St Helens, Isle of Wight

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Coordinates: 50°41′53″N 1°06′45″W / 50.69798°N 1.11237°W / 50.69798; -1.11237

St Helens
St Helens Old Church
St Helens shown within the Isle of Wight
OS grid reference	SZ627890
Parish	St Helens
Unitary authority	Isle of Wight
Ceremonial county	Isle of Wight
Region	South East
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	RYDE
Postcode district	PO33
Dialling code	01983
Police	Hampshire
Fire	Isle of Wight
Ambulance	Isle of Wight
European Parliament	South East England
UK Parliament	Isle of Wight
List of places: UK • England • Isle of Wight

Sign one sees on entering the village from the south

Part of St Helens village green.

Another view of the village from the green.

St. Helens is a small village and civil parish^[1] located on the eastern side of the Isle of Wight. The village is based around village greens. This is claimed to be the largest in England but some say the Village Green is the second largest. The greens are often used for cricket matches during the Summer and football in the winter and also include a childrens playground.^[2] The local pub is The Vine. The village also has two restaurants, Ganders on the upper side of the green and St Helens Restaurant on the south.

It is a coastal village, with about a ten minute walk to St Helens Duver, which was once the location of the island's first golf course. It is now a popular beach for tourists during the summer season and is protected by the National Trust.

It is linked to other parts of the Island by Southern Vectis bus routes 10 and 14, serving Bembridge, Newport, Ryde and Sandown including intermediate towns.^[3][4]

[edit] History

The origins of St. Helens seems to revolve around the Cluniac Priory and the monastic church, built circa 1080. In 1340 a French raid landed at St Helens but was repulsed by Sir Theobald Russell. In 1346 Edward III set sail from St Helens to invade Normandy.

After the alien priories were suppressed by Henry V in 1414 the old church became the parish church. The original church eventually became unsafe, and a new church was built further inland. In 1720 a great wave destroyed the old church. At this time the entrance to the harbour was near to the Church, being moved due to attempts at reclamation of the harbour which was unsuccessful due to locals removing building materials. The church was undermined by the quarrying of stone from the beach, which accounts for the large dressed blocks leading along the beach to Priory Bay. The entrance was defended by a small gun battery, which has been lost to the sea. The tower still stands to this day, the seaward side is painted as a seamark. It is believed that Admiral Lord Nelson's last view of England was of the St Helen's seamark - HMS Victory had anchored nearby to collect drinking water, before setting sail for Cadiz and participation in the Battle of Trafalgar.

Dressed stones from the walls of the destroyed church, which were soft sandstone, were found to be good for scrubbing the decks of wooden planked warships - hence the terms 'Holystone' and 'holystoning the decks'.

The closest Royal Commission sea fort to the Island is named after St. Helens St Helens Fort.

[edit] Geography

St Helens is located to the east of the Isle of Wight on high ground to the north of Bembridge giving it views over the busy harbour. The nearest town is Ryde, about 3 miles away.

The village is located on the coast, with St Helens Duver nearby at the mouth of the harbour. The area features a sand-dune complex where the first golf course on the island was located, and where there is now a popular sheltered beach, cafe and beach huts. The Duver is no longer a golf course and is maintained by the National Trust, who also offer limited self-catering accommodation for holiday-makers in the area. A promenade stretches along the beach, with the sand dunes at the rear. During the summer season the beach is litter picked, with large amounts of seaweed removed and given to local farmers for composting. In 1997, the beach was given a Seaside Award Flag.^[5]

The Eastern Yar, from its source at Niton to the south of the island runs through the village en route to the Solent.^[6]

St Helens' built environment is set around large village greens, which are often claimed to make up the second largest green in England. The greens are split up in some areas to allow for roads, with housing and other development to the north and south sides of the greens.

[edit] Amenities

St. Helen's Church is the village's Church of England Parish church located just outside the main village. It was first built in 1717 but then rebuilt in 1831. The present church is a stone structure with brick dressings, and consists of an aisleless nave, with transepts, a chancel, and west tower with one bell.

The village has two restaurants, The Ganders is set on the upper side of the village green. St Helen's Restaurant is on the south and recently featured on Channel 4's Relocation Relocation.^[7] In addition to the two restaurants, the village's pub is The Vine Inn; situated opposite the village green, it is over 100 years old.^[8]

The village's only school is known as St Helen's Primary School, with 61 pupils currently on roll making it one of the smallest on the island.^[9] For much of 2008 it looked likely that the school would be closed following education reforms to move the island to a two-tier education system. The village protested with signs displayed across the village stating "We love St Helens Primary School". However in March 2009 the school was saved from closure.^[10]

The village also has a Newsagent, Post Office and grocery store, bookshop and garage. The Baywatch Café is located on the seafront and the Priory Bay Hotel close by.

[edit] Famous residents

• Jeremy Irons - film actor and Oscar and double-Emmy winner
• Sophie Dawes, Baronne de Feuchères, "adventuress" best known as a mistress of Louis Henry II, Prince of Condé

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Old pictures of St Helens