12 Best Sights in The South, England

A short walk west of the cathedral, this outstanding example of early English Gothic architecture is one of Britain's finest surviving 13th-century halls and all that remains of the city's original Norman castle built by William the Conqueror (later razed by Oliver Cromwell). It's also the site of numerous historic events: the English Parliament is thought to have had one of its first meetings here in 1246; Sir Walter Raleigh was tried for conspiracy against King James I in 1603; and Dame Alice Lisle was sentenced to death by the brutal Judge Jeffreys for sheltering fugitives after Monmouth's Rebellion in 1685. Hanging on the west wall is the hall's greatest artifact, a huge oak table, which, legend has it, was King Arthur's original Round Table. In fact, it was probably created around 1290 at the beginning of the reign of Edward I for a tournament. It is not clear when the green and white stripes that divide the table into 24 places, each with the name of a knight of the mythical Round Table, were added, but it is certain that the Tudor Rose in the center surmounted by a portrait of King Arthur was commissioned by Henry VIII. The garden, a re-creation of a medieval retreat, is named for two queens: Eleanor of Provence and Eleanor of Castile. Tours are available daily at 11 am and 3 pm.

This museum tells the story of the city's residents—from the earliest settlers through the Romans and Saxons to the present—via artifacts from maritime, local history, archaeology, and archive collections as well as through audiovisual installations. Ships, including the great clippers, feature prominently, especially in the main exhibition devoted to the impact on the city of the sinking of the Titanic, which departed from here in 1912. An interactive model of the ill-fated ship and a wealth of footage and photos provide insight into the lives of the crew, many of whom were recruited locally.

The Avebury Stone Circles are put into context at the museum, an English Heritage attraction, where Neolithic and Bronze Age artifacts from the site make up one of the country's most important prehistoric archaeological collections. Charts, photos, and models relating to the excavation of Avebury by the archaeologist Alexander Keiller in the 1930s are also on display. Exhibits are divided between the 17th-century Stables Gallery, which contains stone axes, flint tools, pottery shards, and other finds from Keiller's excavations, and an activity area where kids can dress up in Bronze Age clothes. (At this writing, the Barn Gallery is closed.) You can also visit the gardens of Avebury Manor (a National Trust property; house closed at this writing) where Keiller lived.

Appealing to adults and children alike, this imaginative, well-presented museum reflects Winchester's history from the Iron Age to the present. Roman artifacts include jewelry and well-restored mosaic floors, and a gallery spanning 1,000 years of Anglo-Saxon and medieval history displays silver coins, sculptures, agricultural tools, and everyday items such as the mayor's wooden toilet seat. Other collections feature two of Jane Austen's purses and a detailed scale model of the city created in Victorian times. The hands-on activities include a history detective quiz and costumes from every time period, starting with the Romans, that kids can try on. Free 45-minute guided museum tours are offered at 10:30 am, noon, 1:45 pm, and 3:15 pm daily. Pick up an audio guide at the entrance (£2) to get the most out of the museum.

Here three galleries tell the absorbing story of the planning and preparation for the Allied invasion of Europe during WWII and the actual landings on D-Day—June 6, 1944—through an eclectic range of exhibits including maps, uniforms, and even the last surviving landing craft tank, as well as filmed testimonies from those who were there. The museum's centerpiece is the Overlord Embroidery ("Overlord" was the invasion's code name), a 272-foot-long embroidered cloth with 34 panels illustrating the history of the operation, from the Battle of Britain in 1940 to victory in Normandy in 1944.

This labyrinthine museum contains eclectic collections devoted to nearby Roman and Celtic archaeological finds, Jurassic Coast geology, social history (especially rural crafts and agriculture), decorative arts, regional costumes, and county-based artists such as Elizabeth Frink and local literary luminaries, primarily Hardy but also T. E. Lawrence and others.

This museum, one of six sites that make up the National Museum of the Royal Navy, is located in a Georgian building used by the Royal Navy to store weapons and ammunition since 1771. It explores the history of warfare at sea with interactive touch-screen exhibits on naval armaments, from cannonballs to mines, missiles, torpedoes, and even a decommissioned nuclear bomb. The museum also tells the story of the local people who manufactured the weapons. It can be reached by water bus from the Historic Dockyard, 

A gabled and turreted Edwardian building on the site of local fossilist Mary Anning's former home, this lively museum is devoted to the town's maritime and domestic history, geology, local artists, writers (John Fowles was an honorary curator for a decade), and, of course, Anning herself and her fossils. The museum also leads fossil-hunting and local history walks throughout the year. Anning, who among other discoveries found the first complete plesiosaur skeleton in 1823, was a central character in the 2020 film Ammonite, shot largely in the town.

With an emphasis on local archaeological finds (largely Roman and Iron Age), costumes, and history, this museum in an Elizabethan town house charts the development of the East Dorset area. You can see how residents might have lived in the house through rooms furnished in the styles of several periods, including a 17th-century hall, reconstructions of local businesses that occupied the building, and a working Victorian kitchen. A tearoom overlooks a walled garden that has heritage fruit trees and displays of agricultural and horticultural tools.

Here you can learn about submarine history and the rigors of life below the waves with the help of family-friendly interactive games. The highlight is a tour of the HMS Alliance, the only surviving World War II–era submarine in the United Kingdom, and the midget-class HMS X24, from the cramped living quarters to the engine rooms. Also on the large site is the first Royal Navy sub, Holland 1, built in 1901, and a Biber, a German WWII midget submarine. From Portsmouth Harbour, take the ferry to Gosport and walk along Millennium Promenade past the huge sundial clock. From April to October, an hourly free waterbus runs from Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.

Opposite the cathedral's west front, this excellent museum of regional history is in the King's House, parts of which date to the 15th century (James I stayed here in 1610 and 1613). The history of the area from prehistoric times through the Norman Conquest is explored in the Wessex gallery, which houses some of Britain's most important archaeological finds and also has Stonehenge-related exhibits that provide helpful background information for a visit to the megaliths. Also on view are collections of local costumes dating back 250 years, outstanding British ceramics, and Turner watercolors, all dwarfed by the 12-foot Salisbury Giant, a 13-century pageant figure, and his companion hobbyhorse, Hob Nob. A cozy café is in one of the oldest sections of the building.

Located atop the last of the city's fortified medieval gateways, this atmospheric museum was a debtor's prison for 150 years and now holds a motley assortment of items relating to Tudor and Stuart times. There's a stunning painted ceiling from 1554 (created to commemorate the wedding of Mary Tudor and Phillip II of Spain in the cathedral) as well as walls inscribed with 16th- through 18th-century graffiti by former prisoners. Child-size replicas of authentic 16th-century armor that can be tried on, as well as the opportunity to make brass rubbings, make it popular with kids. You can take in a panoramic view of Winchester from the roof.