Apuldram
Encyclopedia
Apuldram or Appledram is a small parish on the north eastern upper reach of Chichester Harbour
about two miles (3 km) south-west of the centre of Chichester
in West Sussex, England.
The nearest railway station is 1.2 miles (1.9 km) northeast of the village, at Chichester
.
Most of the parish is farmland, roughly bounded to the north by the River Lavant
, to the west by the harbour and to the south by Chichester Marina and the Chichester Canal. There are many pleasant pathways through the area, with fine views of the harbour and across the fields with the Cathedral and the South Downs in the distance. Access to the harbour is at Dell Quay.
Place names within the parish reflect the industries and activities that once flourished. Salterns Copse, near the Marina, takes its name from the salt pans that were located nearby. Seventeenth century legislation killed off most of the salt industry in Sussex, but Apuldram survived until the middle of the nineteenth century, when free trade laws opened up the market to continental imports. Copperas Point records the production of copperas
from iron pyrite. This was used in the dyeing industry, in leather tanning and in making gunpowder.
The parish has a church, two public houses and a small country hotel. There is now no village centre and of the original medieval village only the church, the Manor and Rymans now remain.
The area of the parish is 1111 acres (4.5 km²) and at the 2001 census the population was 186.
W D Peckham is quoted as writing 'the deep loam with a clay or brick-earth subsoil is admirable apple growing land to this day'. However, evidence of when or where in the parish apple farming took place has not come to light - records show grain and, later, wool as the main products of the area. Richard Ratcliffe's history of the parish examines, but does not favour, a suggestion that the name is derived from polder
a Dutch word meaning low lying land protected or reclaimed from the sea, although this would indeed be an apt description of a large part of the parish.
, which in the 11th century, during the reign of Edward the Confessor, belonged to Godwin
, the powerful Earl of Wessex, whose son Harold
was defeated at Hastings
. After the Conquest William I took possession of the Manor.
In 1125 Henry I gave the parish to the Abbot and Brethren of Battle Abbey
. However, the College of Bosham remained responsible for ecclesiastical matters and one of the six canons of the College held the Prebend and paid a deputy to live in and care for the parish. At one time the Prebend of Apuldram was held by William of Wykeham
, Bishop of Winchester.
In 1197 Battle granted possession to Sir Michael de Appeltrieham, Sheriff of Sussex. The demesne reverted to the Crown following the Dissolution of the Monasteries
between 1538 and 1542, and in 1580 Elizabeth I granted it to William, Baron Howard of Effingham. On his death it passed to his son Charles, who was Lord High Admiral from 1585 to 1618 and commanded the fleet that defeated the Spanish Armada.
The chancel
has beautifully proportioned triple lancet window
s with Purbeck marble
shafts and stone mouldings. The altar stands on Victorian tiles, but those in the first pavement by the rails are medieval. A crusaders floor slab lies on the south side of the sanctuary. Behind the pulpit is the start of a stone staircase that once led up to a rood loft
, but this has long since been removed, together with the rest of the staircase.
The Purbeck marble font is 12th century. The circular basin is lined and set in a square slab standing on five shafts. The central shaft is original, but the others are later replacements. The whole font shows signs of ill treatment, probably at the hands of Cromwellian soldiers.
in the 1930s, William Ryman's house was probably much the same size as it is today.
Ryman was a prominent lawyer and his son, Sir William Ryman, was Sheriff of Sussex. The Ryman family held the estate for nearly two centuries until it was bought in 1619 by William Smyth of Binderton. After a suit in Chancery it was divided in 1730 between the two daughters of George Smyth. Rymans and some 300 acres (121.4 ha) went to Barbara, wife of the Rev William Barttelot. Apuldram Manor and the same amount of land went to Mary, see below.
The gardens are opened to the public once or twice a year.
, Ambassador to the Court of Naples, whose (second) wife was Emma, Lady Hamilton
, Lord Nelson's paramour. It is now occupied by the Sawday family.
. Sea levels in the harbour were higher in the Middle Ages than they are now and there are records of losses of land to the sea. The Great Flood of Apuldram occurred in 1274 and additional sea walls and sluices were installed after that. The former existence of a tide mill on the River Lavant near Apuldram Common is an indication of the level of the sea at that time at the northern boundary of the parish.
The landing place was moved down channel due to silting of the upper reaches and for a time there was access to the harbour a little to the south of the mouth of the Lavant. Here there was a sunken channel, now dry, which led to the centre of the medieval Apuldram village. There is also evidence of a landing place at La Delle. A rent list, dated 1432, records a villein whose duties included "to cart from La Delle to Chichester". Exports in the 14th and 15th centuries were mainly wool and cloth.
The wharf at Dell Quay was built in the 16th century on the orders of Lord Fitzwilliam of Cowdray, Lord High Admiral from 1536 to 1540 and in 1580 it was written that the wharf had been "longe sythens buylded by the Lord Fitzwilliam". The Quay was at that time the only official landing place for the Port of Chichester, which in the 14th century was rated the 7th in importance in all England.
At that time there were no warehouses at Dell Quay and no inn. The citizens of Chichester gave this as a reason for asking permission to dig a canal from the Quay to the town. Permission was granted but with a condition that the canal must not cut through lands belonging to 'the Baron' (Howard of Effingham), and this made the scheme impractical. Instead, the picturesque Crown & Anchor Inn was built at the end of the 16th century and seems to have been called initially 'Dell Key House' (not to be confused with the present Dell Quay House, which incorporates William Tipper's post mill built in the eighteenth century, the subject of paintings by Richard Nibbs
and George Lambert
).
During the 17th century the channel needed constant attention. Ships offloading ballast as they approached the quay added to the problem. However, after an intensive programme of dredging, ships of 40 tons could in 1685 once again dock at the quay. In the 18th century coal from Newcastle became the major import and the outlook was graced by three large coal pounds - on the quay, by the inn and on the site of what is now Quay Cottage. There was a crane, which in 1789 was said to be 'much out of repair, useless and obstructive'. The amount of goods delivered varied over the years. 2128 tons in 1786, 4085 in 1793, 2771 in 1800, 3043 in 1807 and 3602 in 1813. By 1908 there was a steam driven crane, running on rails, which was later replaced by a diesel powered crane.
A gale in August 1925 wreaked havoc with moored boats. Owners struggling to refloat their craft realised that co-operation would ease the task and this led to the formation of the Dell Quay Boat Club. The name was changed to the Dell Quay Sailing Club in 1934. Today it is a thriving club, renowned for its friendly atmosphere. Also located on the quay are the Apuldram Fishing and Boat Club and a classroom for the Chichester Harbour Education Centre.
The water at Dell Quay is now only navigable for dinghies and small cabin cruisers for a few hours either side of high tide.
Chichester Harbour
Chichester Harbour is a large natural harbour to the south west of the city of Chichester on the Solent. It straddles the boundary of West Sussex and Hampshire. Geographically it is a ria. It is one of four natural harbours in that area of the coastline, the others being Portsmouth Harbour,...
about two miles (3 km) south-west of the centre of Chichester
Chichester (district)
Chichester is a largely rural local government district in West Sussex, England. Its council is based in the city of Chichester.-History:The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, as a merger of the municipal borough of Chichester and the Rural Districts of...
in West Sussex, England.
The nearest railway station is 1.2 miles (1.9 km) northeast of the village, at Chichester
Chichester railway station
Chichester railway station is a railway station in the city of Chichester in West Sussex, England. The station is a short walk from the city centre, and about a 10 minute walk from the university....
.
Most of the parish is farmland, roughly bounded to the north by the River Lavant
River Lavant, West Sussex
The River Lavant is a winterbourne that rises at East Dean and flows west to Singleton, then south past West Dean and Lavant to Chichester. From east of Chichester its natural course was south to the sea at Pagham, but the Romans diverted it to flow around the southern walls of Chichester and then...
, to the west by the harbour and to the south by Chichester Marina and the Chichester Canal. There are many pleasant pathways through the area, with fine views of the harbour and across the fields with the Cathedral and the South Downs in the distance. Access to the harbour is at Dell Quay.
Place names within the parish reflect the industries and activities that once flourished. Salterns Copse, near the Marina, takes its name from the salt pans that were located nearby. Seventeenth century legislation killed off most of the salt industry in Sussex, but Apuldram survived until the middle of the nineteenth century, when free trade laws opened up the market to continental imports. Copperas Point records the production of copperas
Iron(II) sulfate
Iron sulfate or ferrous sulfate is the chemical compound with the formula FeSO4. Known since ancient times as copperas and as green vitriol, the blue-green heptahydrate is the most common form of this material...
from iron pyrite. This was used in the dyeing industry, in leather tanning and in making gunpowder.
The parish has a church, two public houses and a small country hotel. There is now no village centre and of the original medieval village only the church, the Manor and Rymans now remain.
The area of the parish is 1111 acres (4.5 km²) and at the 2001 census the population was 186.
The origin of the name
Old records show many different spellings - Apulderham, Apeldreham (1121) , Appeltrieham (1198), Appuldram (1440) - but for several centuries the spelling used by the church and the parishioners has been Apuldram. Civic authorities use both 'Appledram' and 'Apuldram' in their records.W D Peckham is quoted as writing 'the deep loam with a clay or brick-earth subsoil is admirable apple growing land to this day'. However, evidence of when or where in the parish apple farming took place has not come to light - records show grain and, later, wool as the main products of the area. Richard Ratcliffe's history of the parish examines, but does not favour, a suggestion that the name is derived from polder
Polder
A polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments known as dikes, that forms an artificial hydrological entity, meaning it has no connection with outside water other than through manually-operated devices...
a Dutch word meaning low lying land protected or reclaimed from the sea, although this would indeed be an apt description of a large part of the parish.
Early history
In Saxon times, and for a while after the Norman Conquest, the area now forming the Parish of Apuldram was part of the Manor of BoshamBosham
Bosham is a small coastal village and civil parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England, about ) west of Chichester on an inlet of Chichester Harbour....
, which in the 11th century, during the reign of Edward the Confessor, belonged to Godwin
Godwin, Earl of Wessex
Godwin of Wessex , was one of the most powerful lords in England under the Danish king Cnut the Great and his successors. Cnut made him the first Earl of Wessex...
, the powerful Earl of Wessex, whose son Harold
Harold Godwinson
Harold Godwinson was the last Anglo-Saxon King of England.It could be argued that Edgar the Atheling, who was proclaimed as king by the witan but never crowned, was really the last Anglo-Saxon king...
was defeated at Hastings
Battle of Hastings
The Battle of Hastings occurred on 14 October 1066 during the Norman conquest of England, between the Norman-French army of Duke William II of Normandy and the English army under King Harold II...
. After the Conquest William I took possession of the Manor.
In 1125 Henry I gave the parish to the Abbot and Brethren of Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey is a partially ruined abbey complex in the small town of Battle in East Sussex, England. The abbey was built on the scene of the Battle of Hastings and dedicated to St...
. However, the College of Bosham remained responsible for ecclesiastical matters and one of the six canons of the College held the Prebend and paid a deputy to live in and care for the parish. At one time the Prebend of Apuldram was held by William of Wykeham
William of Wykeham
William of Wykeham was Bishop of Winchester, Chancellor of England, founder of Winchester College, New College, Oxford, New College School, Oxford, and builder of a large part of Windsor Castle.-Life:...
, Bishop of Winchester.
In 1197 Battle granted possession to Sir Michael de Appeltrieham, Sheriff of Sussex. The demesne reverted to the Crown following the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
between 1538 and 1542, and in 1580 Elizabeth I granted it to William, Baron Howard of Effingham. On his death it passed to his son Charles, who was Lord High Admiral from 1585 to 1618 and commanded the fleet that defeated the Spanish Armada.
Church of St Mary the Virgin
The original church is believed to have been built soon after 1100, but the main building was constructed in its present form in about 1250. The south aisle was added about 100 years later.The chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
has beautifully proportioned triple lancet window
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
s with Purbeck marble
Purbeck Marble
Purbeck Marble is a fossiliferous limestone quarried in the Isle of Purbeck, a peninsula in south-east Dorset, England.It is one of many kinds of Purbeck Limestone, deposited in the late Jurassic or early Cretaceous periods....
shafts and stone mouldings. The altar stands on Victorian tiles, but those in the first pavement by the rails are medieval. A crusaders floor slab lies on the south side of the sanctuary. Behind the pulpit is the start of a stone staircase that once led up to a rood loft
Rood screen
The rood screen is a common feature in late medieval church architecture. It is typically an ornate partition between the chancel and nave, of more or less open tracery constructed of wood, stone, or wrought iron...
, but this has long since been removed, together with the rest of the staircase.
The Purbeck marble font is 12th century. The circular basin is lined and set in a square slab standing on five shafts. The central shaft is original, but the others are later replacements. The whole font shows signs of ill treatment, probably at the hands of Cromwellian soldiers.
Rymans
At the end of the twelfth century Sir Michael de Appeltrieham owned several hundred acres of the parish, including the site of this property. The earliest recorded house on the site was built for Chauns in the thirteenth century, and at the beginning of the fifteenth century William Ryman added the three storey tower and the south wing shown in the picture. Despite many later alterations, including some by the architect Walter GodfreyWalter Godfrey
Walter Hindes Godfrey CBE, FSA, FRIBA , was an English architect, antiquary, and architectural and topographical historian. He was also a landscape architect and designer, and an accomplished draftsman and illustrator...
in the 1930s, William Ryman's house was probably much the same size as it is today.
Ryman was a prominent lawyer and his son, Sir William Ryman, was Sheriff of Sussex. The Ryman family held the estate for nearly two centuries until it was bought in 1619 by William Smyth of Binderton. After a suit in Chancery it was divided in 1730 between the two daughters of George Smyth. Rymans and some 300 acres (121.4 ha) went to Barbara, wife of the Rev William Barttelot. Apuldram Manor and the same amount of land went to Mary, see below.
The gardens are opened to the public once or twice a year.
Apuldram Manor
The north face of this early seventeenth century house has a picturesque Dutch gable, rare in this part of the country at that time. Soon after its construction it was bought by William Smyth. It passed via his great-granddaughter Mary to her husband William Hamilton and stayed in that family for a century and a half. The house was owned at one time by Sir William HamiltonWilliam Hamilton (diplomat)
Sir William Hamilton KB, PC, FRS was a Scottish diplomat, antiquarian, archaeologist and vulcanologist. After a short period as a Member of Parliament, he served as British Ambassador to the Kingdom of Naples from 1764 to 1800...
, Ambassador to the Court of Naples, whose (second) wife was Emma, Lady Hamilton
Emma, Lady Hamilton
Emma, Lady Hamilton is best remembered as the mistress of Lord Nelson and as the muse of George Romney. She was born Amy Lyon in Ness near Neston, Cheshire, England, the daughter of a blacksmith, Henry Lyon, who died when she was two months old...
, Lord Nelson's paramour. It is now occupied by the Sawday family.
Dell Quay
In Roman times the Harbour was navigable all the way to Fishbourne and Roman galleys may have sailed right up to the Fishbourne PalaceFishbourne Roman Palace
Fishbourne Roman Palace is in the village of Fishbourne in West Sussex. The large palace was built in the 1st century AD, around thirty years after the Roman conquest of Britain on the site of a Roman army supply base established at the Claudian invasion in 43 AD. The rectangular palace surrounded...
. Sea levels in the harbour were higher in the Middle Ages than they are now and there are records of losses of land to the sea. The Great Flood of Apuldram occurred in 1274 and additional sea walls and sluices were installed after that. The former existence of a tide mill on the River Lavant near Apuldram Common is an indication of the level of the sea at that time at the northern boundary of the parish.
The landing place was moved down channel due to silting of the upper reaches and for a time there was access to the harbour a little to the south of the mouth of the Lavant. Here there was a sunken channel, now dry, which led to the centre of the medieval Apuldram village. There is also evidence of a landing place at La Delle. A rent list, dated 1432, records a villein whose duties included "to cart from La Delle to Chichester". Exports in the 14th and 15th centuries were mainly wool and cloth.
The wharf at Dell Quay was built in the 16th century on the orders of Lord Fitzwilliam of Cowdray, Lord High Admiral from 1536 to 1540 and in 1580 it was written that the wharf had been "longe sythens buylded by the Lord Fitzwilliam". The Quay was at that time the only official landing place for the Port of Chichester, which in the 14th century was rated the 7th in importance in all England.
At that time there were no warehouses at Dell Quay and no inn. The citizens of Chichester gave this as a reason for asking permission to dig a canal from the Quay to the town. Permission was granted but with a condition that the canal must not cut through lands belonging to 'the Baron' (Howard of Effingham), and this made the scheme impractical. Instead, the picturesque Crown & Anchor Inn was built at the end of the 16th century and seems to have been called initially 'Dell Key House' (not to be confused with the present Dell Quay House, which incorporates William Tipper's post mill built in the eighteenth century, the subject of paintings by Richard Nibbs
Richard Henry Nibbs
Richard Henry Nibbs was an English painter and book illustrator who specialised in marine art.Nibbs was born in Brighton, Sussex , England and educated at a school in Worthing . He lived in Brighton throughout his life...
and George Lambert
George Lambert (English painter)
George Lambert was an English landscape artist and theatre scene painter. He has been described as the Father of English Landscape Oil Painting.-Life and work:...
).
During the 17th century the channel needed constant attention. Ships offloading ballast as they approached the quay added to the problem. However, after an intensive programme of dredging, ships of 40 tons could in 1685 once again dock at the quay. In the 18th century coal from Newcastle became the major import and the outlook was graced by three large coal pounds - on the quay, by the inn and on the site of what is now Quay Cottage. There was a crane, which in 1789 was said to be 'much out of repair, useless and obstructive'. The amount of goods delivered varied over the years. 2128 tons in 1786, 4085 in 1793, 2771 in 1800, 3043 in 1807 and 3602 in 1813. By 1908 there was a steam driven crane, running on rails, which was later replaced by a diesel powered crane.
A gale in August 1925 wreaked havoc with moored boats. Owners struggling to refloat their craft realised that co-operation would ease the task and this led to the formation of the Dell Quay Boat Club. The name was changed to the Dell Quay Sailing Club in 1934. Today it is a thriving club, renowned for its friendly atmosphere. Also located on the quay are the Apuldram Fishing and Boat Club and a classroom for the Chichester Harbour Education Centre.
The water at Dell Quay is now only navigable for dinghies and small cabin cruisers for a few hours either side of high tide.