KENNINGTON PALACE AND COMMON

The manor of Kennington or "Chenintune” as the ancient form runs, was held by Teodoric, the goldsmith, of Edward the Confessor. He retained the manor after the Conquest, for the entry in the Doomsday Book ascribes it to him.

One writer suggests that the name means "King's Town" and some strength is given to this assertion by the fact that a royal palace undoubtedly stood there.

In this palace the savage Danish King, Hardicanute died. He was attending the wedding feast of one of his followers, who was marrying the daughter of Osgod Clapa, Lord of Clapham, and in the drunken orgy which followed, the King fell dead.

Great was the rejoicing of the English at this unseemly end to a hated king, and historians suppose that this was the origin of a yearly holiday known as Hock-tide.

The festival lasted two days, usually Monday and Tuesday, and was held about a fortnight after Easter.

The characteristic sport on this holiday was “Hocking”. "The people who took part guarded the public roads with ropes and displayed their skill in "hocking” the passers by i.e., throwing the rope over them, and pulling them over. They then exacted ransom with great merriment, and the money thus obtained was used for church repairs. Monday was the men's day, and Tuesday the women's and according to extracts from the church-warden's accounts, the latter were much more skilful "hockers" than the former.

1515

Received of men for oke money

5/7

The wyffs for oke money

15/1

1519

The men

3/9

The Churchwardens' wyffs on Hoke Monday

8/3

1521

Received of my lady of Norfolk of

Hoke money

32/3

1556

Received of John Brasy's wyff, money that she received and gathered

with the virgins

5/6

One writer has suggested that the binding part of the sport might refer to the abject state of slavery in which the Saxons were held by the Danes, and that the donations "for pious uses might be considered an acknowledgement to heaven for freeing the nation from oppression.”

Whatever its historical significance, it was an innocent and mirth provoking sport, and continued to be a popular holiday until the time of the Reformation, when it gradually fell into disuse.

Little is known of the history of the Palace for many years after this tragic event, but both Henry III and Edward I are said to have held Parliaments there.

Edward III added the manor to the Duchy of Cornwall, to which it belongs at the present day, and the Black Prince, first Duke of Cornwall, and the hero of Crécy often dwelt here. The name Princes Road is a reminder of the lane by which the Prince used to come from the landing steps on the Thames to his royal Palace.

After the death of the Black Prince, his son, little Prince Richard continued to live here with his mother, and Stowe, the great historian of London, tells of a grand visit paid to him by the Mayor and citizens of London in 1377.

On the Sunday before Candelmas in the night, 130 citizens disguised and well horsed, in a mummery with sound of trumpets, sackbuts, cornets, shalmes, and other minstrels, and innumerable torch lights of wax, rode from Newgate through Cheap, over the bridge through Southwark, and so to Kennington beside Lambeth, where the young prince remained with his mother, and the Duke of Lancaster (his Uncle). In the first rank did ride forty-eight in likeness and habit of esquires, two and two together, clothed in red coats and gowns of say or sandal, with comely vizors on their face.

“The maskers after they had entered the manor of Kennington alighted from the horses and entered the hall on foot; which done, the prince, his mother and the lords came out of the hall whom the mummers did salute; showing by a pair of dice on the table their desire to play with the prince, which they so handled that the prince did alwais winne when he came to cast at them. Then the mummers set to the prince three jewels, one after another, which were a boule of gold, a cup of gold, and a ring of gold, which the prince wonne at three casts. After which they were feasted, and the music sounded, the prince and lords danced on the one part, with the mummers who did also dance; which jollity being ended they were again made to drink and then departed in order as they came."

In 1377 John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, fled to the palace for refuge from the citizens of London, and twenty years later came another royal visitor - the little eight year old bride of Richard II. One account of her coming tells how the poor little princess tried hard to be dignified as befitted the future Queen of England.

After Richard's time the palace was seldom used by royalty, although there is mentioned that after Bosworth, Henry VII “came from Kennington unto Lambeth and there dined with Thomas Bourchier, Archbishop of Canterbury "; but as the years went on the old Palace was allowed to fall into ruins.

The year in which it was actually demolished is not known with certainty, but in a survey of Kennington by Sir Charles Harbord in 1636, the manor house is said to be "small and an old low timber building situate upon part of the foundation of the ancient manor house of the Black Prince, and other Dukes of Cornwall after him, which was long since utterly ruined and nothing thereof remaining, but the stable 180 feet long, built of flint and stone, and now used as a barn ".

The Long Barn as it was called remained for many years, and was used on one occasion by Refugee Protestants who had fled from Louis XIV of France. It was finally destroyed in 1795, and the site is now bounded by Lancroft Street and Upper Kennington Lane, while the Palace and later the Manor house is supposed to have been on the other side of the main road and extended over what is now Reedworth Street.

Sir Walter Besant in his History of South London gives a very probable explanation of the fact that no traces of the old Palace remain. He suggests that the marshy character of the ground prevented the building of large houses near the Palace, consequently when the days of its glory were over it was left desolate, stranded by the tide of time.

So far from retaining traces of vanished splendour the district was for many years one of the most densely populated and ill-conditioned regions of south London, but during the reign of Edward VII many improvements were effected and our Prince of Wales, who is the present ground landlord, takes a keen interest in the betterment of social conditions, so the neighbourhood seems destined for brighter days.

KENNINGTON COMMON

KENNINGTON PARK which stretches for some distance along the Kennington Road occupies part of what was once a much larger stretch of open country and was known as Kennington Common. It was a dreary piece of waste land used for cattle grazing.

Allen, one of Lambeth's great historians, says:- "It is shut during the Winter six months and opens again in Spring, but it is no sooner opened than the number of cattle turned in is so great that the herbage is soon devoured, and it remains entirely bare the rest of the season."

Upon one part of it, probably where St. Mark's Church now stands, the gallows for the County of Surrey were erected, and here many unhappy victims met their death.

Foremost among them were several gallant English and Scotch officers who had followed “Bonnie Prince Charlie", the Young Pretender, in his attempt to win back the English throne.

They were tried on a charge of treason, sentenced to death, and on 30th of July, 1745, were conveyed to Kennington Common, there to suffer death with all the attendant horrors which the ferocity of the age could invent.

Then occurred the pathetic incident told in an old time ballad, when a young girl, betrothed to one of the officers, insisted on watching the execution and a few minutes later died literally of a broken heart. Small wonder that this part of the common retained for many years the title of Gallows Green.

In later years the Common was the open air church of George Whitefield, and John Wesley is also said to have preached here on more than one occasion.

April 10th, 1848, promised to be an eventful day in the history of the Common. You will remember that the Reform Bill of 1832 had remedied many abuses in this country, but it did not go far enough, and there was great discontent felt by certain sections of people who called themselves Chartists. Of their grievances and the points they demanded you will find accounts in many history books. We are concerned just now with their connection with Kennington Common.

On this particular day they planned a great meeting the Common was to be their rendezvous, and general alarm was felt in London. Rioting and disorder on an extensive scale was feared, and the Duke of Wellington stationed large bodies of police and soldiers at all strategic points. Happily the day passed off without any unpleasant occurrences. The Chartists marched in procession from London, held a great open-air demonstration on the Common, and dispersed quietly. The rights for which they contended have long been established.

Four years later the Common was enclosed and turned into a well-kept park. The lodges at the entrances are model cottages from the Great Exhibition arranged by Prince Albert in 1851.

St. Mark's Church as we have already noted is one of the four churches erected in the district after the victory of Waterloo.

The making of the Park led to another interesting event. As the inhabitants were losing a place where cricket could be played, Prince Albert suggested that the Duchy of Cornwall should lease the Oval - then a market garden - to any suitable authorities who would encourage the national game. This led to the formation of the Surrey Club, the making of the Oval, and the inauguration of the famous matches played there.

THE SURREY ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS

LYING between Kennington Park Road and Walworth Road, and therefore barely coming within Lambeth as we know it to-day, was the manor house and grounds of Newington. The grounds were extensive and included a large lake of about three acres. They were opened in 1830 by Edward Cross, the owner of a menagerie in the Strand. He transferred his wild animals to the newly-acquired grounds and gave a series of popular indoor and outdoor entertainments. But like all the other gardens of which we have read, these gradually ceased to attract and now the whole site is covered with streets, the names Manor Road and Manor Place being the sole reminders of past glories.

Little of historical value can be said about the remaining districts of Brixton, Herne Hill, Tulse Hill and Norwood. They are of rapid, almost mushroom growth, and year by year the country aspect they once wore is being spoilt by the building of more and more houses.

Let us now think of some of the great men, whose names are connected with this borough.