Boldre
Encyclopedia
Boldre is a village and civil parish
in the New Forest
district of Hampshire
. It is situated inside the New Forest
National Park borders, near the Lymington River
, and is about two miles (3 km) north of Lymington
. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 1,931.
, Walhampton
, Portmore
, Bull Hill, Pilley Bailey, Pilley
and Boldre. Boldre has a church, St John the Baptist, a pub called the Red Lion, a Church of England School on Pilley Hill called William Gilpin after the Vicar of the Church and the old school house (located on Boldre Lane) and a Post Office. The post box can still be seen today, and the school is now a house with a plaque outside.
A hundred years ago, W.H. Hudson described the countryside north of Lymington around the villages of Pilley and Boldre in Hampshire Days as 'a land of secret, green, out-of-the-world places.' Today it contains large homes and is much more accessible, but remains largely unspoilt.
contains a substantial entry on the Hundred of Boldre, where it is recorded as "Bouvre". This is probably a Norman corruption of "Bol Re" (a plank over a river). The church replaced an earlier one from the 13th century and a huge iron key which was used by the monks from Beaulieu Abbey
is still used to unlock the doors.
, who was the village parson and lived at Vicars Hill. He was famed for his wealth of knowledge about the New Forest, and its flora and fauna. William Gilpin is buried in the churchyard of St John the Baptist beside an old maple tree. He died in 1804 at the age of 80 and it is written:
In a quiet mansion beneath this stone, secured from the afflictions and still more dangerous enjoyments of life, lie the remains of William Gilpin, sometime vicar of this parish, together with the remains of Margaret his wife.
The headstone goes on that they await patiently the joy of waking in a much happier place and adds:
Here it will be a new joy to meet several of their good neighbours who now lie scattered in these sacred precincts around them.
One of Gilpin's successors, the Rev. Thomas Vialls, was apparently quite an absent vicar of Boldre, but made one of his rare appearances in the parish in order to conduct the wedding of his curate Henry Comyn and Philadelphia Heylyn in 1815. Comyn, who was the brother of Lord Nelson's chaplain Stephen George Comyn
, carried out a comprehensive census and register of the locality and in 1817 compiled the notebooks of Boldre. Comyn was worried about the growth of religious dissent amongst the Boldre parishioners and that may explain why he made great effort to record Dissenter
s in his notebooks . His main concern seems to have been the growth of the Baptist
movement which was then flourishing in the New Forest area. For example the Baptist church was founded at Beaulieu Rails (East Boldre
) in 1810 and at Sway in the Western part of the parish, in 1816. Comyn probably saw the Independents and Methodists as wayward Christians, but they did not appear to gain as much support locally as the Baptists. The record has proved of great interest to later family historians.
Comyn also published a book entitled Substance of part of the lectures delivered in the United parishes of Boldre and Brockenhurst, which was printed and published by Galpine of Lymington. The British Library copy contains many amendments in Comyn's own hand and there is also a copy in the University of Southampton
Library, Cope Collection.
because Hood's final Admiral Lancelot Holland
came from the area and was a regular worshiper at the church in the years before World War II
. The Hood Association's held the former Annual Boldre Service. This is no longer an official Association gathering, but it still serves as the largest public service of remembrance for Hood. This takes place in mid-May - generally the week before the annual Hood Association reunion dinner and service of remembrance which is always the Saturday nearest to 24 May.
during the Japanese occupation of Singapore
, and later wrote of his experiences
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in the New Forest
New Forest (district)
New Forest is a local government district in Hampshire, England. It is named after the New Forest.It was created on 1 April 1974, and was a merger of the borough of Lymington, New Forest Rural District and part of Ringwood and Fordingbridge Rural District....
district 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...
. It is situated inside 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....
National Park borders, near the Lymington River
Lymington River
----The Lymington River is a small river in the south of england, flowing through the New Forest into the Solent at the town of Lymington. The river has a total length of 30 km, although above the point where it leaves the Crown lands of the New Forest at Brockenhurst it is known as the Highland...
, and is about two miles (3 km) north of Lymington
Lymington
Lymington is a port on the west bank of the Lymington River on the Solent, in the New Forest district of Hampshire, England. It is to the east of the South East Dorset conurbation, and faces Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight which is connected to it by a car ferry, operated by Wightlink. The town...
. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 1,931.
Description
The present boundaries of the parish enclose an area of 7718 acres (31.2 km²) and include BattramsleyBattramsley
Battramsley is a hamlet in the civil parish of Boldre, in the New Forest in Hampshire, England.-Overview:Battramsley is a hamlet located just west of the village of Boldre, on the A337 road between Brockenhurst and Lymington. There is one pub called The Hobler Inn.-History:Battramsley is listed in...
, Walhampton
Walhampton
Walhampton is a small village in the New Forest National Park of Hampshire, England. It lies approximately 1.2 miles north-east from Lymington, on the opposite bank of the Lymington River....
, Portmore
Portmore, Hampshire
Portmore is a small village in the New Forest National Park of Hampshire, England. Its nearest town is Lymington, which lies approximately 1.3 miles south-west from the village.-External links:...
, Bull Hill, Pilley Bailey, Pilley
Pilley, Hampshire
Pilley is a small village in the civil parish of Boldre, in the New Forest national park in Hampshire, England. Pilley is located 2 miles north of the port of Lymington.-Overview:...
and Boldre. Boldre has a church, St John the Baptist, a pub called the Red Lion, a Church of England School on Pilley Hill called William Gilpin after the Vicar of the Church and the old school house (located on Boldre Lane) and a Post Office. The post box can still be seen today, and the school is now a house with a plaque outside.
A hundred years ago, W.H. Hudson described the countryside north of Lymington around the villages of Pilley and Boldre in Hampshire Days as 'a land of secret, green, out-of-the-world places.' Today it contains large homes and is much more accessible, but remains largely unspoilt.
Early and mediaeval
The Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
contains a substantial entry on the Hundred of Boldre, where it is recorded as "Bouvre". This is probably a Norman corruption of "Bol Re" (a plank over a river). The church replaced an earlier one from the 13th century and a huge iron key which was used by the monks from Beaulieu Abbey
Beaulieu Abbey
Beaulieu Abbey, , was a Cistercian abbey located in Hampshire, England. It was founded in 1203-1204 by King John and peopled by 30 monks sent from the abbey of Cîteaux in France, the mother house of the Cistercian order...
is still used to unlock the doors.
Gilpin and the picturesque
Former residents include William GilpinWilliam Gilpin (clergyman)
The Reverend William Gilpin was an English artist, clergyman, schoolmaster, and author, best known as one of the originators of the idea of the picturesque.-Early life:...
, who was the village parson and lived at Vicars Hill. He was famed for his wealth of knowledge about the New Forest, and its flora and fauna. William Gilpin is buried in the churchyard of St John the Baptist beside an old maple tree. He died in 1804 at the age of 80 and it is written:
In a quiet mansion beneath this stone, secured from the afflictions and still more dangerous enjoyments of life, lie the remains of William Gilpin, sometime vicar of this parish, together with the remains of Margaret his wife.
The headstone goes on that they await patiently the joy of waking in a much happier place and adds:
Here it will be a new joy to meet several of their good neighbours who now lie scattered in these sacred precincts around them.
Comyn's New Forest
Stephen George Comyn
Stephen George Comyn was an English naval chaplain who served with Lord Nelson at the Battle of the Nile and Battle of Copenhagen. He was a close friend of Nelson and is said to have been his favourite chaplain. -Early life:...
, carried out a comprehensive census and register of the locality and in 1817 compiled the notebooks of Boldre. Comyn was worried about the growth of religious dissent amongst the Boldre parishioners and that may explain why he made great effort to record Dissenter
Dissenter
The term dissenter , labels one who disagrees in matters of opinion, belief, etc. In the social and religious history of England and Wales, however, it refers particularly to a member of a religious body who has, for one reason or another, separated from the Established Church.Originally, the term...
s in his notebooks . His main concern seems to have been the growth of the Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
movement which was then flourishing in the New Forest area. For example the Baptist church was founded at Beaulieu Rails (East Boldre
East Boldre
East Boldre is a linear village and civil parish situated near Lymington, Hampshire, England. East Boldre is surrounded by the New Forest and forms part of the district of New Forest....
) in 1810 and at Sway in the Western part of the parish, in 1816. Comyn probably saw the Independents and Methodists as wayward Christians, but they did not appear to gain as much support locally as the Baptists. The record has proved of great interest to later family historians.
Comyn also published a book entitled Substance of part of the lectures delivered in the United parishes of Boldre and Brockenhurst, which was printed and published by Galpine of Lymington. The British Library copy contains many amendments in Comyn's own hand and there is also a copy in the University of Southampton
University of Southampton
The University of Southampton is a British public university located in the city of Southampton, England, a member of the Russell Group. The origins of the university can be dated back to the founding of the Hartley Institution in 1862 by Henry Robertson Hartley. In 1902, the Institution developed...
Library, Cope Collection.
Caroline Southey
Another who linked the village with literature was Caroline Bowles, who in 1839 married Robert SoutheyRobert Southey
Robert Southey was an English poet of the Romantic school, one of the so-called "Lake Poets", and Poet Laureate for 30 years from 1813 to his death in 1843...
Hood Association
In the 20th century, the Church of St. John the Baptist, Boldre became associated with HMS HoodHMS Hood
Three ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Hood after several members of the Hood family, who were notable Navy officers: was a 91-gun second-rate ship of the line, originally laid down as HMS Edgar, but renamed in 1848 and launched in 1859. She was used for harbour service from 1872 and was...
because Hood's final Admiral Lancelot Holland
Lancelot Holland
Vice Admiral Lancelot Ernest Holland, CB commanded the British force in the Battle of Denmark Strait in May, 1941 against the German battleship Bismarck. Holland was killed during the battle.-Early life:...
came from the area and was a regular worshiper at the church in the years before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The Hood Association's held the former Annual Boldre Service. This is no longer an official Association gathering, but it still serves as the largest public service of remembrance for Hood. This takes place in mid-May - generally the week before the annual Hood Association reunion dinner and service of remembrance which is always the Saturday nearest to 24 May.
Priest in Prison
Following World War II another notable vicar served the parish. Rev. John Hayter had spent much of the war as a young priest in a the notorious Changi PrisonChangi Prison
Changi Prison is a prison located in Changi in the eastern part of Singapore.-First prison and POW camp:...
during the Japanese occupation of Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, and later wrote of his experiences