The Monarch’s Way long-distance footpath crosses the parish, passing through the churchyard of the 12th century St Mary’s Church. The Georgian former rectory, Michelmersh Court, is Grade II* listed [3] and was for many years the home of Sir David and Lady Carina Frost.[4]
The parish is located to the east of the River Test on the northern edge of the Hampshire Basin, with chalk in the north.[5] To the south and east of the village this is overlain by Palaeocene sands and clays of the Lambeth Group. At the southern are younger deposits of Eocene age, sloping from a ridge of the Nursling sands into a valley of London Clay.[5] It has a brick and tile works,[6] and extensive former sand pits on Casbrook Common, now used as a landfill site.
The name Michelmersh is derived from the Old English micel + mersc, meaning ‘ large marsh’.[7]
Civil parish
On 1 April 1932 the parish of Timsbury was merged with Michelmersh, on 19 November 2003 the merged parish was renamed “Michelmersh & Timsbury”.[8] In 1931 the parish of Michelmersh (prior to the merge) had a population of 1101.[9]
Church
Parts of the church date to the 12th century with extensions added in the 13th century.[10] It was twice restored in the 19th century once 1846-7 and the second time 1888–9.[10]
The font dates from around the 14th century although it appears to have been modified at some point after 1822.[10] The Church’s chancel contains the effigy of a knight dating from the 14th century.[11] There is no name upon the effigy but the coat of arms is consistent with that of Roger Woodlock, a nephew of Henry Woodlock, who held land in the area during the relevant time period.[11]
In popular culture
Michelmersh is known for being one of the main locations for the filming of the 1980s British TV series Worzel Gummidge. Other locations include nearby villages of Stockbridge, King’s Somborne and Braishfield.[12]
Notable people with a connection to Michelmersh
- Mary Watson, one of the first two women to study chemistry at the University of Oxford
External links
Gallery
Church Road, Michelmersh
Michelmersh brickworks
Casbrook Common
References
- ↑ “Parish Headcounts, Area: Michelmersh CP (includes Timsbury)”. Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. 2001. Retrieved 28 February 2008.
- ↑ “Civil Parish population 2011”. Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for Natgional Statistics. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
- ↑ British Listed Buildings: Michelmersh Court
- ↑ “For sale: the stunning Hampshire home of Sir David Frost”. Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2 March 2013.
- 1 2 British Geological Survey, 2002, England & Wales Sheet 299: Winchester, 1:50,000 Geology Series, Keyworth, Nottingham:British Geological Survey, ISBN 0-7518-3340-1
- ↑ “Michelmersh Brick and Tile Company”. Archived from the original on 20 June 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
- ↑ Mills, A.D: A Dictionary of English Place-Names, page 229. Oxford University Press, 1991.
- ↑ “Romsey Registration District”. UKBMD. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
- ↑ “Population statistics Michelmersh AP/CP through time”. A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
- 1 2 3 O’Brien, Charles; Bailey, Bruce; Pevsner, Nikolaus; Lloyd, David W. (2018). The Buildings of England Hampshire: South. Yale University Press. pp. 386–387. ISBN 9780300225037.
- 1 2 Saul, Nigel (1 November 2020). “Who Lies Here? The Tomb Monument of an Early-fourteenth Century Knight in Michelmersh Church” (PDF). Hampshire Studies. 75 (1): 56–62. doi:10.24202/hs2020004. ISSN 1368-2709.
- ↑ “Worzel Gummidge (TV)”. 3 March 2016.
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