Milford on Sea, often hyphenated, is a large village or small town and a

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 authorit ...

on the

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

coast. The parish had a population of 4,660 at the 2011 census and is centred about south of

Lymington Lymington is a port town on the west bank of the Lymington River on the Solent, in the New Forest district of Hampshire, England. It faces Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, to which there is a car ferry service operated by Wightlink. It is within the ...

. Tourism and businesses for quite prosperous retirees as well as the care sector make up large parts of its economy. Businesses include restaurants, cafés, tea rooms, small shops, garden centres, pubs and camping/lodge/caravan parks, bed-and-breakfasts and a few luxury hotels. Shops cluster on its small high street, which fronts a village green. The western cliffs are accessed by flights of steps. In common with the flatter coast by the more commercial and eastern part of Milford, they have car parks with some facilities, which, along with many apartment blocks and houses – many in attractive modern designs – have close views of

The Needles The Needles is a row of three stacks of chalk that rise about out of the sea off the western extremity of the Isle of Wight in the English Channel, United Kingdom, close to Alum Bay and Scratchell's Bay, and part of Totland, the westernmo ...

, which are the main, large chalk rocks immediately next to the Isle of Wight. Its western coast is a large bank of shingle below green cliffs. Bathing, when seas are calm, is favourable as tides are relatively muted for the coast at this point and thin sandbanks are nearby at lower water. The eastern part of the place culminates in

Hurst Castle Hurst Castle is an artillery fort established by Henry VIII on the Hurst Spit in Hampshire, England, between 1541 and 1544. It formed part of the king's Device Forts coastal protection programme against invasion from France and the Holy Rom ...

, Hurst Point which is a 16th-century defensive fort with later modifications, which has a museum, visitor tour rides and amenities for tourists. Much of the land of the parish has been recognised and protected from dense habitation by a surrounding

green belt A green belt is a policy and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges, which h ...

buffer zone A buffer zone is a neutral zonal area that lies between two or more bodies of land, usually pertaining to countries. Depending on the type of buffer zone, it may serve to separate regions or conjoin them. Common types of buffer zones are demili ...

of land, recognising its heath soil associated with the

New Forest The New Forest is one of the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in Southern England, covering southwest Hampshire and southeast Wiltshire. It was proclaimed a royal forest by William the Conqueror, fea ...

, its biodiverse wet woodland in the west (a local nature reserve which hosts badgers, fish and many bird species) and various water type marshes including an

RSPB The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a charitable organisation registered in England and Wales and in Scotland. It was founded in 1889. It works to promote conservation and protection of birds and the wider environment th ...

reserve in the east.

History

Milford began as a Saxon settlement, and the name simply means "mill ford". At the time of 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 ...

of 1086 there were two separate estates in Milford, one held by Aelfric Small, and the other land with no villeins or cottars noted held by Wulfgar. At a later date three separate manors were evolved from these estates and were eventually known by the names of Milford Montagu, Milford Barnes, and Milford Baddesley.Victoria County History of Hampshire: Milford
/ref> The manor of Milford Montagu, which was held of the lords of

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

, seems to have originated in an estate held by William Spileman at his death in 1291. In the late 14th century it was part of the lands of

William Montagu, 2nd Earl of Salisbury William Montagu, 2nd Earl of Salisbury, 4th Baron Montagu, King of Mann, KG (25 June 1328 – 3 June 1397) was an English nobleman and commander in the English army during King Edward III's French campaigns in the Hundred Years War. He was one ...

. In 1428 Thomas, the 4th Earl, died possessed of the manor, and was succeeded by his daughter

Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

. By 1580 the manor had passed out of the hands of the Montagu family, and it was acquired in 1610 by Sir Thomas Gorges, who was succeeded by his son Sir Edward,

Baron Gorges of Dundalk Baron Gorges of Dundalk was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 13 July 1620 for Sir Edward Gorges, 1st Baronet. He had already been created a baronet, of Langford in the County of Wiltshire, in the Baronetage of England on 25 Nov ...

. In 1638 he sold it to Edward Hopgood. At the end of the 18th century the manor was purchased by Admiral

William Cornwallis Admiral of the Red Sir William Cornwallis, (10 February 17445 July 1819) was a Royal Navy officer. He was the brother of Charles Cornwallis, the 1st Marquess Cornwallis, British commander at the siege of Yorktown. Cornwallis took part in a n ...

. The manor of Milford Barnes originally belonged to

Christchurch Priory Christchurch Priory is an ecclesiastical parish and former priory church in Christchurch in the English county of Dorset (formerly in Hampshire). It is one of the longest parish churches in the country and is as large as many of the Church of E ...

. After the Dissolution a twenty-one years' lease of "the site of the manor with the

appurtenance An appurtenance is something subordinate to or belonging to another larger, principal entity, that is, an adjunct, satellite or accessory that generally accompanies something else. Sir Thomas Gorges owned the estate in 1611, and from that time its descent was the same as that of the manor of Milford Montagu. The manor of Milford Baddesley originated in an estate held in Milford by the

Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

. In the time of King John, Hugh de Whitwell and his son William granted land at Milford to William Mackerel which he granted to the Templars, for their preceptory of Baddesley. It was held of Christchurch manor. On the suppression of the order of Knights Templar this estate was granted, about 1312 to the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic military order. It was headq ...

, to whom it continued to belong until the Dissolution of 1540. It was acquired by Robert Rickman around 1609, in whose family it remained into the 18th century. In 1829 Mary Anna Theresa Whitby, who had inherited Admiral Cornwallis' estates purchased Milford Baddesley, uniting all three estates.

Newlands

Around 1800 Admiral

leased then bought as freehold the small Newlands estate in Milford. This included the manors of Milford Montagu(e) and Milford Barnes. He was joined at Newlands by his friend and fellow naval officer Captain John Whitby and John's wife Mary Anna Theresa. John died in 1806, but Mary and her infant daughter Theresa stayed on looking after Cornwallis into his old age. On Cornwallis's death in 1819, Mary and her daughter inherited his fortune. In 1829 Mary Whitby purchased Milford Baddesley, re-uniting the main manors of the parish covering about half of its area, thus about . Her daughter Theresa, who inherited these, married

Frederick Richard West Frederick Richard West (6 February 1799 – 1 May 1862) was a British Tory MP for Denbigh Boroughs and East Grinstead. He was a member of the Canterbury Association. Early life West was born in 1799 in Hanover Square, London. He was the third ...

, and they used Newlands as one of their residences. Their son, born in 1835, bore the name of

William Cornwallis-West William Cornwallis Cornwallis-West VD JP (20 March 1835 – 4 July 1917), was a British landowner, politician for seven years from 1885 and raised the 6th (Ruthin) Denbighshire Rifle Volunteer Corps followed by further ceremonial duties in th ...

. He inherited Newlands in 1886, and attempted to convert Milford into a premier seaside resort, changing the name of the village to Milford-on-Sea. His plans included the construction of a pier, railway station, public baths, health spa, and golf course.''Milford-on-Sea Village Design Statement'', (2002), page 3 The scheme failed primarily due to a lack of funds and market interest, but it gave Milford a layout and ordered development that lasted well into the 20th century. William's son George Cornwallis-West inherited Newlands in 1917 and, amid bankruptcy proceedings, sold it three years later.

Modern times

As recently as 1800 the parish of Milford was entirely inland, being separated from the sea by a narrow strip of coast-line which was an extension eastwards of

Hordle Hordle is a village and civil parish in the county of Hampshire, England. It is situated between the Solent coast and the New Forest, and is bordered by the towns of Lymington and New Milton. Like many New Forest parishes Hordle has no vi ...

parish.

Coastal erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of waves, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts of storms. The landwar ...

, as well as the growth of the village to the south and west, meant that by 1900 Milford bordered the sea. Milford was part of a combined Milford and Pennington Parish Council after 1894, and then became a separate Milford Parish Council when Pennington was separated from it in 1911. However, in 1932 Milford was absorbed into an enlarged

Borough, only re-emerging as a separate parish in 1974. With the advent of increasing car ownership, especially after 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 opposi ...

, the village expanded rapidly as a resort and as a place in which to retire. Blocks of flats were constructed along the clifftop in the 1960s and '70s, and additional housing was built inland.

Geography

From most of the coast on a clear night, the conurbation of

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the English ...

and

Poole Poole () is a large coastal town and seaport in Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east. Since 1 April 2019, the local authority is Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Counc ...

is visible from the coastal road and adjoining promenade and the brighter stars; in daytime the view extends in most weather conditions to the white cliffs and further part of the headland beyond of the

Isle of Purbeck The Isle of Purbeck is a peninsula in Dorset, England. It is bordered by water on three sides: the English Channel to the south and east, where steep cliffs fall to the sea; and by the marshy lands of the River Frome and Poole Harbour to the no ...

, a peninsula in

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...

. At the closer level Milford is on a broad sub-bay (Christchurch Bay), ended by the Bournemouth Bay headland and entrance to the harbour of Christchurch, which thus juts out little from this vantage point,

Hengistbury Head Hengistbury Head (), formerly also called Christchurch Head, is a headland jutting into the English Channel between Bournemouth and Mudeford in the English county of Dorset. It is a site of international importance in terms of its archaeology ...

, traversed by a regular foot ferry in most seasons. To the east in the parish, less than a mile from the

nucleated village A nucleated village, or clustered settlement, is one of the main types of settlement pattern. It is one of the terms used by geographers and landscape historians to classify settlements. It is most accurate with regard to planned settlements: its c ...

centre, is Keyhaven which has a boatyard and half of the Lymington-Keyhaven nature reserve (or Marshes): a raised sea wall path around migratory bird shallow lakes, cattle/rabbit meadow and diverse wetland including salt marsh. To its south Keyhaven Harbour is a natural lagoon extension of the biome, west of which Sturt Pond is its estuarine habitat extension. South of the lagoons leading to the harbour and close to town centre Sturt Pond is Hurst Spit, of almost all shingle, from the apex of which – Hurst Point – men stationed at

watched over and could bombard the

Solent The Solent ( ) is a strait between the Isle of Wight and Great Britain. It is about long and varies in width between , although the Hurst Spit which projects into the Solent narrows the sea crossing between Hurst Castle and Colwell Bay t ...

's western access. A seasonal ferry makes the trip across the lagoon/harbour mouth every 20–30 minutes. This saves the walk along the beach. The beach is mainly west, as cliffs of Milford rise, and is safe to walk so the accessible length of beach (including the southeast side of the spit) is , to Barton-on-Sea Golf Course where the way, above and below cliff, become liable to closures from erosion. The beach has varying size shingle, beyond which is some inter-tidal sand. Facing this and the broad clifftop/lower town residential promenade are

the Needles The Needles is a row of three stacks of chalk that rise about out of the sea off the western extremity of the Isle of Wight in the English Channel, United Kingdom, close to Alum Bay and Scratchell's Bay, and part of Totland, the westernmo ...

and rest of the north-western

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 Is ...

All Saints' Church

Milford on Sea, parish church - geograph

The oldest building in Milford is All Saints' Church. The earliest parts of the structure are probably true Norman-era (early 12th century) work from a preceding church. A south aisle was added around 1170. In the 13th century the church was more than trebled in size and brought to its present plan. This work, which occurred in stages, included the north façade and tower, the chancel, and north and south chapels. The tower has a later, short recessed spire. The ecclesiastical parish still includes the chapelry or united benefice of Everton and the locality of Keyhaven where water dominates the land in the east.

Governance

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to ...

in the name of Milford exists. At the 2011 Census the population of this ward was 4,838. The district, for most hard communal infrastructure, education and social care (amongst other functions) is in

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 ...

's area.

Events and festivals

*In February the place's Food Week takes place. *Milford holds a

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. Tr ...

festival each year. *In June-July there is a music (with many live bands across many venues) and arts festival. *In August the town holds a carnival.

Parish Vision 2020

This plan is a statement of community ambitions, based on research and public consultation. It builds on the 2002 Village Design Statement which dealt essentially with land use issues. Milford-on-Sea Action Plan. Parish Vision 2020 Strategic objectives: * Improving housing and employment opportunities, particularly for young people * Improving the provision of social, cultural and recreational facilities. * Enhancing and protecting the natural environment. * Maintaining and developing parish facilities for tourism and business opportunities. * Improving transport links with hinterland communities. * Making the village centre safer for pedestrians whilst protecting its special character.

Notable residents

* Christopher Airay, logician, was vicar here in the 17th century, from about 1646. *

William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield William Richard Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield, (10 October 1877 – 22 August 1963) was an English motor manufacturer and philanthropist. He was the founder of Morris Motors Limited and is remembered as the founder of the Nuffield Foundation, ...

, philanthropist and industrialist, owned a house on the clifftop, 1 Park Lane, which is now a hotel. * Captain John Chorley FRAeS, Concorde pilot who set numerous supersonic world records, lived here. *

David Peach David Sidney Peach (born 21 January 1951) is a former footballer, who played at left back for Southampton in the FA Cup Final 1976. Playing career Chelsea and Gillingham Peach played briefly as an associate schoolboy for Chelsea, before movin ...

, Gillingham, Southampton (including in FA Cup Final: 1976), Swindon Town, Leyton Orient (and England under-23) footballer. *

Frances Fisher Frances Louise Fisher (born May 11, 1952) is a British-born American actress. She began her career in theatre and later starred as record executive Suzette 'Red' Saxon in the CBS daytime soap opera ''The Guiding Light'' (1985). In film, she is ...

, Hollywood actress in films such as ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, Unite ...

'', was born here. * Frank Wootton, 20th century aviation artist, was born in the village.

Notes

{{authority control Villages in Hampshire Populated coastal places in Hampshire Beaches of Hampshire