Oozing old world charm, with ponies and cattle roaming around the village and pretty thatched cottages, Burley has remained untouched by time. Here you will find a traditional butchers, village stores and cosy inns. Don’t forget to look out for the New Forest Ponies and cattle as they roam freely around the village. Although these animals might look and act wild, they are in fact all owned by locals using their commoner’s rights.
People have lived in the Burley area since prehistoric times. Over twenty Bronze Age burial mounds are found near to the village and on the edge of Burley, at Castle Hill, is the site of an Iron Age hillfort.
One of the things that Burley is most famous for is witchcraft, which started in the 1950s when a ‘white’ witch called Sybil Leek lived in the village. She used to walk around the village with her pet jackdaw on her shoulder in a long black cloak before she moved to America. Her influence on the village lives on in some of the village’s shops.
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