History

Etymology of Marlhill: "Marl" comes from the medieval Latin 'mergila' meaning white clay used as fertiliser. The hill next to the copse [part of which is now called Moat Hill] was known as 'Marlhull' or Marlhill as early as 1333. On the DEFRA map of geology Marlhill is visible as a blip on the very edge of an area snappily entitled "Slowly permeable seasonally wet slightly acid but base-rich loamy and clayey soils". A different layer of the same online government map clearly shows the main route through Marlhill Copse and labels it as 'River Walk' - an extension of the adopted road of the same name [ Maps ].

Laurence Olivier both acted in and directed the film "Henry V" (1944) - made in part as a WW2 morale booster and partly funded by the British government. Many people are unaware of the Southampton connections: Henry V paraded through Southampton's Westgate with his troops prior to sailing to France for the battle of Agincourt (25th October 1415 - St, Crispin's day). Olivier had earlier served with the RNAS based at Worthy Down and is said to have also flown the Faery Swordfish biplane torpedo bomber out of Eastleigh aerodrome. During WW2 the government Ministry of Information urged the nation to pull together with a conservation campaign "Is Your Journey Really Necessary?" Recently HM Government's Committee on Climate Change (CCC) has urged us all to reduce our craving for air travel. Quite a ribbon of history [Petition].