altered in the late eighteenth century. It was once home to General Shrapnel inventor of the Shrapnel shell. A boarding school was built next to Jesus Chapel in 1857. By the late 19th Century, the area contained many impressive houses and villas which were home to Southampton's wealthy traders. Itchen Ferry village no longer exists, but it used to adjoin Peartree Green. The graveyard at Jesus Chapel contains a memorial to Richard Parker of the village, who died at sea following the wreck of the yacht Mignonette off South Africa in 1884. Cast adrift without provisions, his companions killed and ate him in order to survive. It is one of the few recorded cases of human cannibalism in modern times. The subsequent murder trial R v Dudley and Stephens changed English law by establishing the precedent that necessity is no defence to the charge of murder. Peartree Green was incorporated into the borough of Southampton in 1920. The area has subsequently experienced significant suburban development. The boarding school became an annex to Woolston School; it has since been converted into residential homes. In 2018 the green was designated a local nature reserve. In July the same year, two hectares of it were damaged by fire after becoming dry due to the heat wave. References External links The history of Peartree Church Parks and open spaces in Hampshire Areas of Southampton