Full Steam Ahead In Southampton
Gillian Thornton tours an English city steeped in history and maritime tradition.
HEADING out of Southampton’s Old Town towards the modern harbour, I pass through an archway in the mediaeval city walls to emerge on a broad pavement.
Ahead, beyond the coast road, I can see the city’s Western Docks, where international cruise ships moor up close to West
Quay Shopping Centre and the city’s heritage attractions.
Southampton stands on a peninsula between the
River Test and the River Itchen, and for many centuries the water lapped at a bustling quayside beneath the city walls.
Henry V passed through West Gate behind me on his way to Agincourt, and 200 years later the Pilgrim Fathers sailed from this spot to start their life in the New World.
I’ve always had a soft spot for sea ports, and whether you’re planning a short break or tacking an overnight stay on to the beginning or end of a no-fly cruise, Southampton doesn’t disappoint.
For first-time visitors, there’s no better way to get under the skin of this fascinating city than on a guided walking tour with See Southampton.
Godfrey, my guide, is full of information and anecdotes as we step back through the centuries.
In the space of 90 minutes, I discover how this fortified mediaeval settlement turned into a sophisticated Georgian spa town, before being transformed into one of the world’s best-known cruise ports.
Southampton’s shoreline was gradually pushed out as land was reclaimed to build new port facilities, but I’m pleased to find that a lot of the city’s history remains tangible today.
The city walls were built over a period of 200 years – starting in the age of the longbow and finishing when cannons were commonplace – yet despite the ravages of urban planning and world war, half the original ramparts are still standing, the longest stretch of mediaeval walls in England.
Jane Austen lived with her family in the Old Town area for around three years before moving to Bath. Her house is long gone, but we know that the Austens’ garden stretched to the town walls and afforded extensive views across the Test to the New Forest.
Visitors can still follow one of her favourite walks through Saltmarsh Gate and on to the bank of the River Itchen, which she would cross by ferry to visit friends.
On our way, Godfrey points out a wealth of historic buildings – the ruins of a Saxon Customs House; the “French Church” of St Julien; the 13thcentury wool-house on
Town Quay, recently given a new lease of life as the Dancing Man Brewery – a great spot to enjoy an informal meal in an atmospheric location, with a range of delicious brews.
Tour over, I head off to explore the Tudor House and Garden, built in the 15th century and reopened in 2012 after a major refurbishment programme.
The interior of this fascinating building reflects the lives and work of some of its inhabitants over the years, including a Tudor lord chief justice and a Victorian milliner.
I love deciphering the graffiti of sailing ships and men in hats etched on the exposed plaster, and turning the interactive screens to see representations of how the rooms would have looked across the ages.
Returning to the high street that bisects the Old Town, I pause inside the roofless Holyrood Church. Badly damaged in 1940, it is now a beautiful memorial and garden of rest.
Amongst the wall plaques to lost sailors, I find a stone monument to the local victims of the Titanic disaster. Of the great ship’s crew, more than 500 came from a Southampton address – a devastating loss for this maritime city.
My next stop is the SeaCity Museum in the Cultural Quarter, where a large part of the permanent exhibition is dedicated to an exhibition called Southampton’s Titanic Story.
Themed areas conjure up the atmosphere of the early 20th-century town with snatches of conversation and the clamour of life at
the docks. The population then was rising rapidly – and more than 17,000 people were unemployed. Many of those who applied for jobs on Titanic, I discovered, had never even been to sea.
Visitors can follow the fortunes of six people on board the ship, including the captain, a first-class steward, and a lookout. Sadly, not everyone will make it home.
The first few galleries set the scene for the ship’s maiden voyage, dramatically highlighting the differences between the three classes of passengers.
As I move into the galleries focusing on the disaster itself, I’m particularly moved by the recorded memories of three survivors.
One lady, who was just seven in 1912, talks of being separated from her father and never seeing him again; of how she watched the Titanic slide into the icy water; and how the arrival of the rescue ship
Carpathia brought help and hope.
The artefacts touch my heart, too – telegrams to relatives announcing lost loved ones; a lifejacket; personal photos; a steward’s watch, stopped at the time he hit the water.
Afterwards, an audiovisual section on the official enquiry held following the disaster highlights the subsequent safety improvements made on board these huge liners.
Next door is the Southampton City Art Gallery, housed in the striking art deco surroundings of the town’s Civic Centre.
There are pictures in this lovely collection to please everyone, but the gallery is renowned in particular for its 20th-century and contemporary art.
I stayed at the White Star Tavern, a delightful boutique hotel in Oxford Street above a friendly pub/ restaurant.
Named after the White Star Line, which owned Titanic, the tavern is now part of a conservation area east of the Old Town, lined with attractive houses, small shops and lively restaurants.
In 1912, this was the hub of the maritime quarter – follow the Titanic Heritage Trail around Oxford Street and
Terminus Terrace to see properties connected to passengers, crew and suppliers.
For my final meal, I head back to West Gate in the mediaeval ramparts and the Pig In The Wall, built – as the name implies – into the city walls. This cosy eating place with indoor and outdoor tables offers a simple menu of scrumptious home-made dishes.
As I sip my drink by the window, I find I can easily imagine those mediaeval soldiers and 17th-century pioneers waiting by the quay outside.
Times may change, but Southampton’s maritime atmosphere never does.