South Gorley is a hamlet

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...

 in 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 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...

, 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...

. Its nearest town is Ringwood

Ringwood

Ringwood is a historic market town and civil parish in Hampshire, England, located on the River Avon, close to the New Forest and north of Bournemouth. It has a history dating back to Anglo-Saxon times, and has held a weekly market since the Middle Ages....

, which lies approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) south-west of the hamlet.

The hamlet sits on the western boundary of the New Forest National Park, about 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) south of North Gorley

North Gorley

North Gorley is a hamlet in the New Forest National Park of Hampshire, England. Its nearest town is Fordingbridge, which lies approximately north of the hamlet.-Location:...

. The River Avon lies just to the west.

History

The name Gorley means "triangular wood/clearing". In 1086 Osbern the Falconer held the manor of Gorley from the King

William I of England

William I , also known as William the Conqueror , was the first Norman King of England from Christmas 1066 until his death. He was also Duke of Normandy from 3 July 1035 until his death, under the name William II...

. The part which became South Gorley was for most of its history included in and followed the descent of Ibsley

Ibsley

Ibsley is a village in Hampshire, England. It is about 2.5 miles north of the town of Ringwood.-Overview:The village of Ibsley lies to the east of the River Avon on the main road between Ringwood and Fordingbridge, and has some picturesque thatched cottages...

, in particular that part of Ibsley which John atte Bere had owned in the 14th century. South Gorley was, unlike North Gorley, in the parish of Ibsley, and it is now part of 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 Ellingham, Harbridge and Ibsley. The old village school of Ibsley, built in 1874 by the Earl of Normanton

Earl of Normanton

Earl of Normanton is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1806 for Charles Agar, 1st Viscount Somerton, Archbishop of Dublin. He had already been created Baron Somerton, of Somerton in the County of Kilkenny, in 1795 and Viscount Somerton, of Somerton in the County of Kilkenny, in...

, was at South Gorley.

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