Farnborough is a village in Greater London, England. Situated south of Locksbottom, west of Green Street Green, north of Downe and Hazelwood, and east of Keston, it is centred 13.4 miles (21.6 km) southeast of Charing Cross.
| Farnborough | |
|---|---|
 Farnborough High Street with its village sign | |
  Farnborough Location within Greater London | |
| Population | 14,632 (2011 Census. Farnborough and Crofton Ward)[1] |
| OS grid reference | TQ445645 |
| • Charing Cross | 13.4 mi (21.6 km) NW |
| London borough | |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | ORPINGTON |
| Postcode district | BR6 |
| Dialling code | 01689 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| UK Parliament | |
| London Assembly | |
Suburban development following the Second World War resulted in the area becoming almost contiguous with the Greater London conurbation, but the village is still surrounded by open farmland. The area has formed part of the London Borough of Bromley local authority district since the formation of the ceremonial county of Greater London for administrative purposes in 1965.
History
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The village name derives from Fearnbiorginga, meaning a village among the ferns on the hill.[2] Old records date from 862 when Ethelbert, King of Wessex, gave away 950 acres at Farnborough. The village was not included in the Domesday Book of 1086, but the manor existed in the Middle Ages and was held in the 13th century by Simon de Montfort.[3][2]
The village evolved on the main road from London to Hastings which originally ran via Church Road and Old Hill (to the south of the village). The George pub existed in the 16th century and was used as a coaching inn. Coaches and horses were accommodated later.[3] In 1639 a severe storm destroyed St Giles' Church –it was later rebuilt.[2]
The population of the parish was as follows:
| Year | 1801 | 1811 | 1821 | 1831 | 1841 | 1851 | 1861 | 1871 | 1881 | 1891 | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population[4] | 314 | 452 | 553 | 638 | 680 | 920 | 955 | 1,086 | 1,451 | 1,627 | 2,262 | 3,210 | 3,322 | 4,373 |
Suburban development occurred in the post-Second World War years, resulting in the village becoming almost contiguous with the London conurbation, however Green Belt legislation prevented any further development southwards.[2]
Local government
editFarnborough formed a civil parish in the Ruxley hundred of Kent. In 1840 the parish was included in the Metropolitan Police District. It was part of the Bromley rural sanitary district and went on to form part of the Bromley Rural District from 1894 to 1934. The parish was abolished in 1934 as part of a county review order, following the Local Government Act 1929, and its area was split between the Municipal Borough of Bromley (3 acres) and Orpington Urban District (1,426 acres). The entire area has formed part of the London Borough of Bromley in Greater London since 1965.[5]
In film
editOn 1 May 1933, British Pathé released As Befits a Romany Queen.[6] The subject was the funeral of Urania Boswell, wife of Levi Boswell, of Willow Walk, behind Princess Royal University Hospital, on 24 April. She was the last Queen of the Kent (England) Gypsies (Romani People). The film lasts just under two minutes, and follows the cortège into Saint Giles the Abbott Church, where the gravestone may still be found, very near to the war memorial.
Transport
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Rail
editThe nearest National Rail station to Farnborough is Orpington, located 1.7 miles away.
Buses
editFarnborough is served by two London Buses routes.
- 358 to Crystal Palace via Bromley, Elmers End, Beckenham & Penge or to Orpington.
- R4 to Locksbottom or to Paul’s Cray Hill via Orpington & St Mary Cray.
Notable residents
edit- Steve Bennett (b. 1961) - football referee, born in Farnborough[7]
- Urania Boswell, aka 'Gypsy Lee' (d.1933) - local woman known as the Queen of the Kent gypsies[2]
- Chris Cowdrey (b. 1957) - cricketer, born in Farnborough[2]
- Nigel Farage (b. 1964) - politician, born in Farnborough[8]
- James Hanratty (1936-1962) - murderer[9]
- Ben Wallace (b. 1970) - Conservative politician, born in Farnborough[10]
References
edit- ^ "Bromley Ward population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 10 October 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f Willey, Russ (2006). The London Gazetteer. Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. pp. 172–3.
- ^ a b "Farnborough Village Society". Farnboroughvillage.info. Archived from the original on 5 July 2007. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
- ^ Great Britain Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, Farnborough population. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
- ^ Great Britain Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, Farnborough (historic map). Retrieved 2008-03-31.
- ^ Film identification No.:705.07; media urn: 6136
- ^ "Birthdate and Biographical detail". the Football League official website. Archived from the original on 8 June 2008. Retrieved 25 March 2008.
- ^ "Biography of Nigel Farage at the European Parliament". European Parliament. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- ^ GRO Register of Births DEC 1936 2a 1038 BROMLEY - James Hanratty, mmn = Wilson
- ^ Thomson, Alice; Sylvester, Rachel (9 June 2018). "Ben Wallace: we don't set out to kill terrorists". The Times.
External links
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