Fritham
Encyclopedia
Fritham is a small village in Hampshire
, England
. It lies in the north of the New Forest
, near the Wiltshire
border. It is in the civil parish
of Bramshaw
.
The oldest feature in Fritham is a Bronze Age
Bowl barrow
, known as The Butt which lies just east of the village, although it has been partially damaged on top by a brick structure.
Fritham is not mentioned in the Domesday Book
of 1086. It was once thought that the Domesday settlement of Truham (or Trucham) may have been Fritham, but this is now thought unlikely as Truham was within Boldre
Hundred. The first mention of Fritham appears early in the 13th century, when Geoffrey de Baddesley held land in Baddesley
and Fritham. Fritham remained attached to the manor of South Baddesley
in the parish of Boldre
at least until 1429.
The Royal Oak - a thatched cottage with red-brick additions - is one of the oldest pubs in the New Forest, dating back to the 1600's. Fritham Lodge, dating from 1671, may have been one of Charles II
hunting lodges. A school and chapel opened in Fritham in 1861.
From the 1860's until the 1920's Fritham was home to the Schultze gunpowder
factory. The factory specialised in smokeless powder for sporting guns. Established in 1865, it was at one time the largest nitro-compound gunpowder factory in the world, with sixty separate buildings and a staff of a hundred. It supplied three-quarters of the world's annual consumption of gunpowder for sporting purposes and often sent 100-ton consignments to the Americas loading road vans and special railway trucks for the docks at Southampton
. Little now remains of the factory except for the superintendent’s and gatekeeper’s houses. Eyeworth Pond
, near Fritham, was specially created by the factory as a reservoir to hold water needed during the manufacturing process.
Four young men from Fritham went down with the Titanic in 1912; Leonard Mark Hickman, Leonard Hickman, Stanley George Hickman, Ambrose Hood.
The Ham class minesweeper
HMS Fritham
was named after the village.
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...
, 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...
. It lies in the north of 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....
, near the Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
border. It is in the civil parish
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...
of Bramshaw
Bramshaw
Bramshaw is a small village and civil parish in Hampshire, England. It lies just inside the New Forest. The name Bramshaw means Bramble Wood. Until 1895, Bramshaw was divided into two parts, one half in Wiltshire, and one half in Hampshire...
.
History
The name Fritham may be derived from Old English meaning a cultivated plot (hamm) in scrub on the edge of a forest (fyrhth).The oldest feature in Fritham is a Bronze Age
Bronze Age Britain
Bronze Age Britain refers to the period of British history that spanned from c. 2,500 until c. 800 BC. Lasting for approximately 1700 years, it was preceded by the era of Neolithic Britain and was in turn followed by the era of Iron Age Britain...
Bowl barrow
Bowl barrow
Bowl Barrow is the name for a type of burial mound or tumulus. A barrow is a mound of earth used to cover a tomb. The bowl barrow gets its name from the fact that it looks like an upturned bowl...
, known as The Butt which lies just east of the village, although it has been partially damaged on top by a brick structure.
Fritham is not mentioned in the Domesday Book
Domesday 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...
of 1086. It was once thought that the Domesday settlement of Truham (or Trucham) may have been Fritham, but this is now thought unlikely as Truham was within Boldre
Boldre
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 north of Lymington...
Hundred. The first mention of Fritham appears early in the 13th century, when Geoffrey de Baddesley held land in Baddesley
South Baddesley
South Baddesley is a small village in the civil parish of Boldre in the New Forest National Park of Hampshire, England. It lies 2.3 miles north-east from Lymington, its nearest town.-External links:*, Boldre and South Baddesley Benefice*...
and Fritham. Fritham remained attached to the manor of South Baddesley
South Baddesley
South Baddesley is a small village in the civil parish of Boldre in the New Forest National Park of Hampshire, England. It lies 2.3 miles north-east from Lymington, its nearest town.-External links:*, Boldre and South Baddesley Benefice*...
in the parish of Boldre
Boldre
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 north of Lymington...
at least until 1429.
The Royal Oak - a thatched cottage with red-brick additions - is one of the oldest pubs in the New Forest, dating back to the 1600's. Fritham Lodge, dating from 1671, may have been one of Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
hunting lodges. A school and chapel opened in Fritham in 1861.
From the 1860's until the 1920's Fritham was home to the Schultze gunpowder
Gunpowder
Gunpowder, also known since in the late 19th century as black powder, was the first chemical explosive and the only one known until the mid 1800s. It is a mixture of sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate - with the sulfur and charcoal acting as fuels, while the saltpeter works as an oxidizer...
factory. The factory specialised in smokeless powder for sporting guns. Established in 1865, it was at one time the largest nitro-compound gunpowder factory in the world, with sixty separate buildings and a staff of a hundred. It supplied three-quarters of the world's annual consumption of gunpowder for sporting purposes and often sent 100-ton consignments to the Americas loading road vans and special railway trucks for the docks at Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
. Little now remains of the factory except for the superintendent’s and gatekeeper’s houses. Eyeworth Pond
Eyeworth Pond
Eyeworth Pond is a pond located near Fritham in the New Forest, in Hampshire, England.The pond was created in the 1860s by damming Latchmore Brook, with the purpose of supplying water to a nearby gunpowder factory...
, near Fritham, was specially created by the factory as a reservoir to hold water needed during the manufacturing process.
Four young men from Fritham went down with the Titanic in 1912; Leonard Mark Hickman, Leonard Hickman, Stanley George Hickman, Ambrose Hood.
The Ham class minesweeper
Ham class minesweeper
The Ham class was a class of inshore minesweepers , known as the Type 1, of the British Royal Navy. The class was designed to operate in the shallow water of rivers and estuaries. It took its name from the fact that all the ship names were British place names ending in -"ham"...
HMS Fritham
HMS Fritham
HMS Fritham was one of 93 ships of the of inshore minesweepers.Their names were all chosen from villages ending in -ham. The minesweeper was named after Fritham in Hampshire.-References:*Blackman, R.V.B. ed. Jane's Fighting Ships...
was named after the village.
External links
- Eyeworth Pond, Fritham, and the Schultze Gunpowder Factory, New Forest Explorers Guide