Literature and legend entwined in the rolling downs
Nestling in a shallow valley beneath the South Downs, Midhurst has a proud history and links to a literary great
Lying just north of the greening hills of the South Downs, in a shallow valley carved by the River Rother, is a small town with centuries of evident history. Medieval and timber-framed Tudor buildings line its streets and roads alongside 18th century houses. Many have been converted or restored, but the historic character of the town remains. 105 Grade II and two Grade II* listed buildings can be found, often standing beam to eave. This is Midhurst, a place with a proud heritage, cherished by those who live here today. Despite its modest size, it is a town which can claim links to a literary titan. A once magnificent house nearby boasts visits from not one, but two great monarchs, and the surrounding countryside includes a heathland habitat which is among the rarest in the world. The oldest building in Midhurst is the parish church of St Mary Magdalene and St Denys, the base of its tower dating to the 13th century. Very little of this can be seen, however. The upper portions of the tower, the nave and chancel arcades date to the early 16th century, and the rest of the building dates from 1882. It demarcates the majority of the east side of the market square, with the old town hall to the south, built in 1820. Once, the stocks stood in front of the hall in the middle of the square, but were moved to the back, now locked behind sturdy metal gates. The front of the town hall is today scattered with tables and chairs, where customers from the coffee house, which currently occupies the building, relax in the sun. In the centre of the square stands the War Memorial, built by local stonemason Percy Oliver. The westernmost edge of the square is lined by characterful shops: a thriving delicatessen, colourful independent bookshop and tiny jewellers.
Spanning eras
A few steps downhill to the south is one of the town’s most notable buildings. Its whitewashed walls brightly reflect the early summer sun, contrasting strongly with the dark timber beams and red tiled roof. This is the northernmost
building of the Grade II* listed Spread Eagle Hotel, which dates back to 1430. The second building, which sits slightly downhill, also has mainly white walls but its large, neatly spaced 18th century windows are outlined in dove grey to match the lower section of both buildings. Once separate, the two houses are now joined together as one single building, although the individual history and character of each has been carefully preserved. Emma Cave-Toyé moved to Midhurst in 1998 and has worked in the hotel for 20 years. She is thrilled by its history. “In 1591, the story goes, Queen Elizabeth I stayed in the room on the top floor. She sat in the window in the
corner to watch something going on in the town square.” That room is in the oldest part of the hotel and is now part of a suite, one room of which is a tiny original wig closet, thought to be the only example now in existence. There are only three bedrooms in this part of the hotel: the H G Wells room, the Hilaire Belloc and the Queen’s Suite. The two buildings are linked by a passage, now closed with a large wooden door. “This used to be the corridor that horses would be led through,” says Emma. Throughout its long history, the hotel has gathered various items of memorabilia, many of which are displayed on walls, some having mysterious origins. “We don’t know why some of these pieces are here,” admits Emma. “They were here when the family bought it.” Telegrams from monarchs are framed alongside Hogarth prints depicting scenes of social history in the 1700s. A large Bavarian cuckoo clock hangs above the corridor, allegedly a gift from Wilhelm III to Edward VII. Beneath it, a gleaming suit of armour of unknown origin stands sentry. Upstairs, opposite a wattle-and-daub wall and protected behind glass are a pair of exquisitely detailed windows. “We have six of these panels of stained glass,” says Emma. “They’re all dated by month, but each have different years; 1612 is the oldest. The V&A has another six. They are fantastic and still in really good condition.” Each is illustrated with fantastical images of beasts with clawed feet and seasonal flora and fauna.
Varied history
Uphill from the hotel, past the town hall, is Knockhundred Row. Here, timber-framed 17th century buildings house a tearoom, sweet shop and miniscule local museum, measuring 8ft 6in (2.5m) square. The road bends, leading further downhill and onto North Street, where cafés and independent shops are thronged with people. At the end of the high street is a bright and welcoming ice cream parlour.
“Midhurst has always been a happy place for me. I suppose it rained there at times but all my memories of Midhurst are in sunshine” H G Wells, Experiment in Autobiography
Sunlight floods through large windows, and a summer breeze drifts through the back door, which opens onto a terrace strung with colourful bunting. Outside, customers sit around tables on the patio, bordered with herbs and flowers. From here, over green meadows and through leafy trees, the Cowdray ruins catch the bright afternoon light. Caroline Cheshire co-owns Fitzcane’s ice cream parlour with Janie Jackson and Fiona Andrews. Together, they set up the café, redecorating and refurbishing the Grade II listed property. The parlour is the latest arrival in a building with a history that reaches back to the 17th century. “This has been a domestic house, an antique shop, the bus station and something called the Crusty Loaf, which I presume was a café,” explains Caroline. Another popular café then operated from the premises for more than 30 years. “When the owner retired, it was put up for sale. We had to do quite a lot of work, but we’ve cleared the back and the views are amazing.” Caroline has a deep love of the Surrey valley in which she has set up her livelihood. “It’s a really nice place to live
in this beautiful countryside,” she says. “The journey from here through the South Downs towards Goodwood takes my breath away every time. And there are some interesting people around here: musicians, writers, people who have lived here their whole lives, whose ancestors have worked on the land for Lord Cowdray. It’s a real mixture.” Despite being a relative newcomer to Midhurst, moving from the US in 2013, she has gained an extensive knowledge of the area. “From here, you can walk over the causeway up to the Cowdray ruins, then past the polo fields into Easebourne,” she recommends. Fitzcane’s is lined with books on Midhurst history, and the walls are hung with old pictures of the town. The name also has a local connection. “Relatives of the person who built the castle on St Ann’s Hill built Cowdray; and the person who was originally gifted that land was Savaric Fitzcane,” she says.
Rare heath habitat
Past Fitzcane’s, the road crosses into the adjoining village of Easebourne. It soon leaves the settlement, entering tree-lined fields and gentle hills, some edged with a ribbon of scarlet poppies. Approximately 2½ miles out of town, a single-track road leads towards a small car park beneath the canopy of a large stand of Scots pines. Here, tucked between the crest of the chalky South Downs to the south and the unruly curve of the Rother to the north, one of the rarest environments in the country can be found. Twenty per cent of the world’s lowland heath is found in the UK, and Ambersham Common is one of the best remaining examples in West Sussex. “This area of the park is unique,” says Charles Winchester, a ranger for the South Downs National Park. “The South Downs are known for the rolling chalk
downland and chalk grassland, but this area is slightly different. It’s known as the weald and heath area of the park, and what’s really special about it are the heaths that exist on the Greensand Ridge just below the Downs. The lowland heath habitats you can find there are among the rarest of their kind in the world.” The common is blanketed in lilac ling heather, surrounded by towering Scots pine and gorse bushes studded with rich yellow flowers. For the next month, it will be awash with shades of purple, as cross-leaved heath in the boggier areas and clumps of bell heather come into flower. Insects can be spotted on the soft earth of pale, sandy paths. “You’ll see clouds of Silver-studded Blue butterflies,” says Charles. “They live only on heathlands, and they’re associated with the black ant, which tends the caterpillars of the butterfly. It will carry the caterpillars down into its chambers, and the caterpillars release a sugary substance which the ants eat. They look after them and protect them, and when they’re ready, the caterpillars emerge and turn into the Silver-studded Blue.” The low burr of the nightjar can be heard in the evening and it may be seen flying around. Woodlark is another ground-nesting heathland species and the rare Dartford warbler is both audible and visible on the site. In boggier areas, Golden-ringed and emerald dragonflies, and beautiful damselflies hover in the still summer air. “Lowland heath tends to occur on quite poor, sandy soil, so you get really warm ground conditions which are great for invertebrates,” he adds. Glow-worms can be spotted during the evenings, and the nationally rare digger wasp, Ectemnius borealis, has been noted here. Reptiles also love the warm sandy soil, and the Sand lizard sometimes basks in sunny spots. This is one of the UK’s rarest reptiles, and during the breeding season in spring, males develop a bright green stripe down each flank. The shy Smooth snake, the UK’s smallest at 2-2ft 4in (60-70cm), is also present, but sightings are rare. “The heaths in this part of the National Park are connected by a route called the Serpent Trail,” says Charles. “A string of heaths stretch across the Greensand Ridge, and that trail is a great way to see some of those patches. You can dip in where you want.”
String of communities
Around Midhurst, several tiny villages are connected by country lanes, strung along the Rother Valley. Didling is made up of only a few houses, sitting directly beneath the steep rise of the South Downs. Just outside the hamlet, a track leads off towards a whitewashed building in a small graveyard amid farmed fields. A path shaded by an
ancient yew leads to the heavy wooden door of St Andrew’s, also known as Didling Shepherds’ Church. This simple building dates from the early 1200s and has provided a place of worship and shelter for centuries. “It’s very picturesque. This is a sheep rearing area so, during the summer, as you’re taking the service, you can hear the bleating of the sheep in the background,” says the Reverend Mark Morton, rector for the area. “It’s unspoilt. There’s really no difference from how it would have been maybe 200 years ago, and people appreciate that. I had a query recently from a couple who were stationed near here in the war. They did their courting here, and it became very special to them. They wanted to know if, when they died, they could be buried here. I said ‘yes’,” he smiles. The church has had very little restoration work carried out, and most of its features are original. Sturdy oak benches, dating from the 15th century, line either side of the aisle, seating approximately 30 people. Small fold-down seats on the ends of the pews provide a little more space for busy services. At the back of the church is a font of Saxon origin, hewn from a solid block of stone. Although the recorded history of the church is patchy, the font’s presence suggests that this has been a site of worship since the 11th century or even earlier. For many centuries, the church has also been a place of shelter for people travelling along the South Downs Way, which passes within half a mile of its door. “This was historically a drover’s route between Eastbourne and Winchester,” explains Mark. “Shepherds would take their sheep along there to market. Some would be driven right along the South Downs, and, of course, that would be a journey of some days. A place like this was important for shepherds if they wanted to go to church, but it also provided shelter in bad weather, which proved a very practical function for what in those days was a major industry. These days, people walking along the path still stop by to rest or to have a picnic.” During the summer, evensong is held here on the third Sunday of every month. The church has no electricity, so services are candlelit, and at the end, people sometimes stand in the fading sun enjoying a glass of wine, which is handed out on the door. The atmosphere is convivial, very much a part of the rural landscape it is set within. Back in Midhurst, the setting sun lights rows of whitewashed Tudor houses a blushing gold. There is still warmth in the air as the shops close their doors, and the old pubs open theirs. This small town, with its rich history, sometimes evident and sometimes tucked away, continues to thrive. There is much to discover in Midhurst.