OVINGTON
Edintune (xi cent.); Edyneton (xiii cent.).
The parish of Ovington, covering 1,288 acres of
the country which stretches southwards from the valley
of the Itchen to become part of the ridge of down
land which stretches south and east of Winchester, is
long and narrow, being about four miles in length
and barely a mile in breadth at its widest part. Approaching the village from Itchen Stoke a pathway
along the river bank between two branches of the
Itchen leads to a ford over the widest part of the river,
from which the first houses of the village of Ovington,
lying on the slope rising to the south from the valley,
can be seen. The uphill road leads past the Bush Inn,
a small unobtrusive house lying to the west near the
river, on past the smithy, two or three modern houses
and several low-thatched cottages, one of which serves
as the post office, to the church of St. Peter, which
stands to the east of the road. Near by the church is
a group of tiled half-timbered cottages, on one of
which is a tablet g.f.h. 1847. The rectory is
almost opposite, south of Ovington Park Farm. South
of the church low white gates lead up a short drive to
Ovington House, the seat of Mrs. Hewson, lady of the
manor, which stands in the midst of finely-wooded
country, beyond which Ovington Park stretches away
to its boundary, the main road which leads from
Winchester through Chilcomb and Tichborne to
New Alresford. Beyond the main road the south of
the parish is one long sweep of down land, rising to a
height of over 500 ft. above the sea level near Longwood Warren. Ovington Down Farm and Ovington
Down Cottages lying along Rodfield Lane, which is a
continuation of the village street across the down land,
are the only traces of human existence in the midst of
this lonely country.
The soil of the parish is clay, the subsoil chalk,
and since this is so and since most of the country is
down land there are only 561 acres of arable land and
13 acres of woodland as compared with 328½ acres of
permanent grass. Ordinary crops—wheat, oats, barley,
and roots—are produced. The common lands were
inclosed in 1811–12. (fn. 1)
MANORS
There are two entries in Domesday
with reference to the manor of OVINGTON
(fn. 2) ; in the first it was held by the
bishop (fn. 3) ; in the second it is said to be in the possession of the abbey of St. Mary at Winchester, for whom
the bishop evidently held it. It had previously been
held by Archbishop Stigand. Formerly Ovington
had been assessed at one and a half hides; in 1086
the whole of the revenue was appropriated to the
support of the nuns. (fn. 4)
Between 1086 and 1316 the nuns were constantly
in pecuniary difficulties (fn. 5) ; it is probable that in order
to raise money they sold the manor to St. Swithun's
before 1284, as in that year John bishop of Winchester gave up all his right in the manor to the prior
and convent of St. Swithun. (fn. 6) The manor evidently
remained in the possession of St. Swithun's until the
Dissolution; (fn. 7) and in 1542 Ovington Manor lately
belonging to St. Swithun's was granted to the dean
and chapter of Winchester; (fn. 8) it was in the possession
of the cathedral church of Winchester in 1682; (fn. 9) and
in 1701 the dean and chapter of Winchester were
still lords of the manor. (fn. 10)
In 1855 and 1859 the manorial rights were the
subject of a dispute between the bishop of Winchester
and the Baroness van Zandt of Ovington Park, who
had inherited the estate from her father, Mr. James
Standerwick. Between 1859 and 1866 this estate
passed to Captain G. F. Hewson, whose widow, Mrs.
Hewson, is the present owner.
At the time of the Domesday Survey there was half
a mill in Ovington worth 7s.; (fn. 11) there is no mill in
the parish at the present day.
CHURCH
The church of ST. PETER, entirely
rebuilt in 1865–6, consists of a chancel
with north vestry, north and south
transepts, a nave with south-west tower, the ground
stage of which serves as an entrance porch. In the
porch is preserved an ancient holy-water stone. The
font is of Purbeck marble, with a bowl ornamented
with shallow arcades, after a late twelfth-century
fashion, but there is nothing else in the church with
any pretensions to antiquity.
There are four bells, the treble by Warner, 1881;
the second and tenor by the same founder, 1866; and
the third by Mears, 1820.
The plate consists of a cup of 1807, with paten
and flagon of 1811, all presented in July 1811 by
George Lowther.
The first book of the registers contains all entries
from 1591 to 1738, and the second baptisms and
burials 1738–85, and marriages to 1754. The third
has marriages 1755–1812, and the fourth baptisms
and burials 1786–1813.
ADVOWSON
There is no mention of a church
in OVINGTON at the time of the
Domesday Survey. One, however,
existed before 1284, as in that year the king gave up
to John bishop of Winchester and his successors all
his right in the advowson of the church of Ovington. (fn. 12) In 1291 Ovington church was valued at
£5, (fn. 13) and by 1535 the value had risen to £12. (fn. 14)
The bishop of Winchester was patron of Ovington
until about the year 1870, (fn. 15) when the advowson passed
into the hands of the bishop of Lichfield, (fn. 16) and remained in his gift for some fifteen years. From 1890
to the present day the Lord Chancellor has presented
to the living. (fn. 17)
CHARITIES
There were formerly in this parish
about two acres of land considered to
belong to the church which became
intermixed with private property, and could not be
identified. In 1820 Sir Thomas Richard Dyer, bart.
(who by marriage had come into possession of the
property in question), entered into an agreement with
the parishioners to pay 40s. a year to the churchwardens to be applied towards the repairs of the
church.
There are also belonging to the church about three
acres of land in the parish. The annual sum of 40s.,
together with the rents of the land, is carried to the
churchwardens' general accounts.