| Tadley |
| Most of the parish of Tadley was
included in the manor of Overton from very early in history, and there
are references to Tadley in documents relating to Overton. Tadley did in
fact have its own manor which was called Tadley and then called the
Manor of Withford or Wyford. It was owned by William Hotot in 1166 and then passed to the de la More family in 1305. In 1496 the Ludlow family inherited the manor by marriage. in 1625 the Lord of the Manor was Henry Ludlow and he was not a popular person as he pulled down the houses of his tenants and refused to pay their wages, rates and taxes and he was known as a tyrant. When he died in 1639 the line of the owners is uncertain but by the end of the 17th century it was in the hands of the Wither family and it stayed in their hands for quite a while. At the start of the 20th century it was owned by Major William Archibald Hicks Beach. The parish was originally nothing but heath and common land with gorse and brambles and just a few scattered settlements. Bricks were produced at Tadly Common and Besom brooms were also a major source of income and even today they are made here, There are some signs of these industries in the names of the houses in the village, Kiln House and Broom Cottage to name but two, In 1662 a Congregational chapel was founded and this may be the chapel that was converted to be Tadleys first school in 1820. Today Tadley is more a township with large housing estates covering what was the former heathland, development has not only occurred on the Hampshire side but also into Berkshire as well. The church was built in the 17th century
and sits a little way outside and the war memorial has been moved three
times and now is outside of St Paul's church.
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