is an affluent suburb in the
London Borough Of Richmond Upon Thames in
South West London . It is located 8.3 miles (13.4 km) west south-west of
Charing Cross in central
London .
It is on the south side of the
River Thames but because of the way the river twists around it, the town of Richmond is actually north-east of
Richmond Bridge . It is very popular in summer with university rowing teams and tourists strolling along the bankside.
Henry VII was fond of
Richmond Castle in
Yorkshire . When a fire accidentally destroyed his manor in Sheen in
1497 he built a palace there and re-named it Richmond in
1501 . The name Sheen is now used for the eastern end of Richmond town. Many people assume that the folk song "Lass of Richmond Hill" refers to Richmond Upon Thames, but it originated in the Yorkshire Richmond. In
William Shakespeare 's "Richard III", and in "Henry VI part 3", Henry VII is referred to as Richmond. This is because he was Earl of Richmond. This Richmond was the source of the name chosen for
Richmond, Virginia , and the two Richmonds are sister cities.
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Henry I lived briefly in the King's house in Sheanes (or Shene or
Sheen ). In
1299 Edward I "Hammer of the Scots", took his whole court to the manor-house at Sheen, a little east of the bridge, and close by the river side, which thus became a ''royal palace''.
William Wallace ("Braveheart") was executed in London in
1305 , and it was in Sheen that the Commissioners from
Scotland went down on their knees before Edward. The
Percy Family from
Northumberland were rewarded for their loyalty by receiving a barony at Sheen in
1310 . To this day the Dukes of Northumberland divide their time between
Alnwick Castle in Northumberland, and
Syon House , just north of Richmond.
Edward II did not fare as well as his father. Following his defeat at the hands of the Scots at the
Battle Of Bannockburn in
1314 , he founded a monastery for Carmelites at Sheen. When the boy-king
Edward III came to the throne in
1327 he gave the manor to his mother
Isabella . Almost 50 years later his wife, also called Isabella died. Edward then spent over 2,000 pounds on improvements. In the middle of the work Edward III himself died at the manor in
1377 . In
1368 Geoffrey Chaucer served as a yeoman at Sheen.
Richard II was the first English king to make Sheen his main residence in
1383 . Twelve years later Richard was so distraught at the death of his wife
Anne Of Bohemia at the age of 28, that he, according to
Holinshed , "caused it
manor to be thrown down and defaced; whereas the former kings of this land, being wearie of the citie, used customarily thither to resort as to a place of pleasure, and serving highly to their recreation." It rebuilt
1414 -
1422 , but destroyed by fire
1497 . The palace was rebuilt again and renamed Richmond Palace by King
Henry VII , who renamed it Richmond Palace. It was not used after
1649 , and the bulk had decayed by
1779 .
Surviving structures include the Wardrobe, and the Gate House. The latter was built
1501 , and was made available on a 65 year lease by the
Crown Estate Commissioners in
1986 . It has 5 bedrooms.
In 1688
James II ordered partial reconstruction of the palace, this time as a royal nursery. The trumpeter's house, built around 1700 still exists. Close by is a well preserved terrace of three-story houses, called Maids of Honours Row. It was built in 1724 for the maids of honour (trusted royal wardrobe servants) of the wife of George II.
Richard Burton , the Victorian explorer, lived at number 2. In
Dickens ' ''
Great Expectations '' Estella comes to London to meet Mrs Brandley who lives here. From the sixteenth century, tournaments and archery contests have taken place on Richmond Green. As you look across the Green from the old Palace you can see a pub called "The Cricketers". Cricket matches have taken place here since about 1650. There was a pub of this name in 1770, but it burned down in 1844. It was soon replaced by the present building, a grade II listed building.
Samuel Whitbread , founder of the Whitbread brewery owned it and had a brewery in Water Lane, close to the old Palace.
The first inter-county
Cricket match which is recorded was played on the Green in 1730 between
Surrey and
Middlesex . The old palace overlooks the river on the other side. One of the earliest detailed paintings of a
Morris Dance was painted here. It dates from about 1620 and shows a fool, a
Hobby-horse , a piper, and Maid-Marian and three dancers on the bank of the Thames.
The beautiful
Victorian theatre
Richmond Theatre has been used as a movie set in many recent films (e.g. ''
Finding Neverland '' and ''
The Hours ''). The theatre is now part of the
Ambassadors Theatre Group and has a weekly schedule of plays and musicals, usually given by professional touring companies. Pre
West End shows can sometimes be seen. There is a Christmas and New Year
Pantomime tradition and many of Britain's greatest
Music Hall and pantomime performers have appeared.
Opposite the Railway Station is a bar called "Edwards". In
1963 it was a rock venue called the Crawdaddy Club. On
April 18 The Rolling Stones performed one of many gigs here. Paul Lukas, a bass player with the Tridents (including
Jeff Beck ) made a tape recording of it. Decades later, the same tape was auctioned at Christie's for hundreds of pounds. On one occasion
The Beatles visited the Crawdaddy Club in order to hear the Stones. In the
1960s and early
1970s Eel Pie Island in
Twickenham was another rock venue.
Pete Townshend of
The Who had a studio there in the
1970s . The Stones,
Traffic and other bands played here. In the
1990s Mick Jagger and
Jerry Hall bought a house on Richmond Hill, and are currently engaged in a legal dispute over their right to erect a large glass turret on the roof.
Ron Wood once owned the same house on the Hill that actor
John Mills previously lived in.
Pete Townshend of
The Who lives at the top of the hill - like the Jaggers he can occasionally be seen in The Roebuck pub close to his home.
From the twelfth century until
1649 there was a royal residence in Richmond. Its greatest fame was in the 16th century when
Henry VIII and
Elizabeth I spent many a Christmas within the palace.
The
Chilean Bernardo O'Higgins , who later led his country to independence and become first Chilean head of state, lived and studied at Clarence House in the Vineyard from around the turn of the 19th century.
In
1855 George Eliot rented a house in Parkshot, and during the next three years she wrote there the greater part of her first novel, ''
Adam Bede ''. The painter
JMW Turner , who painted Richmond Hill and the bridge more than once, designed a house for himself (Sandycombe Lodge) that still survives unchanged on the other side of the river, in
St. Margarets .
John Russell, 1st Earl Russell , who served twice as prime minister in the mid 19th century lived at
Pembroke Lodge in
Richmond Park and his grandson, the mathematician and philospher
Bertrand Russell grew up there in the care of his grandmother after he was orphaned. In the early part of the 20th century,
Virginia Woolf lived at Hogarth House in Paradise Road between
1915 and
1924 with her husband
Leonard and founded the
Hogarth Press there in
1917 .
John Turner , who was briefly the
Canadian prime minister in
1984 was born here in
1929 and the actor
John Mills used to live in Richmond.
Current famous residents include
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy , a granddaughter of
King George V . Princess Alexandra resides at
Thatched House Lodge in Richmond Park, a property acquired by her late husband,
Angus Ogilvy following their wedding in
1967 . Other residents include television presenters and brothers
Richard Attenborough and
David Attenborough as well as the rock star
Mick Jagger , his ex-wife the Texan model/actress
Jerry Hall ,
The Who guitarist
Pete Townshend and actor
Richard E Grant .
In addition to some of the more big name celebrities who live in Richmond, there is also a plethora of other familiar faces from stage, television and film. The area is filled with talented musicians and artists. Some of
Tina Turner 's more famous songs were written in Richmond by the singer/songwriter
Terry Britten .
Richmond is a green and leafy town and it is surrounded by accessible open spaces. To the east and south lies s and extended down to the River Thames some 40 years later; the broad gravel walk along the top is earlier and the view west towards
Windsor has long been famous. A grand description of the view can be found in
Sir Walter Scott ’s novel ''
The Heart Of Midlothian '' (1818):
:"A huge sea of verdure with crossing and interesting promontories of massive and tufted groves, … tenanted by numberless flocks and herds, which seem to wander unrestrained, and unbounded, through rich pastures. The Thames, here turreted with villas and there garlanded with forests, moved on slowly and placidly, like the mighty monarch of the scene, to whom all its other beauties were accessories, and bore on his bosom a hundred barks and skiffs, whose white sails and gaily fluttering pennons gave life to the whole."
Apart from the great rugby
Stadium at
Twickenham and the aircraft landing and taking off from
London Heathrow Airport the scene has changed little in 200 years.
The town has a compact centre, largely focused on George Street and Hill Street, with some pleasant narrow alleyways running off towards The Green. Shops tend to be at the upper end of expectations with numerous designer boutiques as well as more recognisable names such as
Marks & Spencer and
House Of Fraser . Unlike nearby
Kingston , Richmond has no indoor shopping centres and is largely populated by smaller units which add to its appeal, although the main streets are occasionally choked with traffic.
Richmond is also well known for its secluded cafés, and its
Farmers Market which takes place on Saturdays 11 to 3. Traders from a wide range of backgrounds come to sell culinary goods ranging such as dairy products, meats, baked goods and vegetables.
The town also has two
Odeon cinemas, one located upon entry to Richmond via the bridge, and the second set further back.
The town has a university called
Richmond - The American International University in
London . Richmond degrees are accredited in the USA, and are validated in the UK.
Richmond Station is one of the western termini of the
District Line on the
London Underground system. It is also the western terminus of the
North London Line to
North Woolwich and served by trains from
Waterloo Station on the
National Rail service, connecting it with
Reading ,
Staines ,
Windsor ,
Wimbledon and
Weybridge .
- Savoy Palace , for an earlier erected palace by the holder of Richmondshire.
