19 Iconic Buildings to Explore in Hampshire

Basing House was once the largest private house in England. It was built by William Paulet, Marquess of Winchester in the Tudor period, on the site of an earlier medieval castle. Basing House was once home to the powerful courtier William Paulet, Marquess of Winchester. You can enjoy a picnic in the re-created Jacobean garden, and come along to the many events and activities held throughout the year, including open air theatre, dig pits, re-enactments and a December Christmas market.

Breamore House, home of the Hulse family, is set in the heart of England's Rural Hampshire. Set in its own beautiful parkland amid surrounding farms and fields, the grandeur and magnificence of the house has changed little over the past 400 years. There are a wide variety of paintings as well as tapestries, porcelain, 17th-century needlework and a rare James I carpet.

A beautiful manor set in the rural town of Romsey remains a family home. It stands serenely in a unique place in British history, having had several distinguished owners and many of its important visitors have helped to shape the course of history. The formal gardens and historic landscape of Broadlands are Grade II* listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.

Odiham Castle is located within a tranquil site adjacent to the Basingstoke Canal. The Castle, with its surrounding defensive ditches, was built between 1207 and 1214. The site was probably chosen by King John as a convenient point between his strongholds at Winchester and Windsor. The only visible remains are part of the octagonal keep and outlying earthworks. In September 2007 Hampshire County Council undertook a restoration of the shell keep under guidance from English Heritage.

Chawton House is an Elizabethan manor house that once belonged to Jane Austen's brother, Edward. Visitors can enjoy the ‘Great House’ referred to in Jane Austen’s letters, relax in the peace and tranquillity of the gardens, and find inspiration in the lives and works of its women writers. The Centre, which runs study programmes in association with the nearby University of Southampton, incorporates a significant library, a collection of over 9000 books and related manuscripts.

The Grade II* listed Eling Tide Mill, which has stood at the center of life in Eling for centuries, is one of only a handful of working tide mills left in the UK. The mill's fascinating story and history continue in the Discovery Room where interactive displays include opportunities for visitors of all ages to get hands-on with quern stones and a working model of a tide mill.You can learn about the workings of the newly restored mill and discover how the tide is harnessed to power the centuries-

The historic house was the home of the eighteenth-century pioneering naturalist Gilbert White; whose major work The Natural History of Selborne has never been out of print since its publication in 1789. The House is surrounded by 25 acres of majestic restored garden and parkland, which specializes in eighteenth-century plants and gardening methods inspired by Gilbert White. Its unique and diverse, interactive Museum also boasts a fantastic café that serves food throughout the day, a well-stocked

Highclere Castle is a majestic country house situated in a 5,000-acre estate is in Hampshire, England. It has been home to the Carnarvon family since 1679. The Castle’s history also includes a fascinating connection with ancient Egypt, as the 5th Earl, with Howard Carter, discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings in 1922. It has been used as a filming location for several films and television series and it also holds ticketed events, such as the Battle Proms picnic concert, a

It is a family home that has been described by visitors as ‘a little piece of heaven’ with gardens that provide colour and delight throughout the seasons. The Grade II* listed formal and informal gardens surround the UK's best surviving example of an 18th Century Cottage Orné. It is idyllically set above the tranquil waters of the River Test.

Hurst Castle was built between 1541 and 1544 by Henry VIII as part of a chain of artillery fortresses protecting key ports and landing places around southern England. The castle was used as a prison for eminent 17th century captives, including Charles I. It was later strengthened during the 19th and 20th centuries and played a role in defending the western Solent from invasion threats from the Napoleonic Wars to the Second World War.

It was in this picturesque cottage that Jane Austen’s genius flourished and where she wrote, revised, and had published all six of her treasured novels, including the timeless Pride and Prejudice. Today it is a Grade I listed building and one of the most important literary sites in the world, attracting tens of thousands of visitors each year. The Museum holds an important collection of objects associated with Jane Austen, including letters written by Jane and personal effects belonging to her a

This elegant country manor and tranquil garden sit so harmoniously within the landscape that one cannot exist without the other. a small neo-Georgian manor in the Hampshire vernacular style, dating, in part at least, to the 1960s when Dutton carefully rebuilt his home and its collections after they were ravaged by fire. The property is now more noted for its garden than the house.

Mottisfont is a historical priory, garden, and country estate in Hampshire, managed by the National Trust. The site includes the historic house museum which features regularly changing art exhibitions, gardens, including a walled rose garden which is home to the National Collection of ancestral species and 19th-century rose cultivars, and a riverside walk. It is a Grade I listed building.

Netley Abbey is the most complete surviving Cistercian monastery in southern England. After the Suppression of the Monasteries the buildings were converted into a mansion for Sir William Paulet. The ruins now reflect over 800 years of change, during which the abbey was transformed from a monastic house to a mansion house, and later to a romantic ruin.

Palace House is the family home of Lord Montagu and one of the 'Treasure Houses of England'. It is a beautiful stately home in the New Forest in Hampshire. Palace House is the family home of Lord Montagu and one of the 'Treasure Houses of England'. It is a beautiful stately home in the New Forest in Hampshire. It is bounded to the west and south by the Beaulieu River, with the small village of Beaulieu lying to the south over the dam bridge; to the north and east is arable and woodland, part of

Originally built in the late 3rd century, Portchester Castle is the most impressive and best-preserved of the ‘Saxon shore’ forts. The castle’s commanding location has made it a major factor in the Solent's defenses for hundreds of years. Make the most of the wide-open grounds and castle courtyard, and enjoy a family picnic surrounded by history. Today Portchester Castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and a Grade I listed building.

The ruins of 13th-century Titchfield Abbey, the last monastery of Premonstratensian canons to be founded in England, lie in the valley of the River Meon in south Hampshire. The extensive ruins of the 13th-century abbey are dwarfed by an imposing Tudor gatehouse built from the nave of the abbey church. The remains were purchased by the government in the early twentieth century and are now a Scheduled Ancient Monument under the care of English Heritage.

Winchester Science Centre is the South of England's interactive science and technology center which welcomes over 185,000 visitors each year and houses a range of interactive exhibits, aimed at a core audience of children aged 5-12 years old. The dome is now a state-of-the-art digital planetarium seating 168.

Wolvesey Castle was an extensive keep and bailey castle built about 1100 on a site in use during the Anglo-Saxon period. The first building on the site, an eyot in the River Itchen known as Wulveseye or Wulf's island, was constructed around 970 by Æthelwold of Winchester, the Bishop of Winchester from 963 to 984, as his official residence or palace.