Battle of Cheriton 1644

Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places

Overview

Heritage Category:: Battlefield
List Entry Number:: 1000007
Date first listed:: 06-Jun-1995

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Official list entry

Heritage Category:: Battlefield
List Entry Number:: 1000007
Date first listed:: 06-Jun-1995
Location Description:: CHERITON

This list entry identifies a battlefield which is registered because of its special historic interest.

Understanding registered battlefields

Corrections and minor amendments

This list entry identifies a battlefield which is registered because of its special historic interest.

Understanding registered battlefields

Corrections and minor amendments

Location

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

County:: Hampshire
District:: Winchester (District Authority)
Parish:: Bishops Sutton
County:: Hampshire
District:: Winchester (District Authority)
Parish:: Bramdean and Hinton Ampner
County:: Hampshire
District:: Winchester (District Authority)
Parish:: Cheriton
National Park:: SOUTH DOWNS
National Grid Reference:: SU 59775 29360

Details

BATTLE OF CHERITON 1644

The Civil Wars of the mid seventeenth century were a reflection of profound political, constitutional, religious and social conflict which was expressed in a struggle for control between King and Parliament.

The start of the 1644 campaigning season found the Royalist army of Sir Ralph Hopton attempting to bring the Parliamentarian force commanded by Sir William Waller to battle in Hampshire. Although Hopton could field only 6,000 men to Waller's 10,000, he made contact with the Parliamentarians at Cheriton on 29 March 1644.

Despite early successes during the battle, the Royalists lost the initiative and Hopton was forced to fall back on Alresford before retreating to Basing House. Waller, exploiting his success at Cheriton, gained control of Hampshire. To a very large extent the Royalist strategy in the West had been thrown into disarray and, in Clarendon's phase, Cheriton had 'altered the whole scheme of the King's counsels'.

The battle took place over open fields and woodlands with much the same character as the landscape of today. The deeply worn lanes, mostly now disused, were present at the time and the hedges along their sides formed important features in the battlefield in 1644.

AMENITY FEATURES Access along public rights of way in the area between Cheriton, Bramdean and Hinton Ampner is good, along green lanes, footpaths and the minor road from Cheriton to Alton. Many of the important battlefield features can be viewed from these paths, including a memorial plaque.

OTHER DESIGNATIONS The southern part of the battlefield lies within the East Hampshire Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The remaining part will fall into a proposed Area of Special Landscape Quality.

KEY SOURCES Adair, J, 1973, Cheriton 1644: the campaign and the battle Burne, A H, 1950, The battlefields of England

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment to the Selected Sources on 11/08/2020

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:: 8
Legacy System:: Battlefields

Sources

Websites
English Heritage Battlefield Report: Battle of Cheriton 1644 (Published 1995), accessed 11th August 2020 from https://historicengland.org.uk/content/docs/listing/battlefields/cheriton/