| Buriton | |
|---|---|
  Buriton Location withinHampshire | |
| Population | 736 (2001) |
| OS grid reference | SU739200 |
| Civil parish |
|
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Petersfield |
| Postcode district | GU31 |
| Police | Hampshire and Isle of Wight |
| Fire | Hampshire and Isle of Wight |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| UK Parliament | |
| 50°58′37″N0°56′56″W / 50.977°N 0.949°W /50.977; -0.949 | |
Buriton (/ˈbɛrɪtən/) is avillage andcivil parish in theEast Hampshire district ofHampshire,England. It is located 2 miles (3.3 km) south ofPetersfield.
About a mile north-west of Buriton was the extensive manor of West Mapledurham, formerly the property of the Bilson and Legge families, and later the Gibbons and Bonham-Carters.Edward Gibbon, author of the classicDecline and Fall of the Roman Empire, among other works, lived at Buriton Manor for much of the second half of the eighteenth century.[1]John Goodyer, the seventeenth-century botanist, was buried at St Mary's and is commemorated with astained glass window there.
The local landowners until recent times, theBonham-Carters, owned land surrounding Buriton and neighbouring villages where they often reared game for local shoots. The Legge family were gamekeepers for the Bonham-Carters for many years.[2] Other forms of employment in the past have been in the locallime kilns which closed in 1920.[3]Hop-picking was another form of employment in the past.[4]
Notable in St Mary's church are the medievalsedilia, theNorman arches, andpillars bearing carvings of water lilies, foliage andscallops. There is a Normanfont in the church.[5] On the low side of the window in the south wall of the chancel is a medieval mural painting of theVirgin and Child (13th century).[6]
Buriton lies at the foot of theSouth Downs escarpment, just east of theA3 road. One kilometre to the south rises the tree-covered hill ofHead Down (205 m), one of the highest points of theSouth Downs and flanked on either side by two other high points,War Down (244 m) andOakham Hill (202 m).
The nearest railway station is 2 miles (3.3 km) north of the village, atPetersfield.
The village has two tennis courts, twopubs -The Five Bells andThe Nest Hotel & Restaurant, a village hall, a large villagepond with ducks and fish, a car park and the Church of St. Mary. There is no shop in the village. The village has its own school, "Buriton Primary School", with about 80 pupils from the village and nearby.
The main roads of Buriton are called High Street and Petersfield Road.
It is a rural, peaceful place, with the possible exception of the main railway line, thePortsmouth toLondon line (Portsmouth Direct line). The railway tunnel which carries the line under theSouth Downs is visible from therecreation ground. There was a pedestrian crossing over the railway at this point which the trains used to 'hoot' for as a warning to those crossing the line, the crossing is now closed after a public enquiry (Dec 2016). There remains the path under the railway bridge from South Lane, which is one of two crossings from the centre of the village. The path leads to the walks around the disused chalk pits and is part of the Shipwrights Way long distance path. Although for centuries the village was deemed of more importance than neighbouringPetersfield, Buriton never obtained its own railway station (aside fromWoodcroft Halt, built duringWorld War II for naval personnel), because the gradient in the area was deemed too steep to allow a station to be constructed.[7]
It formerly marked the Western end of theSouth Downs Way, which has now been extended toWinchester but several paths still join the village to the Way, and it retains its popularity with walkers. TheSussex Border Path also passes throughSouth Harting which is close by. Buriton also lies adjacent to theQueen Elizabeth Country Park and since 2011 it has been within theSouth Downs National Park.
Media related toBuriton at Wikimedia Commons
