A flying visit in front of the Beaulieu Spring Autojumble
05/19/2026
The Beaulieu Autojumble is always worth a visit - or even just a flying visit on a trip through France and England's southwest. For the spring edition, I only had time for a quick walk around part of the site the day before it opened. We had to convince a fence guard that we absolutely had to go in. Perhaps it helped that we were more familiar with the area than the good man himself.
The UK's largest parts market, held on the estates of Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, has a long history, first taking place in 1967. Beaulieu is located in the south-east corner of the New Forest in Hampshire in the south of England and is the seat of the Montagu family. The region was granted extensive royal hunting rights by William the Conqueror, the first Norman king (the Battle of Hastings 1066), which have helped to protect the forest and heathland to this day.
The Montagu line, on the other hand, does not go back very far into the past, although the name Montagu can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It was not until 1885 that Henry John Montagu-Scott was created the first Baron Montagu of Beaulieu, after the male Montagu line had actually died out in 1802. His son, as 2nd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu, was the first motorist in the United Kingdom and was the first monarch in Europe to teach King Edward VII how to drive a British Daimler. His daughter was also the model for the Spirit of Ecstasy, the Rolls-Royce radiator mascot.
Finally, the 3rd Baron, Edward John Barrington Douglas-Scott-Montagu, 3rd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu, inspired by his car-mad father, who died when Edward was two years old, began collecting historic cars in the 1950s in the rooms of the family home. This became the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu in 1972.
Unfortunately, the backyard special offered at the 2026 Beaulieu Spring Autojumble had no room in the trunk...
Well, I didn't have much time and I was there on the wrong day on Friday - when the dealers were still setting up their stands. Nevertheless, some of them were already enjoying some sales, as it seems to be common practice for traders to buy goods from each other as soon as they have finished setting up. In any case, many were already "ready for action" and - brand new - many traders arrived with the option of paying by credit card (!)! Simply tearing open your wallet and showing that there is no more "cash" in it than you have just offered doesn't really work anymore. And €urons are also accepted by some people.
So I was able to secure a few NOS toy cars, such as the Jaguar XJC12 police version from Corgi Toys from 1979 and, as the most important purchase, a grease gun (part picture) for my pre-war car, the Graham-Paige. The short stay - and the small trunk of the Jaguar XJ-S we were traveling with - helped to ensure that I didn't have to live on soup and bread for the next few months due to budget overruns.
