On the
opposite bank of the Itchen, at Bitterne, was the Roman station of
Clausentum, but Southampton itself seems to have been originally a
settlement of the West Saxons. In the reign of William the Conqueror,
Southampton, owing to its situation, became the principal port of
embarkation for Normandy. In 1295 it first returned representatives to
Parliament, and in 1345 was strongly fortified, and able to contribute
twenty-one ships to the Royal Navy, Portsmouth only supplying five. Many
expeditions for Normandy embarked here during the reigns of the
Plantagenets, and the men who fought and won at Crecy and Agincourt must
have passed, on the way to their ships, under the old West Gate, which
still remains much as it was in those stirring times.
The town is full of interesting relics of every description, one of the
most remarkable being the old wall, of which a considerable portion
remains; that known as The Arcades, built in a series of arches, being
specially noticeable. Close by, in Blue Anchor Lane, is a Norman house,
reputed to be King John's palace, and claiming, with several others, to
be the oldest house in England.
The town was formerly entered by several gates, two of which, Westgate
and Bargate, are still in a good state of preservation.
The Bargate stands in the centre of the High Street, and is an excellent
example of mediaeval fortification.
At the head of Blue Anchor Lane is the remarkably picturesque and
substantial Tudor house, once the residence of Henry VIII.
Pages:
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115