|
|
| WELCOME TO
ADPONTES-5TAINE5 ~ The STAINES
Arts & Lifestyle Magazine |
Staines
Bridge
"COLONIA CLAVDIA VICTRICENSIS"
Staines bridge owes its existence to the Romans. In fact, the original
name for the area we now know as Staines was Ad pontes-
'at the Bridges'. The Roman invasion of Britain, commanded by General
Aulus Plautius on behalf of Emperor Claudius, came about after an
appeal from an ousted tribal ally-the exiled King Verica of the British
Atrebates. At that time, Britain was governed by Celtic tribes like the
Atrebates and the more dominant Catuvellauni. Although the tribes
already had strong trading and political links with the Roman Empire,
tensions were growing and inter-tribal conflict meant that the Romans
could use the excuse to invade.
The tribes had always been aware of the importance of a river crossing
at the area we now know as Staines (the 'stones') where the Thames
meets the Colne. The river itself connected with the important trading
routes of the Icknield and the Ridge-Way and so could be used for trade
and safe transport. The river is shallow at this crossing point and the
bed is gravel. There had been a thriving community here since at least
750BC. Whoever had control over the causeway at 'the stones' would have
the Thames Valley, with its flat and easy travelling country, open to
them.
[ London
to Bath Roman Road ]
General Aulus Plautius quickly made progress with four legions (one
commanded by the future Emperor 'Vespasian') and the British defending
forces were pushed back to the Thames. Eleven tribes of South East
Britain surrendered to Claudius and the Romans prepared to move further
West in the same year, taking the crossing point at the stones (Ad
Pontes) at Staines. They quickly established a fortified settlement at
Ad Pontes to protect the bridge. It is generally thought that this
first Roman 'Pont' was probably a rough earthwork causeway supported by
stone.
The Roman 'Ad Pontes' bridge soon became a vital part of the Roman Road
that connects London to the West. Although this road does not have a
common name ( unlike, for example, 'Stane Street' that runs to
Chichester) it does connect, in a straight line, a route from Staines
to the London Wall via Hounslow, Brentford, Shepherds Bush and Holborn.
If you have driven down the A30, A315 or even Oxford Street, you have
used this old Roman route.
[ Claudius
denarius ]
How long this first Roman bridge survived is not known but the position
of a river crossing-point on this important main road from London to
the southwest, and its proximity of the settlement to Windsor and the
seat of soveriegn power, led to the town being involved in national
affairs (not least the signing of the Magna Carta.) The need for a more
permanent wooden bridge could not be overlooked and a wooden structure
was built in 1222.This first recognisabe bridge was constructed using
piles of oak driven into the bed of the river and covered with planks.
There were four more wooden bridges built after this very first
attempt- all failed to survive for very long. Eventually, in 1796, when
the first modern stone bridge was built at the present site.
This bridge, made of three semicircular arches of stone, from the
design of the celebrated Paul Sandby, lasted only five years, when it
was replaced by a very elegant bridge of one arch, of 180 feet span,
constructed of cast iron, from the design of Thomas Wilson. This
bridge, like its predecessors, did not last long and had to be closed
to the public after just one month! His Majesty King George the Third
was said to have been among the last to pass over it.
The current bridge with three arches was designed by George Rennie and
construction started in 1827 (it was opened in 1832 by their Royal
Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Clarence - later William IV.) George
Rennie constructed the Grosvenor Bridge over the Dee at Chesterand and
was the 'less-famous' son of John Rennie the Elder, the Scottish civil
engineer who designed the famous London Bridge that now can be found at
Lake Havasu City, Arizona. The Staines railway bridge - spanning the
Thames parallel to the road bridge, was opened in 1856.
[ Staines
New Bridge- 1827 ]
There is now support for an elegant pedestrian/cycle bridge to be
constructed beside the existing bridge (like the popular Hungerford
footbridge) to ease traffic flow and provide a safer more enjoyable
route for pedestrians.
Sources:
http://www.lakehavasu.com
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/
http://www.rotherhamweb.co.uk/m
[ London
Bridge at Lake Havasu City, Arizona ]
_________________________________________________________________
|
STAINES HISTORY
* 4000 - 4000 to 3000 BC Neolithic settlement of
the Thames Valley
* 1700 - Bronze Age burial ground-
Sunbury
* 750 - Iron age
settlement of area
* 10 -
British tribe Atrebates rules the area
* 43 -
Claudius invasion of Britain to help King Verica of the Atrebates
*
43 - First Staines Bridge built by the
Roman Army
* 406 - Roman
occupation ends
* 600 - 400 a.d. to
600 a.d. Saxon migration to area
* 1086 - Domesday Book mentions Staines
* 1215 - King John at Runnymede to sign
the Magna Carta
* 1228 - First annual fair held in
Staines- granted by Henry III
* 1285 - The 'London Stone' mark boundry
of City of London
* 1603 - Sir Walter Raleigh was
committed at Staines
* 1642 - and 1648 skirmishes in Civil
War on Staines Moor
* 1671 - Staines bridge destroyed in
Civil War and replaced with ferry
* 1791 - a new stone bridge was built
* 1803 - The Lucan (Lord Lucan) family
moved into Laleham
* 1815 - Penton Hook lock constructed
* 1832 - Modern Staines Bridge
officially opened by King William IV
* 1848 - Railroad arrives in Staines
* 1851 - Staines Boat Club established
* 1864 - Opening of the Staines Linoleum
Company
* 1890 - Staines Hockey Club was formed
* 1892 - Staines Town Football Club
formed as Staines Albany
* 1894 - St. Peter's Church was built
* 1902 - Twin back-to-back Staines
Reservoirs built
* 1906 - The British car maker Lagonda,
was founded
* 1925 - Queen Mary Reservoir opened
* 1935 - Le Mans 24-hour race won by a
4.5 litre Lagonda car built in Staines
* 1955 - Queen Elizabeth II opens
Heathrow Terminal 2
* 1956 - Vulcan bomber crashes at
Heathrow
* 1965 - Staines West Railway station
closed
* 1969 - Staines 'supershow' in the lino
factory with Led Zeppelin
* 1972 - British European Airways
Trident One jet airliner crashed on 18 June
* 1975 - Staines FC plays in Rome in
front of a crowd of 70,000
* 1980 - The Elmsleigh Centre shopping
complex opened by HM The Queen
* 1985 - Staines section of M25 opened
* 1990 - Spelthorne Leisure Centre in
Knowle Green, Staines opened
* 1996 - Planning permission granted for
new "Two Rivers"
* 2002 - Ali G Indahouse filmed in
Staines
* 2005 - Hard-Fi's debut album
-----------------------------------------------------
Life in Staines has long been refreshed and cleansed by two sparkling
young rivers and the wiser and older waters of the Thames. Prosperity
has been generated first from an early ponticello (a
bridge of stones- and an arterial passage for Roman armies) and then
from fishing, milling and fermenting along the banks.
The mute swan is an exalted emblem and a powerful of symbol of Staines.
The swan invokes, at once, the sensibility, peace, calmness and the
purity of the townsfolk.
Sprites of the river emerge from the crystal waters of the Wraysbury
and the Colne supporting life and vitality in Staines for posterity.
Moreover, nypmhs rise from those abundant waters and safeguard the life
and the prosperity of all those whose lives are, forever,
twinned
and entwined with the life of the river. All along, Old
Father
Thames smiles benignly >>>>
|
From the tranchets to villeins, and from the cottars and serfs to the
burgesses, Staines has had an industrial beginning.
Among the original free tenants were 68 gavelmen who worked
the boons and various rolling mills.
Lammas land and the Staines demesne was largely agricultural and laid
to hay but even by the 13th century there were two working brewhouses.
Fullers and mills were operating successfully as well as a dyeworks in
Yeoveney.
The famous Ashby’s Staines brewery was working by 1783 and
coaching inns brought increasing prosperity to the town >>>>
By 1848 and the arrival of the railroad, Staines
was transforming
itself into an industrial centre. In 1864 the Linoleum Manufacturing
Company was formed in a previously successful calico works. This soon
became the town’s principal industry. A second very large
brewery
and also a candle-making factory were also operating around this time.
Paint and varnish makers and mustard millers were attracted to the
town. Mineral water works and large laundries also arrived by the mid
19th century.
The Staines Linoleum Company stayed in the town right up until the
1970's and the Lagonda car works, Candle Factory, Ashby Brewery, and
the Harris Brewery placed Staines firmly on the industrial map. >>>>
|
___________________________________________________________________
|
|
__________________________________________________________________
|
GUY
FAWKES ~ THE STAINES CONNECTION
In May of 1604, Guy Fawkes met with Robert Catesby, Thomas Percy, John
Wright and Thomas Wintour at an inn called the Duck and Drake in The
Strand, London, and agreed under oath along with Percy to join the
other three together in the gunpowder plot.
In about March 1605, the conspirators hired a cellar beneath
Parliament, once again through Thomas Percy, and Guy Fawkes was made
responsible for filling the cellar-room with barrels of powder, hidden
beneath iron bars and faggots.
At the end of August 1605, Fawkes returned to London (from Flanders,
(where he was apparently alerting other conspirators), and he replaced
any spoiled powder barrels. During this period he resided at
‘Mrs. Herbert’s house’, near St.
Clement’s
Church, and it is likely that Mrs. Herbert informed the authorities of
his 'comings and goings'.
On 18 October Fawkes travelled to White Webbs for a meeting with
Catesby, Thomas Wintour, and Francis Tresham to discuss how certain
Catholic peers could be excluded from the planned explosion. On 26
October, the now famous ‘Monteagle Letter’ was
delivered
into the hands of William Parker, 4th Baron Monteagle. The 'Monteagle
Letter' warned of a plot but was not precise. Concern quickly erupted
amongst the conspirators, but the letter’s apparent vagueness
prompted Catesby to continue with their plans.
On Wednesday 30 October, Fawkes, apparently ignorant of the existence
of the ‘Monteagle Letter’ inspected the cellar once
more
and satisfied himself that the gunpowder was dry and had not been
disturbed. On Sunday 3 November, a few of the leading conspirators met
in London and agreed that the authorities were still unaware of their
actions. However, all -except Fawkes -made plans for a speedy exit from
London. Fawkes had agreed to watch the cellar by himself, having
already been given the task of firing the powder, undoubtedly because
of his previous munitions experience. He planned to travel to Flanders
after the deed was done.
On the following Monday afternoon, the Lord Chamberlain searched the
parliament buildings accompanied by Monteagle and John Whynniard. In
the cellar they came across an unusually large pile of billets and
faggots, and there they also discovered Fawkes whom they later
described as “a very bad and desperate fellow”.
They asked
who claimed the pile of goods in the cellar, and Fawkes told them that
it was Thomas Percy’s.
Just before midnight the following night a thorough search of the
cellar area was led by Sir
Thomas Knyvett,
a Westminster magistrate. Earlier that same day Guy Fawkes had gone
forth to warn Percy about the discovery of the goods by the Lord
Chamberlain and his fears that the plan had been foiled. But Percy had
convinced him to return to his post before nightfall. So, once again,
the pile of billets and faggots was searched, and this time the gun
powder was discovered, and Fawkes was arrested. On his person they
discovered a watch, slow matches and touchwood. Fawkes later declared
that he was about to set the fuses when Knyvett entered it he would
have “blown him up, house, himself, and
all”.
Sir Thomas Knyvett
was accredited with arresting Guy Fawkes and, as a result,
was granted the Manor
of Staines in 1613, along with additional honours and
possessions.
He was knighted at the Tower on 14 Mar, in either 1603. After foiling
the plot, he was appointed a Privy Councillor, Member of the Council to
Queen Anne, and Warden of the Mint. The King confided his daughter,
Mary, to him to be educated.
On Jul 4th, 1607, he was summoned to Parliament as Baron Knyvet of
Escrick, Yorkshire.
When Lord Knyvett died in Jul 1622 he provided for
the
foundation of a free-school in Stanwell, and the Lord Knyvett School
was founded in 1624.
He is buried with his wife. Above their grave, in the Chancel of
Stanwell Parish Church, Middlesex, is a large monument with effigies.
 Guy Fawkes- the Staines connection- PDF File for Large Print / Printing
Sources:
http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/Bios/ThomasKnyvett(1BEscrick).htm
1870-72, John Marius Wilson’s Imperial Gazetteer of England
and Wales
Edwards, Francis, S.J., Guy Fawkes: the real story of the Gunpowder
Plot? 1969
Fraser, Antonia, Faith & Treason - The Story of the Gunpowder
Plot, 1996
---------
|
|
__________________________________________________________________
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
STAINES CRIME REPORTS
School
Gate Fear
Where? Laleham near Primary School
When? August 2007
What? Drug use
Parents report that a man is using drugs in a phone box outside Laleham
Primary School.
Parents also say that police have failed to deal with the reports
seriously.
The Surrey Police local neighbourhood team has promised to increase
patrols in the area.
What more could be done?
Detect Crime
* Target the area at the times that the parents have
highlighted
* Speak directly with informants to gain good description of
accused
* Establish if there is a pattern to the drug use
* Establish if there is any dealing going on at the location
too
* Put in surveillance to catch the criminal ‘in the
act’
Disrupt Crime
* Stops on vehicles using the road at the highlighted times
* Close the kiosk at the highlighted times
* High visibility patrols by uniformed officers in the area
* Consider temporary crime reduction CCTV.
Where? Woodthorpe Road
When? 8 August 2007
What? Assault
Detectives in Spelthorne are appealing for witnesses to come forward
following an assault in Ashford.
The incident happened between midnight and 1am on Saturday 4 August,
under the bridge on Woodthorpe Road.
The 24-year-old victim was walking alone when he was approached by two
young men who asked if they could borrow his lighter.
They used the lighter and returned it but then one of the men slashed
the victims left check with a sharp implement in an unprovoked attack.
The victim attended St Peters Hospital where he received stitches to
the slash on his face.
The first suspect is described as a white man, 5ft2 tall and
16-years-old.
The second suspect is described as a black man, 5ft7 tall and
16-years-old. Both suspects were described as having strong London
accents.
Can you help? If you witnessed the assault or you have any information
contact investigating officer Detective Constable Steve Whitby at
Staines CID on 0845 125 2222 quoting crime reference number A/07/19999
or Crimestoppers:
0800 555 111.
http://www.surrey.police.uk/
Where? Ashford
When? August 2007
What? Burglary
DETECTIVES in Spelthorne have today (Monday 13 August) issued CCTV
stills following a burglary that took place at the Royal Hart Pub in
Church Road, Ashford.
The stills show two men entering the rear office of the pub and
stealing items of property from the office and from the private living
quarters.
Property stolen included three handbags, £110 in cash, a
laptop, an IPod and jewellery.
Crimestoppers: 0800 555 111.
http://www.surrey.police.uk/
Where? Shepperton
When? August 2007
What? Racial Abuse
Police in Spelthorne are appealing for witnesses to come forward
following an incident in Shepperton earlier this month in which a shop
volunteer was racially abused and a man’s shirt stolen.
The incident took place at 11am on 1 August, when the man entered the
Connect charity shop in the High Street, Shepperton, selected a shirt
and went to enter a sectioned off area of the shop used as a packing
area by staff, presumably believing it to be a fitting room. When told
this by the volunteer assistant, an Asian female in her 30s, he
racially abused her a then left the store taking the shirt, a blue Ben
Sherman, with him, turning left onto Russell Road.
The suspect is described as a white male, aged in his mid 30s, 6ft
3ins, of slim build with ginger spiky hair and wearing a blue T-shirt,
jeans and sunglasses.
There were other members on the public in the shop at the time of the
incident and police are asking witnesses to come forward.
Up
| Down | Top
| Bottom
|
Stars of CCTV |
Lagonda_ 1899-1999
History Archive |
Around Heathrow
Past & Presernt
Photo Archives |
|
------------------------------------
__________________________
|
|
![P.S. I Love You [2008]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51FN4PqRbYL._SL500_SS60_.jpg)
![Gavin And Stacey : Complete BBC Series 1 [2007]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/512FOL6EQGL._SL500_SS60_.jpg)
![The Golden Compass [2007]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51%2BkTzME3xL._SL500_SS60_.jpg)
![I Am Legend [2007]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51mXDdRR1sL._SL500_SS60_.jpg)
![Prison Break - Season 3 - Complete [2007]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51f%2BXNQN7AL._SL500_SS60_.jpg)
