Headbourne Worthy

The Manor of Headbourne Worthy, otherwise known as Worthy Mortimer, was said to have been granted to St. Swithun's Priory, Winchester, by King Egbert in the ninth century. The land is later mentioned in a tenth-century charter of Edward the Elder as marking the boundary of property belonging to St. Swithun's. The manor was sold in the reign of Edward the Confessor. Ralph Mortimer held the manor at the time of the Domesday Survey, and the property remained in the same family until the fifteenth century. In 1424 the Duke of York succeeded to the estate, which later passed to Elizabeth, Queen of Henry VII, and subsequently to Henry VIII and Jane Seymour.

In the seventeenth century the manor was bought by Sir Thomas Clerke, who also held Worthy Pauncefoot at the time.

The small Manor of Worthy Pauncefoot was held by Earl Godwin from King Edward the Confessor, but at the time of the Domesday Survey it was held by Bernard Pauncefoot. Descendants of Bernard Pauncefoot held the land for more than 400 years.  The manor was sold to William Bethell in 1562. The Bethell family held the estate until 1594 when it was sold to Thomas Clerke, who acquired the Manor of Headbourne Worthy a few years later.

The name Headbourne is thought to denote the head-waters or source of the stream which flows south to Hyde Abbey, but the tenth-century Name Hideburninga pre-dates the building of Hyde Abbey in AD1110).

Further information on attractions to discover in the area and other interesting villages to visit is available.  For information on public services for Headbourne Worthy please take a look at the Winchester local pages.