Hamble-le-Rice is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

in the

Borough of Eastleigh The Borough of Eastleigh is a local government district and borough in Hampshire, England, bordering the unitary authority of Southampton, Test Valley, the City of Winchester and the Borough of Fareham. Eastleigh is separated from the New Forest ...

in Hampshire, England. It is best known for being an aircraft training centre during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and is a popular yachting location. The village and the

River Hamble The River Hamble is located in south Hampshire, England. It rises near Bishop's Waltham and flows for through Botley, Bursledon, and Lower Swanwick before entering Southampton Water between Hamble Common and Warsash. The Hamble is tidal fo ...

also featured in the 1980s

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

television series ''

Howards' Way ''Howards' Way'' is a television drama series produced by BBC Birmingham and transmitted on BBC1 between 1 September 1985 and 25 November 1990. The series deals with the personal and professional lives of the wealthy yachting and business comm ...

''. The village centre, known as The Square, Hamble, has a more traditional English village aesthetic which differentiates it from the small industrial areas (mostly marinas) close to the village.

Location

Hamble-le-Rice is on the south coast of England, south-east of

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

at the tip of the Hamble peninsula, bounded by

Netley Netley, officially referred to as Netley Abbey, is a village on the south coast of Hampshire, England. It is situated to the south-east of the city of Southampton, and flanked on one side by the ruins of Netley Abbey and on the other by the Ro ...

Butlocks Heath Butlocks Heath is a village in the district of Eastleigh in Hampshire, England. The village lies approximately 3.4 miles (5.4 km) south-east from Southampton. It is in the civil parish of Hound, which also includes Netley. Butlocks Heath and ...

Bursledon Bursledon is a village on the River Hamble in Hampshire, England. It is located within the borough of Eastleigh. Close to the city of Southampton, Bursledon has a railway station, a marina, dockyards and the Bursledon Windmill. Nearby villages i ...

Southampton Water Southampton Water is a tidal estuary north of the Solent and the Isle of Wight in England. The city of Southampton lies at its most northerly point, where the estuaries of the River Test and River Itchen meet. Along its salt marsh-fringed wes ...

and the

History

Although previously known as "Hamble", "Hamelea", "Hammel", and "Ham-en-le-Rice", the village's official name is now Hamble-le-Rice. The name "Hamble" is still in common usage. On 27 April 1992, the civil parish was renamed from "Hamble" to "Hamble-le-Rice". To the south of the village, lies the site of an

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

promontory

hillfort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

Hamble Common Camp Hamble Common Camp is the site of an Iron Age promontory hillfort located in Hampshire. The fort is located on ''Hamble common'' on a peninsula of land formed between Southampton Water and the River Hamble. The site was later occupied by St And ...

. The place-name 'Hamble-le-Rice' is first attested in a French document of 1147, where it appears as ''Amle''. It appears as ''Hamele'' in 1270, and as ''hamele in the Rys'' in 1404. The village takes its name from the

; the ''Rice'' is the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

''hrīs'' meaning 'brushwood' or perhaps by extension 'scrubland', and of which the modern form is the word '' rushes''. Thus a modern form of the name might be 'Hamble-in-the-Rushes'. The area is home to the remains of a defensive structure dating to the reign of King

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

. Known as St Andrew's Castle, investigations suggest that it consisted of a rectangular structure fronted by a gun platform with a semi-circular layout. The structure was protected by a moat, with a two gun platforms mounted on the

counterscarp A scarp and a counterscarp are the inner and outer sides, respectively, of a ditch or moat used in fortifications. Attackers (if they have not bridged the ditch) must descend the counterscarp and ascend the scarp. In permanent fortifications th ...

. The structure was intact as late as the early 17th century.

Aerospace

Hamble-le-Rice was the home of a major flying school before and during the Second World War for aircraft including the

Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Griff ...

, the Lancaster and the

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

. Over 500 aircraft were built there including the prototype

Armstrong Whitworth Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Co Ltd was a major British manufacturing company of the early years of the 20th century. With headquarters in Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne, Armstrong Whitworth built armaments, ships, locomotives, automobiles and a ...

Ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

and Albemarle, which were first flown in 1938 and 1940. In 1960 the Air Corporations Joint Training Scheme (later, British Airways) fixed wing and helicopter training school was established there, as the

Hamble College of Air Training Hamble College of Air Training was a flight training centre in Hampshire, England. During the late 1950s it became apparent that there was going to be a shortage of ex military pilots who would be available to crew British civil aircraft. The tw ...

. The south airfield has long since disappeared and the north airfield has been partially developed as housing; the remainder is overgrown and owned by property developers

Persimmon The persimmon is the edible fruit of a number of species of trees in the genus ''Diospyros''. The most widely cultivated of these is the Oriental persimmon, ''Diospyros kaki'' ''Diospyros'' is in the family Ebenaceae, and a number of non-pers ...

. The aviation industry retains a large interest in Hamble-le-Rice, with the Hamble Aerostructures factory, now a subsidiary of the Spanish company Aernnova, in Kings Avenue. The following units were here at some point: * No. 1 Basic Air Navigation School RAF *

No. 2 Air Experience Flight RAF No. 2 Air Experience Flight (2 AEF) is one of thirteen Air Experience Flights (AEFs) run by the Air Cadet Organisation of the Royal Air Force. The primary purpose of the AEF organisation is to provide air experience to members of the Air Tra ...

* No. 3 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School RAF * No. 3 Elementary Flying Training School RAF * No. 11 Air Observers Navigation School RAF * No. 14 Reserve Flying School RAF * No. 15 Ferry Pilots Pool RAF *

780 Naval Air Squadron 780 Naval Air Squadron (780 NAS) was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land a ...

* No. 2706 Squadron RAF Regiment *

Southampton University Air Squadron Southampton University Air Squadron (SUAS ) is a unit of the Royal Air Force which provides basic flying training, adventurous training and personal development skills to undergraduate students of the University of Southampton, University of Portsmo ...

Industrial areas

Hamble-le-Rice is home to three main marinas offering marine services and goods to the boating industry. In addition, large factories and smaller industrial units off Ensign Way and Hamble Lane are used by

CooperVision CooperVision, Inc. is a business unit of The Cooper Companies, Inc.. It is a soft contact lens manufacturer. The company was founded in 1980, and it is headquartered in Pleasanton, CA. Its products are sold in over 100 countries. CooperVision m ...

, BP, Hoyer, GE and others. Some of these businesses are 24-hour operations with large numbers of staff who commute to work. The fuel terminal itself is not visible from the B3397: there was extensive development in the early 2000s when wartime hangars were demolished and high-density housing built next to the road, near the terminal. The

Royal Yachting Association The Royal Yachting Association (RYA) is a United Kingdom national governing body for sailing, dinghy sailing, yacht and motor cruising, sail racing, RIBs and sportsboats, windsurfing and personal watercraft and a leading representative for inl ...

(RYA), a non-profit organisation, has its offices in Hamble.

Schools

There are two schools in Hamble-Le-Rice: * Hamble Primary School *

Hamble School The Hamble School is a secondary school in Hamble-le-Rice, offering education to children between 11-16. Ofsted The school was inspected by Ofsted in November 2001, when the quality of teaching received an overall "good" for both Years 7-9 an ...

, a secondary school (formerly Hamble Community Sports College)

The River and Environment

Hamble-le-Rice is a boating mecca: the nearby

is often packed with marine traffic and, during the summer, the whole village is crowded with people out enjoying the water, local restaurants and many pubs. The village and its river is one of the many locations that made up the fictional village of Tarrant, in the BBC television series ''

'', shown weekly on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

in the late 1980s. Hamble-le-Rice is home to a

common Common may refer to: Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Common, common land area in Cambridge, Massachusetts * Clapham Common, originally com ...

, a variety of

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...

wildlife, and other scenic walks.

Fuel terminal

Hamble fuel terminal was opened by

Shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses ** Thin-shell structure Science Biology * Seashell, a hard ou ...

in 1924, whilst BP was still afloat using a converted passenger liner as a fuel tender. In 1930 the two companies formed a joint venture and BP moved to Hamble. This partnership was dissolved in 1976, with the Hamble terminal passing to BP. A 2016 attempt to sell off the terminal was unsuccessful; however Hoyer now handles BPs bulk fuel road transport operation. A pipeline runs under

from the Fawley

oil refinery An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, lique ...

which supplies the BP fuel terminal at Hamble. This fuel terminal was used to supply

PLUTO Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the S ...

, during the

invasion of Europe Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norma ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

.Hampshire and D-Day. Martin Doughty. 1994. The

pipeline started at

Shanklin Shanklin () is a seaside resort and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the Isle of Wight, England, located on Sandown Bay. Shanklin is the southernmost of three settlements which occupy the bay, and is close to Lake, Isle of Wight, Lake ...

on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

and was supplied by ship from Hamble. The jetty at this fuel terminal was extended in 1943/44 so that more ships could be loaded simultaneously. Fuel is transported from this depot both day and night, in particular early mornings (between 3am and 6am), by 44 tonne road tankers along the B3397, as well as by pipeline to major industry and airports. Markers showing the route of the pipeline can be seen at various points in neighbouring Botley. A now disused branch line ran from the terminal to the

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

railway. This is now the scenic Strawberry Trail.

Transport links

The Hamble Peninsula has one main access road, the B3397, Hamble Lane, which is approximately long and goes straight through the village. Hamble Lane has had numerous incidences of traffic accidents. and at its intersection with Portsmouth Road an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) exists to monitor

nitrogen dioxide Nitrogen dioxide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is one of several nitrogen oxides. is an intermediate in the industrial synthesis of nitric acid, millions of tons of which are produced each year for use primarily in the producti ...

traffic pollutants. The B3397 is a very high volume road; a traffic count in March 2003 showed around 16,300 vehicles in a 24-hour period. Daily traffic congestion and slow moving queues are due to the large number of inbound and outbound commuters, on staggered work shifts. Many businesses supply local companies as BP Oil UK, CooperVision and GE Aviation and minor industry and services within the four marinas and industrial areas off Ensign Way. Road oil and petrol tankers form the bulk of the heavy goods vehicles along this road, numbering a few hundred vehicle movements per day. The village is served by

Hamble railway station Hamble railway station is an unstaffed station near the village of Hamble-le-Rice, England. It is served by a 2-track electrified line which joins the Southampton to London main line, in the direction of Southampton at St Denys in Southampton, ...

, about two miles from the centre of the village, which provides hourly services to both Southampton Central and

Portsmouth Harbour Portsmouth Harbour is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Portsmouth and Gosport in Hampshire. It is a Ramsar site and a Special Protection Area. It is a large natural harbour in Hampshire, England. Geographically it i ...

. It is also linked by a pedestrian

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

Warsash Warsash is a village in southern Hampshire, England, situated at the mouth of the River Hamble, west of the area known as Locks Heath. Boating plays an important part in the village's economy, and the village has a sailing club. It is also home ...

, and has frequent bus services to Southampton and Eastleigh.

People

*Sir

Sam Fay Sir Sam Fay TD (30 December 1856 – 30 May 1953), born in Hamble-le-Rice, Hampshire, England, was a career railwayman who joined the London and South Western Railway as a clerk in 1872 and rose to become the last General Manager of the Great Ce ...

, General manager of the

Great Central Railway The Great Central Railway in England was formed when the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway changed its name in 1897, anticipating the opening in 1899 of its London Extension. On 1 January 1923, the company was grouped into the ...

1902–22, was born here in 1856. *

Michael S. Robinson Michael Strang Robinson (1910–1999) was Keeper of Pictures at the National Maritime Museum, London, England. He was an expert on the paintings of Willem van de Velde, the elder and Willem van de Velde, the younger..Obituary, ''Mariner's Mirro ...

, naval art historian, was born here in 1910. *Boat builder W.S. Luke and his sons Albert Luke and Walter Luke came here in the late 1880s to establish their boatyard. * Ronnie and Reggie Kray had a cottage in the Village] *

Tracy Edwards Tracy Edwards, MBE (born 5 September 1962) is a British sailor. In 1989 she skippered the first all-female crew in the Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race, becoming the first woman to receive the Yachtsman of the Year Trophy and was appointed ...

, Skipper of ''Maiden'', the first all-female round-the-world crew, lived in the village for a while. *

Robert Greenhalgh Rob Greenhalgh (born 17 August 1977) is a British sailor who has competed in and won both the Volvo Ocean Race and the Extreme Sailing Series. Greenhalgh has participated in the Volvo Ocean Race aboard '' ABN Amro I'' in the 2005–06 Volvo Oc ...

Volvo Ocean Race The Ocean Race is a yacht race around the world, held every three or four years since 1973. Originally named the Whitbread Round the World Race after its initiating sponsor, British brewing company Whitbread, in 2001 it became the Volvo Ocean Rac ...

veteran and four times sailing world champion, lived in the village *

Dani Rowe Danielle 'Dani' Rowe Order of the British Empire, MBE (née King; born 21 November 1990) is a British former Road bicycle racing, road and track cyclist. She retired from cycling in December 2018. A Cycling at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Women ...

, three-time world champion and Olympic gold medallist in the women's team pursuit. *

Dani King Danielle 'Dani' Rowe MBE (née King; born 21 November 1990) is a British former road and track cyclist. She retired from cycling in December 2018. A team pursuit gold medallist from the London Olympics in 2012, Rowe also won three consecutive ...

- cyclist (Women's Team Pursuit World Champion 2011, 2012 and 2013; Women's Team Pursuit Gold Medallist at

London 2012 The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

) the cycle path into the village is named in her honour and she is the reason for the village post box being painted gold by the

Royal Mail , kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga , logo = Royal Mail.svg , logo_size = 250px , type = Public limited company , traded_as = , foundation = , founder = Henry VIII , location = London, England, UK , key_people = * Keith Williams ...

to commemorate her success at the home olympics. *

Basil Lubbock Alfred Basil Lubbock MC (9 September 1876 – 3 September 1944 at Monks Orchard, Seaford) was a British historian, sailor and soldier. He was a prolific writer on the last generation of commercial sailing vessels in the Age of Sail. He was an e ...

, sailor, soldier and historian lived in the village.

Sport and leisure

The main sporting activity in the village is sailing with it being the centre of UK offshore sailing and a hub for inshore yacht and keelboat racing. This is partly due to its mainland location and closeness to Cowes on the Isle of Wight. There are three sailing clubs within the village: * Hamble River Sailing Club was founded in 1919 * RAF Yacht Club open its Hamble club house in 1952 * Royal Southern Yacht Club opened in the 1930s, with the club one of the oldest in the world being established in 1837 In addition Warsash Sailing Club based on the other side of the river also contributes significantly to sailing activities within the village hosting the annual spring series championship and other regattas. Together with offshore racing primarily organized by the

Royal Ocean Racing Club The Royal Ocean Racing Club is a club in London with a further clubhouse and office in Cowes, Isle of Wight. It was established in 1925 as the Ocean Racing Club, as a result of a race to the Fastnet Rock from Cowes, finishing in Plymouth. It rece ...

and the

Junior Offshore Group The Junior Offshore Group (JOG) is a UK based yacht club that organises offshore yacht races in the UK using IRC handicap system. The upper IRC limit for JOG is currently set at 1.200 and there is no lower limit as long as yachts comply with the ...

. The

, the sport’s national governing body, has had its headquarters in the village since the early 2000s, when it moved from Eastleigh to a new purpose built building. The village has two

non-league football Non-League football describes football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is specifically used to de ...

clubs; Folland Sports and Hamble Club, both of which play in the

Wessex League The Wessex Football League is an English association football league formed in 1986, with its premier division currently at the fifth step of the National League System, or the ninth tier of the overall English football league system. The par ...

. A speedway training track used to operated at Hamble in the early 1950s. There is now a sports college in Hamble to provide recreation and leisure.

References

External links

Hamble-le-Rice Parish Council WebsiteWalks in the Hamble ValleyHamble.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamble-Le-Rice Villages in Hampshire Borough of Eastleigh