Ropley is a village and large
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
East Hampshire
East Hampshire is a local government district in Hampshire, England. Its council is based in Petersfield. Other towns are Alton and Bordon.
The district was originally to be known as the District Council of Petersfield. It comprised 42 seats a ...
district of
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
, England. It has an acreage of , situated east from
New Alresford
New Alresford or simply Alresford ( or ) is a market town and civil parish in the City of Winchester district of Hampshire, England. It is northeast of Winchester and southwest of the town of Alton.
New Alresford has independent shops, a t ...
, and is served by a station on the
Mid Hants Railway heritage line at
Ropley Dean
Ropley Dean is a village in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 7.3 miles (11.7 km) southwest of Alton.
The village has its own restored railway station on the Watercress Line. Trains from here connect with the nearest n ...
, just over from the village shops. It is southwest of
Alton
Alton may refer to:
People
*Alton (given name)
*Alton (surname)
Places Australia
*Alton National Park, Queensland
* Alton, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Balonne
Canada
* Alton, Ontario
*Alton, Nova Scotia
New Zealand
* Alton, New Zealand, ...
, just off the
A31 road
The A31 is a major trunk road in southern England that runs from Guildford in Surrey to Bere Regis in Dorset.
Route of road
The road begins in Guildford at the start of Farnham Road near Guildford Station, coming out of the town and passin ...
. It lies within the
diocese of Winchester
The Diocese of Winchester forms part of the Province of Canterbury of the Church of England. Founded in 676, it is one of the older dioceses in England. It once covered Wessex, many times its present size which is today most of the historic enla ...
.
The
St Swithun's Way, part of the
Pilgrims' Way
The Pilgrims' Way (also Pilgrim's Way or Pilgrims Way) is the historical route supposedly taken by pilgrims from Winchester, Hampshire, Winchester in Hampshire, England, to the shrine of Thomas Becket at Canterbury in Kent. This name, of compa ...
from
Winchester
Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...
to
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour.
...
, passes through the village.
It is distinguished by its general absence of pavements in favour of boundary walls, hedges and mature trees.
Ropley holds an annual Boxing Day walk, and a pram race on the spring
bank holiday
A bank holiday is a national public holiday in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and the Crown Dependencies. The term refers to all public holidays in the United Kingdom, be they set out in statute, declared by royal proclamation or held ...
in May.
Etymology
Ropley is first recorded in AD 1167 as ''Ropeleia''
the name is derived from 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 ...
personal name '' 'Hroppa' '' similar to modern day
Robert
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
and the common suffix 'léah' meaning either; meadow, small woodland or woodland clearing. The latter translation is most likely, this is because the personal name would specify a settlement in a woodland clearing, hence Ropley is translateable as '' "Robert's woodland clearing" ''. The proposed reconstruction of the original Saxon writing would be something like ''*Hroppanleah''.
This is also leads us to the etymology of the
Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
of
Lyeway about 2.25 km away. Lyeway first recorded in 1327 in the personal name ''John atte Ligheweye'' the name refers to a 'way' ie a lane that led to the 'léah', in other words Lyeway translates as the 'lane to Ropley'.
History
In the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
Ropley was part of the "Hundred of Bishops Sutton" (or "Ashley"). Ropley is noted as having provided the honey for
William the Conqueror
William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...
's mead.
The Gervais family
By the 13th century much of the manor of Ropley was owned by the Gervase family (also written as Gervais, Gervas, Gervase, Gerveis and Jervays), the name is of French/
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
origin and likely related to the other families who held lands throughout the country see also
Walter Gervais. In the 1370s the family began to gift lands in Ropley to the founding of
Winchester College
Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...
by
William of Wykeham
William of Wykeham (; 1320 or 1324 – 27 September 1404) was Bishop of Winchester and Chancellor of England. He founded New College, Oxford, and New College School in 1379, and founded Winchester College in 1382. He was also the clerk of ...
. William Gervas of Ropley mentioned in Winchester College documents in 1256 is the first record of a Gervais family member in Ropley although their presence in the village likely went back earlier. The last mention of the family is in 1450 speaking about rentals of the Land of ''Roger Gervays''. This being the last record is no surprise seeing they had given most of their lands to Winchester College by that point.
Inclosures Act
The commons and common fields of Ropley, estimated at 500 acres, were
enclosed
Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or "common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...
in 1709 in what was the first private parliamentary act of its kind in England. The bill was led by the bishop of Winchester, Jonathan Trelawny, in an effort to restore his family finances, and by the College of Winchester. The enclosure was strongly contested by petition by many of the commoners who claimed that the bishop and his three appointed commissioners were stealing their commons rights. Parliament declined to intervene. Serious and bloody repercussions followed affecting neighbouring parishes and later enclosures across the country.
The post office was opened in 1851 when the population was 818. In 1870, the population was 796
Parish church
![Ropley Church - January 2010 - panoramio](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Ropley_Church_-_January_2010_-_panoramio.jpg)
St Peter's
parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...
lies in the village. Its
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
memorial lists 40 people who died, whilst the
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 ...
tablet lists a further 10 people. The Grade-II listed church was severely damaged by a major electrical fire on 19 June 2014 which gutted the building and destroyed the roof. However plans have been put forward to repair the building.
The vicar of Ropley from 1796 to 1811 was the Reverend
William Howley
William Howley (12 February 1766 – 11 February 1848) was a clergyman in the Church of England. He served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1828 to 1848.
Early life, education, and interests
Howley was born in 1766 at Ropley, Hampshire, w ...
(who succeeded his father, also William Howley, in the post). Howley is perhaps Ropley's most famous resident, and went on to serve as a
Canon
Canon or Canons may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base
* Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture
** Western ca ...
of
Christ Church,
Regius Professor of Divinity at
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
,
Bishop of London
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
(1813-1828), and
Archbishop of Canterbury
The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...
(1828-1848), in which capacity he crowned two British monarchs.
Historic buildings
There are numerous old buildings in the village:
Hamlets
Ropley contains many interesting and ancient
Hamlets
A hamlet is a human settlement that is smaller than a town or village. Its size relative to a parish can depend on the administration and region. A hamlet may be considered to be a smaller settlement or subdivision or satellite entity to a lar ...
that were part or currently are part of the historical area of Ropley Parish:
Education
The village contains one primary school, Ropley CofE Primary School, founded in 1826 by the Reverend Samuel Maddock, who first built it on a previous site in Petersfield Road. William Faichen was the co-founder of the school, and became the first Headmaster.
There was already another school in the area, located in present-day
Four Marks (originally called 'Ropley Street'). Maddock thought that it was too much of a struggle for young children to walk a long distance every day, so he built his school in the centre of the village. The older school was demolished in the mid 1800s.
In 1869, the school burned down in a fire. It was rebuilt on the present day site at Church Street and reopened the same year.
[Open document for details](_blank)
/ref> Since then, the school has operated continuously.
The school values its historic links with the community. Parts of the original Victorian traditional flint and brick buildings remain, and now form the hall and the school kitchen. The main teaching area consists of six modern classrooms with shared corridor working spaces. The most recent classroom was built in 2001 and is especially equipped for early years children. The primary school is one of the feeder schools for Perins School, and both maintain high standards.
Governance
Ropley is part of the Alton Rural county ward, and returns one county councillor to Hampshire County Council
Hampshire County Council (HCC) is an English council that governs eleven of the thirteen districts geographically located within the ceremonial county of Hampshire. As one of twenty-four county councils in England, it acts as the upper tier of ...
.
Ropley is part of the Ropley and Tisted district ward, and returns one district councillor to East Hampshire
East Hampshire is a local government district in Hampshire, England. Its council is based in Petersfield. Other towns are Alton and Bordon.
The district was originally to be known as the District Council of Petersfield. It comprised 42 seats a ...
District Council.
Station
Ropley railway station
Ropley railway station is a railway station in Ropley, Hampshire, England, which opened in 1865 and reopened in 1977 after four years' closure, to be served by steam and select diesel trains on the Watercress Line which shares its terminus at Al ...
opened in 1865, and has operated continuously since that date, other than for four years from 1973 to 1977. Originally opened by the London and South Western Railway
The London and South Western Railway (LSWR, sometimes written L&SWR) was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Originating as the London and Southampton Railway, its network extended to Dorchester and Weymouth, to Salisbury, Exeter ...
, services ended in 1973, but were restored by a preservation society four years later, as part of the Mid Hants Railway, running heritage services between Alton
Alton may refer to:
People
*Alton (given name)
*Alton (surname)
Places Australia
*Alton National Park, Queensland
* Alton, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Balonne
Canada
* Alton, Ontario
*Alton, Nova Scotia
New Zealand
* Alton, New Zealand, ...
and New Alresford
New Alresford or simply Alresford ( or ) is a market town and civil parish in the City of Winchester district of Hampshire, England. It is northeast of Winchester and southwest of the town of Alton.
New Alresford has independent shops, a t ...
. There is a 100-year established garden topiary
Topiary is the horticultural practice of training perennial plants by clipping the foliage and twigs of trees, shrubs and subshrubs to develop and maintain clearly defined shapes, whether geometric or fanciful. The term also refers to plants w ...
by the station house side. The locomotive shed
The motive power depot (MPD) or locomotive depot, or traction maintenance depot (TMD), is the place where locomotives are usually housed, repaired and maintained when not being used. They were originally known as "running sheds", "engine she ...
and engineering works are located adjacent to the station, and tours may be booked. Trains operate from May to September each year, with additional Christmas and New Year special services.[
]
Notable people
*
* Thomas Taylor (1753–1806), cricketer who played for the Hambledon Club
The Hambledon Club was a social club that is famous for its organisation of 18th century cricket matches. By the late 1770s it was the foremost cricket club in England.
Foundation
The origin of the club, based near Hambledon in rural Hampshire, ...
, made 105 first-class appearances from 1775 to 1798.
*William Howley
William Howley (12 February 1766 – 11 February 1848) was a clergyman in the Church of England. He served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1828 to 1848.
Early life, education, and interests
Howley was born in 1766 at Ropley, Hampshire, w ...
(1766–1848), clergyman in the Church of England, Archbishop of Canterbury from 1828 to 1848.
* Samuel Rawson Gardiner (1829–1902), an English historian.
*Peter Eade
Peter John Aylmer Eade (11 March 1919 – 25 April 1979) was an English theatrical agent most well known for his representation of individuals such as Kenneth Williams,
Ronnie Barker, and Joan Sims.
Eade died in Ropley, Hampshire in 1979, aged 6 ...
(1919–1979), theatrical agent
* Richard Holmes CBE, TD, JP, VR (1946–2011), a British military historian.
* Brian Timms (born 1940), a former English first-class cricketer who played 232 matches
Further reading
* Hagen, Marianna S., Annals of Old Ropley (1929)
* Hampshire County Council, Ropley at the Millennium, A Village Appraisal (2000)
* Heal, Chris, The Four Marks Murders, second edition, Chapters 2 & 4 (Chattaway and Spottiswood, Milverton, 2021)
* Heal, Chris, Ropley's Legacy, The Ridge Enclosures, 1709 to 1850: Chawton, Farringdon, Medstead, Newton Valence and Ropley and the birth of Four Marks (Chattaway and Spottiswood, Four Marks 2021)
* Hogarth, Peter, ‘Ropley in the Age of Smuggling’, No. 84 (Alresford Historical & Literary Society 1993)[http://www.alresfordhistandlit.co.uk/084%20Ropley%20in%20the%20Age%20of%20Smuggling.pdf ]
* Kirby, T. F., The Charters of the Manor of Ropley, Hants (The Society of Antiquaries, London 1902)
* Mason, Frederick, Ropley Past and Present, A Brief Story of a Hampshire Village (Scriptmate Editions, London 1989) (Hardback) 0-951-4647-1-X (paperback)
* Montgomery, Roy, The village of Ropley and the parish of St Peter (Hampshire Genealogical Society, Village Booklet No 20)
* Victoria County History, A History of the County of Hampshire: Volume 3, Ropley (British History Online 1908)
References
External links
Annals of St Peter's Church
Stained Glass Windows at St. Peter, Ropley, Hampshire
{{authority control
Villages in Hampshire