops are oats 

 and barley. The district is sparsely populated, and 

 the means of communication bad, the roads being in 

 many cases only tracks across the fields, while the 

 nearest railway station is Beaulieu Road in the New 

 Forest. The best mode of access is the road which 

 runs down the parish from Hythe to Fawley, and on 

 to Hillhead. A motor-bus service, opened by the 

 London and South-Western Railway Company on 

 1 3 August, 1906, and running from Totton to Fawley, 

 promises to open up the country by making it more 

 accessible to visitors. The combination of moor, 

 wood, and cornfield, with the glimpses of the sea and 

 the hills of the Isle of Wight in the near distance, 

 makes the country peculiarly attractive. The Cadland 

 estate, which stretches down the coast of Southampton 

 Water for nearly eight miles, is the residence of 

 Mr. Drummond, who owns nearly all the land in the 

 parish. The house was built in 1773, but was greatly 

 enlarged by Mr. A. R. Drummond in 1836. Forest 

 Lodge, the residence of Mr. Baring, is chiefly notable 

 for its beautiful surroundings. It can also boast the 

 possession of a Chinese pagoda and bridge in the 

 grounds, and an observatory from which a fine view 

 over Southampton Water is obtained. Eaglehurst, 

 the residence of Mr. Huth, is also prettily situated, 

 and the house itself is somewhat of a curiosity, part 

 of it having been built, according to local report, in 

 imitation of the tent which its first owner had used 

 while on active service. The rectory house is of 

 several dates, and stands in a charming garden, the 



mildness of the climate being witnessed to by the 

 camellia-bushes which flourish in the open air. 



The nucleus of the parish is the little village of 

 Fawley. A quarter of a mile to the west of the 

 village stands the parish school. Here the road forks, 

 that on the right hand leading to the inn, the post 

 office, the parish hall, and the few shops which con- 

 stitute the village. The left-hand road leads past the 

 high wall of the rectory garden to the church, which 

 overlooks Southampton Water. Of many little paths 

 leading down to the shore, one lane leads to Ashlett, 

 where a natural creek has led to the establishment of 

 yacht stores on the site of the old Fawley Mill. Ships 

 of 100, or even 150 tons can be brought up here at 

 high tide, and are unloaded at ' Victoria Quay.' * There 

 is a tradition that lepers at one time lived in Fawley 

 village, and the fact that an old farm building, pulled 

 down some fifty years ago, and now the site of a 

 hayrick, was called ' Lazarus ' is given as a corrobora- 

 tion of the tradition ; but it is one not to be easily 

 credited, as leper-houses as a rule were not founded 

 in villages. A mile and a half south of the village, 

 the ' Floating island ' used to be an object of great 

 interest, but the drainage of the surrounding bog has 

 now robbed it of its floating capacities. 



At Fawley village the road turns sharply south- 

 ward, and runs parallel with Southampton Water, 

 past Ower Farm, until it reaches Hillhead, the Fawley 

 beach. Here a narrow strip of shingle connects the 

 mainland with Calshot Castle, a small fort built by 

 Henry VIII with stones from the ruins of Beaulieu 

 Abbey. The arms of Queen Elizabeth, and the 

 letters ' E.R.' on a waterspout, witness to later work 

 on the castle. The unstable character of the shingle 

 on which it stands causes a displacement of as much 

 as a foot at spring tides. From the commanding 

 position of Calshot at the entrance to Southampton 

 Water, the view both up that harbour and down 

 Spithead is a particularly fine one. 



In sharp contrast to the rest of the parish is the 

 detached portion which contains the little fishing 

 village of Hythe. From its close connexion with 

 Southampton by an hourly steamboat service, Hythe 

 is the natural gate to Fawley. The club-house of the 

 Hythe Yacht Club stands at the end of the pier. 

 The manor courts of Cadlands were held at the 

 ' Anchor in Hope ' in this village until they lapsed 

 two years ago. There were formerly stocks in the 

 village. 



The common lands of Fawley were inclosed in 1 8 1 4.' 

 In Domesday Book FAWLEY is given 

 MANORS among those lands which were held by 

 the bishop of Winchester for the support 

 of the monks of Winchester.* In 1 284, when various 

 agreements were concluded between the bishop and 

 the monks, the latter gave up all their rights in Fawley 

 to the bishop, 5 and the king ratified the agreement. 6 

 There seems to have been a close connexion between 

 Fawley Manor and the manor of Bitterne, which also 

 belonged to the bishops of Winchester. The two 



1 Statistics from Bd. of Agric. 1905. 

 a Restored by the parish of Fawley in 



commemoration of Her Majesty's Dia- 

 mond Jubilee, 1897. 



8 Under Act of 50 & 51 Vic. cap. 64. 



292 



4 r.C.H. Hants, i, 467*. 



5 Add. MS. 29436. 



6 Cat. Chart. R. ii, 274. 



