South Western Hotel
South Western Hotel The railway arrived in 1840 and the South Western Hotel (now flats) soon followed. Designed with a strong French influence it was originally named the Imperial when opened in 1867. Many of the rich passengers of the Titanic stayed there. In fact that ship’s staircase is said to be a copy of the one in the hotel. In 1942 it became the HQ for Military Movement Control. Post war it became South Western House being used by the BBC and Cunard.
Hamwih / Hamwic / Hamtun / Hamwith / Hamtune
Hamwih / Hamwic / Hamtun / Hamwith / Hamtune All these are variants of names given to pre Norman Conquest Southampton. Unusually, the Roman, Saxon and Norman towns were on different sites. Hamwih was founded circa 690 by Ina, King of the West Saxons, whose capital was Winchester. The Vikings raided Hamwih in 840 and 842. In 962 Hamwih was first referred to as Suthamtune perhaps to distinguish it from the Mercian Hamtune now called Northampton.
Holyrood Church
Holyrood Church The Holyrood church was badly bombed in 1940 and its shell now remains as a memorial to the dead of the Merchant Navy. The original 12th century church stood further out into the High Street. It was dismantled and moved back in 1320 to its present site. The Crusaders and men leaving for Crecy and Agincourt would all have prayed here before departing. In 1554 Philip of Spain prayed here on route to Winchester Cathedral where he married Queen Mary. He also brought in the new custom of exchanging gold rings. The date of the Quarter Jacks who strike every quarter of an hour is unknown but they were mentioned in 1760 and said to be already old. Richard Taunton’s tomb is at the rear of the church. The nave has a gravestone to John Speed, descendent of the great Elizabethan map maker of the same name. The ten commandments are carved on the end wall and state that we should commit no murder rather than the more commonly used ‘Thou shalt not kill’. Just inside the church you will find one of Southampton’s Titanic memorials. This one is the Titanic Memorial Fountain, which is dedicated to the firemen, stewards and crew from Southampton. It was paid for by the families and friends of the crew. The memorial was originally erected further North on Cemetery Road as a drinking fountain on 27th July 1915. It was moved to its current location in Holyrood Church on 15th April 1972 – the 60th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. A metal audio post allows the visitor to press various buttons and listen to the recorded testimonies of a selection of local people alive at the time of the disaster.
Henry Yevele
Henry Yevele Henry Yevele was a master stone mason and architect born around 1320 probably in Derbyshire. He had a brother Robert who was also a stone mason. Edward III appointed Yevele as the Master Mason in charge of work done to the Bloody Tower at the Tower of London and also for work done on Westminster Hall. He also carried out extensive work for Edward III’s son, the Black Prince. The Black Death caused a labour shortage and along with many surviving stone masons Yevele was forced into the King’s service for the construction of Windsor Castle seen in the plan of the castle from Norden’s Survey 1607. Yevele was a prolific architect and was associated with a wide range of work such as castles, churches and bridges. Both Edward III and Richard II employed Yevele as Principal Mason and Chief Architect. Work at Portchester Castle undertaken between 1384 to 1385 by the stone mason Hugh Kympton was under the supervision of Yevele who was overseeing so many projects that he could not possibly have undertaken the work himself. Between 1378 and 1379 Yevele advised on the building of the new Castle Keep at Southampton. He made use of the existing 200 foot diameter mound that had become compacted over the years and on to this he constructed a large cylindrical tower topped with four turrets. He also built a barbican to defend the Keep’s outer gate. Yevele’s Castle at Southampton was spectacular and rose high above the town’s roof tops. John Leland described the Castle as “….being both large and fair and very strong”. Shown is part of Speed’s map of 1611 showing the castle. It is thought that Yevele was the architect for the stretch of walls in Southampton known as “The Arcades” that were designed to protect the town from attack by the French. These were built around the same time as he was working on Southampton Castle. Henry Yevele is still remembered for the scale and simplicity of his work that combines structural with aesthetic strength. He died in 1400.
Henri De Portal
Henri De Portal After reading this entry, every time you handle a banknote you will remember Southampton and Henri de Portal. Henri de Portal was born in 1690 at Poitiers in France into a Huguenot family. The Huguenots were French protestants who were inspired by the writings of John Calvin. The term Huguenot was originally a derisive term. Louis XIV broke the charter which protected the religious freedom Henri and his family enjoyed, forcing half a million Huguenots to leave France for protestant countries. It is said that the Portal family were facing torture and death and in their flight from France Henri and his brother Guillaume hid in an oven and were smuggled out of France in wine barrels. They eventually found refuge in Southampton. The Huguenots brought many new skills with them and in Southampton found an established French community who with the permission of Elizabeth I used St Julien’s Chapel in Winkle Street as their church. Even today it is known as the French Church and monthly services are still held there in French. In 1705, at the age of fifteen, Henri was employed at South Stoneham Mill to learn his trade as a paper maker. He was clearly a talented and charming man who had gained influential friends, as in 1711 he gained the tenancy of Bere Mill near Whitchurch. In the same year Henri became a naturalised citizen and from then on was known as Henry Portal. In 1718 his business had become so successful manufacturing high quality paper of all kinds that he was able to expand by obtaining Laverstoke Mill between Whitchurch and Overton. In 1723 he was making paper for the rupee and in 1724 the Bank of England asked him to make the paper for British Bank notes. The business continued for about 250 years being handed down through the generations until it was acquired by Candy and then its current owners the De la Rue Company in 1995. Henry’s father died in London in 1704 and Henry married Dorothy Hasker in 1715 at Overton. Henry’s son Joseph bought the Manor of Laverstoke which included the mill in 1759. He became the Sherriff of Hampshire in 1763. Henry died at Freefolk near Whitchurch on 30th September, 1747.