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Stockbridge Community Website
From Prehistory to the Norman Conquest
Stockbridge lies between the sites of three enclosed settlements dating from the Iron Age in the first millenium BC. These are Danebury Ring, Meon Hill and Woolbury above Stockbridge Down.
Danebury is the most striking and has been extensively investigated. From about 550 BC till about 100 BC the site was occupied by communities who built a series of massive earthworks and wooden ramparts of some sophistication.
Then, some time around 50 BC, something dramatic happened because the main gates of Danebury were burned down. We can only guess why, but at about this time all the hill forts in the area seem to have been abandoned indicating a major change in the way of life.
Whatever the cause, the Test Valley was still being farmed and occupied when the Romans arrived.
There are indications of droveways from Danebury to the Stockbridge crossing. They possibly date from before and during the Roman occupation.
Danebury is the most striking and has been extensively investigated. From about 550 BC till about 100 BC the site was occupied by communities who built a series of massive earthworks and wooden ramparts of some sophistication.
Then, some time around 50 BC, something dramatic happened because the main gates of Danebury were burned down. We can only guess why, but at about this time all the hill forts in the area seem to have been abandoned indicating a major change in the way of life.
Whatever the cause, the Test Valley was still being farmed and occupied when the Romans arrived.
There are indications of droveways from Danebury to the Stockbridge crossing. They possibly date from before and during the Roman occupation.
The Development of Stockbridge
What then is the connection between prehistoric man and Stockbridge? The answer is that from earliest times there was a need to cross the river. Even now the valley bottom is soft. Two thousand years ago it would have been very marshy.
Stockbridge is located at one of the narrowest parts of the Test Valley and on the eastern side the land slopes relatively gently. These factors make it an obvious point for a crossing.
Men or animals moving across the marsh want firm footing until they come to a fording place or log bridge over the river itself.
Some believe the builders of early bridgeheads were Roman soldiers who included road and bridge building among their skills. However, even after some 400 years of roman occupation no artefacts have yet been found in Stockbridge to prove a Roman origin.
It is possible that the first causeway was built in the middle ages or that more was added to allow the building of houses together with a wide street which gave space for a weekly market.
Once established, the site of a good river crossing would attract traffic passing east-west, particularly from Winchester to Salisbury. It was inevitable that a settlement would grow up where a north-south route linking Southampton with towns such as Andover or Newbury crossed this road.
However, there are no written records of the centuries immediately following the Roman occupation.
By the end of the first millenium, England was becoming united under Anglo-Saxon Kings, notably Alfred and the country was divided into Shires. The latter were made up of "hundreds", areas under a thegn, a noble of lower rank. Each hundred had its own court. the hundred of King's Somborne included White Somborne or Le Strete, as Stockbridge was then known.
The final series of Danish invasions early in the 11th Century led to the reign of Canute from 1016 to 1036. It is no surpise that at the time of the Norman conquest, White Somborne was held by a Dane named Tol under a grant from King Edward.
Stockbridge is located at one of the narrowest parts of the Test Valley and on the eastern side the land slopes relatively gently. These factors make it an obvious point for a crossing.
Men or animals moving across the marsh want firm footing until they come to a fording place or log bridge over the river itself.
Some believe the builders of early bridgeheads were Roman soldiers who included road and bridge building among their skills. However, even after some 400 years of roman occupation no artefacts have yet been found in Stockbridge to prove a Roman origin.
It is possible that the first causeway was built in the middle ages or that more was added to allow the building of houses together with a wide street which gave space for a weekly market.
Once established, the site of a good river crossing would attract traffic passing east-west, particularly from Winchester to Salisbury. It was inevitable that a settlement would grow up where a north-south route linking Southampton with towns such as Andover or Newbury crossed this road.
However, there are no written records of the centuries immediately following the Roman occupation.
By the end of the first millenium, England was becoming united under Anglo-Saxon Kings, notably Alfred and the country was divided into Shires. The latter were made up of "hundreds", areas under a thegn, a noble of lower rank. Each hundred had its own court. the hundred of King's Somborne included White Somborne or Le Strete, as Stockbridge was then known.
The final series of Danish invasions early in the 11th Century led to the reign of Canute from 1016 to 1036. It is no surpise that at the time of the Norman conquest, White Somborne was held by a Dane named Tol under a grant from King Edward.
Norman Conquest to the Twentieth Century
After the Norman Conquest the principle that every area should be the responsibility of a lord became more firmly established.
All land was owned by the King. The barons and below them the knights held land for which they paid a rent or tax to the King.
The Domesday Book in 1086 shows that the manor of Somborne, within the hundred of King's Somborne was held by William d'Eu or d'Ow. It is likely that this was Stockbridge. The manor had 37 men bound to the lord. Nine houses belonging to the burgesses were listed. It is likely, though that these were not located in Stockbridge itself, just as a landowner today may have outlying properties.
In 1096 William d'Eu was executed for treason and the manor reverted to the Crown. Nearly a century later in 1190 it was granted to William de Briwere by Richard I. The first indication of a borough like status comes at this time when Richard I granted William the right to hold a weekly market in Lestrait. This was renewed by John in 1200 and in 1221 Henry III added the right to hold an annual fair.
Later in the century, as the town expanded, new plots of a pattern similar to burbage plots were recorded, reaching 97 in 1283 when our ancient courts began.
After the death of William de Briwere a sequence of inheritances and marriages led in 1399 to the estate becoming a part of the duchy of Lancaster, which returned the property to the Crown. No manor house was ever built in our near Stockbridge probably because William de Briwere and his successors has estates elsewhere.
Ultimately the Duchy of Lancaster sold the manor to Joseph Foster Barham in 1824.
When Queen Elizabeth I granted the right to send two members to Parliament in 1562 / 3, it may have been taken as a de facto recognition of borough status. Most writers have described Stockbridge as a "borough by prescription" meaning that its status was based on long-continued use.
All land was owned by the King. The barons and below them the knights held land for which they paid a rent or tax to the King.
The Domesday Book in 1086 shows that the manor of Somborne, within the hundred of King's Somborne was held by William d'Eu or d'Ow. It is likely that this was Stockbridge. The manor had 37 men bound to the lord. Nine houses belonging to the burgesses were listed. It is likely, though that these were not located in Stockbridge itself, just as a landowner today may have outlying properties.
In 1096 William d'Eu was executed for treason and the manor reverted to the Crown. Nearly a century later in 1190 it was granted to William de Briwere by Richard I. The first indication of a borough like status comes at this time when Richard I granted William the right to hold a weekly market in Lestrait. This was renewed by John in 1200 and in 1221 Henry III added the right to hold an annual fair.
Later in the century, as the town expanded, new plots of a pattern similar to burbage plots were recorded, reaching 97 in 1283 when our ancient courts began.
After the death of William de Briwere a sequence of inheritances and marriages led in 1399 to the estate becoming a part of the duchy of Lancaster, which returned the property to the Crown. No manor house was ever built in our near Stockbridge probably because William de Briwere and his successors has estates elsewhere.
Ultimately the Duchy of Lancaster sold the manor to Joseph Foster Barham in 1824.
When Queen Elizabeth I granted the right to send two members to Parliament in 1562 / 3, it may have been taken as a de facto recognition of borough status. Most writers have described Stockbridge as a "borough by prescription" meaning that its status was based on long-continued use.
A Rotten Borough
In 1562-3 Queen Elizabeth granted the town the right to send two members to Parliament. Although a fee was required to send a member, so that some boroughs did not take up the right, Stockbridge did send members, mostly made up from the local gentry.
The first two members were returned by only seven electors! In 1614 28 voters were recorded and in 1793 there were 63 voters. By then the habit of selling votes to the highest bidder was well established. Sometimes the bribe was in kind; for example Essex Strode's gift of a silver mace in 1681 or the present of a lovely set of communion plates by George Pitt and Thomas Jervoise in 1697. Both these are still held by the town and chirch respectively.
Later it bacame more usual for votes to be sold for money and this favoured men from outside the area with large fortunes. The system of extracting these "fees" was well organised and in the time of John Bucket, landlord of the King's Head Inn, the sum of 70 guineas was the figure reached for a payment to the voters.
the defeated candidates, George Porter and Joseph Foster Barham protested. In 1793 a select committee of the House of Commons investigated the claims for bribery and threatened the 63 voters with disfranchisement for having accepted bribes. Porter and Barham were then returned as members.
Barham was determined to increase his influence in the town. He bought property in the High Street and in 1790, with George Porter, built the Town Hall at great expense. By 1820 he owned 80 houses in the town, many of which he had built.
At this point, in a temporary housing shortage, he sold 72 to Lord Grosvenor who won the seat in 1824. Barham had kept some land and when his fortunes revived he built further houses to form Blandford Row and Trafalger Street. Needless to say they housed voters favourable to him. He also bought the Lordship of the Manor from the Duchy of Lancaster.
Lord Grosvenor gave his name to the Grosvenor Hotel, which was built on the site of the earlier King's Head Inn. Over the pillars of its portico is the curved room which is such a feature of the High Street. It is now the club room of the Houghton Fishing Club.
Lord Grosvenor did not remain a member for long since Barham won the seat in 1831. By this time the Reform Act of 1832 was imminent and Stockbridge was one of those boroughs to be disfranchised. No more rich pickings.
The first two members were returned by only seven electors! In 1614 28 voters were recorded and in 1793 there were 63 voters. By then the habit of selling votes to the highest bidder was well established. Sometimes the bribe was in kind; for example Essex Strode's gift of a silver mace in 1681 or the present of a lovely set of communion plates by George Pitt and Thomas Jervoise in 1697. Both these are still held by the town and chirch respectively.
Later it bacame more usual for votes to be sold for money and this favoured men from outside the area with large fortunes. The system of extracting these "fees" was well organised and in the time of John Bucket, landlord of the King's Head Inn, the sum of 70 guineas was the figure reached for a payment to the voters.
the defeated candidates, George Porter and Joseph Foster Barham protested. In 1793 a select committee of the House of Commons investigated the claims for bribery and threatened the 63 voters with disfranchisement for having accepted bribes. Porter and Barham were then returned as members.
Barham was determined to increase his influence in the town. He bought property in the High Street and in 1790, with George Porter, built the Town Hall at great expense. By 1820 he owned 80 houses in the town, many of which he had built.
At this point, in a temporary housing shortage, he sold 72 to Lord Grosvenor who won the seat in 1824. Barham had kept some land and when his fortunes revived he built further houses to form Blandford Row and Trafalger Street. Needless to say they housed voters favourable to him. He also bought the Lordship of the Manor from the Duchy of Lancaster.
Lord Grosvenor gave his name to the Grosvenor Hotel, which was built on the site of the earlier King's Head Inn. Over the pillars of its portico is the curved room which is such a feature of the High Street. It is now the club room of the Houghton Fishing Club.
Lord Grosvenor did not remain a member for long since Barham won the seat in 1831. By this time the Reform Act of 1832 was imminent and Stockbridge was one of those boroughs to be disfranchised. No more rich pickings.
Racing in Stockbridge
Racehorse training in the area dates back to the late 1700s, and racing became popular from 1831. Stockbridge Races, in late June, became a major feature in the racing calendar. Visitors poured into the town, many using the railway, which had opened in 1865.
The most prominent race-goer was the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII. For a time he came with his mistress, the famous beauty Lillie Langtry, still acknowledged in the name of a local tea shop. The houses in which each stayed lie either side of the River Test, but their gardens are connected by a footbridge.
In 1898 the eastern end of the racecourse, which included the straight mile, was inherited by a lady who strongly disapproved of gambling. She refused to extend the lease, and the race course closed - a disaster for the local economy.
Courts Baron and Leet
Since feudal times the common land in Stockbridge has been administered and run by the traditional Courts Baron and Leet, presided over by the Lord of the Manor. The Courts confirmed and recorded the right to graze stock and hunt on the common land and dealt with minor criminal disputes. An important official was the Hayward, who herded the common cattle of the town and was responsible for its fences, hedges and enclosures.
The remaining areas of common land, Common Marsh and Stockbridge Down, were transferred to the National Trust, who continue to support the lordship and the courts, which sit in public once a year in the Town Hall, usually in the second week of March.
History of Stockbridge Football Club - The Robins
Stockbridge Football Club was formed in 1894. The only institutions in Stockbridge with a longer history than the Club are the Courts Baron and Leet and the Churches. The club nicknamed “The Robins” played its early games on the Common Down before moving to Little Dean field in London Road in about 1910, a site provided by Sir Norman Hill, Lord of the Manor.
Stockbridge was proud of its team then and always has been, for over the years it brought success to the village at regular intervals, often against clubs with far bigger populations and resources.
Soon after the First World War, they won the Jorgenson Cup, a competition based on the King’s Somborne district, and during the 20s they won the Faber League Cup three times, and were three times champions of the Sutton Scotney League.
They entered the Andover Junior League in 1931 and won the Division 2 championship at the first attempt. In 1933 the Robins won the Hants Junior B cup and in 1935 they won the North Hants Junior Cup for the first time. The club withdrew from the Andover League in 1936 and up to the outbreak of World War 2 competed in the Winchester League.
After World War 2 Stockbridge again joined the Andover Junior League, winning the first division championship four times and the League Cup twice. The Robins also won the North Hants Junior Cup in 1955 and 1961. They were finalists in the Hants Junior ‘A’ Cup in 1952, a big day in the Club’s history as they played at Portsmouth ground, Fratton Park.
This part of the Club’s history came to an abrupt end in 1971 when Little Dean was taken from the club by Hampshire County Council for road improvements, dealing the club a near mortal blow, leaving the Robins a nearly impossible task of finding a new home.
Rosalind Hill, now Lady of the Manor kindly donated the money from the sale of Little Dean to the Parish Council, however three years later the Parish Council had made little progress with the project. Consequently things looked extremely dire for the Club, who only survived this period thanks to a local Farmer John Foord, a real friend to the club who allowed them to play on one of his fields.
During this period another person became a major player in the quest for a new pitch. Elizabeth Viney, a real sports lover, approached the Football Club and offered her help. Elizabeth enlisted the help of Hampshire Playing Fields Association, of which she was a member, and following much negotiation and many setbacks, in 1976 StockbridgeRecreation Trust, a Registered Charity was formed.
The Parish Council put the money donated by Rosalind Hill into the Trust and a piece of landwas purchased for a new ground. Converting the piece of land, a peat bog, was going to be a major project – the site needed to be built up a considerable amount.
The Football Club members organised numerous fund raising events to raise money, while at the same time Club Members spent hundreds of hours working on the site.
The Vine Inn, headquarters of the Football Club at the time, raised well over £2000 as a result of a sponsored walk. In addition to this the Club received a grant from Hampshire Playing Fields Association, donations from Stockbridge and Longstock Parish Councils, Stockbridge Festival, Houghton Fishing Club and £500 from Jim Parker, an old Stockbridge player who was visiting from his new home in Australia.
Also valuable donations of infill from Leckford Estate and yet again the tremendous work carried out on site by John Foord all resulted in the project taking shape. At the same time, a sub -committee demonstrating the same commitment, worked on the children’s play area. After seven long years the Recreation Ground opened in August 1978.
At their new home the progress of the Robins would have filled their forerunners with pride. The playing surface has developed into one of the best in the county, used not only by the Football Club, but enjoyed by the local children and their parents for recreational activities. The team’s record on the new pitch has been remarkable for such a small community.
On the first full season on the new ground the Club were Andover League Champions, a feat they repeated in 1982.
In 1984 the Robins were promoted to the North Hants Senior League. In their first season in this, they finished in 2nd place in the League and were Runner-Ups in the League Cup. 1988 saw Stockbridge reach new heights when they became North Hants League Champions. In 1989 the club won the Andover Open Cup, and in 1990 the Andover Midweek Cup.
1991 saw Stockbridge have its most successful year in its history, winning the North Hants Senior Open Cup, North Hants League Cup, Andover Open Cup, and the Andover Midweek Cup and in the same year the Robins were promoted to Hampshire League Division 3.
In 1992 the Club again won the Andover Midweek Cup, and finished in second spot the year after. 1994 saw Stockbridge promoted to Division 2 of the Hampshire League. 1998 was a proud year for the club when they were promoted to Division 1 of the Hampshire League. In 1999 the Robins again lifted the North Hants Senior Cup. The season 1999/2000 saw Stockbridge elected to the Premier Division of the Hampshire League.
In order to comply with the Hampshire Leagues requirements, 2001 saw floodlights installed at the Recreation Ground, achieved by the same huge fundraising efforts by club members, and support from local organisations, businesses and individuals as in the past, plus grants from Sport Aid, Test Valley Borough Council, Stockbridge Parish Council, and Hampshire Playing Fields Association. 2004 saw the demise of the Hampshire League and we were placed in division 2 of the Wessex League. 2005 saw another first for the club when they reached the quarter -final 0f the Hampshire Senior Cup where they finaly went out to F.A. Vase winners Winchester City.
2006 proved another successful year for the club as they picked up two trophies,winning both the North Hants Senior Cup,and the Andover Open Cup. With changes in the League structure Stockbridge found themselves playing in division 1 of the newly named Sydenhams League for the season 2006/07.
The 2006/07 saw Stockbridge pick up another trophy, winning the Andover Open Cup for the second year running. Stockbridge beat Alresford Town in the final,who had just won promotion to the Sydenhams Wessex Premier division.
2008 saw Stockbridge faced with the possibility of expulsion from the Sydenhams Wessex League if they did not have a stand in place by the summer. A fund-raising committee was set up at the beginning of January and they set themselves the daunting task of raising the £10,000 needed for the stand by the end of March.
Fund-raising events were organised and a public appeal was launched to try to reach the target. The response from right across the local community was amazing. Money poured in from local businesses, organisations and individuals and by the closing date of the Appeal at the end of March the staggering amount of £16,494 had been raised.
Once again in their hour of need the community showed their support for their Football Club. The stand was put in place at the end of May and officially opened by the Lord of the Manor on June 7th.
Family traditions have played an important part in the continuity of Stockbridge Football Club, names such as Andrews, Dance, Diaper, Dominy, Langton, Mawson, Savage and Webb have been involved for many years and some for three or four generations.
Coupled with this, from time to time some new faces with the same commitment have emerged to carry on the fine tradition. Hopefully, with the same enthusiasm and support as in the past from local businesses, organisations and individuals the Club will continue to thrive.
