INFLUENTIAL GATEWAY

Another quiet corner of the Hampshire market town of Romsey which hides a depth of  intrigue in character and architecture.
In truth, it’s anything but quiet, because through the archway is the main entrance to the town’s Memorial Park and the road also leads to both the striking Norman Abbey and the Catholic Church as well as riverside homes.
But take time to stop in the Market Place and this particular corner provides a contrast in architectural styles from the traditional United Reform Church and the archway to the elaborate character of the bank on the right and the more conventional small town shops and offices on the left, all steeped in history.
But then, Romsey has many unique spots like this, either as entire streets or an isolated group of buildings like this, and one of the reasons it attracts many weekend visitors.  The Victorian town hall just along the Market Place from here is steeped in history in its own right, and the town’s Conservative Club housed in a historic pub,the Swan Inn which once belonged to Winchester College, and dates back to the 15th century. The iron bracket outside the building is very old. It is recorded that a soldier was hanged from this bracket during the civil war. The Swan closed its doors as a pub in 1894.

But this particular archway is the gateway to the church’s considerable influence on the town, dating back to the 900s AD when the first known religious orders were established in the town with the founding of a monastery and nunnery.