Notable Residents
Christchurch has been the birthplace and home of notable people including Benjamin Ferrey, a renowned architect who was one of the earliest members of the Royal Institute of British Architects, of which he was twice Vice-President, and a Royal Gold Medallist in 1870. Ferrey's works include the restorations of Christchurch Priory and Wells Cathedral. Edmund Lyons was a Royal Navy admiral and diplomat who was born and lived in the parish of Burton. He served in the Crimean War and was elevated to the peerage in 1856 as Baron Lyons, of Christchurch in the County of Southampton.
Gustavus Brander, curator at the British Museum and governor of the Bank of England lived at Priory House which he had built in 1777 in the grounds of Christchurch Priory. Prince Louis Phillipe, the future King of France took refuge there during the Napoleonic Wars. Robert Southey, writer, poet and Poet Laureate; lived in Burton between 1797 and 1799. Many other writers and poets of the day visited him there including his brother in law, poet Samuel Coleridge, and the Scottish novelist and poet Sir Walter Scott.
John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, Prime Minister 1762-63, amateur botanist and one of the founders of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; built a mansion, High Cliff House, on his Christchurch estate close to the cliff top in 1773. The area is now known as Highcliffe. Charles Stuart, 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay, diplomat and grandson of John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute; built Highcliffe Castle a grand, romantic style mansion house on the site of his grandfather's house.
Sir George Rose, Member of Parliament for Christchurch and close friend and advisor to the Prime Minister William Pitt, built a home, 'Sandhills', at Mudeford. His other great friend, King George III often visited, helping to promote Christchurch as a tourist destination. Sandhills was home to George Rose's two sons: politician and diplomat Sir George Henry Rose, and poet William Rose, who both served as Members of Parliament for Christchurch. Field Marshal Hugh Rose, 1st Baron Strathnairn, son of Sir George Henry Rose spent time living at the family home.
Sir Donald Bailey, a civil engineer, developed the Bailey bridge while he worked in Christchurch during the Second World War. Bailey lived in Christchurch after he retired in 1966 until his death in 1985. Former England football international and Liverpool player Jamie Redknapp attended Twynham School when his father, Harry Redknapp, managed A.F.C. Bournemouth. Another footballer, retired Arsenal and Scotland goalkeeper Bob Wilson, has a home near the town centre.
Read more about this topic: Christchurch, Dorset
Famous quotes containing the words notable and/or residents:
“a notable prince that was called King John;
And he ruled England with main and with might,
For he did great wrong, and maintained little right.”
—Unknown. King John and the Abbot of Canterbury (l. 2–4)
“In most nineteenth-century cities, both large and small, more than 50 percent—and often up to 75 percent—of the residents in any given year were no longer there ten years later. People born in the twentieth century are much more likely to live near their birthplace than were people born in the nineteenth century.”
—Stephanie Coontz (20th century)