107-464: Latchmere Estate is a housing estate in Battersea , Greater London , which was constructed in 1903. It is the first example of a housing estate built with labour directly employed by a local council authority. Between 1832 and the 1880s, Battersea's population increased from 5,500 to 107,000, meaning new housing needed to be constructed. The land used for the estate had previously been allotments for
214-412: A few years later at least part of it was subject to Mercia, since in 673–675 further lands were given to Chertsey Abbey by Frithuwald , a local sub-king ( subregulus ) ruling under the sovereignty of Wulfhere of Mercia . A decade later Surrey passed into the hands of King Caedwalla of Wessex, who also conquered Kent and Sussex, and founded a monastery at Farnham in 686. The region remained under
321-627: A national average of 11.8% and as such is one of the few counties not to recommend new woodlands in the subordinate planning authorities' plans.In 2020 the Surrey Heath district had the highest proportion of tree cover in England at 41%. Surrey also contains England's principal concentration of lowland heath , on sandy soils in the west of the county. Agriculture not being intensive, there are many commons and access lands, together with an extensive network of footpaths and bridleways including
428-502: A point, roughly three miles (4.8 km) from Battersea's northeastern corner – but two miles (3.2 km) from the western corner. To the east are South Lambeth and Stockwell ; to the south is Balham ; to the southeast is Clapham ; and to the west is Wandsworth Town , south of which is Wandsworth . Two large neighbourhoods within the larger Battersea are: Some parts of Battersea have become known for drug-dealing. The Winstanley and York Road council estates have developed
535-563: A raiding force at Thanet , but suffered heavy losses including their ealdorman , Huda. In 892 Surrey was the scene of another major battle when a large Danish army, variously reported at 200, 250 and 350 ship-loads, moved west from its encampment in Kent and raided in Hampshire and Berkshire. Withdrawing with their loot, the Danes were intercepted and defeated at Farnham by an army led by Alfred
642-529: A range of industries such as mills, breweries and dyeing, bleaching and calico printing. Industry developed eastwards along the bank of the Thames during the Industrial Revolution from the 1750s onwards; the Thames provided water for transport, for steam engines and for water-intensive industrial processes. Bridges erected across the Thames encouraged growth; Putney Bridge , a mile to the west,
749-590: A reputation for such offences and were included in a zero-tolerance "drug exclusion zone" in 2007. As of 2011 , Battersea had a population of 73,345. The district was 52.2% of White British origin, as against an average for Wandsworth of 53.3%. Within the bounds of modern Battersea are (from east to west): Battersea is served by three National Rail stations: Battersea Park , Clapham Junction , and Queenstown Road (Battersea) . All three stations are in London Travelcard Zone 2 . Battersea Park
856-579: A residence for the Bishop of Winchester , while other stone castles were constructed in the same period at Bletchingley by the de Clares and at Reigate by the Warennes. During King John 's struggle with the barons , Magna Carta was issued in June 1215 at Runnymede near Egham . John's efforts to reverse this concession reignited the war, and in 1216 the barons invited Prince Louis of France to take
963-412: A special meaning, reflecting the particular liberal, radical and socialist politics of its controlling Progressive Alliance." The estate is now part of Wandsworth Council 's Latchmere Estate Conservation Area, which was designated in 1974. A planning strategy for the conservation area was published by the council in 2007. Battersea Battersea is a large district in southwest London , part of
1070-598: Is a lowland, part of the Thames basin. The south-east is part of the Weald , and the south-west contains the Surrey Hills and Thursley, Hankley and Frensham Commons , an extensive area of heath . The county has the densest woodland cover in England, at 22.4 per cent. Surrey is divided in two by the chalk ridge of the North Downs , running east–west. The ridge is pierced by the rivers Wey and Mole , tributaries of
1177-733: Is connected to the London Underground network at Battersea Power Station tube station in September 2021. London Bus routes 44 , 137 , 156 , 211 , 344 , 436 , 19 , 49 , 319 , 345 and 452 serve the Battersea area during the daytime. Night buses N19 , N137 and N44 , as well as the 344 and 345 route, run overnight. Cycling infrastructure in Battersea is provided by the London Borough of Wandsworth and Transport for London (TfL). Battersea features in
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#17327721324591284-459: Is now the borough of Spelthorne , which was part of Middlesex . It is one of the home counties . The defining geographical feature of the county is the North Downs , a chalk escarpment which runs from the south-west to north-east and divides the densely populated north from the more rural south; it is pierced by the rivers Wey and Mole , both tributaries of the Thames . The north of the county
1391-596: Is on the curved south bank of the River Thames . Battersea's northern limit is thus the Tideway , the Thames below Teddington . Battersea's riverside is just over 3 miles (4.8 km) long. Immediately to the west is Wandsworth Town . To the north-east are Vauxhall and then Lambeth , including Waterloo . Battersea at one end of its riverside has a western corner at a point 350 metres east northeast of Wandsworth Bridge , and Battersea tapers SSE to almost
1498-563: Is served by some South Western Railway trains. Northbound, most trains call at Vauxhall en route to London Waterloo. Southbound passengers can travel towards Richmond, Twickenham , Hounslow , and Windsor & Eton direct. Queenstown Road opened up the line on 1 November 1877 by the London and South Western Railway , as Queen's Road (Battersea) . British Rail renamed the station to Queenstown Road (Battersea) on 12 May 1980. As part of Northern line extension to Battersea , Battersea
1605-399: Is served by some Southern trains. Trains northbound terminate at London Victoria , which is the next stop along the line. Southbound, Southern's " metro " services run to Clapham Junction, Wandsworth Common , and Balham . After Balham, trains head towards Croydon , Epsom , London Bridge , and Sutton , amongst other destinations. The first station to carry the name "Battersea Park"
1712-569: Is the Thames , which historically formed the boundary between the county and Middlesex . As a result of the 1965 boundary changes , many of the Surrey boroughs on the south bank of the river were transferred to Greater London , shortening the length associated with the county. The Thames now forms the Surrey– Berkshire border between Runnymede and Staines-upon-Thames , before flowing wholly within Surrey to Sunbury , from which point it marks
1819-647: The Nox gaga and Oht gaga peoples in the Tribal Hidage may refer to two groups living in the vicinity of Surrey. Together their lands were assessed at a total of 7,000 hides , equal to the assessment for Sussex or Essex . Surrey may have formed part of a larger Middle Saxon kingdom or confederacy, also including areas north of the Thames. The name Surrey is derived from Sūþrīge (or Suthrige ), meaning "southern region" (while Bede refers to it as Sudergeona ) and this may originate in its status as
1926-615: The Battle of Hastings , the Norman army advanced through Kent into Surrey, where they defeated an English force which attacked them at Southwark and then burned that suburb. Rather than try to attack London across the river, the Normans continued west through Surrey, crossed the Thames at Wallingford in Berkshire and descended on London from the north-west. As was the case across England,
2033-581: The Battle of Lewes in Sussex. Although the rebels were victorious, soon after the battle royal forces captured and destroyed Bletchingley Castle, whose owner Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Hertford and Gloucester , was de Montfort's most powerful ally. By the 14th century, castles were of dwindling military importance, but remained a mark of social prestige, leading to the construction of castles at Starborough near Lingfield by Lord Cobham , and at Betchworth by John Fitzalan , whose father had recently inherited
2140-562: The London Borough of Wandsworth , England. It is centred 3.5 miles (5.6 km) southwest of Charing Cross it also extends along the south bank of the Thames Tideway . It includes the 200-acre (0.81 km ) Battersea Park . Battersea is mentioned in the few surviving Anglo-Saxon geographical accounts as Badrices īeg , 'Badric's Island' and later [Patrisey] Error: {{Langx}}: invalid parameter: |abbr= ( help ) . As with many former parishes beside tidal flood plains
2247-535: The London, Chatham and Dover Railway in 1867 and closed in 1916. The largest railway station in Battersea is Clapham Junction, to the southwest of the district. The station is a busy interchange, and it serves destinations across London, the South , and South West England . Train operators from Clapham Junction include: In terms of the number of train movements, Clapham Junction is Europe's busiest railway station. It opened on 21 May 1838. Queenstown Road (Battersea)
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#17327721324592354-585: The North Downs Way , a scenic long-distance path . Accordingly, Surrey provides many rural and semi-rural leisure activities, with a large horse population in modern terms. The highest elevation in Surrey is Leith Hill near Dorking . It is 295 m (968 ft) above sea level and is the second highest point in southeastern England after Walbury Hill in West Berkshire which is 297 m (974 ft). The longest river to enter Surrey
2461-727: The River Eden , a tributary of the Medway , are in Tandridge District , in east Surrey. The River Colne and its anabranch , the Wraysbury River , make a brief appearance in the north of the county to join the Thames at Staines. Like the rest of the British Isles , Surrey has a maritime climate with warm summers and cool winters. The Met Office weather station at Wisley , about 6.5 miles (10.5 km) to
2568-498: The de Clare family. In 1088, King William II granted William de Warenne the title of Earl of Surrey as a reward for Warenne's loyalty during the rebellion that followed the death of William I . When the male line of the Warennes became extinct in the 14th century, the earldom was inherited by the Fitzalan Earls of Arundel . The Fitzalan line of Earls of Surrey died out in 1415, but after other short-lived revivals in
2675-463: The 15th century the title was conferred in 1483 on the Howard family , who still hold it. However, Surrey was not a major focus of any of these families' interests. Guildford Castle , one of many fortresses originally established by the Normans to help them subdue the country, was rebuilt in stone and developed as a royal palace in the 12th century. Farnham Castle was built during the 12th century as
2782-464: The 16th century and collapsed in the 17th, harmed by falling standards and competition from more effective producers in other parts of England. The iron industry in the Weald, whose rich deposits had been exploited since prehistoric times, expanded and spread from its base in Sussex into Kent and Surrey after 1550. New furnace technology stimulated further growth in the early 17th century, but this hastened
2889-671: The 16th-century Dissolution of the Monasteries . Now fallen into disuse, some English counties had nicknames for those raised there such as a 'tyke' from Yorkshire , or a 'yellowbelly' from Lincolnshire . In the case of Surrey, the term was a 'Surrey capon', from Surrey's role in the later Middle Ages as the county where chickens were fattened up for the London meat markets. Under the early Tudor kings, magnificent royal palaces were constructed in northeastern Surrey, conveniently close to London. At Richmond an existing royal residence
2996-464: The 1969 movie Battle of Britain, in the movie as in real life used as a navigational landmark by the attacking Luftwaffe bombers. The Optimists of Nine Elms , a 1973 film starring Peter Sellers , is set in Battersea. Battersea is also the setting for Penelope Fitzgerald 's 1979 Booker Prize –winning novel, Offshore . Kitty Neale's Nobody's Girl is set in a fictional café and the surrounding Battersea High Street Market. Nell Dunn 's 1963 novel Up
3103-574: The Catuvellauni died and war broke out between his sons and King Verica of the Atrebates. The Atrebates were defeated, their capital captured and their lands made subject to Togodumnus , king of the Catuvellauni, ruling from Camulodunum ( Colchester ). Verica fled to Gaul and appealed for Roman aid. The Atrebates were allied with Rome during the invasion of Britain in AD ;43. During
3210-591: The Downs in the western part of the county are the sandstone Surrey Hills , while further east is the plain of the Low Weald , rising in the extreme southeast to the edge of the hills of the High Weald. The Downs and the area to the south form part of a concentric pattern of geological deposits which also extends across southern Kent and most of Sussex, predominantly composed of Wealden Clay , Lower Greensand and
3317-661: The Earldom of Surrey. Though Reigate and Bletchingley remained modest settlements, the role of their castles as local centres for the two leading aristocratic interests in Surrey had enabled them to gain borough status by the early 13th century. As a result, they gained representation in Parliament when it became established towards the end of that century, alongside the more substantial urban settlements of Guildford and Southwark. Surrey's third sizeable town, Kingston, despite its size, borough status and historical association with
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3424-611: The East Saxon diocese of London , indicating that it was under East Saxon rule at that time, but was later transferred to the West Saxon diocese of Winchester . Its most important religious institution throughout the Anglo-Saxon period and beyond was Chertsey Abbey , founded in 666. At this point Surrey was evidently under Kentish domination, as the abbey was founded under the patronage of King Ecgberht of Kent. However,
3531-637: The Great 's son Edward, the future King Edward the Elder , and fled across the Thames towards Essex. Surrey remained safe from attack for over a century thereafter, due to its location and to the growing power of the West Saxon, later English, kingdom. Kingston was the scene for the coronations of Æthelstan in 924 and of Æthelred the Unready in 978, and, according to later tradition, also of other 10th-century Kings of England. The renewed Danish attacks during
3638-531: The Junction (later adapted for both television and cinema) depicts contemporary life in the industrial slums of Battersea near Clapham Junction . Battersea provides the backdrop for the real world scenes in the audio book and app series Rockford's Rock Opera . Surrey Surrey ( / ˈ s ʌr i / ) is a ceremonial county in South East England . It is bordered by Greater London to
3745-502: The Kentish rebel army. In 1082 a Cluniac abbey was founded at Bermondsey by Alwine, a wealthy English citizen of London. Waverley Abbey near Farnham, founded in 1128, was the first Cistercian monastery in England. Over the next quarter-century monks spread out from here to found new houses, creating a network of twelve monasteries descended from Waverley across southern and central England. The 12th and early 13th centuries also saw
3852-908: The London Mayor's new Housing Zones. Further north towards Chelsea is the Surrey Lane Estate , and on Battersea Park Road is the Doddington and Rollo Estate. East, toward Vauxhall, is the Patmore Estate which is in close proximity to the Battersea Power Station. Other smaller estates include: York Road (see Winstanley Estate ), Ashley Crescent, Badric Court, Carey Gardens, Chatham Road, Ethelburga, Falcon Road, Gideon Road, Honeywell Road, Kambala, Peabody, Robertson Street, Savona, Somerset, Wilditch and Wynter Street. The tradition of local government in England
3959-532: The Midlands in the mid-17th century, but the manufacture of paper and gunpowder proved more enduring. For a time in the mid-17th century the Surrey mills were the main producers of gunpowder in England. A glass industry also developed in the mid-16th century on the southwestern borders of Surrey, but had collapsed by 1630, as the wood-fired Surrey glassworks were surpassed by emerging coal-fired works elsewhere in England. The Wey Navigation , opened in 1653,
4066-576: The National Anti-Vivisection Society sought permission to erect a drinking fountain celebrating the life of a dog killed by vivisection . The fountain, forming a plinth for the statue of a brown dog, was installed in the Latchmere Recreation Ground , became a cause célèbre, fought over in riots and battles between medical students and the local populace until its removal in 1910. The borough elected
4173-488: The Roman era, the only important settlement within the historic area of Surrey was the London suburb of Southwark (now part of Greater London ), but there were small towns at Staines , Ewell , Dorking , Croydon and Kingston upon Thames . Remains of Roman rural temples have been excavated on Farley Heath and near Wanborough and Titsey , and possible temple sites at Chiddingfold , Betchworth and Godstone . The area
4280-711: The St John Baronets of Lydiard Tregoze and ultimately the Viscounts Bolingbroke . Bolingbrokes exercised control of the manor for some 173 years, showing varying levels of interest and competence in running the estate's affairs, until in 1763 the disastrously dissolute Frederick St John, 2nd Viscount Bolingbroke sold the manor to help to settle his many debts. Battersea now passed into the Spencer family - John Spencer, 1st Earl Spencer being related to Frederick's wife. The Survey of London identified
4387-765: The Surrey–Greater London border as far as Surbiton . The River Wey is the longest tributary of the Thames above London. Other tributaries of the Thames with their courses partially in Surrey include the Mole , the Addlestone branch and Chertsey branch of the River Bourne (which merge shortly before joining the Thames), and the Hogsmill River , which drains Epsom and Ewell . The upper reaches of
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4494-501: The Thames foreshore; and a Spencer was responsible for the construction of first local bridge across the Thames, Battersea Bridge from 1771 to 1772. And albeit Battersea saw some slow change over the first seven centuries of the second millennium, it was not until a later period that an imperative for greater local government arose. The vestry of Battersea continued to increase in importance from 1742, notably concerning itself with Poor Law administration and drainage. Responsibility for
4601-411: The Thames, which formed the northern border of the county before modern redrawing of county boundaries, which has left part of its north bank within the county. To the north of the Downs the land is mostly flat, forming part of the basin of the Thames. The geology of this area is dominated by London Clay in the east, Bagshot Sands in the west and alluvial deposits along the rivers. To the south of
4708-596: The abbey, variously termed a beadle , reeve or sergeant , whose responsibility it was supervise the farm servants of the manor, and to enforce and direct customary work performed by manorial tenants. After 1540 the Crown assumed ownership of the manor, and let it on short leases to a succession of individuals, until in about 1590 it came into the hands of the St. John family of Lydiard Tregoze in Wiltshire, who later became
4815-604: The area shows the following factories, in order, from the site of the as yet unbuilt Wandsworth Bridge to Battersea Park: Starch manufacturer; Silk manufacturer; (St. John's College); (St. Mary's Church); Malt house; Corn mill; Oil and grease works (Prices Candles); Chemical works; Plumbago Crucible works (later the Morgan Crucible Company ); Chemical works; Saltpetre works; Foundry. Between these were numerous wharfs for shipping. In 1929, construction started on Battersea Power Station , being completed in 1939. From
4922-551: The books of Michael de Larrabeiti , who was born and brought up in the area: A Rose Beyond the Thames recounts the working-class Battersea of the 1940s and 1950s; The Borrible Trilogy presents a fictional Battersea, home to fantasy creatures known as the Borribles. The station makes a brief appearance in The Beatles ' second film, Help! , in 1965. It also appears during the first daylight attack on London sequence in
5029-462: The borough and after the turmoil of dock strikes affecting the populace of north Battersea, was elected to represent the borough in the newly formed London County Council . In 1892, he expanded his role, being elected to Parliament for Battersea North as one of the first Independent Labour Party members of Parliament. Battersea's radical reputation gave rise to the Brown Dog affair , when in 1904
5136-408: The capital boosted the wealth and population of the surrounding area, but urban development elsewhere was sapped by the overshadowing predominance of London and by the lack of direct access to the sea. Population pressure in the 12th and 13th centuries initiated the gradual clearing of the Weald , the forest spanning the borders of Surrey, Sussex and Kent, which had hitherto been left undeveloped due to
5243-520: The chalk of the Downs. Much of Surrey is in the Metropolitan Green Belt . It contains valued reserves of mature woodland (reflected in the official logo of Surrey County Council, a pair of interlocking oak leaves). Among its many notable beauty spots are Box Hill , Leith Hill , Frensham Ponds , Newlands Corner and Puttenham & Crooksbury Commons . Surrey is the most wooded county in England, with 22.4% coverage compared to
5350-405: The conquest of England by Cnut. Cnut's death in 1035 was followed by a period of political uncertainty, as the succession was disputed between his sons. In 1036 Alfred , son of King Æthelred, returned from Normandy , where he had been taken for safety as a child at the time of Cnut's conquest of England. It is uncertain what his intentions were, but after landing with a small retinue in Sussex he
5457-519: The control of Caedwalla's successor Ine in the early 8th century. Its political history for most of the 8th century is unclear, although West Saxon control may have broken down around 722, but by 784–785 it had passed into the hands of King Offa of Mercia. Mercian rule continued until 825, when following his victory over the Mercians at the Battle of Ellandun , King Egbert of Wessex seized control of Surrey, along with Sussex, Kent and Essex. It
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#17327721324595564-546: The county administration was moved to Newington in 1791 and to Kingston upon Thames in 1893. The county council's headquarters were outside the county's boundaries from 1 April 1965, when Kingston and other areas were included within Greater London by the London Government Act 1963 , until the administration moved to Reigate at the start of 2021. Before Roman times the area today known as Surrey
5671-432: The county contains part of built-up area which includes Camberley , Farnham , and Frimley and which extends into Hampshire and Berkshire. The south of the county is rural, and its largest settlements are Horley (22,693) and Godalming (22,689). For local government purposes Surrey is a non-metropolitan county with eleven districts. The county historically included much of south-west Greater London but excluded what
5778-424: The development of a plurality of smaller estates, which had implications for the later development of the area. The scope of governance throughout this period was relatively slight. Lords of the manor were responsible for church appointments and maintenance of the fabric of the church; for drainage, and for the direction of the duties of the manor's tenants. From time to time work was done under manorial direction on
5885-484: The difficulty of farming on its heavy clay soil. Surrey's most significant source of prosperity in the later Middle Ages was the production of woollen cloth, which emerged during that period as England's main export industry. The county was an early centre of English textile manufacturing, benefiting from the presence of deposits of fuller's earth , the rare mineral composite important in the process of finishing cloth, around Reigate and Nutfield . The industry in Surrey
5992-506: The disastrous reign of Æthelred led to the devastation of Surrey by the army of Thorkell the Tall , which ravaged all of southeastern England in 1009–1011. The climax of this wave of attacks came in 1016, which saw prolonged fighting between the forces of King Edmund Ironside and the Danish king Cnut , including an English victory over the Danes somewhere in northeastern Surrey, but ended with
6099-434: The early twentieth century. During the latter decades of the nineteenth century Battersea had developed into a major town railway centre with two locomotive works at Nine Elms and Longhedge and three important motive power depots (Nine Elms, Stewarts Lane and Battersea) all in an initial pocket of north Battersea. The effect was precipitate: a population of 6,000 people in 1840 was increased to 168,000 by 1910; and save for
6206-453: The end of large scale local industry, resurgent demand among magnates and high income earners for parkside and riverside property close to planned Underground links has led to significant construction, Factories have been demolished and replaced with modern apartment buildings. Some of the council owned properties have been sold off and several traditional working men's pubs have become more fashionable bistros. Battersea neighbourhoods close to
6313-438: The establishment of Augustinian priories at Merton , Newark , Tandridge , Southwark and Reigate. A Dominican friary was established at Guildford by Henry III's widow Eleanor of Provence , in memory of her grandson who had died at Guildford in 1274. In the 15th century a Carthusian priory was founded by King Henry V at Sheen . These would all perish, along with the still important Benedictine abbey of Chertsey , in
6420-530: The estate, the Mayor declared that, "The dwellings were novel of their kind, containing as they did what had once been regarded as luxuries, such as baths, combined ranges and electric light. Not many working men had such accommodation in which to bring up their families, but the Battersea Borough Council had come to the conclusion that such accommodation was an absolute necessity." The estate
6527-465: The extinction of the business as the mines were worked out. However, this period also saw the emergence of important new industries, centred on the valley of the Tillingbourne , south-east of Guildford, which often adapted watermills originally built for the now moribund cloth industry. The production of brass goods and wire in this area was relatively short-lived, falling victim to competitors in
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#17327721324596634-469: The first black mayor in London in 1913 when John Archer took office, and in 1922 elected the Bombay -born Communist Party member Shapurji Saklatvala as MP for Battersea; one of only two communist members of Parliament. Battersea is currently divided into five Wandsworth wards. The Member of Parliament for the Battersea constituency since 8 June 2017 has been Labour MP Marsha de Cordova . Battersea
6741-453: The first estate directly built by a council's own workforce and therefore the first true "council estate". Indeed, both of these earlier estates have since been recognised as conservation areas due to their historical and architectural significance and are protected from redevelopment. Battersea also has a large area of mid-20th century public housing estates, almost all located north of the main railway lines and spanning from Fairfield in
6848-642: The focus of the area southwards, and marginalised Battersea High Street (the main street of the original village) into no more than an extension of Falcon Road. Battersea has a long and varied history of social housing, and the completion of the Shaftesbury Park Estate in 1877 was one of the earliest in London or the UK. Additionally, the development of the Latchmere Estate in 1903 was notable both for John Burns ' involvement and for being
6955-400: The government to site its buildings in the area surrounding Clapham Junction , where a cluster of new civic buildings including the town hall, library, police station, court and post office was developed along Lavender Hill in the 1880s and 1890s. The Arding & Hobbs department store, diagonally opposite the station, was the largest of its type at the time of its construction in 1885; and
7062-430: The green spaces of Battersea Park , Clapham Common , Wandsworth Common and some smaller isolated pockets, all other farmland was built over, with, from north to south, industrial buildings and vast railway sheds and sidings (much of which remain), slum housing for workers, especially north of the main east–west railway, and gradually more genteel residential terraced housing further south. The railway station encouraged
7169-440: The largest landowners in Surrey (then Sudrie ) at the end of Edward's reign were Chertsey Abbey and Harold Godwinson , Earl of Wessex and later king, followed by the estates of King Edward himself. Apart from the abbey, most of whose lands were within the shire, Surrey was not the principal focus of any major landowner's holdings, a tendency which was to persist in later periods. Given the vast and widespread landed interests and
7276-407: The late 18th century to comparatively recent times, Battersea was established as an industrial area with all of the issues associated with pollution and poor housing affecting it. Industry declined and moved away from the area in the 1970s, and local government sought to address chronic post-war housing problems with large scale clearances and the establishment of planned housing. Some decades after
7383-430: The latter was removed from the vestry in 1855 with the establishment of Metropolitan Boards of Work under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 ; a Metropolitan Board concerned itself with cross-London drainage and sewerage, whilst a local Wandsworth Metropolitan Board assumed responsibility for minor sewers and the connection of houses to sewerage systems. It was during the tenure of the Wandsworth board that much of Battersea
7490-633: The lowest land was reclaimed for agriculture by draining marshland and building culverts for streams. By the side of this was the Heathwall tide mill in the north-east with a very long mill pond regularly draining and filling to the south. The settlement appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Middle English : Patricesy , a vast manor held by St Peter's Abbey, Westminster . Its Domesday Assets were: 18 hides and 17 ploughlands of cultivated land; 7 mills worth £42 9s 8d per year, 82 acres (33 ha) of meadow , woodland worth 50 hogs . It rendered (in total): £75 9s 8d. The present church, which
7597-404: The monarchy, did not gain parliamentary representation until 1832. Surrey had little political or economic significance in the Middle Ages. Its agricultural wealth was limited by the infertility of most of its soils, and it was not the main power-base of any important aristocratic family, nor the seat of a bishopric. The London suburb of Southwark was a major urban settlement, and the proximity of
7704-447: The mouth of the Thames in a fleet of about 350 ships, which would have carried over 15,000 men. Having sacked Canterbury and London and defeated King Beorhtwulf of Mercia in battle, the Danes crossed the Thames into Surrey, but were slaughtered by a West Saxon army led by King Æthelwulf in the Battle of Aclea , bringing the invasion to an end. Two years later the men of Surrey marched into Kent to help their Kentish neighbours fight
7811-587: The national and international preoccupations of the monarchy and the earldom of Wessex, the Abbot of Chertsey was therefore probably the most important figure in the local elite. The Anglo-Saxon period saw the emergence of the shire's internal division into 14 hundreds , which continued until Victorian times. These were the hundreds of Blackheath , Brixton , Copthorne , Effingham Half-Hundred , Elmbridge , Farnham , Godalming , Godley , Kingston , Reigate , Tandridge , Wallington , Woking and Wotton . After
7918-493: The native ruling class of Surrey was virtually eliminated by Norman seizure of land. Only one significant English landowner, the brother of the last English Abbot of Chertsey, remained by the time the Domesday survey was conducted in 1086. At that time the largest landholding in Surrey, as in many other parts of the country, was the expanded royal estate, while the next largest holding belonged to Richard fitz Gilbert , founder of
8025-464: The north east tip of the area. Over the next 22 years five other lines were built, which continue to carry all of the trains to and from London's Waterloo and Victoria termini. An interchange station was built in 1863 towards the north west of the area, at a junction of the railway. Taking the name of a fashionable village a mile and more away, the station was named ' Clapham Junction ': a campaign to rename it "Battersea Junction" fizzled out as late as
8132-578: The north of the county, extending to Guildford, is within the Greater London Built-up Area . This is an area of continuous urban sprawl linked without significant interruption of rural area to Greater London. In the west, there is a developing conurbation straddling the Hampshire/Surrey border, including the Surrey towns of Camberley and Farnham . Guildford is often regarded as the historic county town , although
8239-667: The north-east of Guildford, has recorded temperatures between 37.8 °C (100.0 °F) (August 2003) and −15.1 °C (4.8 °F) (January 1982). From 2006 until 2015, the Wisley weather station held the UK July record high of 36.5 °C (97.7 °F). Surrey has a population of approximately 1.1 million people. Its largest town is Woking with a population of 105,367, followed by Guildford with 77,057, and Walton-on-Thames with 66,566. Towns of between 30,000 and 50,000 inhabitants include Ewell , and Camberley . Much of
8346-523: The northeast, Kent to the east, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the west. The largest settlement is Woking . The county has an area of 1,663 km (642 square miles) and a population of 1,214,540. Much of the north of the county forms part of the Greater London Built-up Area , which includes the suburbs within the M25 motorway as well as Woking (103,900), Guildford (77,057), and Leatherhead (32,522). The west of
8453-452: The parish of Battersea was part of the county of Surrey . In that year a new County of London came into being and the parish was made part of it. Before the Industrial Revolution , much of the large parish was farmland, providing food for the City of London and surrounding population centres; and with particular specialisms, such as growing lavender on Lavender Hill (nowadays denoted by
8560-817: The period of Frederick's tenure with the development of the Vestry in Battersea; absent a competent lord of the manor, this local secular and ecclesiastical government took it upon itself to establish a workhouse in 1733, and met monthly from 1742. The period of Spencer ownership of the manor saw important land ownership changes introduced to the area. The family had many estates, such as at Althorp in Northamptonshire and Wiseton in Nottinghamshire. Locally, their interests were concentrated on Wimbledon . During their tenure, large tracts of land were sold, notably around 1761, and from 1835 to 1838, leading to
8667-592: The period, armies from Kent heading for London via Southwark passed through what were then the extreme north-eastern fringes of Surrey during the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 and Cade's Rebellion in 1450, and at various stages of the Wars of the Roses in 1460, 1469 and 1471. The upheaval of 1381 also involved widespread local unrest in Surrey, as was the case all across south-eastern England, and some recruits from Surrey joined
8774-533: The poor, but with the new need for housing, this was no longer considered a productive use of space. In the 1890s, John Burns , the MP for Battersea, secured acts of parliament allowing for the construction of the estate on the former Latchmere Common . A design competition was held which attracted 58 entries in 1901, and construction began soon after. For the time, the estate contained things like electric lighting and combined ranges which were considered luxuries. Opening
8881-529: The railway have some of the most deprived local authority housing in the Borough of Wandsworth, in an area which saw condemned slums after their erection in the Victoria era. Battersea was radically altered by the coming of railways. The London and Southampton Railway Company engineered their railway line from east to west through Battersea, in 1838, terminating at the original Nine Elms railway station at
8988-462: The rebels heading for London briefly occupied Guildford and fought a skirmish with a government detachment on Guildown outside the town, before marching on to defeat at Blackheath in Kent. The forces of Wyatt's Rebellion in 1554 passed through what was then northeastern Surrey on their way from Kent to London, briefly occupying Southwark and then crossing the Thames at Kingston after failing to storm London Bridge. Surrey's cloth industry declined in
9095-492: The road of the same name), asparagus (sold as "Battersea Bundles") or pig breeding on Pig Hill (later the site of the Shaftesbury Park Estate ). At the end of the 18th century, above 300 acres (1.2 km ) of land in the parish of Battersea were occupied by some 20 market gardeners, who rented from five to near 60 acres (24 ha) each. Villages in the wider area: Wandsworth, Earlsfield (hamlet of Garratt), Tooting, Balham – were separated by fields; in common with other suburbs
9202-475: The social control exercised there by the local authorities of Surrey was less effective and restrictive than that of the City authorities. Bankside was the scene of the golden age of Elizabethan and Jacobean theatre , with the work of playwrights including William Shakespeare , Christopher Marlowe , Ben Jonson and John Webster performed in its playhouses. The leading actor and impresario Edward Alleyn founded
9309-526: The southern portion of the Middle Saxon territory. If it ever existed, the Middle Saxon kingdom had disappeared by the 7th century, and Surrey became a frontier area disputed between the kingdoms of Kent , Essex, Sussex, Wessex and Mercia , until its permanent absorption by Wessex in 825. Despite this fluctuating situation it retained its identity as an enduring territorial unit. During the 7th century Surrey became Christian and initially formed part of
9416-472: The streets near the station developed as a regional shopping district. The area was served by a vast music hall – The Grand – opposite the station (nowadays serving as a nightclub and venue for smaller bands) as well as a large theatre next to the town hall (the Shakespeare Theatre, later redeveloped following bomb damage). All this building around the station shifted
9523-520: The throne in 1042. This hostility peaked in 1051, when Godwin and his sons were driven into exile; returning the following year, the men of Surrey rose to support them, along with those of Sussex, Kent, Essex and elsewhere, helping them secure their reinstatement and the banishment of the king's Norman entourage. The repercussions of this antagonism helped bring about the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. The Domesday Book records that
9630-449: The throne. Having landed in Kent and been welcomed in London, he advanced across Surrey to attack John, then at Winchester , occupying Reigate and Guildford castles along the way. Guildford Castle later became one of the favourite residences of King Henry III , who considerably expanded the palace there. During the baronial revolt against Henry, in 1264 the rebel army of Simon de Montfort passed southwards through Surrey on their way to
9737-746: The wealthy of London and the traditional manor successors built their homes in Battersea and neighbouring areas. Industry in the area was concentrated to the northwest just outside the Battersea-Wandsworth boundary, at the confluence of the River Thames and the River Wandle , which gave rise to the village of Wandsworth . This was settled from the 16th century by Protestant craftsmen – Huguenots – fleeing religious persecution in Europe, who planted lavender and gardens and established
9844-399: The west to Queenstown in the east. There are four particularly large estates. The Winstanley Estate , perhaps being the most renowned of them all, is known as being the birthplace to the garage collective So Solid Crew . Winstanley is close to Clapham Junction railway station in the northern perimeter of Battersea, and is currently being considered for comprehensive redevelopment as one of
9951-540: Was a founding shareholder of the East India Company who became the company's Governor and later Lord Mayor of London . Southwark expanded rapidly in this period, and by 1600, if considered as a separate entity, it was the second-largest urban area in England, behind only London itself. Parts of it were outside the jurisdiction of the government of the City of London , and as a result the area of Bankside became London's principal entertainment district, since
10058-668: Was based in part of Manor , and later on the Parish . Battersea's governance can be traced back to 693, when the manor was held by the nunnery of St. Mary at Barking Abbey . After the Norman Conquest of 1066, control of the manor passed to Westminster Abbey , ending at the time of the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1540. Battersea was one of only three of the Abbey's demesne directly supervised by monks, rather than being let to tenants. Local control rested with an officer appointed by
10165-676: Was built in 1729 and rebuilt 1882, and Battersea Bridge in the centre of the north boundary in 1771. Inland from the river, the rural agricultural community persisted. Along the Thames, a number of large and, in their field, pre-eminent firms grew; notably the Morgan Crucible company, which survives to this day and is listed on the London Stock Exchange ; Price's Candles, which also made cycle lamp oil; oil refiner and paint manufacturer S. Bowley and Son ; and Orlando Jones' Starch Factory. The 1874 Ordnance Survey map of
10272-602: Was built with 315 dwellings, "28 five-room houses, one four-room house, 70 houses each with two three-room tenements with bath scullery and 73 houses each with two four-room tenements with bath scullery." The English Heritage Survey of London (2013) calls the estate "the most vivid extant reminder of the efforts undertaken in Battersea’s heyday as a progressive municipality to better the life of its working classes". According to Sean Creighton, "The Estate's street names Freedom, Reform Sts, Odger, Joubert, Matthews and Burns all have
10379-408: Was completed in 1777, hosted the marriage of William Blake and Catherine Boucher in 1782. Benedict Arnold , his wife Peggy Shippen , and their daughter were buried in the crypt of the church. Battersea Park , a 200-acre (0.81 km ) northern rectangle by the Thames, was landscaped and founded for public use in 1858. Amenities and leisure buildings have been added to it since. Until 1889,
10486-561: Was developed; but such was the pace of development in Battersea that by 1887 it had a population sufficient to win the case for renewed local autonomy under the Metropolis Management (Battersea and Westminster) Act of 1887. The Battersea vestry continued through to 1899, when it became the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea as a result of the London Government Act 1899 . The Metropolitan Borough of Battersea
10593-517: Was focused on Guildford, which gave its name to a variety of cloth, gilforte , which was exported widely across Europe and the Middle East and imitated by manufacturers elsewhere in Europe. However, as the English cloth industry expanded, Surrey was outstripped by other growing regions of production. Though Surrey was not the scene of serious fighting in the various rebellions and civil wars of
10700-662: Was in 1965 combined with the neighbouring Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth to form the London Borough of Wandsworth . The former Battersea Town Hall , opened in 1893, is now the Battersea Arts Centre . In the period from 1880 onwards, Battersea was known as a centre of radical politics in the United Kingdom. John Burns founded a branch of the Social Democratic Federation , Britain's first organised socialist political party, in
10807-512: Was incorporated into Wessex as a shire and continued thereafter under the rule of the West Saxon kings, who eventually became kings of all of England. In the 9th century England was afflicted, along with the rest of northwestern Europe, by the attacks of Scandinavian Vikings . Surrey's inland position shielded it from coastal raiding, so that it was not normally troubled except by the largest and most ambitious Scandinavian armies. In 851 an exceptionally large invasion force of Danes arrived at
10914-479: Was met by Godwin, Earl of Wessex , who escorted him in apparently friendly fashion to Guildford . Having taken lodgings there, Alfred's men were attacked as they slept and killed, mutilated or enslaved by Godwin's followers, while the prince himself was blinded and imprisoned, dying shortly afterwards. This must have contributed to the antipathy between Godwin and Alfred's brother Edward the Confessor , who came to
11021-460: Was one of England's first canal systems. George Abbot , the son of a Guildford clothworker, served as Archbishop of Canterbury in 1611–1633. In 1619 he founded Abbot's Hospital , an almshouse in Guildford, which is still operating. He also made unsuccessful efforts to revitalise the local cloth industry. One of his brothers, Robert , became Bishop of Salisbury , while another, Maurice ,
11128-409: Was opened by the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) as "Battersea" on 1 October 1860 and was located at the southern end of what is now Grosvenor Bridge. It closed on 1 November 1870. The LB&SCR opened another station on a high-level line on 1 May 1867 called Battersea Park . Another station existed closed to the current station called Battersea Park Road railway station by
11235-705: Was probably largely occupied by the Atrebates tribe, centred at Calleva Atrebatum ( Silchester ), in the modern county of Hampshire , but eastern parts of it may have been held by the Cantiaci , based largely in Kent . The Atrebates are known to have controlled the southern bank of the Thames from Roman texts describing the tribal relations between them and the powerful Catuvellauni on the north bank. In about AD 42 King Cunobelinus (in Welsh legend Cynfelin ap Tegfan ) of
11342-467: Was rebuilt on a grand scale under King Henry VII , who also founded a Franciscan friary nearby in 1499. The still more spectacular palace of Nonsuch was later built for Henry VIII near Ewell. The palace at Guildford Castle had fallen out of use long before, but a royal hunting lodge existed outside the town. All these have since been demolished. During the Cornish Rebellion of 1497 ,
11449-525: Was traversed by Stane Street and other Roman roads. During the 5th and 6th centuries Surrey was conquered and settled by Saxons . The names of possible tribes inhabiting the area have been conjectured on the basis of place names. These include the Godhelmingas (around Godalming ) and Woccingas (between Woking and Wokingham in Berkshire). It has also been speculated that the entries for
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