Burghclere

settlement
parish:
county:
coords:
Burghclere
Hampshire
SU469610
refce: HANTSLOC.t

old map: 25inch County Series map -- Hants III.13

Burghclere
Clere
otherwise: cleran, 749-12; clearas, 955-14; clearan, 959-14

refce: Coates 1989
CLERE, three parishes BURGHCLERE, HIGHCLERE, KINGSCLERE
The existence of Anglo Saxon period forms rules out Middle English 'clere'='clearing', from the French. No Old English lexical word is known which could fill the bill. The Old English name appears to be in the plural in at least one of its occurrences (955). Ekwall compares two Hampshire charter boundaries containing a reference to one and the same place: 901 (early 11th century) 'cleara flode' 909 (12th century transcript) '(aet) clearan flode' where Micheldever meets North Waltham. 'Flode' is 'channel, ditch, watercourse'. There is no stream at this point, but Grundy (1927: 285) mentions that there was a 'Cocksford' in Popham which must have been over the same water; perhaps therefore there was once a winterbourne there, which no longer flows because of changes in the water table. If 'cleara(n)' is a lexical word, its sense is unknown (the origin of the place name 'Clearbury Ring' (Wiltshire), not recorded before 1632, is unknown). If it is a name, it perhaps derives from hypothetical Primitive Welsh 'clijar' the source of Welsh 'claer'='bright' ('claear'='lukewarm' hardly makes sense for a bourne flow, though this word seems to have the same etymological source as 'claer'). What such a name could refer to in the case of Kingsclere, Highclere and Burghclere is unknown; they share no single stream, and we cannot assume that the various streams of the area all bore the same name.
KINGSCLERE was a royal demesne manor before and after 1066, though part of it was given to St Peter's, Winchester, by William I, and the rest to St Mary Rouen, by Henry I, though it was again in royal hands in the time of Edward II. It appears in the time of Henry I as 'Kyngesclere' about 1270 'Clara regis'. The name of HIGHCLERE (1208 'alta Clera' but previously 'West Clere' (see above)) ought to be self explanatory, but only the ridgetop site of Highclere Castle is notably high. The village is slightly higher than the other two. This was the Bishop of Winchester's holding at the time of Domesday Book, and the site of a palace of his; but 1241 'Clere le Evesk' 1320 'Bisshopes Clere' are names for BURGHCLERE, once a single episcopal manor with Highclere though having a separate reeve from earliest times (VCH IV, 256f.). The name of Burghclere (1171 'Burclere') at first sight appears to allude to the 'burh' or ancient earthwork on Beacon Hill, mentioned to in 943 (12th century transcript) as 'weard setle'='(to the) watchhouse'. Indeed, Old Burghclere (see below) is close to the foot of the hill on which it stands. But it is possible that we have late Old English/Middle English 'burh' in the sense of 'manor, great house', from the bishop's palace. The absence of this element in Old English forms may suggest the latter interpretation, though there is no firm way of deciding the issue at present. The bishop had a market here and the mention 1218 'novus burgus de Clere' (analogous to 'Newbury' (Berkshire), see NEWTOWN) makes it superficially possible that the name is to be taken as 'borough (market town) Clere'. But the market was established in the second decade of the 13th century, whilst Burghclere's name is on record from the late 12th century. 'Burghclere' may, then, be 'fort Clere' or 'manor Clere'.
The most populous part of modern Burghclere, and the part named as such on the OS 1 to 50000 map, is a relatively modern development; hence 'Old Burghclere' for the ancient settlement.
Morris, in the Hampshire Domesday identifies the holding of William son of Baderon in Kingsclere hundred with 'Earlstone' (1167 'Erlestona' 1233 'Erlestune'='earl's farm'). It was held of the king by Saxi before 1066, who held three other parcels of land in Hampshire from the king and was clearly a man of substance.
John de Clere who took his name from here, lived in Crondall in the early 13th century and his name eventually became attached to 'Clare Park' in that parish, previously 'Badley'='Bad(d)a's wood/clearing'.
Under SHERFIELD-ON-LODDON, the thorny question is examined of whether the 'Sher-' forms descend from Old English words for 'bright' or 'shire'. It is curious to see along the Hampshire/Berkshire boundary a group of parish names in 'Clere' in the west and a group in the east, almost abutting, in 'Sher-'. It gives the impression that the Romano British/Primitive Welsh name of the region involved the British word for 'bright', which the Saxons adopted and incorporated, in translation, in their own place names. More investigation is required; there is a case for assuming that 'Sher-' in these names means 'shire(s)'.

description
Burghclere
The place is described in text Cobbett 1830

Period - 19th century, early
refce: Cobbett 1830
Burghclere lies along at the foot of a part of that chain of hills, which, in this part, divide Hampshire from Berkshire.
...
... Burghclere, which lies close under the north side of the lofty hill at HIGHCLERE, which is called Beacon-hill,
...
It rained steadily this morning [at Burghclere], or else, at the end of the six days of hunting for GEORGE and two for me, we should have set off. The rain gives me time to give an account of Mr. BUDD'S crop of TULLIAN WHEAT. It was sown in rows and on ridges, with very wide intervals, ploughed all summer. If he reckon that ground only which the wheat grew upon, he had one hundred and thirty bushels to the acre; and even if he reckoned the whole of the ground, he had 28 bushels all but two gallons to the acre! But, the best wheat he grew this year, was dibbled in betwen (sic) rows of Swedish Turnips, in November, four rows upon a ridge, with an eighteen inch interval between each two rows, and a five feet interval between the outside rows on each ridge. It is the white cone that Mr. Budd sows. He had ears with 130 grains in each. This would be the farming for labourers in their little plots. ...
...
... in the parish of Burghclere, one single farmer holds by lease, under LORD CARNARVON, as one farm, the lands that men, now living, can remember to have formed fourteen farms, bringing up, in a respectable way, fourteen families. In some instances these small farm-houses and homesteads are completely gone; in others the buildings remain, but in a tumble-down state; in others the house is gone, leaving the barn for use as a barn or as a cattle-shed; in others, the out-buildings are gone, and the house, with rotten thatch, broken windows, rotten door-sills, and all threatening to fall, remains as the dwelling of a half-starved and ragged family of labourers, the grandchildren, perhaps, of the decent family of small farmers that formerly lived happily in this very house. ...

old map
Burrowclere
Shown on an old map by Harrison 1788
- settlement, village - Evinger Hundred - Hampshire
Period - 1780s
refce: Harrison 1788
(HAR1SU45.jpg)

description
Burgh-clear
The place is described in text Cox 1738
- Hampshire
refce: Cox 1738
Burgh-clear, a Village lying at the Bottom of an Hill, on the Top of which is a military Camp (such as our Ancestors called a Burgh)

old map
Burghclere
Shown on an old map by Morden 1695
- settlement, village - Evinger Hundred - Hampshire
Period - 1690s-1720s
refce: Morden 1695
(MRD2SU45.jpg)

descriptive text
Burghclear

Period - 17th century
refce: Blome 1673
Burghclear, seated under a high Hill, on the top of which is a warlike Rampier yet to be seen, where there is now a Beacon.

old map
Burghclere
Shown on an old map by Blaeu 1645
- settlement, hamlet - Evinger Hundred - Hantshire
refce: Blaeu 1645
(BLA1SU45.jpg)

old map
Burghclere
Shown on an old map by Speed 1611
- settlement, hamlet - Evinger Hundred - Hantshire
refce: Speed 1611
(SPD1SU45.jpg)

description
Burgh-Cleare
The place is described in text Camden 1610
- Hantshire
Period - 1600s
refce: Camden 1610
[roman road went by] ... Burgh-Cleare situate under an high hill, in the top whereof a warlike rampire (such as our countreymen call a Burgh) hath a trench taking a great compasse about it

old map
Burghclere
Shown on an old map by Norden 1607
- settlement, village - Evinger Hundred - Hamshire
Period - 1590s-1600s
refce: Norden 1607
(NRD1SU45.jpg)

old map
Burghclere
Shown on an old map by Saxton 1575
- settlement, village - Southamtoniae
refce: Saxton 1575
(SAX1SU45.jpg)

domesday
Clere
Listed in Domesday Book
- Evingare Hundred - Hantscire
Period - 11th century
refce: Moody 1862 (Domesday)

domesday
Clere
Listed in Domesday Book
- Clere Hundred - Hantscire
Period - 11th century
refce: Moody 1862 (Domesday)

   Old Hampshire Gazetteer - JandMN: 2001