Netley, officially Netley Abbey, is a village on the south coast of

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, England. It is situated to the south-east of the city of

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

, and flanked on one side by the ruins of

Netley Abbey Netley Abbey is a ruined Late Middle Ages, late medieval monastery in the village of Netley near Southampton in Hampshire, England. The abbey was founded in 1239 as a house for monks of the austere Cistercian order. Despite royal patronage, Ne ...

and on the other by the Royal Victoria Country Park.

Historical development

In 1237,

, after which the village gained its name, was built. The site was picked specifically as it met the requirements of the

Cistercians The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

that would run it. This was specifically that the abbey would be built 'remote from towns', indicating there was little settlement here. In 1536, Netley Abbey was dissolved as part of the Dissolution of the monasteries, with the buildings being converted into a Tudor mansion. This was given to Sir William Paulet. In 1542 or 1544, Netley Castle was constructed as part of the Device Programme to defend The Solent from French invasions. This utilised abandoned parts of the former Abbey, like its water supply and building materials. By the start of the 19th century, the castle and Abbey laid in ruins. The area also had two villas known as Netley Castle and Netley Lodge.Deirdre Le Fanu (ed.), ''Jane Austen's Letters'' (Oxford University Press, 1995), p. 613. The area which now forms all of Netley, as well as Weston, was inherited by William Chamberlayne, MP for Southampton. With his passing in 1829, his nephew Thomas Chamberlayne inherited the estate. Throughout this period, negotiations surrounding leases of the land for development were undertaken, which allowed the village of Netley to finally take shape, with the population being 827 in 1852. This growth was exacerbated in 1856, when HM Government bought a large part of this estate, to construct a new military hospital. This would become the Royal Victoria Military Hospital, which is now Royal Victoria Country Park. In 1861, the village was first listed as 'Netley Abbey', with its population being recorded as 2039. In 1863, the

High street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...

, named 'Victoria Road', was opened, with it having shops and a post office. In March 1866, Netley railway station was opened, with it linking the village to Southampton. In 1900 a branch was added to take the line right into the heart of the Royal Victoria Hospital, allowing injured troops to disembark at

Southampton Docks The Port of Southampton is a passenger and cargo port in the central part of the south coast of England. The modern era in the history of the Port of Southampton began when the first dock was inaugurated in 1843. After the Port of Felixstowe, ...

and get a direct train to the hospital - the pier at the hospital could not accommodate large ships. This line was used extensively in the Boer war and both World Wars but was lifted around 1967 when the Hospital was demolished. Its route now forms a small part of the Hamble Rail Trail. The line was extended from Netley station to

Fareham Fareham ( ) is a market town at the north-west tip of Portsmouth Harbour, between the cities of Portsmouth and Southampton in south east Hampshire, England. It gives its name to the Borough of Fareham. It was historically an important manufac ...

in 1889. In 1884, the foundation stone of Netley Infants school was laid. The school was closed in the 1970s and is now a library. Previously, the village students had to travel to Butlocks Heath, the neighbouring village, for schooling. Two years later in 1886, the village gained a new church, named after St Edward the Confessor. As part of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

Diamond Jubilee A diamond jubilee celebrates the 60th anniversary of a significant event related to a person (e.g. accession to the throne or wedding, among others) or the 60th anniversary of an institution's founding. The term is also used for 75th annivers ...

in 1897, the village was gifted a new Recreation Ground, by Tankerville Chamberlayne, then owner of the Chamberlayne estate. The local parish council was allowed to pick the location, with them picking a site just off station road, due to its centrality in the parish. The green gates which still remain on the site were also gifted by Tankerville. In 1901, the population hit 4548.

Present-day

The oldest part of Netley retains the feel of a somewhat old-fashioned and quaint village, with some traditional small shops, a post office, a library and rows of colourful terraced cottages. It is located along the eastern shore of Southampton Water; the shingle beach looks across to Hythe and Fawley, although the vista is somewhat dominated by Fawley Oil Refinery. Away from the shore, larger estates of houses have developed over the years which have greatly increased Netley's population and blurred the boundary between Netley Abbey and Butlocks Heath. There is a pub 'The Prince Consort' in a Victorian building that was previously a hotel.

Amenities

Churches

*St

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was King of England from 1042 until his death in 1066. He was the last reigning monarch of the House of Wessex. Edward was the son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy. He succeede ...

Church. It was completed 1886 and contains a partial effigy of a knight taken from Netley Abbey. The church was originally designed by J. D. Sedding. *Annunciation Catholic Church

Schools

Netley Abbey Infant School and Netley Abbey Junior School are on the same site. They saw significant development in the late 1980's.

Village Halls

*Abbey Hall, on the Cricket field *St Edwards Church Hall

Library

There is one library in Netley, which is run by Hampshire County Council. It is based in the old Infant School.

Weston Sailing Club

Weston Sailing Club is in Netley, at Abbey Hill on Weston Shore. The club was founded in 1952 but originally located in

Weston Weston may refer to: Places Australia * Weston, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Weston, New South Wales * Weston Creek, a residential district of Canberra * Weston Park, Canberra, a park Canada * Weston, Nova Scotia * W ...

. In 1968 the club was granted land at Abbey Hill, and built a clubhouse there.

Parks and Green Space

Royal Victoria Country Park

Since the closure of the Netley Military Hospital in 1979, the village has been flanked to the east by Royal Victoria Country Park. This attract visitors from Netley and the wider area.

Westwoods Nature Reserve

To the west, Netley is flanked by Westwoods, which was previously farmland for the Netley Abbey.

Netley Recreation Ground

Opened in 1897 as part of the

, it was gifted to the parish council by Tankerville Chamberlayne. It was first used as a cricket field, with many trees being planted for its opening. Green gates were also gifted, which remain in place today. Today, the 'rec' has a football field, a playground, basketball court and an outdoor gym.

The Cricket Field

This was bought by the Parish council in 1937 for £1000, with them gaining a significant discount. Today, the site is frequently used as a football pitch, with it also having a playground and a replica

Beacon A beacon is an intentionally conspicuous device designed to attract attention to a specific location. A common example is the lighthouse, which draws attention to a fixed point that can be used to navigate around obstacles or into port. More mode ...

. The site now has a community hall too.

Transport

Road

Netley has four main roads in and out of it. It is a short distance from the

M27 motorway The M27 is a motorway in Hampshire, England. It is long and runs between Cadnam and Portsmouth. It was opened in stages between 1975 and 1983, providing the largest two urban areas in Hampshire (Southampton and Portsmouth) with a direct moto ...

Rail

Netley Railway Station has hourly services to Southampton Central and Portsmouth Harbour via the train company

South Western Railway South Western Railway Limited, trading as South Western Railway (SWR), is the British state-owned train operating company that took over the services of the South Western Railway (2017–2025), operator of the same name from FirstGroup and MTR ...

, providing links for commuters both in and out of the village.

Bus

Bluestar operate a half-hourly bus service to Southampton via Woolston and Hamble via Butlocks Heath, numbered '15'. Netley is also linked to Hedge End by

Stagecoach South Stagecoach (South) Limited, trading as Stagecoach South, is a bus operator providing services in South East England as a subsidiary of Stagecoach Group, Stagecoach. It operates services in Hampshire, Surrey, and Sussex with some routes extendin ...

's '49h'. Netley also has multiple school and college bus routes.

Cycling

National Cycle Network The National Cycle Network (NCN) was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout the United Kingdom, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the charity Sustrans who were aided by a £42.5 million N ...

route 2 passes through Netley, on its way from Dover to St Austell.

References

External links

Past Lives and Times of Netley Abbey Village and the Royal Victoria Military HospitalInformation about Netley Military Cemetery and its ResidentsInformation and history about Netley Royal Victoria Military Hospital
* {{authority control Villages in Hampshire Borough of Eastleigh