Harmondsworth is a village in theLondon Borough of Hillingdon in the county ofGreater London with a short border to the south ontoLondon Heathrow Airport and close to theBerkshire county border. The village has no railway stations, but adjoins theM4 motorway and theA4 road (the Bath Road). Harmondsworth was in the historic county ofMiddlesex until 1965. It is an ancient parish that once included the large hamlets ofHeathrow,Longford andSipson. Longford and Sipson have modern signposts and facilities as separate villages, remaining to a degree interdependent such as for schooling. TheGreat Barn and parish church are medieval buildings in the village. The largest proportion of land in commercial use is related to air transport and hospitality. The village includes public parkland with footpaths and abuts theRiver Colne and biodiverse land in itsRegional Park to the west, once the grazing meadows and woodlands used for hogs ofColnbrook.
In October 2016 it was announced by the government that Heathrow Airport would receive permission to apply for a third runway. According to currentexpansion plans, around half of the existing village of Harmondsworth will have to be demolished to make way for the north-west runway and surrounding grasssafety area. The other half, including the parish church and Great Barn, will be only a few metres from the airport perimeter.[citation needed]
Detail ofA Map of the County of Middlesex Reduced from an Actual Survey in four Sheets ByJohn Rocque orCarte de la Province de Middlesex reduite D'apres un arpanlage en quatre feuilles Par Jean Rocque, 1757.Harmondsworth as seen on Ordnance Survey map sheet 71, 1822–1890, with railway added 1891.
The Great Barn, 19 July 2015, from the west, showing its new roof and the church tower on the right.Owner from 1069: AbbayeSainte-Catherine du Mont, or Abbey of the Holy Trinity and Saint Katherine, atRouen in Normandy.Seal ofEudes Rigaud or Odo Rigaldus (c.1200–1275), the Archbishop of Rouen, who visited the priory at Harmondsworth in 1265 and 1268 and recorded only two monks in the priory.[4]
HARMONDSWORTH (Virgin Mary), a parish, in theunion ofStaines...Middlesex, 2½ miles (E. by N.) from Colnbrook; containing 1330 inhabitants. Theliving is a vicarage, with that ofWest Drayton united, net income, £530; patron, H. De Burgh, Esq...The church has a Norman door, and a tower with angular turrets, On Hounslow heath, in the parish, is a square intrenchment, each side measuring 100 yards, supposed to have been the work ofCaesar in his war withCassivelaunus.[6]A Topographical Dictionary of England
The manor andadvowson (this grant did not include the knight's fees held in the king's hands nor the property farmed out by the priory), together with those ofTingewick (Buckinghamshire), were acquired from the abbey and prior in 1391 byWilliam of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, and formed part of the endowment ofWinchester College andNew College, Oxford, akaSt. Mary College of Winchester in Oxford. Winchester College and New College retained the manor until 1543 when it was surrendered to Henry VIII in exchange for property elsewhere.[7]
William Paget, granted the lordship and manor in 1547.
Harmondsworth as an ancient parish of 30hides (as assessed atDomesday, 1086) or 3,480 acres (14.1 km2)[10] (rather than today's survivingvillage nucleus) changed from agrarian and a few, isolated London suburban homes to mostly industrial gradually in 1929 with the opening of the Colnbrook by-pass which by-passed diminutive Longford to the north.[11]
Harmondsworthcivil parish from its 1880s creation until its 1964 abolition contained the same areas as its religious counterpart. Industrial development began in 1930 with the opening of theRoad Research Laboratory (RRL) on this road. In the same year, theFairey Aviation Company opened an airfield, the Great West Aerodrome, south-west of Heathrow. This formed the nucleus of the later airport, and the Fairey hangar was eventually incorporated into Heathrow Airport as a fire station.
By the late 1930s some residential building had taken place, although almost entirely in the northern half of the parish. Small estates were built off Hatch Lane around Candover Close and Zealand Avenue and further building took place along Sipson Road, around Blunts Avenue, and along the north side of the Bath Road atSipson Green.Longford remained virtually untouched. A brick-works was established by the corner of Cain's Lane and Heathrow Road and the area of former heathland was extensively worked for gravel, sand, and grit. In the 1930s Middlesex County Council opened a large sewage pumping station to the west of Perry Oaks, which was converted toHeathrow Terminal 5 in the early 21st century. TheGreat South West Road touched the south-east corner of the parish but played no part in its development. Although many of the orchards survived, their numbers had been greatly reduced and it seems probable that much of the former fruit-growing area was being used for market gardening. In 1944 Harmondsworth and Sipson retained their agricultural character despite some suburban housing. It was then suggested that further expansion in the Yiewsley and West Drayton area should be curtailed, as the land was primarily in demand for agriculture, which was greatly adhered to until 1971.[12]
Farm buildings at the eastern end of Harmondsworth, July 2015.
In 1944, however, the modern pattern of Harmondsworth began to emerge with the transfer of the Fairey airfield to the Royal Air Force and its subsequent development by the Air Ministry as Heathrow RAF station. This entailed the complete demolition of Heathrow and Perry Oaks hamlets, and widespread draining of the old flooded gravel pits. Many of the small buildings along the south side of the Bath Road that were still standing in 1960 were erected by the RAF.[12]
Although not apost town, in printed form Harmondsworth is frequently seen in books. From 1937 the offices and warehouses ofPenguin Books were here until their gradual closure in the 1990s.[13] In this period its books published in the country bore the publication location, "Harmondsworth, Middlesex".
In 1965 it became part of the London Borough of Hillingdon in the newly formed ceremonial county of Greater London.[14]
Record of proceedings in the Church ofPinnore [Pinner], before the Dean of Middlesex, and Baldric, Chaplain acting on behalf of the Priors ofBenetleye [Bentley] and Hermodesworth [Harmondsworth], in the cause between theAbbot and Convent of Bec, by Peter de Suynecumbe, Proctor, and John de Bleddel also Proctor for the Abbey of Bec [Bec Herluin ] and the Rector of the Church ofGreat Wrothing [Great Wratting] by Master Henry de Trippeleawe his Proctor, and thePrior and Convent of Doure [Dover]. Question of certain proctorial letters received without seal of Prior, or Prior's name; necessary clause also deficient in them: decision that Prior of Doure pay all expenses.[15]
(13 January 1250): "For the abbot of Rouen. The abbot of Sainte-Trinité-du-mont-de-Rouen gives the king £10 for having seisin of the manor of Harmondsworth after the death of the abbot of the same place, his predecessor."
(18 January 1250): 18 January Westminster. "For the abbot of Sainte-Trinité-du-mont-de-Rouen. By a fine of £10 which the abbot of Sainte-Trinité-du-mont-de-Rouen has made with him, the king has rendered to him the manors ofTingewick in Buckinghamshire and Harmondsworth in Middlesex, which the king caused to be taken into his hand by reason of the death of William, formerly abbot of the same place, predecessor of the aforesaid abbot. Order toHenry of Wingham and his co-escheators in the aforesaid counties to cause the aforesaid abbot to have full seisin of the aforesaid manors together with the issues received in the meantime."
(24 June 1271): 24 June Westminster. "Concerning a fine for the abbot of St Katherine's Rotom'. The king, by a fine of ten marks which the abbot of St. Katherine's de monte Rotomagen' has made with the king, has rendered the manors of Tingewik in Buckinghamshire and Harmondsworth in Middlesex which were taken into the king’s hand by reason of the death of Robert sometime abbot of the same place predecessor of the aforesaid abbot. Order to Master Richard de Clifford', escheator this side of theTrent, to cause the same abbot to have full seisin without delay of the aforesaid manors together with everything taken therefrom."
Priors of the alien priory of S. Catherine du Mont, Harmondsworth
Robert Beauchamp (Bello Campo), occurs 1352; 'late prior' in 1392[25][26]
In 1390 William of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, secured both papal and royal authority to acquire the lands of alien priories for his colleges,[27] and in the following year he obtained fromRichard II a licence for St. Catherine's Abbey to sell him all its possessions in England, apart from thePriory of Blyth. These possessions comprised the manor of Harmondsworth with the advowson of the church and vicarage, the manor of Tingewick with its advowson, the advowsons ofSaham Toney and St. Leonard's, and certain yearly pensions.[28] The Bishop sent a member of his household, Richard Altryncham, to Rouen to negotiate with the abbey and convent about this buying of the priory as an endowment for his colleges. A sale was agreed on 15 October 1391, the price being fixed at 8,400 gold francs, which were paid in 1392 through a firm of Genoese bankers. The bishop also undertook to provide for the prior Robert Beauchamp and for John le Cellier, his companion, all such things in the way of wine, food, clothing, and lodging as befitted religious of their estate for the rest of their lives. He would also furnish a chapel for the abbey.[29] The Harmondsworth property, centred on the priory which stood to the west of Manor Farm and the tithe barn, thus became part of the endowment of his two colleges at Winchester and Oxford.[30][31][32]
The historic parish church of Harmondsworth is the church of St Mary, of which parts date from the 12th century.[33][34] There is an opinion[35] thatHeathrow Airport is legally responsible for maintaining this church's chancel, because the airport now owns land (formerly inHeathrow village) which in 1819 at theenclosing of the commons had been assigned in lieu oftithes used to maintain the chancel.
Some Harmondsworth clergy:
1437–1440† Richard Wyche(burned at the stake forLollard heresy)
The Great Barn in Harmondsworth, dating back to the 14th or 15th centuryInterior of the Great Barn looking north
The other notable historic building in Harmondsworth is the Grade I-listedHarmondsworth Great Barn, Britain's largestbarn.[56] On the site of an earlier great barn, it was put up between 1425 and 1427 on land bought byWilliam of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, in 1391, to endow his collegesWinchester College andNew College, Oxford. It is the largest extant timber-framed building in England and was described by the English poetJohn Betjeman as the "Cathedral of Middlesex".[57][58] As of January 2012 the barn is owned byEnglish Heritage.[59]
A similar barn, built 25 years later in 1451–53, but shorter (with eight bays as opposed to the Harmondsworth barn's 12), is atOld Burghclere, Hampshire. This monumental barn was also built on land acquired byWilliam of Wykeham. While the Harmondsworth barn was part of Winchester College's endowment the Burghclere barn passed to the family ofFiennes who had married the heiress of Wykeham's great-nephew heir. It now is part of theHighclere estate belonging toLord Carnarvon.[60]
Harmondsworth forms a minority of theHeathrow Villagesward (2008-date), which elects three councillors to Hillingdon London Borough Council and had a population of 12,199 in 2011.[1][63]
The area is served by various buses and byWest Drayton railway station centred 2 miles (3.2 km) north, across theM4 motorway. The Bath Road (A4) is the predecessor to this route and passes through the village with junctions in the neighbouring villages leading to the M4 motorway.
Arable farmland between Harmondsworth and Heathrow airport, Middlesex, July 2015.The tower of the church of St Mary, Harmondsworth, July 2015.
The area comprises well-populated and scarcely populated areas but which have differing constitutions as to the buildings in which people live and stay: hotels, homes and the two immigration control institutions (in the east and north census output areas). Thus the population fluctuates to a greater or lesser extent, dependent on land use.[72]
Elizabeth, Dowager Countess of Uxbridge (1674–1749), (daughter ofSir Walter Bagot, 3rd Baronet), in 1747 she gave £100 stock to the parish to be distributed to ten poor families who did not receive parish relief, no one family receiving more than 10 shillings a year
Henry Smith of Harmondsworth Hall, in 1875 he bequeathed £300 to be given to the poor in blankets. In 1958 The Blanket Charity the charity income amounted to over £7, from which six blankets were purchased[77]
Thomas Wild (1848–1932), of Wild & Robbins, market gardener (1931 growing: "cabbages lettuce leeks kale spinach broccoli New Zealand spinach rhubarb chokes potatoes beet greens Brussels [sprouts] onions marrows parsnips"
^It seems appropriate considering the possible future and present Harmondsworth beset by airplane wheels that the 325 years owner of the manor was named after St Catherine of Alexandria whose attribute was the wheel on which she was martyred.
^Philip Sherwood,Harlington and Harmondsworth, Tempus, Stroud, 2002, pp. 8–9. (& Sherwood,Heathrow, 2000 Years of history, Sutton Publishing, 1999, p. 15)
^abThe Cult of St Katherine of Alexandria in Early Medieval Europe, by Christine Walsh, Ashgate, 2007, p. 125.
^V.C.H. Middlesex, volume i. pp. 123–4, andA History of the County of Middlesex, volume iv, Harmondsworth, Hayes, Norwood With Southall, Hillingdon With Uxbridge, Ickenham, Northolt, Perivale, Ruislip, Edgware, Harrow With Pinner, published by Victoria County History, London, 1971, andRegesta Regum Anglo-Normannorum, i, ed. H. W. C. Davis, no. 29.
^Lewis, Samuel, ed. (1848)."Harlow – Harraton".A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved23 November 2014.
^Cal. Pat. 1388–92, 378, 434; E 212/D.S. 98; M.R.O., Acc. 446/ED. 108. And L. & P. Hen. VIII, xviii (2), p. 124. And C 66/729/6. ViaA History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 4, Harmondsworth, Hayes, Norwood With Southall, Hillingdon With Uxbridge, Ickenham, Northolt, Perivale, Ruislip, Edgware, Harrow With Pinner, published by Victoria County History, London, 1971, pp. 7–10.
^16. Cal. Pat. 1547-8, 45., via VCH, akaA History of the County of Middlesex, Volume 4, Harmondsworth, Hayes, Norwood With Southall, Hillingdon With Uxbridge, Ickenham, Northolt, Perivale, Ruislip, Edgware, Harrow With Pinner, published by Victoria County History, London, 1971.
^Daniel and Samuel Lysons,An Historical Account of those Parishes in the County of Middlesex which are not included in the Environs of London, (London, 1800), p. 139.
^In the late 14th and early 15th centuries the manor, rather than parish, of Harmondsworth, was reckoned to consist of about 1,321 a.(VCH).
^abDiane K Bolton; H P F King; Gillian Wyld; D C Yaxley (1971). T F T Baker; J S Cockburn; R B Pugh (eds.)."Harmondsworth: Introduction".A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 4. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved23 November 2014.
^The Heads of Religious Houses: England and Wales, II. 1216–1377, edited by David M. Smith, Vera C. M. London, Cambridge University Press, 2004, page 165.
^"Our locations."British Airways. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
^"Impressum" (Archive). American Airlines China. Retrieved 24 April 2014. "American Airlines, Inc. Orient House (HAA3), Po Box 365, Waterside, Harmondsworth, UB7 0GB United Kingdom"
^The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1386–1421, edited by J.S. Roskell, L. Clark, C. Rawcliffe, 1993.
^In May and June 1393 he was a guest in the household of William of Wykeham.
^Daniel and Samuel Lysons,An Historical Account of those Parishes in the County of Middlesex which are not included in the Environs of London, London, 1800, p. 139.
^Thorne,Environs of London, p. 320. ViaA History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 4, Harmondsworth, Hayes, Norwood With Southall, Hillingdon With Uxbridge, Ickenham, Northolt, Perivale, Ruislip, Edgware, Harrow With Pinner, Victoria County History, London, 1971, pp. 7–10.
^Some of the stock was transferred in 1878 to the use of the National School. (J. Webb,History of Charities and Fishing Rights in Harmondsworth, 1880, pp. 13–14.)
^Lionel Robbins, by Susan Howson, Cambridge University Press, 2011.
^Autobiography of an Economist, Lord Robbins, St Martin's Press, Macmillan, 1971.
^Simon Jenkins, "John Betjeman's Heathrow", inThe Selling of Mary Davies and Other Writings (London, 1993), pp. 63–70; & Candida Lycett Green, pers. comm. to English Heritage's account of Harmondsworth Great Barn for its website.
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