- Addington, London
infobox UK place
country = England
map_type = Greater London
region= London
population=
official_name= Addington
london_borough= Croydon
constituency_westminster= Croydon Central
post_town= CROYDON
postcode_area=CR
postcode_district=CR0
dial_code= 020
os_grid_reference= TQ375645
latitude= 51.3628
longitude= -0.0240Addington is a village in south
London ,England , in theLondon Borough of Croydon .Village history
The village lay within the Anglo-Saxon administrative division of Wallington hundred. Addington is thought to be named after Edda, a Saxon. In the
Domesday Book , two manors are mentioned, linked with the names Godric and Osward. These names are perpetuated by recent builders in street names.Addington Place, later known as Addington Farm and now called
Addington Palace , dominates the village above the church of St Mary the Blessed Virgin Church and the pub. The manor house was situated behind the church and was the residence of the Leigh family. From this Leigh family,Pamela, Countess Mountbatten is descended. There is an oft repeated, but false account of a royal hunting lodge, "where King Henry VIII supposedly wooedAnne Boleyn , whose family owned nearbyWickham Court " byWest Wickham Parish Church. However Anne Boleyn of Wickham Court was the aunt of Queen Anne.The
Palladian mansion was built in the mid-18th century by Barlow Trecothick, fromBoston, Massachusetts in theUnited States , who returned to England and became an MP andLord Mayor of the City of London . After his death without heirs, his nephew James Ivers (later Trecothick), also of Boston, continued his uncle's work and had the grounds were laid out by Lancelot 'Capability' Brown. The estate was sold and eventually, asCroydon Palace became too inconvenient and unsanitary, the Addington house was bought for theArchbishops of Canterbury as a country residence. The last Archbishop to use it was Archbishop Benson.There are still several old houses and buildings in Addington and, even though there has been some fairly modern building, the village atmosphere is intact in the 21st century, despite its being in
Greater London . There is a blacksmith's forge, still mainly making ornamental ironwork. The hunt used to meet outside the pub, "The Cricketers" which has reverted to its former name once again after a temporary change of name. There was once a villageco-operative store and post office, now a private house.t Mary the Blessed Virgin Church
The church of St Mary the Blessed Virgin Church, built in 1080, in Addington village was once the only church as it was the centre of a larger parish then incorporating Shirley, which now has been reduced to Addington village, Fieldway on the
New Addington estate andForestdale . It has an 11th-centurychancel and windows. The south aisle, built in the early 13th century, is narrow as it once had a thatched roof, hence its falling roofline. Thebelltower assumed its current form in 1876. The crypt is now inaccessible, but the church is the burial place of aLord Mayor of the City of London , the armigerousLeigh family who were Lords of the manor and five of the six Archbishops of Canterbury who spent time at their residence nearbyAddington Palace . There is also a memorial to the Archbishops in the graveyard.Historic Cricket Club
The cricket field is one of the oldest in England and still used. The local cricket club was one of the strongest in England during the mid-18th century, frequently taking on opposition of county-strength. Its famous players at the time were
Tom Faulkner , Joe Harris, John Harris, George Jackson and the enigmatic batsman Durling. See:Addington Cricket Club .New Addington
Nearby
New Addington was developed from the mid-1930s as a private rental housing estate known as 'The Boots estate'. Due to the war the 'garden city' dream was never fulfilled.The estate had a nickname of
Little Siberia no doubt coined by the shivering commuters waiting at the bus stops. The icy wind was well-known and the snow would linger for days or weeks after Croydon was snow free. There were times when the 130 bus could only cope with the hills if many of the passengers walked beside it until the summit was reached.Transport to the village and estate had been poor in early days; the only link for many years was to Croydon. Many years later, after lots of asking, pleading and refusals, buses connected Addington to Kent for people to shorten journeys to work and to visit
Bromley for shopping and connections to theKentish railway system Tramlink arrived in 2000, making the links into Bromley and further afield inKent This has made the estate less isolated. However, in 2006,Transport for London (TfL) decided to change the New Addington - Croydon route to New Addington - Wimbledon, much to the outrage of many New Addington residents. This means that trams from New Addington will not circumnavigate the whole Croydon loop. Instead passengers traveling from New Addington to Croydon will either have to change tram or get off and walk.When just a village the children went to the little village school, now demolished, or those on farms to the south went to Fairchilds village school (now a private residence). At first children from New Addington went to the village school until a new school was built in Overbury Crescent. This later became a senior school when Wolsey school opened in 1949. Later, more schools were built as the population increased. Children who passed the '11 plus', however, had to travel to Croydon.
New Addington is part of the ancient parish of Addington.
The Addington and Shirley Historical Society exists and welcomes those with an interest in the history of the area, with talks and walks. Details fromCroydon Local Studies Events leaflet Nearest places
* Shirley
*New Addington
*West Wickham
*Selsdon Nearest stations
*
Addington Village tram stop
*Gravel Hill tram stop
*West Wickham railway station
*East Croydon railway station
*South Croydon railway station
*Purley railway station
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