Did You Know? The authors of literary classics Watership Down, The Water Babies, Madame Doubtfire and the Little White Horse all lived and wrote in Hampshire, using real places as their inspiration. Hampshire’s inhabitants include Men of the Trees, Verderers, Green Men and Old Green Bowlers. Hampshire is a county of pioneer journeys: & the first flight in a piloted heavier-than-air machine, and the starting point of both the first long-distance journey in a motor car, and the first all-air journeys in luxurious Imperial Airways seaplanes to Australia and India. Hampshire’s beautiful countryside, ancient roads, maritime cities, and mercantile wealth have made it a crossroads of cultures and people, with a legacy of intriguing history, events and traditions. A compendium of fascinating facts and a trustworthy companion to travels in the county, The Little Book of Hampshire is an essential read for both those who know Hampshire well and those who would like to.