| Downe | |
|---|---|
 George and Dragon public house, Downe | |
  Downe Location withinGreater London | |
| OS grid reference | TQ435615 |
| 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 | |
| 51°20′09″N0°03′13″E / 51.3359°N 0.0535°E /51.3359; 0.0535 | |
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Downe, formerlyDown (/daʊn/), is a village inGreater London, England, located within theLondon Borough of Bromley, which formed part ofthe historical county of Kent until 1965, and is beyondLondon'surban sprawl. The naturalistCharles Darwin lived inDown House for forty years until his death in 1882.
Downe is 3.4 miles (5.5 km) south west ofOrpington and 14.2 miles (22.9 km) south east ofCharing Cross in London. Downe lies on a low ridge (an outlier of theNorth Downs), and much of the centre of the village retains its historic buildings; the former village school now acts as the village hall.
The word Downe originates from the Anglo Saxon worddūn, latterlydown, hence the South and North Downs.
In April 1965, much ofOrpington Urban District, including Downe, was transferred from thehistoric county of Kent and placed within the newly createdLondon Borough of Bromley.
Lord Simon deManning, a former Lord of the Manor of nearbyKevington, then in Kent, and holder of the land which now includes Downe, was a grandson of Rudolph de Manning,Count Palatine, who married Elgida, aunt of KingHarold I, of England; he was the royalStandard Bearer to KingRichard the Lionheart, who carried the Royal Standard to Jerusalem in 1190, during theFirst Crusade. In England, the forms EarlPalatine and Palatine Earldom are preferred.
As well as Downe, Kevington Manor then included the areas which later becameBerry's Green,Luxted,Single Street,Westerham Hill, andLeaves Green. These (excluding Kevington), together formed theDarwin (ward), Greater London's largest electoral ward), as it was first constituted in 1965. The current elected political party's website (2022), states that the ward includes Cudham, Leaves Green, Leavesden Estate, Westerham Hill, Beechwood, Berry's Green, and Pratts Bottom.
The spelling of the name of the village varied in the past, until the 1870s it was most commonly "Down", then "Downe’ became more usual.[1]In postal directories of the mid-19th century, it is named as Down.[2][3] By 1882 Kelly's Directory was using "Downe".[4]
Charles Darwin lived inDown House for 40 years, from 1842 until he died there in 1882.Sir John Lubbock, 3rd Baronet, lived nearby at hisHigh Elms estate on the other side of the village, and Darwin soon became a close friend and colleague of Lubbock's son, who from 1865 wasthe 4th Baronet, and from 1901 1st Baron Avebury. A favourite place of Darwin's wasDowne Bank, now anature reserve andSite of Special Scientific Interest together with High Elms Country Park, and several members of Darwin's family are buried in the graveyard ofSt Mary's Church.
Down House and the surrounding area has been nominated by theDepartment of Culture, Media and Sport to become aWorld Heritage Site.[5] However, this decision has been deferred.[6]
Since 2019, the local Member of Parliament has beenGareth Bacon of theConservative Party. In the 2017 General Election, with a majority of 19,453 votes (38.5%),[contradictory]Orpington was the safest Conservative Parliamentary seat in London.
One councillor is elected every four years toBromley London Borough Council. To date, the Darwin ward has only been represented by representatives from the Conservative Party. It is the largest Greater London ward, and includesBerry's Green,Single Street,Luxted,Leaves Green, Westerham Hill, andCudham.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Richard Scoates | 1,201 | 72.8 | ||
| Labour | Frank Evans | 185 | 11.2 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Millicent Scott Brooks | 133 | 8.1 | ||
| Green | Jan Wilson | 130 | 7.9 | ||
| Turnout | 1,649 | 40.0 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Richard Scoates | 987 | 51.2 | ||
| UKIP | Eric Hayward | 681 | 35.3 | ||
| Labour | John Evans | 105 | 5.4 | ||
| Green | Eileen Galloway | 89 | 4.6 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | William Ritchie | 45 | 2.3 | ||
| Majority | 306 | ||||
| Turnout | 1,927 | ||||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
Downe is the location of Buckston Browne Farm, built in 1931 as a surgical research centre by theRoyal College of Surgeons (RCS). In the 1980s, the farm caused controversy because of its use ofvivisection techniques, and in August 1984 it was raided byanti-vivisection activists.
The farm has now been made into four houses.
There are two scout campsites in the Downe area:
The closestNational Rail stations to Downe are atOrpington andHayes, located 4.5 and 4.7 miles away respectively.
The village is served byLondon Buses routes146 andR8 which provide connections toBromley,Orpington andBiggin Hill.[7]
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