Connecting with the past

Test Valley’s long and fascinating heritage attracts visitors from far and wide, it is a

destination steeped in captivating stories of times gone by. Test Valley also enjoys iconic

links to a vast literary history that can be discovered throughout the district.

From Thomas the Tank Engine™ to James Bond, Test Valley’s rich history includes an

abundance of relationships to famous characters and settings from some of the most well known books of all time. Immerse yourself in surroundings that have inspired several

lifetimes of literary genius and walk the pages of novels, children’s books, and cartoons.

Your visit will bring you closer to an abundance of historic architecture. Romsey Abbey

is one of the finest examples of Norman architecture in southern England, and the county boasts more Iron Age hill forts than anywhere else in Hampshire, including Danebury Iron Age Hill Fort. There are also 6 watermills in Andover that date back to the Domesday Book.

Discover 750 years of history at King John’s House and Museum, and Andover Museum uncovers the town’s fascinating past and the events and tales that put it on the map.

Discover stories of creativity and conflict, love and loss at Mottisfont Abbey house and

gardens. Now a National Trust property, this former medieval priory became the place for

artists to come and relax to create spectacular works of art.

Whitchurch Silk Mill is part of Test Valley’s industrial heritage, a working museum still

using original Victorian machinery, including a number of power looms. The region’s history

doesn’t end at ground level as the Army Flying Museum in Middle Wallop celebrates the lives of the British Army’s soldiers in the air.

And your historic journey wouldn’t be complete without visiting the final resting place of Florence Nightingale. The small church of St Margaret’s in East Wellow, established in 1215 - the year of Magna Carta - is the perfect shrine to the memory of The Lady with the Lamp.