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Compton is a small village but with a very rich history and heritage.
Compton is nestled in a shallow valley between high chalk downs, with Telegraph Hill (160m) to the east and Compton Down (171m) to the west (below).
Compton village well
The Square contains the old village well, refurbished in 2000. This was one of the most important aspects of South Downs village life, providing clean drinking water over the centuries to every local community. South Downs chalk is 500m thick in places and provides one of the most important groundwater aquifers in the UK, supplying water to all the urban and rural populations along the South Coast.
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Access to valuable water was essential to life in villages like Compton, as the nearest continually flowing rivers were several miles away: The Rother to the north and partly seasonal streams like The Ems to the south (below).
Before the arrival of mains water, Compton relied on traditional supplies of water, such as rainwater collection from roofs. Several of the older houses in the village still have brick-lined water tanks in their basements for this.
The village pond, now The Green in front of Pond Cottages north of the village, also collected surface run-off water from surrounding fields. This water was probably used for everyday things like watering cattle and cleaning carts. In 1926, after Compton’s mains water proved reliable, the village pond was filled in. Nevertheless, even today after heavy rain, standing water still collects in this area of the village!
The other main sources of clean drinking water were wells, sunk manually by teams of well-diggers, deep into the chalk below the village. Many of the larger houses in Compton had their own wells, one of the deepest being at Compton House (below).
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Probably dug in the late 18th century, when Compton House was built, the well in July 2024 was 42 m (137ft) to the top of the water level. This great depth ensured a reliable supply of water, even at the height of summer, when the water table was at its lowest.
Like other villages in the Downs, Compton also had its own communal well. This ensured villagers who couldn’t afford to have their own wells dug had access to clean water. Located in the centre of The Square it sits on chalk bedrock and was probably one of the earliest wells dug in the village. It is brick-lined at the top, with the aquifer 79m (260 ft) above sea level, helping supply water to Compton village for centuries.
The communal well is no longer used, as the well water is judged to be too polluted, and demand for clean drinking water is now met by mains water. However, unlike the village pond, Compton’s village well hasn’t been filled-in and forgotten. The wellhead was redesigned as part of a village project to mark the 2000 Millennium.
Funds for the wellhead were raised locally, matched by district council grants, with construction undertaken by students from the building and carpentry faculties of Chichester Technical College.
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All the materials were locally sourced, with flint from the fields around Compton, bricks from Midhurst, green-oak from a local timber merchant and the ironwork hand-made in the forge at nearby Halnaker.
The design of the ironwork on the oak cap for the old well incorporates ‘MM’ for the 2000 millennium and four compass points with the names of Compton and neighbouring villages West Marden and Up Marden.
Today Compton’s Village Well is a prominent feature of The Square. It is an ideal place for walkers, cyclists and horse riders to take a break, sit and chat, snack at the local village tea room to drink and share local news and gossip. In fact just as villagers in Compton have done throughout the centuries!
- Get to Compton on the 54 bus or the Bourne Bus on Wednesday mornings
Uppark House
Uppark is a tranquil and well-proportioned 17th century house set in gardens and surrounded by woodlands and commanding panoramic views overlooking the South Downs National Park.
It is one of the finest surviving country houses of its period, designed with simplicity and symmetry, with the aim of being a hunting-box, set like a beautiful dolls house on the top of the Downs above South Harting.
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Much of the grounds and interior of Uppark house were created and built by renowned designer Humphry Repton. The house has fascinating connections to famous people including Emma Hamilton and HG Wells. Read more about Uppark’s many owners and famous visitors – click here
Uppark was created when Edmund Ford, a wool merchant from Devon, bought two land lots in 1510 for £3,400 (nearly £4m in today’s money!) from the Bessie family in South Harting.
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It is believed Uppark got its name in the late Elizabethan period (1558–1603) when the first ‘Up Park’ house was built, known as the ‘house in woods’.
During the English Civil War (1642 – 1651) Sir Edward Ford, who owned Uppark, was imprisoned in the Tower of London, on suspicion of helping King Charles II escape. After the war Sir Edward was credited with inventing the ram pump for pumping water, improving coinage and the overhaul of the navy.
The original large Anglo-Dutch styled Uppark house was erected in the early 1690s by the 3rd Lord Grey of Warke, a Northumberland family. It was described by the diarist Celia Fiennes in 1695 as a ‘new build’ (1695) and as square, with nine windows in front and seven in the sides, built out of brickwork with stone coynes and windows. The architect is unknown, but it may have been Willian Talman or a local architect, Hugh May.
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The Lord married Mary, the daughter of the 1st Earl of Berkeley, but then eloped with her sister Henrietta. He was brought to trial by his outraged father-in-law in 1682 and, despite being convicted, got off on a technicality!
In 1747 Uppark was sold for £19,000 to Sir Matthew Fetherstonhaugh (pronounced Fanshaw), whose family seat was Fetherstonhaugh Castle in Northumberland. Sir Matthew’s father was twice Lord Mayor of Newcastle, whose enormous wealth came from the coal and wine trades.
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It was a good buy as the wood on Uppark’s land was assessed as being worth the same as the purchase price!
Sir Matthew was a Baronet, became a Whig MP and purchased Uppark, all in a very short space of time. He was also to become the largest stockholder in both the East India Company and the private Bank of England.
By 1759 Matthew embarked upon £16,615 of extensive alterations to Uppark, changing its plain interior to a stylish family home, installing fine ceiling plaster work, beautiful fireplaces, woodwork and fine furniture. Other Uppark improvements included a new service block to the East and stables and estate workshops to the West, connected by underground tunnels. More land was purchased, bringing the estate to 5,000 acres.
A ‘grand tour’ between 1749 and 1751 was planned for both sides of Sir Matthew’s family, during which much of Uppark’s art collection was purchased, including 10 paintings by Pompeo Batoni in Rome.
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Many rich nobles undertook a ‘grand tour’, visiting classic sites of antiquity including churches and temples in France, Switzerland and Italy. Sir Matthew’s grand tour cost a whopping £15,000, a huge sum in those days.
H.G. Wells paid many visits to Uppark during his boyhood. His mother, Sarah, was housemaid to Lady Fetherstonhaugh’s sister and his father, Joseph, was a gardener there. A young H.G. Wells spent the winter of 1887 into 1888 convalescing at Uppark, aged 20.
Uppark house and its social hierarchy had an important effect on Wells’ outlook. The deep class divisions he observed inspired his liberal and socialist views. The contrast between the sunny and carefree world of the Eloi and the dark caves of the Morlocks, in his book The Time Machine, is believed to have been inspired by the inequalities H.G Wells saw at Uppark.
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HG Wells also discovered a telescope in the house’s attic, which gave the future author of The War of the Worlds his first opportunity to examine the night sky in detail.
On 30 August 1989 Uppark was shrouded in scaffolding, being refurbished on a hot and windy day. Workmen repairing the roof were on a tea break from putting hot lead on the roof and accidentally set the timbers alight.
At 3.36pm the fire alarm sounded. Due to the size of the fire, 27 fire engines and 156 firefighters attended. Most of the valuable contents from the ground floor were saved by staff, volunteers, visitors and brave firefighters.
The fire was impossible to quell and the house suffered a great deal of damage. However, many of the beautiful fittings and the panelling installed by Sir Matthew survived the fire, as the upper floors fell in completely clear of the ground-floor walls.
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After the fire, the house was four feet deep in wet ash and rubble and open to the sky from every ground floor room. The challenge was finding craftspeople with the necessary skills and knowledge for its restoration. Many conservators working on Uppark were trained at nearby West Dean, and developed their skills there.
National Trust, Uppark’s owners, were faced with a huge challenge to restore Uppark house to how it was before the fire. The fire galvanised the largest conservation exercise ever undertaken by them, calling in all its expertise and resources. Over £20 million was spent on the extensive restoration. The house reopened to visitors in 1995.
Find out more:
- See the fact sheet about the history of Uppark House and its owners – click here
- Visit Uppark House and gardens – South Harting, Petersfield GU31 5QR – click here
- West Dean College of Arts, Design, Craft and Conservation and courses – click here
- Read more about the escape of King Charles II to France in 1651 – click here
Jubilee clump
West of Compton rises the highest of the village downs, Compton Down. Its summit is 171m (561 ft) above sea level, crowned by a small copse of beech trees known as ‘jubilee clump’.
Jubilee clump stands on the top of the hill in the middle of cultivated fields crowning Compton Down. It is quite difficult to see from the village square, particularly in summer, when it is obscured by village trees in full leaf. It provides a haven for local wildlife, so can’t be visited, and it is best viewed at a distance from the footpath that passes nearby.
Compton wanted to support a lasting legacy for Queen Victoria at her Diamond Jubilee in 1897, the 60th anniversary of her accession to the British throne. Compton villagers planted a small copse of Beech saplings on the summit of Compton Down to create a living memorial. These trees, now fully mature, celebrate the first British monarch to have a Diamond Jubilee.
This was at the height of the British Empire when celebrations of Victoria’s accession to the throne were held across the world. Tuesday June 22 1897 was declared a Bank holiday in Britain, Ireland and India and, in London, a thanksgiving service was held outside St Pauls Cathedral, enabling the frail 74-year-old Queen to remain seated in her carriage. Queen Victoria died on the 22 January 1901 and her reign had lasted 63 years.
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A huge military procession led Queen Victoria back to Buckingham Palace. Representing The British Empire were troops from Canada, Africa and South Pacific Islands. India provided mounted Bengal lancers, officers of the Indian Imperial Service in green kurta tunics with gold sashes and Sikh soldiers, marching alongside Canadians.
Local celebrations were held across the country. In Chichester a thanksgiving service was held in the Cathedral, and a free dinner given in the Corn Exchange for the ‘poor in the city’, including widows and the infirm.
In 2012, when the Beech saplings of ‘Jubilee Clump’ were 115 years old, and fully mature, Queen Elizabeth II marked her own Diamond Jubilee. Tuesday June 5th 2012 was also made a public Bank Holiday and commemorative events were held throughout the UK and the Commonwealth.
A service of thanksgiving was held at St Pauls Cathedral, followed by lunch at Westminster Hall, and a carriage procession escorted Queen Elizabeth back to Buckingham Palace. Finally, the whole Royal family made a balcony appearance to wave to the cheering crowds and then watch a Red Arrows flypast overhead.
Compton and the rest of The Octagon villages, celebrated the Jubilee weekend with a community marquee dinner, speeches and entertainments, held in the grounds of Watergate House. But, like their Victorian forebears, the Octagon community wanted to leave a permanent legacy to also mark Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee.
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The answer was to establish The Octagon Way, an 18 mile circular walking route. Using existing local footpaths and bridleways this route links up all the villages of the Octagon Parish including Stansted, Racton, Walderton, Stoughton, East Marden, North Marden, Up Marden, Compton, West Marden and Forestside.
Short walk No. 6 in the Octagon Walks booklet and on this web page, includes fine views of Jubilee Clump. The walk is three miles long and leads from The Square in Compton across fields and woodland uphill and around Compton Down.
Its route, along with eight short circular walks from each village, is set out in the Octagon Walks booklet. This is available in Compton’s village shop and most pubs, and churches across The Octagon. Also, via the South Downs National Park website.
Thus does a path designed as a memorial for one British Queen, lead to a view designed as a memorial to another!
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Queen Victoria’s great-great-granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II, died on the 8th September 2022, with a reign that lasted 70 years, the UK’s longest-serving monarch.
- Download or print the 16 page Octagon Walks Booklet – click here
Littlegreen House
Towards the end of this walk is a fine view of Littlegreen House, the original Compton Manor House.
Littlegreen was first recorded in 1653 as part of the Manor of Compton, owned by the Peckham family. Under their stewardship, the estate increased in size and wealth through marriage and the careful purchase of adjoining land. Robert Peckham’s grandson Richard, who died in 1721, referred to him of being of Littlegreen, Up Marden and Lordington.
Richard and his wife Sarah only had one son, who died in childhood and so the estate passed to his sister, also called Sarah. She married Thomas Phipps in 1742, who had been born in Bombay, when his father had been the Governor. They had four daughters and one son Thomas.
Littlegreen at this time was a typical Sussex-style manor, built of brick with dormer windows, tiled roof and surrounded by stone barns and mature trees. It was quite distinct from its much grander neighbour, Uppark, which could be seen to the North on Harting Down.
Sarah managed the estate for seventeen years as a widow. The Phipps were what the English called ‘minor gentry’ and, as was the fashion amongst this English class, Sarah’s portrait was painted by George Romney in 1793. On her death in 1793, her son Thomas inherited the estate. He was educated at Eton and Cambridge and took the name Peckham Phipps, even though he never married.
Littlegreen was not a particularly large estate, sandwiched between the estates of Uppark and Ladyholt, nor was it a grand house. After his mother’s death, Thomas approached Humphry Repton, who was the rising landscape star, to improve the estate’s layout. Repton’s visit took place on the 1st October 1793 and he was impressed by the estate’s attractive setting. Repton presented his ideas for improvements by illustrating them in his wonderful Red Book on the 26th of October 1793.
Repton’s concern was the old fashioned and unattractive house, which he considered beyond redemption and in the wrong position! He said that a new home should be built further north and renamed Green Vale. Repton understood that Thomas was comfortably off, but not hugely rich, and so suggested a fairly modest new house utilising some of the original house’s materials. Other ideas included replanting, new drives and fencing, to make the house more secluded.
Thomas was receptive to these plans and a new mansion was commissioned This was built by William Wilkins of Norwich, who was known to Repton, and the new house was finished around 1802. The old road to Petersfield to the east of the estate was closed, leaving the current one to the west. The estate included Compton Down valley to the west. Repton had recommended a small temple should be built on its summit, but this was never built. It was only with the planting of Jubilee Clump in 1897, to mark Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee, that the summit of Compton Down was ‘crowned’!
After Thomas’s death in 1820, his estate was valued at £29,000. It was passed down to various generations off Phipps family members, until it was sold in 1912 to Sir Harold Reckitts 2nd Bt. He had been an MP until 1907 and a Director of Reckitt & Sons, a substantial business founded by his grandfather, and now known as Reckitt & Benckiser Ltd.
By the 20th century Thomas’ original house had been greatly changed, increasing it in size and changing its style to a distinctly Victorian mansion. Sir Harold died in 1930.
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Several of the older houses in Compton have stone plaques set in outside walls and chimney stacks displaying capital initials, followed by a date e.g. GPH 1873. This refers to Admiral of the Fleet Sir Geoffrey Phipps Hornby, who inherited the Little green Estate in the 1850s but lived at Lordington House, which had been owned by his father Admiral Sir Robert Phipps Hornby. Their family owned many houses in Compton. Sir Geoffrey Phipps Hornby died in 1895 of the flu and his ashes were spread in Compton churchyard.
In the 1980’s the house and some of the grounds was purchased by West Sussex County Council to be used as a school (above). Currently it is Littlegreen Academy ( Solent ). The house was grade II listed in 1986.
Littlegreen House is now an Academy special school for approximately 85 boys aged 7-16 years who have social, emotional and mental health needs. Many children also have a range of additional needs including Autism, ADHD, attachment disorders, anxiety and speech and language delay.