Above: Looking east across a small part of the green.
There was a time when every village in the land now called Inner London had a green. The site of Clerkenwell Green still exists although most of it is now covered by Tarmac. There is Parsons Green, in Fulham. There is Stepney Green, in east London. Camberwell Green is a well-known landmark in SE London, which is more like a park today.
A village green was at the centre of the community. The village church often was erected beside the green and the lord of the manor (if there was one) usually had his house facing onto the green. In the case of Bethnal Green, it was a hamlet of the enormous parish of Stepney whose church still stands some distance to the south of Bethnal Green. Bethnal Green was quite late in being created a parish and the parish church was built on part of the green itself.
According to the topographer Daniel Lysons, Bethnal was a corruption of Bathon Hall which would have been the residence of a notable Bathon family who owned large parts of Stepney, of which the parish of Bethnal Green was part. The ‘green’ at Bethnal Green was extensive, lying on the east side of Cambridge Heath Road. Much of the ‘green’ is still in existence and has been renamed Bethnal Green Gardens.
However, the district of Bethnal Green continued to expand as more residents and more streets gradually grew throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. A new church – usually called St John on Bethnal Green – was erected in the early 19th century and stands on the Green itself. It was constructed in 1826-28 to the design of the architect Sir John Soane (1753–1837). The Anglican church stands near Bethnal Green underground station, at the junction of Bethnal Green Road and Roman Road. It is a Grade I listed building.
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Comment – Tower Hamlets
Continuing south from the London Borough of Hackney is the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. This year, we look at two of the three Metropolitan Boroughs – Bethnal and then Stepney.
Above: Site of The Theatre shown on a modern street map. It stood on land that was once known as Holywell Priory (site shown in PALE GREEN). Modern street names are shown in PURPLE.
The history of theatres in the City of London and in locations nearby (in Shoreditch, Finsbury, Clerkenwell and across the Thames on Bankside which has always been part of Southwark) is a long and complex subject. The early theatres were set up in the yards of inns in the City of London where the players acted in make-shift stages and the audience either stood in the yard or occupied the galleries of an inn to be found around the yard. In 1572, the Mayor and Corporation of the City of London banned the performance of plays, where large numbers of people would be likely to cause the spread of the plague. In 1575, all players were formally expelled from the City.
The important name to mention is that of James Burbage (1530-97), an actor, theatre impresario, joiner and theatre builder who lived at Shoreditch. He married Ellen Bryan. They had two sons – Cuthbert, who followed in his father’s footsteps as a theatre manager, and Richard who became one of the most celebrated actors of his era and later acted alongside his friend William Shakespeare. James Burbage was the leader of a group of players known as Leicester’s Men.
With theatres banned from the City, James Burbage came up with an ingenious alternative site for a new theatre. Only a short distance from Burbage lived, was a large piece of land that was a liberty which had been Holywell Priory (also known as the Priory of St John the Baptist) in Shoreditch. It was formally dissolved in 1539. Although the priory no longer existed, the land remained with all the privileges of a liberty – the main one being that it was not part of a parish and so its owner was free from any local administration. Burbage knew all this and rented part of the land on the western side where he built a new theatre, called simply ‘The Theatre’. The advantage of erecting a theatre so close to the City was obvious – he could continue to stage plays and he had a ready audience who only had to walk across the fields from the City to the new theatre in Shoreditch.
The Theatre was constructed beside what is now called Curtain Road, in what later became the Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch and is now within the modern London Borough of Hackney. Built in 1576, after the Red Lion, it was the first permanent theatre built exclusively for the showing of theatrical productions in England, and its first successful one. Actor-manager James Burbage built it near the family home in Holywell Street. The Theatre’s history includes a number of important acting troupes including the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, which employed Shakespeare as actor and playwright. After a dispute with the landlord of the liberty, the theatre was dismantled and the timbers were used in the construction of the Globe Theatre, on Bankside. The Globe was much larger than The Theatre at Shoreditch.
The site of The Theatre is marked at Nos 86-88 Curtain Road by an LCC bronze plaque. When the plaque was erected, the exact site of The Theatre was not known for certain. In August 2008, archaeologists from the Museum of London excavating ahead of a new development in New Inn Broadway, Shoreditch, announced that they had found the foundation of a polygonal structure they believed to be the remains of the northeastern corner of The Theatre. The remains are listed as a scheduled monument.
A modern museum is being built, called the Museum of Shakespeare – on the exact site of the original ‘The Theatre’. As is the nature of such ventures, its opening has not yet taken place but is proposed for either 2024 or 2025. The Museum of Shakespeare is being designed and developed by Bompas & Parr in collaboration with Cain International, Museum of London Archaeology and Historic England.
Above: The renovated remains of the old building photographed in 2005.
The London Orphan Asylum was first founded in 1813 by the Rev Dr Andrew Reed. He died in 1862 at the age of 74 and was buried in Abney Park Cemetery. The asylum was funded by rich supporters who donated money. It originally had orphanages in Shoreditch (for boys), Bethnal Green (for girls). In 1825 a new larger building at Clapton was erected and the school moved in 1825. Within a year there were 206 Foundation pupils.
The new school at Watford opened in 1871. The decision to move the orphanage to Watford was made because of an outbreak of typhus in London that killed several children. It was renamed the London Orphan School in 1915 and the name was changed again in 1939 to Reed’s School in honour of its founder. Initially, there were 450 children in residence. By 1906 the Watford Observer reported that there were 500 children.
The old ruins at Linscott Road, Clapton, mark the site of the school which opened in 1825. The ruins remained standing for many years before being repurposed in 2003. The remaining part of the London Orphan Asylum, circa 1823 by W S Inman. The rest of the building was demolished in 1975 and the portico was derelict until 2003. It now consists of an entrance portico with colonnades. Behind the entrance is a computer centre by Brady Mallalieu from 2005 on the site of the former chapel. The building was associated with the nearby Clapton Girls Academy until 2017. Planning Permission and Listed Building Consent were granted in 2021 for a scheme to extend and convert the building into a medical surgery, but the scheme has not yet been implemented.
Above: St John’s church from its large churchyard.
Since before the Norman Conquest, the land now constituting the old parish of Hackney was part of the original huge parish of Stepney. Stepney extended across 3,300 acres (13 square km) from its southern boundary with the River Thames to an eastern boundary with the River Lea. The western boundary included the parishes in the City of London. Stepney extended north as far as Stamford Hill. The parish church of Stepney was towards the southern end of the parish and a church still stands today on the site.
The earliest church in Hackney was St Augustine, which may have been in existence before 1066, acting as a chapel to the Manor of Hackney. The earliest mention of a church (standing on the site where the old tower of St Augustine is to be seen today) is in 1275. From the 14th century, the church was dedicated to Saint Augustine of Hippo. In 1660, the name was changed to St John the Baptist, becoming commonly known as St John, Hackney.
In the 13th century, much of the land around Hackney was in the possession of the Knights Templar. When the order was disbanded, its possessions passed to the Order of St John of Jerusalem, who had a mansion on Church Street. At the Dissolution of the Monasteries, their lands passed to the Crown and then passed to various Tudor nobles, including Thomas Sutton and Ralph Sadler. Hackney’s proximity to the City of London and the royal court made it popular for courtiers, city merchants and businessmen. An increasing number of private schools were established in some of the older houses. By 1789 the church capacity of the old St Augustine had been extended to 1,000, with the addition of galleries. Clearly, a new church was needed.
A new church, tower and vestry room were built on a larger nearby site. The old church was subsequently demolished, with only its tower left standing. William Blackburn was the architect but he died suddenly in November 1790. A month later, James Spiller was chosen to replace him. It had been intended that the new church would hold 3,000 people but the final design allowed for 2,000. Work began in 1792 and the main structure took more than two years to complete. The church was consecrated on 15 July 1797.
On 18 May 1955, a fire started in the church roof among workmen’s tools, destroying the roof, some of the pews and the 1799 organ by George Pike England. During the ensuing major reconstruction work, there was some reordering of the interior. A replacement three manual Mander organ came from All Saint’s Ennismore Gardens, Kensington. The new church was reconsecrated on 24 June 1958 (St John’s Day).
With the fabric of the church still requiring significant maintenance, a multi-million-pound restoration project began in 2018, which claims to have reconfigured the church to its original Greek Cross plan. New features include the creation of two new chapels in the north and south wings, a raised stage and a range of new facilities. The building is Grade II* listed and contains monuments dating from the early 16th century, which were transferred from the old medieval parish church of St Augustine.
Francis Charles Bostock (1866–1912) was an English entrepreneur and animal trainer, who represented the touring section of the Bostock and Wombwell Menagerie. He toured Europe. He also toured America where he was known as “The Animal King”. At his death, he was called “England’s Greatest Showman”. Just before his death, Bostock owned over 1,000 animals and he owned amusement parks in Europe, America, South Africa and Australia.
Bostock died at Kensington Mansions in the Earls Court district of London on 8 October 1912[10] and was buried at Abney Park Cemetery on 14 October. A unique tombstone featuring a sculpture of a reclining lion was added the following year.
The gravestone is one of the most unusual in Abney Park Cemetery. In fact, it is one of the most unusual in any British cemetery.
William Booth (10 April 1829 – 20 August 1912) was an English Methodist preacher who, along with his wife, Catherine, founded the Salvation Army. Booth became its first General (1878–1912). The Christian movement with a quasi-military structure and was government founded in 1865. The organisation has spread from London to many parts of the world. It is known for being one of the largest distributors of humanitarian aid.
William Booth (Elder) died in 1912 and was buried in Abney Park Cemetery. His large tombstone, in the form of a Salvation Army shield, is near the south entrance, off Stoke Newington Church Street. As well as this grave, other members of the Salvation Army lie buried in the cemetery.
Above: Ornate Victorian memorials which can be seen in large numbers in the cemetery.
This cemetery, extending over land between Stoke Newington Church Street and Manor Road on the west side of Stamford Hill, is one of several. Large cemeteries that were laid out by the Victorians. At the time, cremation was not used and nearly all burials were in a coffin. With an ever-increasing population in London, finding a plot in which to be buried was difficult since the only land available was in churchyards which often surrounded parish churches. Victorians were not afraid to die but they were frustrated by the fact that it was almost impossible to bury their nearest and dearest when they died.
Due to public unease about the lack of space for burials, Parliament passed an Act in 1832 encouraging the establishment of private cemeteries outside central London. Over the next decade, seven cemeteries were established – Abney Park Cemetery (1840), Brompton Cemetery (1840), Highgate Cemetery (1839 for the western section and 1960 for the eastern section), Kensal Green Cemetery (1833), Nunhead Cemetery (1840), Tower Hamlets Cemetery (1841) and West Norwood Cemetery (1837). Companies were set up to run the cemeteries at a profit, often providing defined areas of land within a cemetery for particular faiths, such as special areas for Jews and another for Greeks. There was also an attraction for many people to be buried in such cemeteries. For example, those who did not worship by following the Church of England service (such as the Dissenters) were only too pleased to be buried on land that was not connected with the State Church.
The large piece of land that had been the gardens and estate of Abney House, in Stoke Newington, was laid out with a chapel to form Abney Park Cemetery in North London. It was officially opened in 1840 and by the year 2000, there had been almost 200,000 burials. Over the decades, the upkeep of the huge space became a problem and the land became very overgrown. In 1978, the park passed to the local council as a burial ground and open space subject to the Local Authorities Cemeteries Order of 1977.
In addition to the graves, some of the land has been used for the unusual feature of an arboretum. The cemetery contains some catacombs as well as war graves for 371 Commonwealth service personnel who died in the two World Wars and which are registered by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission – 258 from World War I and 113 from World War II.
Although some areas of the cemetery are cleared, revealing many interesting designs for the gravestones, much of the land is being managed and allowed to return to its original wild state. Under careful management by the London Borough of Hackney, the woodland is slowly regenerating and being used as a park which is open to the public. The northern areas are slowly returning to native oaks with hornbeam and hawthorn. The sandy brick earth soils that extend from Church Street along Dr Watts’ Walk to the Chapel lawns – the sole surviving heathland in Hackney – are returning to a lighter structure based on silver birch woodland and plant species such as bracken fern. This, in turn, is encouraging wildlife in the form of small mammals, birds and butterflies to develop in their natural habitat.
Above: Gates that originally lead to Abney House and now form the southern entrance to Abney Park Cemetery.
Some time after 1690, Thomas Gunston acquired land in Stoke Newington, to the west of Fleetwood House. Gunston had been friends with the Dissenters living at Stoke Newington, who were all friends of the Fleetwood family. Thomas Gunston died on 11 November 1700 before the house was completed. It passed to his sister Mary, who had become the second wife of Thomas Abney.
Isaac Watts, the English Congregational minister and hymn writer, died at the house on 25 November 1748, having lived at Fleetwood House and the adjacent Abney House for the last 36 years of his life.
Abney House remained in use until 1845 when it was demolished. The extensive estate became Abney Park Cemetery. The entrance gates to Abney Park Cemetery, on the north side of Stoke Newington Church Street, are said to be the original gates to Abney House.
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Comment – Looking at the London Borough of Hackney
Over the course of six years, we take a look at the City of London and the City of Westminster as well as the other Inner London Boroughs. We shall start this year by looking at the London Borough of Hackney – once formed of three Metropolitan Boroughs called Stoke Newington, Hackney and Shoreditch. We shall look first at Stoke Newington, before moving south to Hackney and then Shoreditch.
John Lobb started in business in 1849. He was a lame Cornish farm boy whose mastery of shoemaking won him many awards.
The shop dates from the 17th century. It specialises in hand-made shoes and boots. The basement of the shop is full of hundreds of pairs of plaster casts of customers’ feet. Once made, customers only have to send a request for another pair of shoes which can be fitted to the plaster casts.
The shop stands on the east side of St James’s Street towards the southern end.
Know Your London 