Horton, Dorset
Encyclopedia
Horton is a village in East Dorset
, England
, situated on the boundary between the chalk
downland
of Cranborne Chase
and the heathland of the New Forest
, ten miles north of Poole
. The village has a population
of 515 (2001
).
red brick observatory designed by Humphrey Sturt
, and the 18th century Georgian
church of St Wolfrida, built on the site of the tenth century Horton Priory
. Wolfrida was the mother of Saint Edith of Wilton
.
Horton is claimed as the location where James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth
, was captured after the failed Monmouth Rebellion
. Monmouth hid in a ditch under an ash tree
disguised as a shepherd
but was betrayed by a local woman who, according to legend, later killed herself in remorse.
The village once had a manor house
but this was superseded by Crichel House
, a nearby stately home
, and the manor house decayed and was pulled down. The stables, now converted into the rectory
, and a large ornamental lake
, remain.
East Dorset
East Dorset is a local government district in Dorset, England. Its council is based in Furzehill, near Wimborne Minster.The district was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of Wimborne Minster Urban District with part of the Ringwood and Fordingbridge Rural District and the Wimborne and Cranborne...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, situated on the boundary between the chalk
Chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
downland
Downland
A downland is an area of open chalk hills. This term is especially used to describe the chalk countryside in southern England. Areas of downland are often referred to as Downs....
of Cranborne Chase
Cranborne Chase
Cranborne Chase is a Chalk plateau in central southern England, straddling the counties Dorset, Hampshire and Wiltshire. The plateau is part of the English Chalk Formation and is adjacent to Salisbury Plain and the West Wiltshire Downs in the north, the Dorset Downs to the south west and the...
and the heathland of the New Forest
New Forest
The New Forest is an area of southern England which includes the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in the heavily-populated south east of England. It covers south-west Hampshire and extends into south-east Wiltshire....
, ten miles north of Poole
Poole
Poole is a large coastal town and seaport in the county of Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, and Bournemouth adjoins Poole to the east. The Borough of Poole was made a unitary authority in 1997, gaining administrative independence from Dorset County Council...
. The village has a population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 515 (2001
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
).
Overview
The village has two unusual buildings: the Horton Tower, a five storey gothicGothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
red brick observatory designed by Humphrey Sturt
Humphrey Sturt
Humphrey Sturt was a British architect. He designed the Horton Tower in Horton, Dorset, built 1750. He was the Lord of Horton Manor and was five times returned to parliament as the MP for the county of Dorset 1745-86...
, and the 18th century Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
church of St Wolfrida, built on the site of the tenth century Horton Priory
Horton Priory
Horton Priory was a priory at Horton in Dorset, England.It was founded as a Benedictine abbey around 970 by Ordgar, Earl of Devon, or his son, Ordulph, and dedicated to Olfrida, the mother of Saint Edith of Wilton by King Edgar the Peaceful...
. Wolfrida was the mother of Saint Edith of Wilton
Edith of Wilton
Saint Edith of Wilton was an English nun, a daughter of the 10th century King Edgar of England, born at Kemsing, Kent, in 961...
.
Horton is claimed as the location where James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth
James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth
James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, 1st Duke of Buccleuch, KG, PC , was an English nobleman. Originally called James Crofts or James Fitzroy, he was born in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, the eldest illegitimate son of Charles II and his mistress, Lucy Walter...
, was captured after the failed Monmouth Rebellion
Monmouth Rebellion
The Monmouth Rebellion,The Revolt of the West or The West Country rebellion of 1685, was an attempt to overthrow James II, who had become King of England, King of Scots and King of Ireland at the death of his elder brother Charles II on 6 February 1685. James II was a Roman Catholic, and some...
. Monmouth hid in a ditch under an ash tree
Ash tree
Fraxinus is a genus flowering plants in the olive and lilac family, Oleaceae. It contains 45-65 species of usually medium to large trees, mostly deciduous though a few subtropical species are evergreen. The tree's common English name, ash, goes back to the Old English æsc, while the generic name...
disguised as a shepherd
Shepherd
A shepherd is a person who tends, feeds or guards flocks of sheep.- Origins :Shepherding is one of the oldest occupations, beginning some 6,000 years ago in Asia Minor. Sheep were kept for their milk, meat and especially their wool...
but was betrayed by a local woman who, according to legend, later killed herself in remorse.
The village once had a manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
but this was superseded by Crichel House
Crichel House
Crichel House is a country house located near the village of Moor Crichel in Dorset, England. It is surrounded by of parkland, which includes a crescent-shaped lake covering ....
, a nearby stately home
Stately home
A stately home is a "great country house". It is thus a palatial great house or in some cases an updated castle, located in the British Isles, mostly built between the mid-16th century and the early part of the 20th century, as well as converted abbeys and other church property...
, and the manor house decayed and was pulled down. The stables, now converted into the rectory
Rectory
A rectory is the residence, or former residence, of a rector, most often a Christian cleric, but in some cases an academic rector or other person with that title...
, and a large ornamental lake
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
, remain.