Milford on Sea

thumb|right|High Street

thumb|right|Shingle beach

Milford on Sea, often hyphenated, is a large coastal village and civil parish in the New Forest district, on the Hampshire coast, England. The parish had a population of 4,660 at the 2011 census and is centred about south of Lymington. The village has three small concrete piers on the beach.

Its western coast is a large bank of shingle below green cliffs. Bathing, when seas are calm, is favourable as tides are relatively muted for the coast at this point and thin sandbanks are nearby at lower water. The eastern part of the place culminates in Hurst Castle, Hurst Point which is a 16th-century defensive fort with later modifications, which has a museum, visitor tour rides and amenities for tourists.

thumb|[[Newlands, Hampshire|Newlands Manor, Hampshire, Milford on Sea, postcard before 1898 by Francis Frith ]]

Much of the land of the parish has been recognised and protected from dense habitation by a surrounding green belt buffer zone of land, recognising its heath soil associated with the New Forest, its biodiverse wet woodland in the west (a local nature reserve which hosts badgers, fish and many bird species) and various water type marshes including an RSPB reserve in the east.

History

Milford began as a Saxon settlement, and the name simply means "mill ford". At the time of the Domesday Book of 1086 there were two separate estates in Milford, one held by Aelfric Small, and the other land with no villeins or cottars noted held by Wulfgar. At a later date three separate manors were evolved from these estates and were eventually known by the names of Milford Montagu, Milford Barnes, and Milford Baddesley.

The manor of Milford Montagu, which was held of the lords of Christchurch, seems to have originated in an estate held by William Spileman at his death in 1291.

Newlands

Around 1800 Admiral William Cornwallis leased then bought as freehold the small Newlands estate in Milford. His plans included the construction of a pier, railway station, public baths, health spa, and golf course. The scheme failed primarily due to a lack of funds and market interest, William's son George Cornwallis-West inherited Newlands in 1917 and, amid bankruptcy proceedings, sold it three years later. However, in 1932 Milford was absorbed into an enlarged Lymington Borough, only re-emerging as a separate parish on 1 April 1979.

With the advent of increasing car ownership, especially after the Second World War, the village expanded rapidly as a resort and as a place in which to retire. Blocks of flats were constructed along the clifftop in the 1960s and 1970s, and additional housing was built inland.

South of the lagoons leading to the harbour and close to town centre Sturt Pond is Hurst Spit, of almost all shingle, from the apex of which – Hurst Point – men stationed at Hurst Castle watched over and could bombard the Solent's western access. A seasonal ferry makes the trip across the lagoon/harbour mouth every 20–30 minutes. This saves the walk along the beach. The beach is mainly west, as cliffs of Milford rise, and is safe to walk so the accessible length of beach (including the southeast side of the spit) is , to Barton-on-Sea Golf Course where the way, above and below cliff, become liable to closures from erosion.

The beach has varying size shingle, beyond which is some inter-tidal sand. Facing this and the broad clifftop/lower town residential promenade are the Needles and rest of the north-western Isle of Wight.

The western cliffs are accessed by flights of steps. In common with the flatter coast by the more commercial and eastern part of Milford, they have car parks with some facilities, which, along with many apartment blocks and houses, have close views of the Needles, which are the main, large chalk rocks immediately next to the Isle of Wight.

All Saints' Church

thumb|upright=1.4|right|All Saints' Church, Milford

The oldest building in Milford is All Saints' Church. The earliest parts of the structure are probably true Norman-era (early 12th century) work from a preceding church. A south aisle was added around 1170. William Saville-Kent is buried here, his grave decorated with a variety of fossilised sponges.

The ecclesiastical parish still includes the chapelry or united benefice of Everton and the locality of Keyhaven where water dominates the land in the east.

Governance

An electoral ward in the name of Milford exists. At the 2011 Census the population of this ward was 4,838.

The district, for most hard communal infrastructure, education and social care (amongst other functions) is in Hampshire County Council's area.

Events and festivals

In February the place's Food Week takes place.
Milford holds a May Day festival each year.
In June–July there is a music (with many live bands across many venues) and arts festival.

Parish Vision 2020

This plan is a statement of community ambitions, based on research and public consultation. It builds on the 2002 Village Design Statement which dealt essentially with land use issues.

Strategic objectives:

Improving housing and employment opportunities, particularly for young people
Improving the provision of social, cultural and recreational facilities.
Enhancing and protecting the natural environment.
Maintaining and developing parish facilities for tourism and business opportunities.
Improving transport links with hinterland communities.
Making the village centre safer for pedestrians whilst protecting its special character.

Notable residents

Christopher Airay (1601–1670), logician, was vicar here in the 17th century, from about 1646.
Clement Reid (1853–1916), geologist, proponent of Doggerland, died in the village.
William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield (1877–1963), philanthropist and industrialist, owned a house on the clifftop, 1 Park Lane, which is now a hotel.
Margaret Macadam (1902–1991), artist and illustrator, widow of Francis Beart, spent her last years in the village.
Frank Wootton (1914–1998), 20th century aviation artist, was born in the village.
David Peach (born 1951), Former Gillingham, Southampton, Swindon Town and Leyton Orient footballer.
Frances Fisher (born 1952), Hollywood actress in films such as Titanic, was born here.
George Bowyer (1859–1945), Trinity House habour pilot, lived here in his retirement.