The Beaulieu River formerly known as the River Exe, is a small river flowing south through the New Forest

New Forest

The New Forest is an area of southern England which includes the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in the heavily-populated south east of England. It covers south-west Hampshire and extends into south-east Wiltshire....

 in the county of Hampshire

Hampshire

Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...

 in southern England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. The river is some 12 miles (19.3 km) long, of which the last 4 miles (6.4 km) are tidal. Unusually, the entire river, including its bed, is owned by Lord Montagu of Beaulieu.

The Beaulieu River rises near Lyndhurst

Lyndhurst, Hampshire

Lyndhurst is a village and civil parish in the New Forest, Hampshire, England. It is a popular tourist location with many independent shops, art galleries, cafés, restaurants, pubs and hotels. The nearest city is Southampton located around nine miles to the north-east...

 in the centre of the New Forest, and flows south-easterly across the forest heaths to the village of Beaulieu

Beaulieu, Hampshire

Beaulieu is a small village located on the south eastern edge of the New Forest national park in Hampshire, England and home to both Palace House and the British National Motor Museum.- History :...

. At Beaulieu the river becomes tidal and once drove a tide mill

Tide mill

A tide mill is a water mill driven by tidal rise and fall. A dam with a sluice is created across a suitable tidal inlet, or a section of river estuary is made into a reservoir. As the tide comes in, it enters the mill pond through a one way gate, and this gate closes automatically when the tide...

 in the village. Below Beaulieu the tidal river

Tidal river

A tidal river is a river, or more typically a stretch of a river, whose flow and level is influenced by tides. An example of a tidal river is the portion of the Connecticut River flowing from Windsor Locks, Connecticut, to the Atlantic Ocean. The Brisbane River, which flows into the Pacific Ocean...

 continues to flow through the forest, passing the village of Bucklers Hard

Bucklers Hard

Bucklers Hard is a hamlet situated on the banks of the Beaulieu River in the English county of Hampshire.- Overview :With its Georgian cottages running down to the river, Bucklers Hard is part of the 9,000 acre Beaulieu Estate...

 and entering the sea through the Solent

Solent

The Solent is a strait separating the Isle of Wight from the mainland of England.The Solent is a major shipping route for passengers, freight and military vessels. It is an important recreational area for water sports, particularly yachting, hosting the Cowes Week sailing event annually...

.

The tidal river below Beaulieu village is navigable to small craft. Bucklers Hard was once a significant shipbuilding

Shipbuilding

Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to before recorded history.Shipbuilding and ship repairs, both...

 centre, building many wooden sailing ships, both merchant and naval and including Nelson's

Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson

Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KB was a flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. He was noted for his inspirational leadership and superb grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics, which resulted in a number of...

 Agamemnon

HMS Agamemnon (1781)

HMS Agamemnon was a 64-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She saw service in the American Revolutionary, French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and fought in many of the major naval battles of those conflicts...

.

Etymology

The name "Beaulieu" is French

French

French is the adjective form of France and usually refers to:* Something of, from, or related to the nation of France** French culture** French cuisine** French people, inhabitants of France or people having family origins in France...

, meaning "beautiful place".

The earlier name, "Exe", is Brythonic

Brythonic languages

The Brythonic or Brittonic languages form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family, the other being Goidelic. The name Brythonic was derived by Welsh Celticist John Rhys from the Welsh word Brython, meaning an indigenous Briton as opposed to an Anglo-Saxon or Gael...

, deriving from an original Ancient British word '*Iska', which is also at the root of other Exe and Esk river-names in England, and also the Usk in Wales (Wysg in Welsh). Its root meaning may be "fish" or "fish-place", as it seems to be cognate with the Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 "pisces" and Greek

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

"ichthus", as well as English "fish".

External links

• Geology of the Beaulieu River Estuary by Ian West and Yining Chen