Blackheath, Kent

Historical Description

Blackheath, a hamlet and hundred in Kent. The latter extends into the parishes of Charlton, Greenwich, Kidbrooke, Lewisham, and Lee, is within the parliamentary boroughs of Greenwich, Lewisham, and Woolwich, and the County of London as constituted by the Local Government Act, 1888, and is included in the Lewisham and Greenwich District Board of Works. The North Kent railway has a station at Blackheath, and passes under the east end of the heath by a tunnel about a mile long. The heath, 267 acres, lies S of Greenwich Park, 6 miles from London by road. It is dry and healthy, and commands very fine views. Many barrows, seemingly of the British-Roman period, have been opened on it along the line of Watling Street; and a cavern, called the Point, about 150 feet long, with four irregular chambers, supposed to have been artificially formed as a retreat during the struggles between the Saxons and the Danes, occurs on the ascent above Greenwich Park. The vicinity of the tract to London occasioned it to be the scene of some memorable transactions, and its freedom from damp and smoke has long made it a favourite retreat of London citizens. The Danes encamped here in 1011. Wat Tyler, at the head of 100,000 followers, encamped here in 1381. Henry IV. met the Emperor Palseologus here in 1400. Henry V. was welcomed here with great pomp by the London magistrates and chief citizens in 1415 on his return from Agincourt. The Emperor Sigismund was received here by Henry in 1416, and conducted hence in state to Lambeth. Jack Cade raised his banner here on one of the old barrows in 1450. Henry VI. encamped here in 1452 to oppose the Duke of York. Edward IV. was received here by the London citizens in 1474 on his coming from France. Lord Audley with his Cornish troops took post here in 1497, and was beaten by the Earl of Oxford. Cardinal Campejo, the papal legate, was met here in 1519 by the Duke of Norfolk. And Henry VIII. met here Anne of Cleves in 1539, and conducted her hence to Greenwich Palace. Two other famous scenes here are depicted by Shakespeare and Sir Walter Scott. Montague House, the residence of Queen Caroline, stood here, but has been demolished. Brunswick House, the " Babiole " of Lord Chesterfield, afterwards occupied by the Duchess of Brunswick, and Lord Lyttleton's villa, the residence of General Wolfe, are adjacent to Greenwich Park. Two houses, called the Bastile and the Minced-Pie-House, built by Sir John Vanbrugh, are on Maze Hill. Morden College, founded in 1695 by Sir John Morden for decayed merchants, a brick quadrangle amid considerable grounds, and now supporting upwards of 70 inmates, is on the S side. The ecclesiastical districts are: the parishes of All Saints and St John, the perpetual curacies of the Church of the Ascension, and St Michael's, Blackheath Park; there is also the pi-oprietary chapel of St German; net value of All Saints, £400, of St John, £600. Patron of All Saints, the Vicar of Lewisham. There are Congregational and Wesleyan chapels, a mission hall erected in 1883, and a Roman Catholic church which is dedicated to Our Lady Help. The Blackheath and Charlton Cottage Hospital was established in 1880. There is a working men's club, a large proprietary school for boys and a High School for girls, and a natural history society. Population of All Saints parish, 2255; and of St John,5067.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Blackheath from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Blackheath)

Maps

Online maps of Blackheath are available from a number of sites:

• Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• Google Streetview.
• National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
• OpenStreetMap.
• old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
• Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)

Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Kent newspapers online:

• Kent & Sussex Courier
• Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald
• Dover Express
• Kentish Gazette
• Folkestone, Hythe, Sandgate & Cheriton Herald
• Kentish Chronicle
• Maidstone Telegraph

Visitations Heraldic

The Visitation of Kent, 1619 is available on the Heraldry page, as is also The Visitation of Kent, 1663-68.