Sonning Eye
Encyclopedia
Sonning Eye is a hamlet
on the River Thames
in Oxfordshire
, England
, in the civil parish of Eye & Dunsden
, at the very southernmost tip of Oxfordshire.
. It is about 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of Reading, Berkshire
. Sonning Eye is opposite the village of Sonning
, Berkshire
, to which it is linked by the historic brick-arched Sonning Bridge
and the more modern Sonning Backwater Bridges
.
The toponym
"Sonning" is derived from the Viking
name Sunna
and "Eye" meaning island
(cf. eyot) since it is a small gravel mound surrounded by the river's flood plain. There is also a true islet at Sonning Eye between two branches of the Thames.
The heart of Sonning Eye is a conservation area and there are a number of notable Grade II listed buildings including several historic barns that have now been converted for modern use. One house has some excellent William De Morgan
tiles.
Sonning Eye is surrounded by the alluvial floodplain
of the River Thames, much of which has been extracted for gravel, forming a number of lakes. In particular, a rowing
lake has now been formed, named the Redgrave Pinsent Rowing Lake
, after Olympic oarsmen Steve Redgrave
and Matthew Pinsent
. Other local sports include sailing
and water skiing
. Berry Brook
runs through the floodplain west and north of Sonning Eye, joining the Thames at Hallsmead Ait
to the northeast.
On the riverside near the Sonning Backwater Bridges is the French Horn
, a luxury hotel and restaurant. There is a small public car park here, a place to launch small boats, and a grass area by the river bank that is popular with fishermen.
On the islet is The Mill at Sonning
, an 18th century watermill
now a converted dinner theatre. The millrace runs through what is now the theatre bar, and powers a small turbine powering an 18.5 KW hydroelectric generator that supplies the National Grid.
The area has been a favourite location for artists, especially views of the old brick bridge from the river bank just downstream of the bridge. George Price Boyce
, the Victorian
watercolour painter associated with the Pre-Raphaelite art movement, visited and painted in the area.
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
on the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
in Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, 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...
, in the civil parish of Eye & Dunsden
Eye & Dunsden
Eye and Dunsden is a largely rural civil parish in the most southern part of English county of Oxfordshire.It includes the villages of Sonning Eye, Dunsden Green and Playhatch and borders on the River Thames with the village of Sonning in Berkshire connected via Sonning Bridge just over the river...
, at the very southernmost tip of Oxfordshire.
Overview
Until 1866, Sonning Eye formed part of the Oxfordshire section of Sonning civil parishCivil 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...
. It is about 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of Reading, Berkshire
Reading, Berkshire
Reading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
. Sonning Eye is opposite the village of Sonning
Sonning
Sonning, occasionally called Sonning-on-Thames is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Wokingham in the English county of Berkshire, a few miles east of Reading. The village is situated on the River Thames and was described by Jerome K...
, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
, to which it is linked by the historic brick-arched Sonning Bridge
Sonning Bridge
Sonning Bridge is a road bridge across the River Thames at Sonning, Berkshire. It links Sonning with Sonning Eye and crosses the Thames on the reach above Shiplake Lock, just short of Sonning Lock. It is a brick arch bridge completed in 1775, to replace an earlier wooden bridge...
and the more modern Sonning Backwater Bridges
Sonning Backwater Bridges
Sonning Backwater Bridges are two road bridges across two branches of the River Thames at Sonning Eye, Oxfordshire, England. Built in 1986 to replace an older wooden structure, the bridges span Sonning Backwater and the millrace to link historic brick arch Sonning Bridge of 1775, which spans the...
.
The toponym
Toponymy
Toponymy is the scientific study of place names , their origins, meanings, use and typology. The word "toponymy" is derived from the Greek words tópos and ónoma . Toponymy is itself a branch of onomastics, the study of names of all kinds...
"Sonning" is derived from the Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
name Sunna
Sunna (Saxon chief)
Sunna was a Saxon chief whose people were widespread in eastern Berkshire, southern England. A number of English place names are derived from this name including Sonning , Sonning Eye, Sunbury, Sunningdale, Sunninghill and Sunningwell, many close to the River Thames.One historian notes that...
and "Eye" meaning island
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
(cf. eyot) since it is a small gravel mound surrounded by the river's flood plain. There is also a true islet at Sonning Eye between two branches of the Thames.
The heart of Sonning Eye is a conservation area and there are a number of notable Grade II listed buildings including several historic barns that have now been converted for modern use. One house has some excellent William De Morgan
William De Morgan
William Frend De Morgan was an English potter and tile designer. A lifelong friend of William Morris, he designed tiles, stained glass and furniture for Morris & Co. from 1863 to 1872. His tiles are often based on medieval designs or Persian patterns, and he experimented with innovative glazes and...
tiles.
Sonning Eye is surrounded by the alluvial floodplain
Floodplain
A floodplain, or flood plain, is a flat or nearly flat land adjacent a stream or river that stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls and experiences flooding during periods of high discharge...
of the River Thames, much of which has been extracted for gravel, forming a number of lakes. In particular, a rowing
Sport rowing
Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
lake has now been formed, named the Redgrave Pinsent Rowing Lake
Redgrave Pinsent Rowing Lake
The Redgrave-Pinsent Rowing Lake is a rowing lake in the United Kingdom, named after the Olympic rowers Sir Steve Redgrave and Sir Matthew Pinsent. The lake and its boathouse are specifically designed for training use, and will provide training, medical, and scientific facities for the GB rowing...
, after Olympic oarsmen Steve Redgrave
Steve Redgrave
Sir Steven Geoffrey Redgrave CBE is an English rower who won gold medals at five consecutive Olympic Games from 1984 to 2000. He has also won three Commonwealth Games gold medals and nine World Rowing Championships gold medals...
and Matthew Pinsent
Matthew Pinsent
Sir Matthew Clive Pinsent CBE is an English rower and broadcaster. During his rowing career, he won 10 world championship gold medals and four consecutive Olympic gold medals, of which three were with Steve Redgrave...
. Other local sports include sailing
Sailing
Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...
and water skiing
Water skiing
thumb|right|A slalom skier making a turn on a slalom waterski.Waterskiing is a sport where an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation on a body of water, skimming the surface.-History:...
. Berry Brook
Berry Brook
The Berry Brook is a stream close to Sonning Eye in the flood plain of the River Thames, in southern Oxfordshire, England.The stream flows northeast from close to the Redgrave-Pinsent Rowing Lake, parallel with the A4155 Henley Road ourt of Caversham, Reading towards Henley-on-Thames. It flows...
runs through the floodplain west and north of Sonning Eye, joining the Thames at Hallsmead Ait
Hallsmead Ait
Hallsmead Ait is an island in the River Thames in Berkshire, England. It is on the reach above Shiplake Lock near Lower Shiplake.The island is large and triangular shaped, forming a pair with The Lynch, a similar shaped island. It is uninhabited and covered with a wide variety of trees...
to the northeast.
On the riverside near the Sonning Backwater Bridges is the French Horn
French Horn, Sonning Eye
The French Horn at Sonning is a luxury hotel and restaurant on the banks of the River Thames next to the Sonning Backwater Bridges , at Sonning Eye, Oxfordshire, England....
, a luxury hotel and restaurant. There is a small public car park here, a place to launch small boats, and a grass area by the river bank that is popular with fishermen.
On the islet is The Mill at Sonning
The Mill at Sonning
The Mill at Sonning is a theatre and restaurant , converted from an 18th century flour mill, on an island in the River Thames at Sonning Eye in the English county of Oxfordshire....
, an 18th century watermill
Watermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
now a converted dinner theatre. The millrace runs through what is now the theatre bar, and powers a small turbine powering an 18.5 KW hydroelectric generator that supplies the National Grid.
The area has been a favourite location for artists, especially views of the old brick bridge from the river bank just downstream of the bridge. George Price Boyce
George Price Boyce
George Price Boyce was a British watercolour painter of landscapes and vernacular architecture in the Pre-Raphaelite style. He was a patron and friend of Dante Gabriel Rossetti....
, the Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
watercolour painter associated with the Pre-Raphaelite art movement, visited and painted in the area.
See also
- Islands in the River ThamesIslands in the River ThamesThis article lists the islands in the River Thames, in England. It excludes many of the smaller lock islands that were created when weirs and locks were built, and also some very small islands that immediately adjoin the larger ones. The Isle of Dogs and Isle of Grain are no longer islands although...
- Sonning BridgeSonning BridgeSonning Bridge is a road bridge across the River Thames at Sonning, Berkshire. It links Sonning with Sonning Eye and crosses the Thames on the reach above Shiplake Lock, just short of Sonning Lock. It is a brick arch bridge completed in 1775, to replace an earlier wooden bridge...
- Sonning RegattaSonning RegattaSonning Regatta is the regatta of the village of Sonning in Berkshire and the hamlet of Sonning Eye in Oxfordshire, England, on the north and south banks of the River Thames.- History :The original Regatta was interrupted by World War II...
- Caversham LakesCaversham LakesCaversham Lakes is a set of lakes created through gravel extraction between the suburb of Caversham in Reading, Berkshire and the hamlet of Sonning Eye in Oxfordshire, just north of the River Thames.- Overview :...
- Redgrave Pinsent Rowing LakeRedgrave Pinsent Rowing LakeThe Redgrave-Pinsent Rowing Lake is a rowing lake in the United Kingdom, named after the Olympic rowers Sir Steve Redgrave and Sir Matthew Pinsent. The lake and its boathouse are specifically designed for training use, and will provide training, medical, and scientific facities for the GB rowing...
- List of places in Oxfordshire
- List of civil parishes in England