ONE of the biggest funeral corteges the south has ever seen carried a respected Hamp-shire horseman to his final resting place.

A Victorian carriage built in 1860 led the sombre procession of nine Rolls-Royce Phantoms and five Rolls-Royce Silver Spurs brought in from all over the country.

Three lorries and a motor hearse were laden with around 200 floral tributes.

The body of Joseph Peters - winner of prestigious hackney horse of the year title three times - was taken from his Fair Oak home to St John's Church in Locks Heath and then on to the Portchester Crematorium.

Funeral director Paul Capper said: "There were at its height 700 to 800 mourners. People came from all over the country and Europe.

"It's almost certainly the biggest that I have seen. The level of respect, particularly through Fair Oak, was touching. The streets were lined with people paying their respects.

"He was a horseman, friend and gentleman to so many people."

Pedestrians bowed their heads and cars slowed as the magnificent cortege drove by. Rolls- Royces had to be ordered from all over the country - one came from Blackburn, Lancashire - and two funeral directors organised the day.

Mr Peters' family wanted a large number of cars to transport the many mourners but also to mark the passing of the man they called their "rock".

His daughter Pauline said: "He was the head of our family and our rock. We had calls from all over the world when he died."

Originally a strawberry farmer in Locks Heath, Mr Peters, 65, leaves his wife of 44 years, Ellen, three children and five grandchildren.