Chislehurst () is a suburban district of south-east

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England, in the

London Borough of Bromley The London Borough of Bromley () is a London Borough, borough in London, England. It is the largest and southeasternmost borough in London, and borders the county of Kent, of which it formed part until 1965. The borough's population in the 2021 ...

. It lies east of

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is southeast of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 88,000 as of 2023. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, charte ...

, south-west of

Sidcup Sidcup is an area of south-east London, England, primarily in the London Borough of Bexley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, bordering the London Boroughs of London Borough of Bromley, Bromley and Royal Borough of Greenwich, Greenwich. It was ...

and north-west of

Orpington Orpington is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is 13.4 miles (21.6 km) south east of Charing Cross. On the south-eastern edge of the Greater London Built-up Area, it is south of St Mary Cray, sou ...

, south-east of

Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Since the early 19th century, Charing Cross has been the notional "centre of London" and became the point from which distances from London are measured. ...

. Before the creation of

Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...

in 1965, it was in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

. According to the 2021 census, Chislehurst has a population of 15,600 (rounded to the nearest 100).

History

The name "Chislehurst" is derived from the

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

words ''cisel'', "gravel", and ''hyrst'', "wooded hill". The Walsingham family, including

Christopher Marlowe Christopher Marlowe ( ; Baptism, baptised 26 February 156430 May 1593), also known as Kit Marlowe, was an English playwright, poet, and translator of the Elizabethan era. Marlowe is among the most famous of the English Renaissance theatre, Eli ...

's patron, Sir Thomas Walsingham and Queen Elizabeth I's spymaster,

Francis Walsingham Sir Francis Walsingham ( – 6 April 1590) was principal secretary to Queen Elizabeth I of England from 20 December 1573 until his death and is popularly remembered as her " spymaster". Born to a well-connected family of gentry, Wa ...

, had a home in Scadbury Park, now a nature reserve in which the ruins of the house can still be seen. A water tower used to straddle the road from Chislehurst to Bromley until it was demolished in 1963 as one of the last acts of the Chislehurst and Sidcup UDC. It marked the entrance to the Wythes Estate in Bickley, but its narrow archway meant that

double-decker bus A double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. Double-deckers are used primarily for commuter transport, but open-top models are used as sightseeing buses for tourists, and there are coaches too for long-distance travel. They app ...

es were not able to be used on the route.

Governance

The Chislehurst civil parish formed an urban district of

from 1894 to 1934.Vision of Britain
Chilsehurst UDhistoric map
In 1934 it became part of the Chislehurst and Sidcup Urban District,Vision of Britain
Chislehurst and Sidcup UDhistoric map
) which was split in 1965 between the London boroughs of

and Bexley. Chislehurst Ward has three councillors on Bromley Council: the first non-Conservative party candidates returned for the ward were Chislehurst Matters members elected in 2022.

Demographics

As of 2021, Chislehurst is recorded as having a population of roughly 15,600. 35.3% of people in Chislehurst were recorded as being between the ages of 35 and 59, below the borough average of 36.4%. The largest religious group is Christian at 51.5%, above the borough average of 48.3%, with the second largest group being No religion at 33.8%, below the borough average of 37.3%. The largest ethnic group in Chislehurst is White, comprising 81.4% of the population, above the borough average of 76.5%, with the second largest being Asian/Asian British who make up 7.9% of the population, below the borough average of 8.3%.

Geography

Chislehurst is largely a residential area. Chislehurst West, previously known as "Pricking" or "Prickend", includes the biggest of the ponds and the High Street. Chislehurst is one of the starting points for the Green Chain Walk, linking to places such as Crystal Palace,

Erith Erith () is an area in south-east London, England, east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the historical county of Kent. Since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north ...

, the Thames Barrier and

Thamesmead Thamesmead () is an area of south-east London, England, straddling the border between the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the London Borough of Bexley. It is located east of Charing Cross, north-east of Woolwich and west of Erith. It mainly c ...

Chislehurst Common Chislehurst Common is an open space in Chislehurst in the London Borough of Bromley in south-east London. It is jointly managed with St Paul's Cray Common. The common was used for cricket matches in the 18th century. It was the home venue of Ch ...

(and nearby St Paul's Cray Common) were saved from development in 1888 following campaigns by local residents. They were a popular destination for bank holiday trips in the early 20th century, and now provide a valuable green space. Nearby Petts Wood, Hawkwood and Scadbury have also been preserved as open spaces following local campaigns.

Chislehurst Conservation Area

A 2017 list shows there have been in Chislehurst designated as conservation areas since 1971. The designation of conservation areas is one of the many planning tactics used in the United Kingdom that includes local planning authorities (LPA's), with plans working in conjunction such as the listing of buildings and

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...

metropolitan Green Belt The Metropolitan Green Belt is a statutory green belt around London, England. It comprises parts of Greater London, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey, parts of two of the three districts of Bedfordshire and a s ...

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

s, and "Tree Preservation Orders". These give stringent policies against development with statues and non-statutory orders. The destruction of many trees and Victorian style buildings caused by bombing during

WWII World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, as well as the ensuing building boom, made protection even more critical. The result is the protection of areas by preventing arbitrary destruction from large as well as small-scale development that can cause a creeping effect into side spaces and back gardens.

Nearby areas

Chislehurst borders

New Eltham New Eltham is a suburban area of South East Greater London, London, England, primarily in the Royal Borough of Greenwich with some parts in the London Borough of Bexley. It is located south east of Eltham and north west of Sidcup. History New E ...

to the north,

to the north east and east, St Paul's Cray to the south east, Petts Wood to the south, Bickley to the south west, Elmstead to the west and

Mottingham Mottingham is a district of south-east London, England, which straddles the border of the London Borough of Bromley, the London Borough of Lewisham and the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is located southwest of Eltham, . It was historically wi ...

to the north west.

Landmarks

Chislehurst Caves

A local attraction is Chislehurst Caves. They were originally used to mine

flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Historically, flint was widely used to make stone tools and start ...

and

chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Ch ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, they were used nightly as an air-raid shelter. There is a chapel inside. A child was born in the caves during World War II and was given a middle name of 'Cavena'. The caves have also been used as a venue for live music;

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...

the Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...

and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

have all played there.

Camden Place

Camden Place (now Chislehurst Golf Club, 51° 24′ 40.05″N 0° 3′ 55.69″E ) takes its name from the

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artefacts, archaeological and historic sit ...

William Camden William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland that relates la ...

, who lived in the former house on the site from until his death in 1623. The present house was built shortly before 1717, and it was given a number of additions in the late 18th and very early 19th centuries by the architect

George Dance the younger George Dance the Younger RA (1 April 1741 – 14 January 1825) was an English architect and surveyor as well as a portraitist. The fifth and youngest son of the architect George Dance the Elder, he came from a family of architects, artist ...

. In about 1760, the house and estate were bought by Charles Pratt, the

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

, and later

Lord Chancellor The Lord Chancellor, formally titled Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom. The lord chancellor is the minister of justice for England and Wales and the highest-ra ...

. Pratt was ennobled in 1765, taking the title Baron Camden, of Camden Place; in 1786, he was created Earl Camden. The house is a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

. A later occupant of the house, from 1871 until his death there in 1873, was the exiled French Emperor,

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

. His body and that of his son, the Prince Imperial, were originally buried in St Mary's Catholic Church, before being removed to St Michael's Abbey, Farnborough. The Emperor's widow, the Empress Eugénie, remained at Camden Place until 1885. There is a memorial to the Prince Imperial on Chislehurst Common, and the area's connections with the imperial family are found in many road names and in the local telephone code, 467, which in its earlier format corresponded to the letters IMP (for ''imperial'').

War Memorial

The Chislehurst War Memorial was dedicated on 17 October 1920. It commemorates the fallen of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and

Transport

Rail

Chislehurst station, operated by Southeastern Railway, provides

National Rail National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, a group representing passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the passenger services previously provided by ...

services to

London Charing Cross Charing Cross railway station (also known as London Charing Cross) is a London station group, central London railway terminus between the Strand, London, Strand and Hungerford Bridge in the City of Westminster. It is the terminus of the South ...

London Bridge The name "London Bridge" refers to several historic crossings that have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark in central London since Roman Britain, Roman times. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 197 ...

and London Cannon Street via

Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in ...

Bus

Chislehurst is served by

London Buses London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL) that manages most bus services in London, England. It was formed following the Greater London Authority Act 1999 that transferred control of London Regional Transport (LRT) bus s ...

routes 61, 160,

161 Year 161 ( CLXI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Caesar and Aurelius (or, less frequently, year 914 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 161 for this ye ...

, 162, 269, 273, R7, SL3 and N136 (wit
625638
an
661
passing through the historical town). These connect it with areas including

Beckenham Beckenham () is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. Prior to 1965, it was part of Kent. It is situated north of Elmers End and Eden Park, east of Penge, south of Lower Sydenham and Bellingham, and west ...

, Bexleyheath,

Catford Catford is a district in south east London, England, and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Lewisham. It is southwest of Lewisham itself, mostly in the Rushey Green (ward), Rushey Green and Catford South Ward (electoral subdivi ...

Eltham Eltham ( ) is a district of South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is east-southeast of Charing Cross, and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The three ...

, Plumstead, Grove Park,

, North Greenwich,

Coney Hall Coney Hall is an area of Greater London, within the London Borough of Bromley, Greater London and formerly in the historic county of Kent. It is located south of Hayes, west of Keston, north of Nash, and east of West Wickham of which it is ...

and Woolwich.

Education

* Bullers Wood School * Bullers Wood School for Boys (part of Chislehurst and Bickley) * Chislehurst School for Girls *

Coopers School Coopers School is a mixed secondary school with academy status in Chislehurst in the London Borough of Bromley, England. The current Head of School is Claire Bessa. The site is on land between Chislehurst Common and the National Trust ...

* Saint Nicholas Church of England Primary School
Babington House School

Farringtons School
* Chislehurst C of E Primary School
Edgebury Primary School

Red Hill Primary School

Mead Road Infant School

Marjorie McClure Special School

Religious sites

* Chislehurst Baptist Church * St Patrick's Catholic Church * Christ Church Chislehurst * Elmstead Baptist Church * Chislehurst Methodist Church * The Annuncation * St. Nicholas * Darul Uloom Mosque and School * Ichthus Christian Fellowship * St Mary's Catholic Church, original burial place of Napoleon III and his son, the Prince Imperial

Notable people

Napoleon III and the imperial family in exile

Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

, President of France and Emperor of the French, lived in exile (1871–1873) in Camden Place, with his wife

Eugénie de Montijo Eugénie de Montijo (; born María Eugenia Ignacia Agustina de Palafox y Kirkpatrick; 5 May 1826 – 11 July 1920) was Second French Empire, Empress of the French from her marriage to Napoleon III on 30 January 1853 until he was overthrown on 4 ...

(remained in the area until 1885) and son Louis-Napoléon, Prince Imperial (died 1879). *

(1551–1623),

Clarenceux King of Arms Clarenceux King of Arms, historically often spelled Clarencieux (both pronounced ), is an Officer of Arms, officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. Clarenceux is the senior of the two provincial King of Arms, kings of arms and his juri ...

, lived in the house later known as Camden Place from until 1623 * Malcolm Campbell, former land and water speed record holder, was born in Chislehurst and is buried in St. Nicholas Parish Church * George Somers Leigh Clarke (1822–1882), architect who lived at Walpole, Manor Park and is buried in the St Nicholas' churchyard. *

Richmal Crompton Richmal Crompton Lamburn (15 November 1890 – 11 January 1969) was a popular English writer, best known for her ''Just William (book series), Just William'' series of books, humorous short stories, and to a lesser extent adult fiction books. L ...

, author of the '' Just William'' series of books. * Craig Fairbrass, actor * Tilly Keeper, who plays Louise Mitchell in BBC One soap opera ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

''. * E. J. May (1853–1941), architect, lived locally and designed a number of local buildings. *

, Countess of Teba and Empress of France. * Jozef Michal Poniatowski, Polish nobleman, composer. * Charles Pratt (1714–1794), Earl Camden, a British politician and judge, who lived at Camden Place * Peter Redpath, Canadian businessman * Brian Sibley, writer and biographer, best known for books on J.R.R. Tolkien and

C.S. Lewis CS, C-S, C.S., Cs, cs, or cs. may refer to: Job titles * Chief Secretary (Hong Kong) * Chief superintendent, a rank in the British and several other police forces * Company secretary, a senior position in a private sector company or public se ...

* Siouxsie Sioux, singer, best known for being in the band

Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees ( ) were a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. Post-punk pioneers, they were widely influential, both over their contemporaries and later ...

Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney (24 February 1733 – 30 June 1800) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1754 to 1783 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Sydney. He held several important Cabinet posts in ...

; the city of

Sydney, Australia Sydney is the capital city of the state of New South Wales and the most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about 80 km (50 mi) from the Pacific Ocean ...

is named after him. *

, spymaster to

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

. *

Alan Watts Alan Wilson Watts (6 January 1915 – 16 November 1973) was a British and American writer, speaker, and self-styled "philosophical entertainer", known for interpreting and popularising Buddhist, Taoist, and Hinduism, Hindu philosophy for a Wes ...

, philosopher, born and raised in Chislehurst, moved to the United States in 1938. *

William Willett William Willett (10 August 1856 – 4 March 1915) was a British builder and a promoter of British Summer Time. Biography Willett was born in Farnham, Surrey, and educated at the St Marylebone Grammar School, Philological School. After some co ...

, a campaigner for

daylight saving time Daylight saving time (DST), also referred to as daylight savings time, daylight time (Daylight saving time in the United States, United States and Daylight saving time in Canada, Canada), or summer time (British Summer Time, United Kingdom, ...

, lived most of his adult life in Chislehurst. *

Ted Willis Edward Henry Willis, Baron Willis (13 January 1914 – 22 December 1992) was an English playwright, novelist and screenwriter who was also politically active in support of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party. He created several television serie ...

, creator of ''

Dixon of Dock Green ''Dixon of Dock Green'' is a BBC police procedural television series about daily life at a fictional London police station, with the emphasis on petty crime, successfully controlled through common sense and human understanding. It ran from 1955 ...

''. *

William Hyde Wollaston William Hyde Wollaston (; 6 August 1766 – 22 December 1828) was an English chemist and physicist who is famous for discovering the chemical elements palladium and rhodium. He also developed a way to process platinum ore into malleable i ...

, chemist and physicist who discovered

rhodium Rhodium is a chemical element; it has symbol Rh and atomic number 45. It is a very rare, silvery-white, hard, corrosion-resistant transition metal. It is a noble metal and a member of the platinum group. It has only one naturally occurring isot ...

and

palladium Palladium is a chemical element; it has symbol Pd and atomic number 46. It is a rare and lustrous silvery-white metal discovered in 1802 by the English chemist William Hyde Wollaston. He named it after the asteroid Pallas (formally 2 Pallas), ...

References

{{Authority control Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Bromley Former civil parishes in the London Borough of Bromley