Owslebury
Encyclopedia
Owslebury is a village and civil parish
in the county of Hampshire
, in the South of England
approximately 5 miles (8 km) outside of Winchester
. It lies within the administrative district of the City of Winchester
.
. Marwell Zoological Park
is towards the south of the parish. Owslebury lies on the Pilgrims' Trail
from Winchester to Mont St Michel and the Monarch's Way
from Worcester
to Shoreham-by-Sea
.
The village is relatively geographically concentrated along the road that runs through the village. It has a public house and cricket ground that has probably been in use for 150 years http://www.hants.gov.uk/hampshiretreasures/vol01/page244.html, an infrequent bus service, a local school, church (St Andrews Church) and village hall. There were formerly several small shops in the village.
. A large mob formed and moved from farm to farm demanding money and threatening to destroy agricultural machinery. At Rosehill they assaulted Lord Northesk's steward, Moses Stanbrook, wrecked a winnowing machine, and extorted £5. John Boyes, a local farmer, accompanied the mob demanding that farmers and landlords sign an undertaking which read "We, the undersigned, are willing to give 2s. per day to our married labourers, and 9s. per week to single men, in consideration of having our rent and tithes abated in proportion". At Marwell Hall the lady of the house, Mrs. Alice Long, gave the mob £5 and signed John's document. Eventually the mob retreated to Owslebury Down. Nine people had signed John Boyes' document.
The rioters were tried in Winchester at the end of the year and several were executed. There was a good deal of sympathy for John Boyes and he was twice acquitted before eventually being found guilty and sentenced to be transported to Van Diemen's Land
for seven years. The trials were reported in The Times in December 1830 and January 1831. John Boyes did not complete his sentence. In 1835 the Home Secretary, Lord Melbourne, pardoned him and he returned home to his wife, Faith, and their children, in June of that year to continue farming in Owslebury. He died in Hensting in 1856.
A folk song called "The Owslebury Lads", collected in the early 20th century, recalls these events. It can be heard sung by Stev Jordan on the CD "Folk Songs of Hampshire".
near the northern edge of the Hampshire Basin
. The north of the parish is on the Seaford Chalk Formation. The village itself and Cockscomb Hill to the north-west are on high ground capped by the younger Newhaven Chalk Formation, deeply dissected by a dry valley
running SW towards Hensting and Fishers Pond at Colden Common
. Marwell in the south of the parish lies on the Palaeocene 'Reading Beds' (Lambeth Group
).
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 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 the South of 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...
approximately 5 miles (8 km) outside of Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
. It lies within the administrative district of the City of Winchester
City of Winchester
Winchester is a local government district in Hampshire, England, with city status. It covers an area of central Hampshire including the city of Winchester itself, and neighbouring towns and villages including New Alresford, Colden Common and Bishops Waltham....
.
Geography
The village lies at the top of a hill, on the Roman road from Winchester to the south coast near PortchesterPortchester
Portchester is a locality and suburb 10km northwest of Portsmouth, England. It is part of the borough of Fareham in Hampshire. Once a small village, Portchester is now a busy part of the expanding conurbation between Portsmouth and Southampton, on the A27 main thoroughfare...
. Marwell Zoological Park
Marwell Zoological Park
Marwell Wildlife, formerly known as Marwell Zoological Park, is a zoo situated at Owslebury in the English county of Hampshire, near Winchester...
is towards the south of the parish. Owslebury lies on the Pilgrims' Trail
Pilgrims' Trail
The Pilgrims' Trail is a 155 mile long-distance footpath that connects Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire, England to Mont St Michel in Normandy....
from Winchester to Mont St Michel and the Monarch's Way
Monarch's Way
The Monarch's Way is a long-distance footpath in England that approximates the escape route taken by King Charles II in 1651 after being defeated in the Battle of Worcester.Most of the footpath is waymarked...
from Worcester
Worcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
to Shoreham-by-Sea
Shoreham-by-Sea
Shoreham-by-Sea is a small town, port and seaside resort in West Sussex, England. Shoreham-by-Sea railway station is located less than a mile from the town centre and London Gatwick Airport is away...
.
The village is relatively geographically concentrated along the road that runs through the village. It has a public house and cricket ground that has probably been in use for 150 years http://www.hants.gov.uk/hampshiretreasures/vol01/page244.html, an infrequent bus service, a local school, church (St Andrews Church) and village hall. There were formerly several small shops in the village.
Marwell Wildlife
Marwell Wildlife (formerly Marwell Zoological Park) is within the boundaries of the parish.Swing Riots
In 1830, on November the 23rd, there was a riot in Owslebury. This was part of the wave of discontent among agricultural workers which had spread across southern England and expressed itself as the Swing RiotsSwing Riots
The Swing Riots were a widespread uprising by agricultural workers; it began with the destruction of threshing machines in the Elham Valley area of East Kent in the summer of 1830, and by early December had spread throughout the whole of southern England and East Anglia.As well as the attacks on...
. A large mob formed and moved from farm to farm demanding money and threatening to destroy agricultural machinery. At Rosehill they assaulted Lord Northesk's steward, Moses Stanbrook, wrecked a winnowing machine, and extorted £5. John Boyes, a local farmer, accompanied the mob demanding that farmers and landlords sign an undertaking which read "We, the undersigned, are willing to give 2s. per day to our married labourers, and 9s. per week to single men, in consideration of having our rent and tithes abated in proportion". At Marwell Hall the lady of the house, Mrs. Alice Long, gave the mob £5 and signed John's document. Eventually the mob retreated to Owslebury Down. Nine people had signed John Boyes' document.
The rioters were tried in Winchester at the end of the year and several were executed. There was a good deal of sympathy for John Boyes and he was twice acquitted before eventually being found guilty and sentenced to be transported to Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land was the original name used by most Europeans for the island of Tasmania, now part of Australia. The Dutch explorer Abel Tasman was the first European to land on the shores of Tasmania...
for seven years. The trials were reported in The Times in December 1830 and January 1831. John Boyes did not complete his sentence. In 1835 the Home Secretary, Lord Melbourne, pardoned him and he returned home to his wife, Faith, and their children, in June of that year to continue farming in Owslebury. He died in Hensting in 1856.
A folk song called "The Owslebury Lads", collected in the early 20th century, recalls these events. It can be heard sung by Stev Jordan on the CD "Folk Songs of Hampshire".
Archaeology
Several archaeological projects have been undertaken in the neighbourhood, including major excavations in the late 1960s and early 1970s of an important Iron Age and Rural settlement and cemetery.Geology
Owslebury lies on the Upper Cretaceous chalkChalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
near the northern edge of the Hampshire Basin
Hampshire Basin
The Hampshire Basin is a geological basin of Paleogene age in southern England, underlying parts of Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Dorset, and Sussex...
. The north of the parish is on the Seaford Chalk Formation. The village itself and Cockscomb Hill to the north-west are on high ground capped by the younger Newhaven Chalk Formation, deeply dissected by a dry valley
Dry valley
A dry valley is a valley found in either karst or chalk terrain that no longer has a surface flow of water.There are many examples of the latter along the North and South Downs in southern England...
running SW towards Hensting and Fishers Pond at Colden Common
Colden Common
Colden Common is a village and civil parish in Hampshire, England, lying just east of the M3 motorway between Winchester and Southampton. The nearest town is Eastleigh to the south west. Colden Common is in the Winchester District. To the east are the South Downs and to the west is the River Itchen...
. Marwell in the south of the parish lies on the Palaeocene 'Reading Beds' (Lambeth Group
Lambeth Group
The Lambeth Group is a stratigraphic group, a set of geological rock strata in the London and Hampshire Basins of southern England. It comprises a complex of vertically and laterally varying gravels, sands, silts and clays deposited between 56-55 million years before present during the Ypresian age...
).
Further reading
- Hewett P. (1991), Owslebury Bottom, Sumach Press, ISBN 0-7126-5012-1
- Houghton E. & Large B.,(2001), Owslebury Then and Now, George Mann Publications, ISBN 0-9524-4240-X