The Municipal Borough of Richmond or Richmond Municipal Borough was a

municipal borough Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...

in Surrey, England from 1890 to 1965.Vision of Britain
– Richmond MB
historic map
)

History

The borough was created in 1890 under a

Royal Charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but s ...

, covering the civil (and also the ecclesiastical) parish of Richmond St Mary Magdalene.Vision of Britain
– Richmond St Mary Magdalene parish
historic map
) This soon expanded with consent from

Surrey County Council Surrey County Council is the county council administering certain services in the non-metropolitan county of Surrey in England. The council is composed of 81 elected councillors, and in all but one election since 1965 the Conservative Party has ...

in 1892 to cover the parishes of

Kew Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is a ...

, Petersham and most of

Mortlake Mortlake is a suburban district of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames on the south bank of the River Thames between Kew and Barnes. Historically it was part of Surrey and until 1965 was in the Municipal Borough of Barnes. For many cen ...

John Whittaker Ellis Sir John Whittaker Ellis, 1st Baronet (25 January 1829 – 20 September 1912) was Lord Mayor of London for 1881–82, in which year he was made a baronet. Two years later he was elected and re-elected Conservative Party (UK), Conservative M ...

was its first mayor, and he purchased and provided the site in Richmond for a town hall; the street in which it is located is named Whittaker Avenue after him. Under the

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...

, the

civil parish was split, with the majority covering outside the borough becoming the west of the

Barnes Urban District Barnes may refer to: People * Barnes (name), a family name and a given name (includes lists of people with that name) Places United Kingdom *Barnes, London, England **Barnes railway station **Barnes Bridge railway station **Barnes Railway Bridg ...

and the rest () remaining and forming a new

North Sheen North Sheen is an area of London, England in the former Municipal Borough of Richmond (Surrey).North Sheen was one of six wards in the Municipal Borough of Richmond (Surrey). It was incorporated into Kew in 1965 when the London Borough of Richm ...

civil parish. In 1933 the borough was the main recipient of the land and main settlement in the defunct

Ham Urban District Ham was a local government district in north east Surrey, England around the village of Ham from 1894 to 1933. Ham Common Local Government District was formed under the Local Government Act 1858 and was governed by a local board of eight members ...

, which had been an

urban district Urban district may refer to: * District * Urban area * Quarter (urban subdivision) * Neighbourhood Specific subdivisions in some countries: * Urban districts of Denmark * Urban districts of Germany * Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (hist ...

since 1894. The borough was abolished in 1965 when it was replaced by the larger London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, and Surrey County Council was replaced here by Greater London local government institutions, at which time the ceremonial county also changed.

Notable former councillors and aldermen

* John Whittaker Ellis *

James Szlumper Sir James Weeks Szlumper JP DL (29 January 1834 – 27 October 1926) was an English civil engineer. He was Chief Engineer on a number of key railway engineering projects in the Victorian era. Biography Szlumper was born in Westminster to Albe ...

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of the borough was granted on 19 June 1891. The arms is per fess gules and azure on a

fess In heraldry, a fess or fesse (from Middle English ''fesse'', from Old French ''faisse'', from Latin ''fascia'', "band") is a charge on a coat of arms (or flag) that takes the form of a band running horizontally across the centre of the shiel ...

ermine between in chief a lion passant guardant between two portcullises or and in base a swan

argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to ...

upon water proper; a representation of the ancient Palace of Richmond proper between two roses gules barbed and seeded proper. The

crest Crest or CREST may refer to: Buildings *The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York *"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York *Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerla ...

was a stag regardant proper, holding in its mouth two roses on one stem, one argent, the other gules, and supporting with the dexter fore hoof a shield or a wreath vert. The portcullises, roses and lion were all associated with King Henry VII, who brought the rival houses of Lancaster and

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

together and helped build the palace. The swan represented the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

. The stag represented

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of London's Royal Parks, and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I in the 17th century as a deer park ...

and

Old Deer Park Old Deer Park is an area of open space within Richmond, owned by the Crown Estate, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. It covers of which are leased as sports grounds for sports, particularly rugby and golf. Despite the ...

, and the wreath the idea of municipality. Today the arms may still be seen in five places in Richmond: on The Richmond Arms'

pub sign A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...

in Princes Street; in the façade of the former post office in George Street; in the façade of the Old Town Hall in Whittaker Avenue, next to the clock above the entrance; on the Richmond War Memorial, which is near the Old Town Hall; and above the proscenium arch in the

Richmond Theatre The present Richmond Theatre, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is a British Victorian theatre located on Little Green, adjacent to Richmond Green. It opened on 18 September 1899 with a performance of ''As You Like It''. One of ...

. There is also an example on display at the

Museum of Richmond The Museum of Richmond in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is located in Richmond's Old Town Hall, close to Richmond Bridge. It was formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 28 October 1988. An independent museum and a regis ...

References

External links

Survey of medical archives in London
including Richmond, from the

Wellcome Library The Wellcome Library is founded on the collection formed by Sir Henry Wellcome (1853–1936), whose personal wealth allowed him to create one of the most ambitious collections of the 20th century. Henry Wellcome's interest was the history of me ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richmond upon Thames 1890 establishments in England Districts abolished by the London Government Act 1963 Ham, London History of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Kew, London Mortlake, London Municipal boroughs of England Petersham, London

Municipal Borough Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...

History

Notable former councillors and aldermen

Coat of arms

See also

References

External links