SOUTHAMPTON, Hampshire, England, 79 m. S.W. of London by the S.R. The town stands near the head of South ampton Water, an inlet of the English Channel which forms the estuary of the river Test ; on a peninsula bounded east by the river Itchen. The county borough includes, since 1920, South Stone ham, part of North Stoneham, Swaythling, Bitterne, Sholing, Itchen and Woolston, and Weston and Newtown, giving a total area of 9,192 ac. and a population (1931) of 176,025.
There was a Roman settlement on the east bank of the Itchen.
It was walled, and inscribed stones, coins, pottery, etc., have been found. Southampton (Hantune, Suhampton) superseded the Saxon Hantune and was a royal borough before 1086. The charter was given by Henry VI. in 1445, while by charter of 1447 the neigh bouring district was absorbed. A charter was finally given by Charles I. in 1640. Southampton has returned two members to parliament since 1295. There are remains of the old Norman walls, strengthened by towers at intervals, such as the Arundel Tower at the north-western corner. The site of the castle, near the water, is built over. It was originally a Saxon fortress, and was partly demolished in 165o.
One old house, known as King John's Palace, is considered to be earlier than any example of the 12th century in Eng land. The South and West town gates date from the early 14th century, while Bar Gate, as it stands, is later, and retains excellent Decorated work. Blue Anchor Gate also survives. Numerous early vaults remain below the houses within the walls. The two old churches, St. Michael's, the central tower and lofty spire of which rise from Norman arches, and Holy Rood, partly Decorated, are greatly modernized. St. Michael's contains a Norman font of black marble. The chapel of St. Julian is of transitional Nor man architecture, greatly altered by restoration. It was originally attached to the hospital of God's House, founded in the time of Henry III. for eight poor persons, the existing buildings of which are modern. The chapel was allocated as a place of worship by Queen Elizabeth to certain Protestant Walloon refugees. The priory of St. Denys, an Augustinian foundation of 1124, gives its name to a suburb by the Itchen, and has left only fragmentary ruins. Netley Abbey (q.v.) 3 m. S.E. is a ruined Cistercian abbey. The Gildhall, used as a court-house, is in the upper part of Bar Gate. The Tudor House is a well preserved relic, now corpo ration property and used as a museum. The Edward VI. grammar school was founded in 155o and reorganized in 1875, and occupies modern buildings. Alderman Taunton's trade school was founded in 1752, and includes a technical department. The University
College of Southampton, formerly housed in the Hartley Institu tion, removed to new buildings at Highfield in The Port and Its Trade.—Southampton was the chief port of Winchester. It had a large import and export trade, and in the 13th century was the second wine port in England. Wool was very largely exported, and the fact that it was brought to this port to be shipped probably extended the woollen trade in the west of England. The rise of London as a port, the prohibition of the export of wool, the loss of the Winchester market after the sup pression of the monasteries, and the withdrawal of the court led to a gradual decline of trade in the 16th century.
The modern importance of the port begins with the creation of a pier and harbour commission in 2803, and the erection of the Royal Victoria Pier in 1831. The prosperity of the town was enhanced by the opening of railway communication with London in 1840. The harbour is one of the finest natural harbours in the kingdom, and has the advantage of a double tide, the tide of the English channel giving it high water first by way of the Solent and two hours later by way of Spithead. In 1892 the docks, which lie at the southern end of the peninsula, became the property of the Southern Railway Company, then the London & South Western. The present docks include the Empress open dock (181 ac.) with a depth of 26 ft. at low water. The quays on the rivers Itchen and Test have been extended to 4,492 ft. and 4,220 ft. respectively. The depth at these quays is 28 ft. and 32 ft. respectively (low water). There are the Outer (16 ac.) and Inner (10 ac.) docks. The total extent of quays and jetties after the extension power of 1925 is approximately 21,214 feet. Besides this there is the Prince of Wales graving dock, the Trafalgar graving dock, a large floating dock some 96o ft. long and four other dry docks. The west station has been rebuilt with a view to giving further railway traffic facilities. Southampton has an air service which operates from Woolston aerodrome to the Channel Islands. The Woolston area has large shipbuilding and engineering works. Southampton is the chief port for express transatlantic passenger services, notably those of the Cunard, White Star and Canadian Pacific lines, while the West African, West Indian, South American, South African, Peninsular and Oriental, and Australian and New Zealand services also use this port, as do a number of cross-channel services under the control of the Southern Railway.
Southampton gives name to a suffragan bishopric in the diocese of Winchester. The county borough was created in 1888.