Portchester


Portchester is a locality and suburb northwest of Portsmouth, England. It is part of the borough of Fareham in Hampshire. Once a small village, Portchester is now a busy part of the expanding conurbation between Portsmouth and Southampton on the A27 main thoroughfare. Its population according to the 2011 United Kingdom census was 17,789 residents.

Name

Portchester is derived from its former Latin name Portus Adurni and the Old English suffix ceaster, itself derived from the Latin word “castrum.”

History

The fort of Portus Adurni is considered the best-preserved Roman fort north of the Alps. It is sometimes identified as the Caer Peris listed by the 9th-century History of the Britons as among the 28 cities of Britain. The medieval Portchester Castle was built within the Roman fort.

Amenities

As well as the castle, its parish church is listed as a Grade I protected building. There are also many historic houses in Castle Street. This suburb is well placed for waterfront leisure activities, only a short distance from the UK's 3rd-largest marina at Port Solent, from the historic city of Portsmouth, and from the market town of Fareham.

Public open spaces

Opened in 1958, it is on the lower slopes of Portsdown Hill. It is owned by a Joint Committee representing the City of Portsmouth and the Boroughs of Fareham, Havant and Gosport. It has two chapels, the North and South. Those cremated there include two World War I Victoria Cross recipients, Norman Augustus Finch and James Ockendon who both died in 1966.

Sport and leisure

Portchester has a Non-League football club A.F.C. Portchester, which plays at Wicor Recreation Ground.

Notable residents

Rail

is managed and operated by South Western Railway with frequent Southern Railway services. Services run along the coast to Southampton, Fareham, Portsmouth, Havant, Chichester and Brighton. London services to London Waterloo and London Victoria also stop at the station.

Bus services

services to Portsmouth, Havant, Fareham, Titchfield, Locks Heath and Warsash.

Road

The A27 road cuts through the centre of Portchester running east/west between Fareham and Cosham on the northern outskirts of Portsmouth. Access to the M27 motorway is via Junction 11 at Fareham or Junction 12 at Port Solent.