Andover Walk: Town Centre【4K】
Located in the county of Hampshire, and around 20 miles north of Southampton, is the town of Andover.
Geographically, Andover is situated along the River Anton - a tributary of the River Test. Its first recorded reference as a settlement dates back to 950 AD when King Edred was noted as having built a royal hunting lodge here. In 962 King Edgar called a meeting of the Saxon parliament (the Witenagemot) at his hunting lodge near Andover.
In 994 AD Bishop of Winchester Ælfheah (Alphege) confirmed Viking leader Olaf Tryggvason as a Christian in Andover. This was overseen by King Æthelred the Unready who offered Olaf £16,000 in 'Danegeld' - with the intention of appeasing the Vikings to prevent further attacks. However, it only put a temporary halt to them. Ironically Bishop Alphege, after later becoming Archbishop of Canterbury, was murdered by the Vikings in 1012.
At the heart of the town is the Church of St Mary. This dates from the mid-19th century, replacing a medieval church on the same site which was pronounced unsafe and in need of demolition, and duly demolished with dynamite to make way for the current edifice.
In 1175 a royal charter was granted to Andover by Henry II, followed by an additional charter in 1201 by King John, marking its beginnings as a market town. Historic industries here included wool, brewing, milling and leather tanning. During the Georgian and early Victorian eras, it was a staging post on the Exeter to London road. As such, various coaching inns once existed here.
In 1854 the railway arrived in Andover, effectively killing its coaching inn industry. In 1865 a second station, named Andover Town, opened here, and concurrently the original was renamed Andover Junction. Andover Town was the northern terminus of the Sprat and Winkle Line (whose name origin is unclear) which linked up to the Redbridge area of Southampton, up until its closure in the 1960s due to the Beeching Cuts, leaving only the original station remaining, whose name reverted to, simply, 'Andover'. This remains in use today, and is situated on the West of England Line which runs between Basingstoke and Exeter.
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Filmed: 31st May 2024
Link to the walk on Google Maps: https://maps.app.goo.gl/fWvaUg828GJsD...
Filmed on a Sony FDR-AX700 with a Zhiyun Crane 2 and a Sony ECM-XYST1M Stereo Microphone.
0:00 Bridge Street
6:14 London Street
8:53 Bridge Street
9:12 High Street
14:15 Marlborough Street
15:38 High Street
16:27 Newbury Street
17:32 Church Close