NEWS
July 2024 Update
Hartley Wintney Festival - Thank you to those members who helped out at the Society’s stall at the village festival on June 8th and to the many members of the Society and general public that visited us. We hope you took the opportunity to find out more about the Society and look at the information on display.
Front Garden Awards - Judging for this is taking place between mid June and mid July with judges walking around the whole of Hartley Wintney village selecting the most attractive and enchanting front gardens. The final selection of gardens will be made by the end of July and they will then be announced on the Society and other village notice boards. There will be prizes for small and large front gardens which will be formally presented later in the year at the Society’s Autumn meeting.
The Heritage Society 2024 Journal has been distributed to members by email. If you would like a professionally printed copy, these are available to members and non-members priced at £3 each and can be ordered (along with any other Society published books) from this website.
Autumn Meeting – Wednesday, 23rd October – Victoria Hall. Speaker to be announced in due course.
If you care about the village you live in and would like to know more about its rich history and heritage please join the Society to show your support. For more information go to our HOME page where a membership form can be found.
- John Sage
June 2024 and Village Festival Update
Member meeting – Our AGM and Spring meeting took place on May 8th with over 80 members in attendance. We hope that members found the presentation on Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke from our guest speaker, Colonel Paul Bennett, both informative and interesting.
Front Garden Award - Judging for this will take place between July and August 2023 when judges will be walking around the whole of Hartley Wintney village and as last year, there will be a prize for the most enchanting front garden.
Village Festival – Saturday June 8th.
The Society will be present again at the festival this year and we look forward to meeting visitors to our stand between 12-5pm.
Annual Subscriptions 2024-2025 – Members have already been contacted by email requesting payment of the subscription of £6.00 and our thanks go to those who have already paid. If you have not yet done this, payment by bank transfer is preferred or cheques (made payable to HWHS) can be delivered or posted for the attention of HWHS Membership at 17 Hazeley Close, Hartley Wintney, RG27 8QR.
- John Sage
May 2024 Update and AGM Reminder
AGM and Spring Meeting - Our AGM/Spring meeting will take place on Wednesday, 8 May 2024 in the Victoria Hall at 7.30pm. Our guest speaker, Colonel Paul Bennett, will be giving a talk on
“Alanbrooke and Hartley Wintney - his haven in Hampshire”
Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke (1883-1963) is perhaps the most distinguished person to have lived in Hartley Wintney. He was the Chief of the Imperial General Staff - CIGS - (professional head of the British Army) from December 1941 to June 1946, succeeded by Field Marshal Montgomery. As such he was Churchill’s most senior military adviser for most of the Second World War and is still widely regarded as the greatest CIGS in British history.
Front Garden Awards are going ahead again this year – look out for posters in the village with more information.
Annual Subscriptions 2024-2025 – Where relevant, members have already been contacted by email requesting payment of the subscription of £6.00 and our thanks go to those who have already paid. If you have not yet done this, payment by bank transfer is preferred or renewal can be made by cheque (made payable to HWHS) or cash at the AGM and Spring Meeting.
Village Festival – 8 June - As in previous years, we will be seeking volunteers to help at our stand. If you are able to help for an hour between 12-5pm please can you send an email with your contact details to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
- John Sage
March 2024 Update
AGM and Spring Meeting - Our AGM/Spring meeting will take place on Wednesday, 8 May 2024 in the Victoria Hall at 7.30pm. Our guest speaker, Colonel Paul Bennett, will be giving a talk on
“Alanbrooke and Hartley Wintney - his haven in Hampshire”
Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke (1883-1963) is perhaps the most distinguished person to have lived in Hartley Wintney. He was the Chief of the Imperial General Staff - CIGS - (professional head of the British Army) from December 1941 to June 1946, succeeded by Field Marshal Montgomery. As such he was Churchill’s most senior military adviser for most of the Second World War and is still widely regarded as the greatest CIGS in British history.
Following on from the success of two books announced in early 2023 which presented some of the rich history of the civil parish of Hartley Wintney in a format of Then and Now using narrative and pictures covering buildings and landscapes we are very pleased to announce two new books describing the history of Hartley Wintney – also written by local historians Nick Maslin and Andy Morris. They are both 150 pages in length and fully illustrated in colour.
The first book covers the early history of the village and its Priory - the period from the very earliest settlers up to the end of the Elizabethan period after Wintney Priory had been dissolved. It was the Saxons that first established a small settlement around the current site of St Mary’s church. Wintney Priory was created in the late twelfth century and dominated the local village life for over three hundred years.
The second book covers the Revolutions and village life - the 250 years between Elizabeth I’s visit to Elvetham in 1591 and the first national census in 1841. During this time there were periods of warfare and strife. Industrial and agrarian revolutions impacted farming practice whilst the transport changes resulting in the creation of turnpike roads provided economic opportunities from the coaching trade - then the railway arrived. This is the fascinating story of the local people at that time and the effect of those turbulent years on Hartley Wintney village life.
Both books can be ordered via the Society’s website and cost £10 each.
If you care about the village you live in and would like to know more about its rich history and heritage, please join the Society to show your support.
- John Sage
February 2024 Update
The Heritage Society was founded on 14 January 1966 and therefore we celebrated our 58th birthday last month. Although much has changed about the village since 1966 the Society was founded as a local Amenity Society for the protection and enhancement of the beauty and amenities of Hartley Wintney and its surrounding countryside and to encourage interest in the history, flora and fauna of the area. We are very pleased that the values that have been in place over the years still exist and help to make Hartley Wintney the great place to live that it is.
We hope, like us, that you have been delighted to see the refurbishment of the Hattens and Dilly Lane ponds which have over the last month been restored to their former glory and we would like to thank the Parish Council for their hard work and perseverance in achieving this and taking over the maintenance of the ponds in the future.
Looking forward, the Victoria Hall has been booked for Wednesday, May 8th for our AGM and Spring meeting and more details will be issued in due course.
If you care about the village you live in and would like to know more about its rich history and heritage, please join the Society to show your support.
- John Sage
