Romsey removals

Early Days

First recorded as Rūm’s Eg (‘eg’ denoting an area of marshland, Rum most likely an abbreviation of the name of a chieftain or leader), in 907 Romsey became of note with the arrival of Romsey Abbey. The first Abbess was Elflaeda daughter of Edward the Elder and granddaughter of another notable Hampshire local, Alfred the Great.

Around 960 King Edgar the Peaceful put new nuns into what he renamed Romsey Convent. According to folklore, one of the first abbesses of this new order chanted psalms while standing naked in the River Test. Her predecessor had fled the abbey in 993 taking all the nuns and the convent’s treasures with her to Winchester after she had a dream that Viking raiders would attack the abbey. They did, sacking the town and burning the abbey to the ground. After the Vikings had cleared off (taking prisoners and valuables with them) the town was rebuilt along with a new abbey, constructed of stone.

The Normans were next to leave their mark, once again rebuilding the abbey which still stands to this day and dominates the town. A few years later King Henry I gave the town a charter which allowed it to hold a market. The town flourished thanks to the wool trade which dominated much of the South Downs thanks to the rolling hill, perfect for raising sheep.

14^th Century

Things remained peachy until 1348 when the Black Death killed half the town’s population and leaving just 19 nuns, however the abbey did survive the Dissolution in 1539 which helped retain the town’s status.

17^th Century

During the 1600s as Civil War ravaged England, the town was occupied and attacked repeatedly by both sides, often being plundered by the poorly fed and often ill-disciplined troops. Romsey’s wool trade continued to thrive and the waters of the Test also made it a perfect location for papermaking and a brewery, both of which flourished.

19^th Century

The building of a canal in the 1800s from Romsey to Redbridge brought further trade and Romsey was going places. Romsey’s population according to the 1801 census was 4,247, when compared to Southampton’s 8,000+ population at the time, it gives an idea of how important Romsey was during this period.

The arrival of the railway in 1847 (which used the same bed as the now abandoned canal) was welcomed but by then trade had started to slow. With Southampton becoming easier and faster to get to, there wasn’t as much need to stop at Romsey. The same century the later Prime Minister Lord Palmerston was born there.

20^th Century

Further famous folk arrived in the 20^th century, most notably Lord Louis Mountbatten, great grandson of Queen Victoria, he was the uncle of Prince Philip and a favourite of both the Queen and Prince Charles. A celebrated war hero and leader, after his death he was given a state funeral and buried at Romsey Abbey. Prince Charles and Princess Diana spent the first night of their honeymoon at his former home Broadlands.

Romsey Removals Company
Whether you are moving to or from Romsey, or beyond, we pride ourselves on making the experience as hassle-free and streamlined as possible. With over 160 years of experience as a leading UK removal company, our personable, expert removals team will take the stress out of moving home or office.

The benefits of hiring a local removals firm in Romsey.

• Employing a local removals company in Romsey means we spend less travelling time to your residence.
• Unrivalled geographical knowledge of Romsey & the surrounding areas.
• We know the traffic flow, best times of day to move and where to park.
• We offer overnight storage (or for as long as you require) at our nearby Hampshire-based storage facilities.
• Our size allows us to be more competitive than many other local removal companies across Hampshire, Surrey & Berkshire
• Free removal estimates and removals advice before, during and after your move!
• We employ local people doing local work

Secure Household Storage in Romsey
Are you a homeowner requiring long or short term household storage for furniture and personal effects for which you no longer have room? Do you need secure flexible household storage at short notice, with the minimum of fuss?

With our multiple, large, secure purpose-built Hampshire storage facilities located in Aldershot, Farnborough and Petersfield, we can cater for all your storage needs. We can also arrange to collect and storage your belongings on your behalf. Please visit our Storage Service for further details.

Why use Over’s for your storage needs?

• Our household & commercial storage prices are cheaper than most other storage facilities in Hampshire and Surrey
• Flexible storage – we can even deliver, collect and store your belongings for you
• Friendly staff available on site: our experienced warehouse staff will be on hand to assist customers with packaging, loading and unloading.
• Our facilities incorporate the latest sophisticated fire and security systems

Of course, it’s not just the calibre of our personnel that matters. We are also proud of our modern fleet of specialised removal vehicles, lifting equipment, packaging and dedicated storage facilities to help us best cater to all your storage requirements.