Wittersham
Encyclopedia
Wittersham is a village
and civil parish
, part of the Isle of Oxney
, south
of Ashford
in Kent
, South East England
, near Tenterden
.
The Domesday Book does not mention Wittersham, but it does assign the manor of Palstre to Odo, Bishop of Bayeux. Palstre was only one of four places in the Weald, apparently, that had a church. The Domesday Book
entry reads:- In Oxenai hundred, Osbern Paisforiere holds Palestrei, from the Bishop. It is taxed at three yokes. Arable land for two ploughs. In demesne, nine smallholders have half a plough. There is a church, 2 servants, 10 acres (40,468.6 m²) of meadow, 5 fisheries at twelve pence, woodland for the pannage of 10 hogs. In the time of Edward the Confessor
, it was worth forty shillings, now sixty shillings. Edwy the priest held it for King Edward
Early in the 18th century, the manor came into the ownership of Thomas Brodnax or May
of Godmersham
Park, Kent. May changed his name to Knight after inheriting estates from the Knight family in 1738 and, on his death in 1781, Owley passed to his son Thomas
. The younger Thomas Knight died childless in 1794, and Owley passed to his widow Catherine, later of White Friars, Canterbury
. Mrs Knight was lady of the manor in 1799, when Hasted
wrote. When she died in 1812, her husband's estates passed to his adopted son, Edward Austen Knight, brother of novelist Jane Austen
, and owner of Chawton House
in Hampshire.
Some time later, Edward Knight appears to have sold Owley to William Levett
of Bodiam
. When he died in 1842, Levett owned both the manors of Palstre (where he lived) and Owley. He left Paltre to his elder daughter Sabina and Owley to his younger daughter Emily. His Will devised to Emily "my freeholds, messuages, buildings, farm lands, containing altogether, by estimation, one hundred and seventy-two acres, more or less, situate lying and being in the Parish of Wittersham aforesaid, commonly called or known by the name of Owley Farm, with the apportionments thereto belonging". Emily Levett married Samuel Rutley, and the Rutley family continued to own the manor until the end of the 19th century.
At the turn of 20th century, by which time holding the manor had ceased to be equivalent with ownership of most land and property, the Body family held Wittersham, Colonel Heyworth held Palstre, and Mrs Samuel Rutley owned Owley.
The village has an award winning CAMRA
approved public house
, The Swan, and a restored white weatherboarded post mill
, Stocks Mill.
Wittersham housed a key listening post for downed pilots over the channel during the Second World War, all that is left now is a small concrete house and a few craters dotted around from attacks by the Luftwaffe
and several doodlebug (V1)
strikes.
There is a popular and well-attended Community market every Tuesday morning in the Village Hall specialising in organic and local fresh food as well as a variety of other products
Wittersham now has its own dedicated website www.wittersham.org run from within the village with information regarding local groups, businesses, what's on, and Lost & Found. The website is being continually improved and is currently funded by the Wittersham Parish Council.
, media entrepreneur and politician.
Gabrielle Margaret Vere Campbell, author who wrote under many pseudonyms, including Marjorie Bowen and Joseph Shearing.
Gerald Campion
, TV actor and club owner
George Digweed
MBE
, 16x World Sporting Shooter Champion
Norman Forbes-Robertson
, distinguished Victorian Shakespearean actor
Norman Hackforth
, long-time accompanist
to Sir Noël Coward
James Harris, father of Major Sir William Cornwallis Harris
, military engineer, artist and hunter.
Robert Hichens
, Edwardian novelist
Laurence Irving
, grandson & biographer of the famous Victorian actor Sir Henry Irving.
William Jowitt, MP, lawyer and Lord Chancellor.
William Gardner
, English coin designer, engraver, calligrapher and writer.
Alfred Lyttelton
, MP, athlete, lawyer and sportsman.
Violet Markham
, Liberal politician and women's activist.
Marti Pellow
, singer with group Wet Wet Wet
.
Sir Donald Sinden CBE
, distinguished actor.
Marc Sinden
, West End theatre producer.
Arthur Symons
, Welsh-born Symbolist poet.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
and civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
, part of the Isle of Oxney
Isle of Oxney
Isle of Oxney is the name given to an area in Kent, England.In the 13th century, the island was part of the coastline bordering what is now the Romney Marsh. As that silted up, and until the later 17th century, the River Rother which enters the sea beyond Rye and flowed across Kent in a west-east...
, south
South
South is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography.South is one of the four cardinal directions or compass points. It is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to east and west.By convention, the bottom side of a map is south....
of Ashford
Ashford, Kent
Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the Great Stour river, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways. Its agricultural market is one of the most...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, South East England
South East England
South East England is one of the nine official regions of England, designated in 1994 and adopted for statistical purposes in 1999. It consists of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
, near Tenterden
Tenterden
Tenterden is a Cinque Port town in the Ashford District of Kent, England. It stands on the edge of the Weald, overlooking the valley of the River Rother....
.
The Domesday Book does not mention Wittersham, but it does assign the manor of Palstre to Odo, Bishop of Bayeux. Palstre was only one of four places in the Weald, apparently, that had a church. The Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
entry reads:- In Oxenai hundred, Osbern Paisforiere holds Palestrei, from the Bishop. It is taxed at three yokes. Arable land for two ploughs. In demesne, nine smallholders have half a plough. There is a church, 2 servants, 10 acres (40,468.6 m²) of meadow, 5 fisheries at twelve pence, woodland for the pannage of 10 hogs. In the time of Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
, it was worth forty shillings, now sixty shillings. Edwy the priest held it for King Edward
Early in the 18th century, the manor came into the ownership of Thomas Brodnax or May
Thomas Knight (MP for Canterbury)
Thomas Knight previously Thomas Brodnax and Thomas May was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1734 to 1741....
of Godmersham
Godmersham
Godmersham is a village and civil parish in the Ashford District of Kent, England. The village is located on the Great Stour river where it cuts through the North Downs...
Park, Kent. May changed his name to Knight after inheriting estates from the Knight family in 1738 and, on his death in 1781, Owley passed to his son Thomas
Thomas Knight (MP for Kent)
Thomas Knight was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons in two periods between 1761 and 1780.Knight was the son of Thomas Knight of Godmersham and his wife Jane Monke....
. The younger Thomas Knight died childless in 1794, and Owley passed to his widow Catherine, later of White Friars, Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
. Mrs Knight was lady of the manor in 1799, when Hasted
Edward Hasted
Edward Hasted was the author of a major county history, The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent .-Life:...
wrote. When she died in 1812, her husband's estates passed to his adopted son, Edward Austen Knight, brother of novelist Jane Austen
Jane Austen
Jane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
, and owner of Chawton House
Chawton House
Chawton House is a grade ll* listed Elizabethan manor house in the village of Chawton in Hampshire. It was formerly the home of Jane Austen's brother, Edward Austen Knight, and is now a library and study centre....
in Hampshire.
Some time later, Edward Knight appears to have sold Owley to William Levett
Levett
Levett is an Anglo-Norman territorial surname deriving from the village of Livet-en-Ouche, now Jonquerets-de-Livet, in Eure, Normandy. Ancestors of the earliest Levett family in England, the de Livets were lords of the village of Livet, and undertenants of the de Ferrers, among the most powerful of...
of Bodiam
Bodiam
Bodiam is a small village and civil parish in East Sussex, England, in the valley of the River Rother near to the villages of Sandhurst and Ewhurst Green. It is home to Bodiam Castle, a small range of houses, a pub opposite Bodiam Castle, and a restaurant...
. When he died in 1842, Levett owned both the manors of Palstre (where he lived) and Owley. He left Paltre to his elder daughter Sabina and Owley to his younger daughter Emily. His Will devised to Emily "my freeholds, messuages, buildings, farm lands, containing altogether, by estimation, one hundred and seventy-two acres, more or less, situate lying and being in the Parish of Wittersham aforesaid, commonly called or known by the name of Owley Farm, with the apportionments thereto belonging". Emily Levett married Samuel Rutley, and the Rutley family continued to own the manor until the end of the 19th century.
At the turn of 20th century, by which time holding the manor had ceased to be equivalent with ownership of most land and property, the Body family held Wittersham, Colonel Heyworth held Palstre, and Mrs Samuel Rutley owned Owley.
The village has an award winning CAMRA
Campaign for Real Ale
The Campaign for Real Ale is an independent voluntary consumer organisation based in St Albans, England, whose main aims are promoting real ale, real cider and the traditional British pub...
approved public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
, The Swan, and a restored white weatherboarded post mill
Post mill
The post mill is the earliest type of European windmill. The defining feature is that the whole body of the mill that houses the machinery is mounted on a single vertical post, around which it can be turned to bring the sails into the wind. The earliest post mills in England are thought to have...
, Stocks Mill.
Wittersham housed a key listening post for downed pilots over the channel during the Second World War, all that is left now is a small concrete house and a few craters dotted around from attacks by the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
and several doodlebug (V1)
V-1 flying bomb
The V-1 flying bomb, also known as the Buzz Bomb or Doodlebug, was an early pulse-jet-powered predecessor of the cruise missile....
strikes.
There is a popular and well-attended Community market every Tuesday morning in the Village Hall specialising in organic and local fresh food as well as a variety of other products
Wittersham now has its own dedicated website www.wittersham.org run from within the village with information regarding local groups, businesses, what's on, and Lost & Found. The website is being continually improved and is currently funded by the Wittersham Parish Council.
Notable residents (past & present)
Lord AlliWaheed Alli, Baron Alli
Waheed Alli, Baron Alli is a British multimillionaire media entrepreneur and politician. He was co-founder and managing director of Planet 24, a TV production company, and managing director at Carlton Television Productions...
, media entrepreneur and politician.
Gabrielle Margaret Vere Campbell, author who wrote under many pseudonyms, including Marjorie Bowen and Joseph Shearing.
Gerald Campion
Gerald Campion
Gerald Theron Campion , was an English actor best-known for his role as Billy Bunter in a 1950s television adaptation of books by Frank Richards....
, TV actor and club owner
George Digweed
George Digweed
George Digweed MBE was born in Hastings, Sussex on 21 April 1964. He is a multi-World and European English sport shooter clay-shooting champion....
MBE
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
, 16x World Sporting Shooter Champion
Norman Forbes-Robertson
Norman Forbes-Robertson
Norman Forbes-Robertson was the son of John Forbes-Robertson and one of the 11 siblings of Sir Johnston Forbes-Robertson. He was also a notable actor and a friend of Ellen Terry, Oscar Wilde, Edward Elgar and Henry Irving...
, distinguished Victorian Shakespearean actor
Norman Hackforth
Norman Hackforth
Norman Hackforth, Sir Noël Coward's renowned English accompanist and a gifted musician was born in Gaya, Bihar India on 20 December 1908.Hackforth's relationship with Noël Coward began in 1941, when he succeeded Elsie April and Robb Stewart as his arranger...
, long-time accompanist
Accompaniment
In music, accompaniment is the art of playing along with an instrumental or vocal soloist or ensemble, often known as the lead, in a supporting manner...
to Sir Noël Coward
James Harris, father of Major Sir William Cornwallis Harris
William Cornwallis Harris
Major Sir William Cornwallis Harris was an English military engineer, artist and hunter.-Life and career:...
, military engineer, artist and hunter.
Robert Hichens
Robert Smythe Hichens
Robert Smythe Hichens was an English journalist, novelist, music lyricist, short story writer, music critic and collaborated on successful plays. He is best remembered as a satirist of the "Naughty Nineties".-Biography:...
, Edwardian novelist
Laurence Irving
Laurence Irving (set designer)
Squadron Leader Laurence Irving OBE was an artist, book illustrator and Hollywood set designer and art director, the son of actors H. B. Irving and Dorothea Baird, and the biographer of his grandfather, the noted Victorian era actor Henry Irving. His sister was the actress and founder of the Keep...
, grandson & biographer of the famous Victorian actor Sir Henry Irving.
William Jowitt, MP, lawyer and Lord Chancellor.
William Gardner
William Gardner
William Gardner VC DCM was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:...
, English coin designer, engraver, calligrapher and writer.
Alfred Lyttelton
Alfred Lyttelton
Alfred Lyttelton QC was a British politician and sportsman who excelled at both football and cricket. During his time at university he participated in Varsity Matches in five sports: cricket , football , athletics , rackets and real tennis , displaying an ability that made him...
, MP, athlete, lawyer and sportsman.
Violet Markham
Violet Markham
Violet Rosa Markham CH was a writer, social reformer and administrator. She grew up near Chesterfield, the daughter of Charles Markham, part owner of the profitable Markham Collieries and Markham & Co. Engineering of Chesterfield...
, Liberal politician and women's activist.
Marti Pellow
Marti Pellow
Marti Pellow has been the lead singer of the Scottish pop group Wet Wet Wet since their formation in 1982. He has also recorded solo material.-Early life:...
, singer with group Wet Wet Wet
Wet Wet Wet
Wet Wet Wet are a Scottish pop rock band that formed in the 1980s. They scored a number of hits in the British charts and around the world. The band is composed of Marti Pellow , Tommy Cunningham , Graeme Clark and Neil Mitchell...
.
Sir Donald Sinden CBE
CBE
CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...
, distinguished actor.
Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden is an English theatre producer, documentary director and actor. His father is the actor Sir Donald Sinden.-Theatre:...
, West End theatre producer.
Arthur Symons
Arthur Symons
Arthur William Symons , was a British poet, critic and magazine editor.-Life:Born in Milford Haven, Wales, of Cornish parents, Symons was educated privately, spending much of his time in France and Italy...
, Welsh-born Symbolist poet.
External links
- Wittersham Village Website Local Community Web Site