Old-fashioned genius
l Day breaks on Lymington Harbour
travel
Old-fashioned genius W
ild horses pottered beside the road, oblivious to traffic, as we ventured past towns this century seemed to have ignored, with shops selling sweets in big jars. We were in the New Forest; a misleading name for this 900-year-old bit of Hampshire. Over the years, these pretty landscapes inspired many writers and poets including Jane Austen, whose first novel Pride And Prejudice is 200 this year. To celebrate, Jane Austen's House Museum in Chawton, her home from 1809 to 1817, is hosting a Pride And Prejudice exhibition until May 31. Our base for a six-day tour of some of the Hampshire beauty spots beloved of Jane and her family was The Pig Hotel – a self-styled shabby chic rural retreat close to the town of Brockenhurst comprising a working farm with a justly popular restaurant in the main building and guest rooms dotted about the estate. We only just made it to our room. Heavy rain had flooded and closed the approach road. But we found another route and splashed our way in. After 36 hours the rain finally relented and we went to Lymington, a jolly coastal town with a bustling main street and a colourful quay with beautiful craft shops. In nearby Milford-on-Sea we gazed from the seafront across the short distance to The Needles on the Isle of
SEVEN DAYS
Jane Austen is just one of the literary greats who loved to visit Hampshire and the New Forest. Peter Woodman finds out its appeal
Wight. After hours of rain, it was good to see the white chalk stacks glint in the sun. Near Milford is Hurst Castle, built by Henry VIII to defend the Solent from Spain. But it was the threat from France 250 years later that would lead to the emergence of Buckler’s Hard, a village a few miles along the Beaulieu River. About 50 British warships
for the Napoleonic Wars were built at Buckler’s Hard, and three ships built here of New Forest oak, including Nelson’s Agamemnon, fought at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. We learned all this at the rather terrific Buckler’s Hard museum before a woodland walk to view the kind of trees then used in shipbuilding. Buckler’s Hard cottages still stand on either side of a wide avenue down to the river. Occupants included Thomas Burlace, a shipwright on the Agamemnon, and master builder Henry Adams. Buckler’s Hard declined in the 19th century as steel replaced wooden shipbuilding, but it had a role in another great war effort. Sections of the Mulberry Harbour were built there in preparation for the D-Day landings in 1944, and craft would sail from the Beaulieu River to Normandy.
20 years later round-theworld yachtsman Sir Francis Chichester, who had local ties, arrived in his Gypsy Moth IV. A walk along the river leads to Beaulieu village – famous as home of the Montagus – and the present Lord Montagu’s National Motor Museum. These pretty villages can get busy, but there are plenty of out-of-the-way spots to enjoy. We retreated to The Red Lion pub in Boldre, a village near Lymington. Like many we discovered, it offers hearty meals and good beer at very reasonable prices. Brockenhurst and Lyndhurst both have an old-fashioned feel. The church of St Michael And All Angels looms over Lyndhurst and holds the remains of Alice Liddell – the inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice – who spent most of her life in or near Lyndhurst. It also offers great forest views. It’s not surprising the New Forest has inspired literature. Here you can let your imagination roam, free as wild horses.
the facts
l Shipbuilder Henry Adams’ home is now the Master Builder’s House pub
l Peter Woodman was hosted by The Pig in Beaulieu Road, Brockenhurst, Hampshire. Doubles start from £129 per night. Call 01590 622354 or visit www.thepighotel.co.uk l For more details of events taking place as part of 2013’s Jane Austen celebrations, visit prideandprejudice200.org.uk Saturday, March 2, 2013 19
travel
Old-fashioned genius W
ild horses pottered beside the road, oblivious to traffic, as we ventured past towns this century seemed to have ignored, with shops selling sweets in big jars. We were in the New Forest; a misleading name for this 900-year-old bit of Hampshire. Over the years, these pretty landscapes inspired many writers and poets including Jane Austen, whose first novel Pride And Prejudice is 200 this year. To celebrate, Jane Austen's House Museum in Chawton, her home from 1809 to 1817, is hosting a Pride And Prejudice exhibition until May 31. Our base for a six-day tour of some of the Hampshire beauty spots beloved of Jane and her family was The Pig Hotel – a self-styled shabby chic rural retreat close to the town of Brockenhurst comprising a working farm with a justly popular restaurant in the main building and guest rooms dotted about the estate. We only just made it to our room. Heavy rain had flooded and closed the approach road. But we found another route and splashed our way in. After 36 hours the rain finally relented and we went to Lymington, a jolly coastal town with a bustling main street and a colourful quay with beautiful craft shops. In nearby Milford-on-Sea we gazed from the seafront across the short distance to The Needles on the Isle of
SEVEN DAYS
Jane Austen is just one of the literary greats who loved to visit Hampshire and the New Forest. Peter Woodman finds out its appeal
Wight. After hours of rain, it was good to see the white chalk stacks glint in the sun. Near Milford is Hurst Castle, built by Henry VIII to defend the Solent from Spain. But it was the threat from France 250 years later that would lead to the emergence of Buckler’s Hard, a village a few miles along the Beaulieu River. About 50 British warships
for the Napoleonic Wars were built at Buckler’s Hard, and three ships built here of New Forest oak, including Nelson’s Agamemnon, fought at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. We learned all this at the rather terrific Buckler’s Hard museum before a woodland walk to view the kind of trees then used in shipbuilding. Buckler’s Hard cottages still stand on either side of a wide avenue down to the river. Occupants included Thomas Burlace, a shipwright on the Agamemnon, and master builder Henry Adams. Buckler’s Hard declined in the 19th century as steel replaced wooden shipbuilding, but it had a role in another great war effort. Sections of the Mulberry Harbour were built there in preparation for the D-Day landings in 1944, and craft would sail from the Beaulieu River to Normandy.
20 years later round-theworld yachtsman Sir Francis Chichester, who had local ties, arrived in his Gypsy Moth IV. A walk along the river leads to Beaulieu village – famous as home of the Montagus – and the present Lord Montagu’s National Motor Museum. These pretty villages can get busy, but there are plenty of out-of-the-way spots to enjoy. We retreated to The Red Lion pub in Boldre, a village near Lymington. Like many we discovered, it offers hearty meals and good beer at very reasonable prices. Brockenhurst and Lyndhurst both have an old-fashioned feel. The church of St Michael And All Angels looms over Lyndhurst and holds the remains of Alice Liddell – the inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice – who spent most of her life in or near Lyndhurst. It also offers great forest views. It’s not surprising the New Forest has inspired literature. Here you can let your imagination roam, free as wild horses.
the facts
l Shipbuilder Henry Adams’ home is now the Master Builder’s House pub
l Peter Woodman was hosted by The Pig in Beaulieu Road, Brockenhurst, Hampshire. Doubles start from £129 per night. Call 01590 622354 or visit www.thepighotel.co.uk l For more details of events taking place as part of 2013’s Jane Austen celebrations, visit prideandprejudice200.org.uk Saturday, March 2, 2013 19
