Bitterne, a village, a tithing, and a chapelry in South Stoneham parish, Hants. The village stands on the left side of the itchin river, near Bitterne-Road station on the L. & S.W.R., 76 miles from London, and 2 NNE of Southampton. It is 80 feet above the sea, and the soil is gravel and sand. Under the Redistribution of Seats Act in 1885 it was included in the parliamentary borough of Southampton, under which it has a post, money order, and telegraph office. The tract around it was long held by the Bishops of Winchester, and had a residence of theirs. There is a parish-room and a workman's hall erected in 1882. Population of the chapelry, 2258, Remains of the Roman station Clausentum, including walls of, flint and small stones with Roman grouting, are in the village. This station was connected by roads with Winchester, Porchester, and the ferry to the Isle of Wight, and probably was intended to defend the approach to them, and it became the headquarters of Tetricus, one of the British usurpers after Gallienus. Numerous coins and medals, chiefly of Claudius and Constantine, and numerous inscriptions, chiefly relating to Tetricus, have been found, and many of the inscriptions may be seen on the spot. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Winchester; net value, £240. Patron, the Bishop of Winchester. The church, which stands on an eminence at the village, is a handsome structure in the Decorated style, with a lofty spire, and was enlarged in 1885. There is a Wesleyan chapel.
