16 July Portchester Castle and the Mayflower Pilgrims Memorial

We checked out of our South Downs, West Sussex Farmhouse Air B&B, and headed to Portchester Castle enroute to Winchester, Hampshire, England. I have had several ancestors associated with Portchester Castle, including Henry de Bohun 1st Earl of Hereford, Richard FitzAlan 3rd Earl of Arundel, and Sir William Mauduit II, who was given Portchester Castle by William the Conqueror.

The history of Portchester Castle goes back to the Roman times. Like most castles, it also served time as a prison. It helped guard the City of Portsmouth from attackers throughout its history, and even though it is mostly ruins, the Keep has been renovated with a museum.











The second stop today was the Mayflower Pilgrim’s Memorial in the city of Southampton. This is just across the street from where the ferries take people and cars over to the Isle of Wight, and where cruise ships dock. Later in my trip, I’ll be heading to Plymouth, where the Mayflower departed on its way to the New World, and hopefully hjave some more tales to tell as they relate to my ancestors.





Our final stop is Winchester, Wiltshire, England. For those of you familiar with the Netflix Series, The Last Kingdom, Winchester was the Capitol of the Anglo-Saxon country of Wessex. This is also where Alfred the Great ruled as King of the West Saxons from 871-886, and King of the Saxons (a united England) from 886 until his death in 899. Tomorrow we will visit four locations within Winchester that has some relevance to my ancestors. If you haven't been to England, then you probably don't know about Sunday Roasts. I mentioned this to Alex, and she was all in, so for lunch in Winchester, we had our Sunday Roast at teh Royal Oak, the oldest pub in Winchester. It definately filled us up, and was a great change to what we have been eating.


Beef Roast, Carrots, Potatoes, Cauliflower, Grilled Cabbage, and a Yorkshire Pudding to top it off!

















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