Chertsey
Encyclopedia
Chertsey is a town in Surrey
, England
, on the River Thames
and its tributary rivers such as the River Bourne
. It can be accessed by road from junction 11 of the M25
London
orbital motorway. It shares borders with Staines
, Laleham
, Shepperton
, Addlestone
, Woking
, Thorpe
and Egham
. It lies within the Godley
hundred
, some 29km southwest of central London
, close to the M3 and the M25.
The town is part of the London commuter belt
, and is served by Chertsey railway station
. It is located on the Chertsey branch of the Waterloo to Reading Line which is operated by South West Trains. The town is home to the head office of Compass Group
and the UK head office of Samsung Electronics
. The entrance and car parks to Thorpe Park
are also in the town.
Elevation is generally low at 14m in the High Street and 11m on the river Thames where the Boat House and Kingfisher restaurants are located, making this the lowest place in Chertsey. The highest point is St. Anne's Hill in the forest, which peaks at 76m, making it the second highest point in Runnymede
.
Chertsey is one of the oldest towns in England. It grew around Chertsey Abbey
, founded in 666 A.D by Eorcenwald, Bishop of London.
In the 9th century it was sacked by the Danes and refounded from Abingdon Abbey
by King Edgar of England
in 964.
Chertsey appears in the Domesday Book
as Certesi. It was held partly by Chertsey Abbey
and partly by Richard Sturmid from the abbey. Its Domesday assets were: 5 hide
s, 1 mill
and 1 forge
at the hall, 20 plough
s, 80 hectares of meadow
, woodland
worth 50 hogs. It rendered £22.
The Abbey grew to become one of the largest Benedictine abbeys in England, supported by large fiefs
in the northwest corner of Sussex until it was dissolved by Henry VIII
in 1536. The King took stone from the Abbey to construct his palace at Oatlands
; the villagers also used stone for raising the streets. By the late 17th century, only some outer walls of the Abbey remained.
Today the history of the abbey is reflected in local place names and the surviving former fishponds that fill with water after heavy rain. The nearby Hardwick Court Farm
, now much reduced in size and cut off from the town by the M25, retains the abbey's impressive 15th century tithe
barn.
The eighteenth-century Chertsey Bridge
provides an important cross-river link, and Chertsey Lock
is a short distance above it on the opposite side. On the south west corner of the bridge is a bronze statue of local heroine Blanche Heriot
by Sheila Mitchell, F.R.B.S
In the 18th century Chertsey Cricket Club
was one of the strongest in the country and beat the rest of England (excluding Hampshire) by more than an innings in 1778. The Duke of Dorset
, (who played cricket for Chertsey), was appointed Ambassador to France in 1784. He arranged to have the Chertsey cricket team travel to France in 1789 to introduce cricket to the French nobility. However, the team, on arriving at Dover, met the Ambassador returning from France at the outset of the French Revolution and the opportunity was missed.
Chertsey Regatta
has been held on the river for over 150 years.
Chertsey was the home of Charles James Fox
, who had wished to be buried there but was not.
The Chertsey troop of the Berkshire Yeomanry
occupied the Drill Hall on Drill Hall Road since 1977. The unit has close ties with the borough and was granted the freedom of Runnymede in 2009. The Drill Hall closed at the end of March 2010 and the troop was forced to return to Windsor, following severe cuts suffered by the Territorial Army in 2009-2010.
has been located in Chertsey since the 1920s. The school has a sixth form. The original site is in Highfield Road; it contains the former boarding school where pupils once lived during term. The newer site is located in Guildford Road. It serves around 1,200 pupils. The school successfully merged the two sites at the beginning of the year starting in September 2008; years 7 - 11 are at Guildford road and years 12 - 13 are at the former sixth-form site in Highfield Road. The school has introduced a new timetable with 5 modules a day. It is still not clear whether the school will keep the original site.
*H E Sir Seretse Khama Ian Khama
(born 27 February 1953 at Chertsey) is a Botswana politician who has been the President of Botswana since 2008; he is also the Paramount Chief of the Bamangwato tribe. After serving as Commander of the Botswana Defence Force, he entered politics and served as Vice-President of Botswana from 1998 to 2008.
platform which shares and celebrates local culture broadcasts local events that have taken place in and around Chertsey.
It is also an opportunity for Chertsey to show the world what rich culture and community it have in its society.
Chertsey Television mostly broadcasts Town events such as the Black Cherry Fair etc. It also gives information about local events around Chertsey.
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, on the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
and its tributary rivers such as the River Bourne
River Bourne, Chertsey
There are two rivers named Bourne in Surrey which join together at St George's College, Weybridge. This article refers to the north branch which runs through Chertsey...
. It can be accessed by road from junction 11 of the M25
M25 motorway
The M25 motorway, or London Orbital, is a orbital motorway that almost encircles Greater London, England, in the United Kingdom. The motorway was first mooted early in the 20th century. A few sections, based on the now abandoned London Ringways plan, were constructed in the early 1970s and it ...
London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
orbital motorway. It shares borders with Staines
Staines
Staines is a Thames-side town in the Spelthorne borough of Surrey and Greater London Urban Area, as well as the London Commuter Belt of South East England. It is a suburban development within the western bounds of the M25 motorway and located 17 miles west south-west of Charing Cross in...
, Laleham
Laleham
Laleham is a village in the borough of Spelthorne, in the county of Surrey in South East England and adjoins Staines. It is within the historic boundaries of Middlesex. To its south is Laleham Park by the River Thames, across green belt farmland to its north and south east are Ashford and...
, Shepperton
Shepperton
Shepperton is a town in the borough of Spelthorne, Surrey, England. To the south it is bounded by the river Thames at Desborough Island and is bisected by the M3 motorway...
, Addlestone
Addlestone
Addlestone is a town in the borough of Runnymede in the county of Surrey, England.Immediate surrounding towns and villages include Weybridge, Ottershaw, Chertsey, and New Haw. It is near Junction 11 of the M25 motorway and is served by Addlestone railway station on the Chertsey Branch Line. It also...
, Woking
Woking
Woking is a large town and civil parish that shares its name with the surrounding local government district, located in the west of Surrey, UK. It is part of the Greater London Urban Area and the London commuter belt, with frequent trains and a journey time of 24 minutes to Waterloo station....
, Thorpe
Thorpe, Surrey
Thorpe is a village in Surrey, England, located between Egham and Chertsey. It lies just inside the circle of the western part of the M25, near the M3. Neighbouring villages include Virginia Water, Wentworth, Laleham and Lyne...
and Egham
Egham
Egham is a wealthy suburb in the Runnymede borough of Surrey, in the south-east of England. It is part of the London commuter belt and Greater London Urban Area, and about south-west of central London on the River Thames and near junction 13 of the M25 motorway.-Demographics:Egham town has a...
. It lies within the Godley
Godley (hundred)
Godley was a hundred in what is now Surrey, England. Egham, Thorpe, Chertsey and Chobham are all mentioned in the Chertsey Abbey charter of 673AD due to a donation by Frithuwold. Chobham manor needed to be large to have a reasonable economic importance as it covered very poor quality heathland...
hundred
Hundred (division)
A hundred is a geographic division formerly used in England, Wales, Denmark, South Australia, some parts of the United States, Germany , Sweden, Finland and Norway, which historically was used to divide a larger region into smaller administrative divisions...
, some 29km southwest of central London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, close to the M3 and the M25.
The town is part of the London commuter belt
London commuter belt
The London commuter belt is the metropolitan area surrounding London, England from which it is practical to commute to work in the capital. It is alternatively known as the Greater South East, the London metropolitan area or the Southeast metropolitan area...
, and is served by Chertsey railway station
Chertsey railway station
Chertsey railway station serves the town of Chertsey in the Runnymede District of Surrey, England. It is located on the Chertsey Branch of the Waterloo to Reading Line and is operated by South West Trains....
. It is located on the Chertsey branch of the Waterloo to Reading Line which is operated by South West Trains. The town is home to the head office of Compass Group
Compass Group
Compass Group plc is a global contract foodservice and support services company headquartered near London, United Kingdom. It is the largest contract foodservice company in the world and has operations in over 50 countries...
and the UK head office of Samsung Electronics
Samsung Electronics
Samsung Electronics is a South Korean multinational electronics and information technology company headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul...
. The entrance and car parks to Thorpe Park
Thorpe Park
Thorpe Park is a theme park located in Chertsey, Surrey, England, UK. It was built in 1979 on the site of a gravel pit which was partially flooded, the intention of creating a water based theme for the park. The park's first large roller coaster, Colossus, was added in 2002...
are also in the town.
Elevation is generally low at 14m in the High Street and 11m on the river Thames where the Boat House and Kingfisher restaurants are located, making this the lowest place in Chertsey. The highest point is St. Anne's Hill in the forest, which peaks at 76m, making it the second highest point in Runnymede
Runnymede
Runnymede is a water-meadow alongside the River Thames in the English county of Berkshire, and just over west of central London. It is notable for its association with the sealing of Magna Carta, and as a consequence is the site of a collection of memorials...
.
History
Chertsey Abbey
Chertsey Abbey, dedicated to St Peter, was a Benedictine monastery located at Chertsey in the English county of Surrey.It was founded by Saint Erkenwald, later Bishop of London, in 666 AD and he became the first abbot. In the 9th century it was sacked by the Danes and refounded from Abingdon Abbey...
, founded in 666 A.D by Eorcenwald, Bishop of London.
In the 9th century it was sacked by the Danes and refounded from Abingdon Abbey
Abingdon Abbey
Abingdon Abbey was a Benedictine monastery also known as St Mary's Abbey located in Abingdon, historically in the county of Berkshire but now in Oxfordshire, England.-History:...
by King Edgar of England
Edgar of England
Edgar the Peaceful, or Edgar I , also called the Peaceable, was a king of England . Edgar was the younger son of Edmund I of England.-Accession:...
in 964.
Chertsey appears in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
as Certesi. It was held partly by Chertsey Abbey
Chertsey Abbey
Chertsey Abbey, dedicated to St Peter, was a Benedictine monastery located at Chertsey in the English county of Surrey.It was founded by Saint Erkenwald, later Bishop of London, in 666 AD and he became the first abbot. In the 9th century it was sacked by the Danes and refounded from Abingdon Abbey...
and partly by Richard Sturmid from the abbey. Its Domesday assets were: 5 hide
Hide (unit)
The hide was originally an amount of land sufficient to support a household, but later in Anglo-Saxon England became a unit used in assessing land for liability to "geld", or land tax. The geld would be collected at a stated rate per hide...
s, 1 mill
Mill (grinding)
A grinding mill is a unit operation designed to break a solid material into smaller pieces. There are many different types of grinding mills and many types of materials processed in them. Historically mills were powered by hand , working animal , wind or water...
and 1 forge
Forge
A forge is a hearth used for forging. The term "forge" can also refer to the workplace of a smith or a blacksmith, although the term smithy is then more commonly used.The basic smithy contains a forge, also known as a hearth, for heating metals...
at the hall, 20 plough
Plough
The plough or plow is a tool used in farming for initial cultivation of soil in preparation for sowing seed or planting. It has been a basic instrument for most of recorded history, and represents one of the major advances in agriculture...
s, 80 hectares of meadow
Meadow
A meadow is a field vegetated primarily by grass and other non-woody plants . The term is from Old English mædwe. In agriculture a meadow is grassland which is not grazed by domestic livestock but rather allowed to grow unchecked in order to make hay...
, woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
worth 50 hogs. It rendered £22.
The Abbey grew to become one of the largest Benedictine abbeys in England, supported by large fiefs
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
in the northwest corner of Sussex until it was dissolved by Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
in 1536. The King took stone from the Abbey to construct his palace at Oatlands
Oatlands
Oatlands is a village and small district near Weybridge in Surrey which has acquired its name from the Royal Tudor and Stuart Oatlands Palace, the site of which is now a luxury hotel...
; the villagers also used stone for raising the streets. By the late 17th century, only some outer walls of the Abbey remained.
Today the history of the abbey is reflected in local place names and the surviving former fishponds that fill with water after heavy rain. The nearby Hardwick Court Farm
Hardwick Court Farm
Hardwick Court Farm is a large farm in Chertsey, Surrey and was first established during the Saxon period. A Saxon main road to Chertsey once ran through it but is now reduced to just a farm track....
, now much reduced in size and cut off from the town by the M25, retains the abbey's impressive 15th century tithe
Tithe
A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...
barn.
The eighteenth-century Chertsey Bridge
Chertsey Bridge
Chertsey Bridge is a road bridge across the River Thames in England, connecting Chertsey to low-lying riverside meadows in Laleham, Surrey. It is situated 550 yards downstream from the M3 motorway bridge over the Thames and is close to Chertsey Lock on the reach above Shepperton Lock.The bridge is...
provides an important cross-river link, and Chertsey Lock
Chertsey Lock
Chertsey Lock is a lock on the River Thames in England, on the northern Middlesex bank near Chertsey in north-west Surrey. The lock is about 200 yards upstream of the picturesque Chertsey Bridge...
is a short distance above it on the opposite side. On the south west corner of the bridge is a bronze statue of local heroine Blanche Heriot
Blanche Heriot
Blanche Heriot was a legendary heroine from Chertsey, Surrey, whose story was first brought to a wider public in two works by the Chertsey-born Victorian writer Albert Smith.-Background:...
by Sheila Mitchell, F.R.B.S
In the 18th century Chertsey Cricket Club
Chertsey Cricket Club
Chertsey Cricket Club in Surrey is one of the oldest in England. Its own website dates its founding as 1737 but in fact matches involving a Chertsey team date from 1736....
was one of the strongest in the country and beat the rest of England (excluding Hampshire) by more than an innings in 1778. The Duke of Dorset
John Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset
John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset was the only son of Lord John Philip Sackville, second son of Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset. He succeeded to the dukedom in 1769 on the death of his uncle, Charles Sackville, 2nd Duke of Dorset...
, (who played cricket for Chertsey), was appointed Ambassador to France in 1784. He arranged to have the Chertsey cricket team travel to France in 1789 to introduce cricket to the French nobility. However, the team, on arriving at Dover, met the Ambassador returning from France at the outset of the French Revolution and the opportunity was missed.
Chertsey Regatta
Chertsey in Shepperton Regatta is a regatta on the River Thames in England which takes place on Dumsey Meadow near Chertsey, Surrey.The regatta was inaugurated in 1851 and is one of the oldest on the river. Early records are sparse but it is known that in two years the regatta was held upstream of...
has been held on the river for over 150 years.
Chertsey was the home of Charles James Fox
Charles James Fox
Charles James Fox PC , styled The Honourable from 1762, was a prominent British Whig statesman whose parliamentary career spanned thirty-eight years of the late 18th and early 19th centuries and who was particularly noted for being the arch-rival of William Pitt the Younger...
, who had wished to be buried there but was not.
The Chertsey troop of the Berkshire Yeomanry
Berkshire Yeomanry
94 Signal Squadron forms part of 39 Signal Regiment. They are currently based in three locations in the Home Counties...
occupied the Drill Hall on Drill Hall Road since 1977. The unit has close ties with the borough and was granted the freedom of Runnymede in 2009. The Drill Hall closed at the end of March 2010 and the troop was forced to return to Windsor, following severe cuts suffered by the Territorial Army in 2009-2010.
Museum
Chertsey has an admission-free museum on Windsor Street, which provides considerable information about the history of Chertsey. It features clocks by two local makers, James Douglass and Henry Wale Cartwright. (Note however that there were three successive watchmakers called James Douglass (or Douglas) in the Douglas family, the latter based in Egham) The Black Cherry Fair is an annual event which the Museum hosts. It includes live music and refreshments in the museum garden.Hospital
St. Peter's Hospital, originally intended to serve casualties of the Second World War, formally came into being on 12 September 1939. It now has 400 beds and a wide range of acute care services. Hospital Radio Wey has been broadcasting to the patients and staff of St Peter's Hospital since 1965 and now also broadcasts on the internet as RadioWey.Education
Schools in Chertsey include;- St Anne's Roman Catholic primary school
- Salesian Catholic Secondary School (split site)
- Pyrcroft Grange Primary (former split site)
- Stepgates Community School
- Sir William Perkins's SchoolSir William Perkins's SchoolHeadmistressMrs Del CookeChairman of GovernorsDr Alun JonesFounded1725School typeIndependent schoolReligious affiliationSecularSpecialismNoneForms4 LocationChertsey, EnglandEnrollment575...
, independent girls' school
Salesian School
The Salesian SchoolSalesian School (Chertsey)
Salesian School is a split-site Roman Catholic Comprehensive Secondary School in Chertsey, Surrey. The two sites were originally 2 single-sex education Roman Catholic private schools maintained by the Salesian Fathers and Sisters. The Salesian College at Highfield Road, founded in 1921, was for...
has been located in Chertsey since the 1920s. The school has a sixth form. The original site is in Highfield Road; it contains the former boarding school where pupils once lived during term. The newer site is located in Guildford Road. It serves around 1,200 pupils. The school successfully merged the two sites at the beginning of the year starting in September 2008; years 7 - 11 are at Guildford road and years 12 - 13 are at the former sixth-form site in Highfield Road. The school has introduced a new timetable with 5 modules a day. It is still not clear whether the school will keep the original site.
Religion
Chertsey has a Catholic church, a Catholic Primary, Secondary and Sixth Form school. There is also an Anglican church and a Community Church in Chertsey.Notable residents
- Lord Brabazon of Tara, Britain's first licensed pilot, lived at 'Grangewood', Longcross near Chertsey in the early 1950s.
- Mark Stephens (solicitor)Mark Stephens (solicitor)Mark Howard Stephens CBE is a British solicitor specialising in media law, intellectual property rights and human rights with the firm Finers Stephens Innocent...
, Lawyer, mediator, broadcaster, educationalist and philanthropist of the visual arts lived in Chertsey from 1962-1982. - Justin HawkinsJustin HawkinsJustin David Hawkins is an English musician and singer-songwriter, best known for being the lead singer and lead guitarist of The Darkness, alongside his brother, guitarist Dan Hawkins...
, former lead singer of The Darkness rock group, singer-songwriter, was born in Chertsey in 1975. - Musician Doug WalkerDoug Walker (musician)Doug Walker is a Manchester based singer-songwriter. After years of getting nowhere with his musical career, his planned self-released debut single, "The Mystery" was played by BBC Radio 1 DJ Chris Moyles after Walker turned up outside the Radio 1 studio on 28 August 2007 at 5.30am. He gave a copy...
and England cricketer Ashley GilesAshley GilesAshley Fraser Giles MBE is a retired English cricketer. Giles played the entirety of his 14-year first-class career at Warwickshire County Cricket Club where he is now employed as Director of Cricket...
were born in Chertsey in the 1970s. - Keith MoonKeith MoonKeith John Moon was an English musician, best known for being the drummer of the English rock group The Who. He gained acclaim for his exuberant and innovative drumming style, and notoriety for his eccentric and often self-destructive behaviour, earning him the nickname "Moon the Loon". Moon...
, drummer with rock band The WhoThe WhoThe Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
, lived in the town in that decade. - Vivian StanshallVivian StanshallVivian Stanshall was an English singer-songwriter, painter, musician, author, poet and wit, best known for his work with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, for his surreal exploration of the British upper classes in Sir Henry at Rawlinson End, and for narrating Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells.-The great...
and his wife Ki LongfellowKi LongfellowKi Longfellow is an American novelist, playwright, theatrical producer, theater director and entrepreneur. In Britain, as the widow of Vivian Stanshall, she is well known as the guardian of his artistic heritage, but elsewhere she is best known for her own work, especially the novel The Secret...
lived on a houseboat moored on the Thames beginning in 1977 - England and West Ham United footballer Robert GreenRobert GreenRobert Paul Green is an English footballer who plays for West Ham United and the England national football team as a goalkeeper.-Norwich City:...
was born in Chertsey in 1980. - Chesney HawkesChesney HawkesChesney Lee Hawkes , is an English pop singer, songwriter, and occasional actor. He is best known for his 1991 single "The One and Only", which topped the charts in the UK and reached the Top 10 in the U.S.-Life and career:...
also lives in Chertsey with his wife and two children. - English glamour model Charmaine SinclairCharmaine Sinclair__notoc__Charmaine Sinclair is an English glamour model and pornographic actress.-Biography:Sinclair became a glamour model when she was 16. Most of her modelling was glamour and softcore in British men's magazines such as Fiesta. For over two years in the mid-1990s, she was featured monthly in...
is originally from Chertsey. - Vince ClarkeVince ClarkeVince Clarke is an English synthpop musician and songwriter. Clarke has been involved with a number of successful groups, including Depeche Mode, Yazoo, The Assembly and Erasure....
of pop bands YazooYazoo (band)Yazoo are a British synthpop duo from Basildon, Essex. They had a number of Top 10 hits in the UK charts in the early 1980s...
, Depeche ModeDepeche ModeDepeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
and ErasureErasureErasure are an English synthpop duo, consisting of songwriter and keyboardist Vince Clarke and singer Andy Bell. Erasure entered the music scene in 1985 with their debut single "Who Needs Love Like That"...
lived in Chertsey and recorded much of the Erasure material in the studio adjacent to his home. - Steve RushtonSteve RushtonSteven John Rushton is an English solo artist, and formerly bassist for the pop punk band, Son of Dork.-Biography:...
from pop band Son of DorkSon of DorkSon of Dork were a British pop punk band formed by James Bourne after his previous band, Busted, split in January 2005. The name of the band came from a scene in the movie Problem Child where the chant "Son of Dork" is used. Their debut single, "Ticket Outta Loserville", was released in November...
with James BourneJames BourneJames Elliot Bourne is an English singer-songwriter and co-founder of pop bands Son of Dork and Busted. He is currently pursuing a solo career under the name Future Boy. His albums have sold over six million copies...
was born in Chertsey in 1987; he now lives in L.A and works as a singer/songwriter for Disney.
*H E Sir Seretse Khama Ian Khama
Ian Khama
Lieutenant General Seretse Khama Ian Khama is a Botswana politician who has been the President of Botswana since 2008; he is also the Paramount Chief of the Bamangwato tribe...
(born 27 February 1953 at Chertsey) is a Botswana politician who has been the President of Botswana since 2008; he is also the Paramount Chief of the Bamangwato tribe. After serving as Commander of the Botswana Defence Force, he entered politics and served as Vice-President of Botswana from 1998 to 2008.
Literary connections
- In William ShakespeareWilliam ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's Richard IIIRichard III (play)Richard III is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1591. It depicts the Machiavellian rise to power and subsequent short reign of Richard III of England. The play is grouped among the histories in the First Folio and is most often classified...
, Act I, Scene 2, Chertsey is mentioned as the burial place of Henry VIHenry VI of EnglandHenry VI was King of England from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. Until 1437, his realm was governed by regents. Contemporaneous accounts described him as peaceful and pious, not suited for the violent dynastic civil wars, known as the Wars...
. Lady AnneAnne NevilleLady Anne Neville was Princess of Wales as the wife of Edward of Westminster and Queen of England as the consort of King Richard III. She held the latter title for less than two years, from 26 June 1483 until her death in March 1485...
says, 'Come now towards Chertsey with your holy load'. - Abraham CowleyAbraham CowleyAbraham Cowley was an English poet born in the City of London late in 1618. He was one of the leading English poets of the 17th century, with 14 printings of his Works published between 1668 and 1721.-Early life and career:...
, the 17th-century poet, lived in Chertsey after his return from exile. The Abraham Cowley Mental Health Unit of St Peter's Hospital was named in his honour. - After his father's death, the future novelist Thomas Love PeacockThomas Love PeacockThomas Love Peacock was an English satirist and author.Peacock was a close friend of Percy Bysshe Shelley and they influenced each other's work...
and his mother lived with her father Thomas Love in Gogmoor Hall, Chertsey, for about twelve years. - Charles DickensCharles DickensCharles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
visited Chertsey to make notes for his novel Oliver TwistOliver TwistOliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens, published by Richard Bentley in 1838. The story is about an orphan Oliver Twist, who endures a miserable existence in a workhouse and then is placed with an undertaker. He escapes and travels to...
(1838), in which OliverOliver Twist (character)Oliver Twist is the protagonist of the novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens. He was the first child protagonist in an English language novel.-Background:...
is forced by Bill SikesBill SikesWilliam "Bill" Sikes is a fictional character in the novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens.He is one of Dickens's most vicious characters and a very strong force in the novel when it comes to having control over somebody or harming others. He is portrayed as a rough and barbaric man. He is a career...
to take part in the attempted burglary of a house in Chertsey. - Albert SmithAlbert Richard SmithAlbert Richard Smith , was an English author, entertainer, and mountaineer.-Biography:Smith was born at Chertsey, Surrey. The son of a surgeon, he studied medicine in London and in Paris, and his first literary effort was an account of his life there, which appeared in the Mirror. He gradually...
, born in Chertsey in 1816, wrote the play Blanche HeriotBlanche HeriotBlanche Heriot was a legendary heroine from Chertsey, Surrey, whose story was first brought to a wider public in two works by the Chertsey-born Victorian writer Albert Smith.-Background:...
, or The Chertsey Curfew (1842) and the short story "Blanche HeriotBlanche HeriotBlanche Heriot was a legendary heroine from Chertsey, Surrey, whose story was first brought to a wider public in two works by the Chertsey-born Victorian writer Albert Smith.-Background:...
: A Legend of Old Chertsey Church" (1843). - John Maddison MortonJohn Maddison MortonJohn Maddison Morton was an English playwright who specialized in one-act farces. His most famous farce was Box and Cox . He also wrote comic dramas, pantomimes and other theatrical pieces.-Biography:...
was living in Chertsey when he wrote Box and Cox (1847), which The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
in 1891 called "the best farce of the nineteenth century". - The poem "Curfew Must Not Ring TonightCurfew Must Not Ring TonightCurfew Must Not Ring Tonight is a narrative poem by Rose Hartwick Thorpe, written in 1867 and set in the 17th century. It was written when she was 16 years old and first published in Detroit Commercial Advertiser.-Synopsis:...
", written in 1867 by the American poet Rose Hartwick ThorpeRose Hartwick ThorpeRose Hartwick Thorpe was an American poet. She was born in Mishawaka, Indiana. Among her poems were Curfew Must Not Ring Tonight. She died in San Diego, California. The poem was written while Thorpe resided in Litchfield, Michigan, a small rural town. A bell in the center of the town commemorates...
, was also based on the legend of the Chertsey heroine Blanche Heriot. - In H.G Wells' book The War of the Worlds, Chertsey was destroyed by attacking MartianMartianAs an adjective, the term martian is used to describe anything pertaining to the planet Mars.However, a Martian is more usually a hypothetical or fictional native inhabitant of the planet Mars. Historically, life on Mars has often been hypothesized, although there is currently no solid evidence of...
fighting-machines in the early afternoon of 8 June 1902. - Antony TrewAntony TrewAntony Trew, naval officer and writer, was born in Pretoria, South Africa on 5 June 1906 and died in Chertsey, UK on 12 January 1996.-WWII:...
, decorated naval officer and author of seventeen novels and a volume of short stories, resided in Surrey for many years and died in Chertsey in 1996.
Television and film
- The final series of the TV series Public Eye (1965–1975) was filmed in and around Chertsey.
- The TV series Moving WallpaperMoving WallpaperMoving Wallpaper was a British satirical comedy-drama television series set in a TV production unit. It ran on ITV for two series in 2008–2009. The subject of the first series was the production of a soap called Echo Beach, each episode of which aired directly after the Moving Wallpaper episode...
(2008–2009) was filmed and set in Chertsey. - Chertsey made a fleeting appearance in the 1964 classic film First Men In The MoonFirst Men in the MoonFirst Men in the Moon, also known as H.G. Wells' First Men in the Moon, is a 1964 science fiction film directed by Nathan Juran. It is an adaptation by the noted science-fiction scriptwriter Nigel Kneale of the H. G...
with the old town hall playing the role of Dimchurch town hall. - Other films partly shot in or around Chertsey include The Italian JobThe Italian JobThe Italian Job is a 1969 British caper film, written by Troy Kennedy Martin, produced by Michael Deeley and directed by Peter Collinson. Subsequent television showings and releases on video have established it as an institution in the United Kingdom....
(1969), Scream and Scream AgainScream and Scream AgainScream and Scream Again is a 1970 British horror film directed by Gordon Hessler and starring Christopher Lee, Vincent Price and Peter Cushing. It is based on the novel The Disorientated Man by Peter Saxon.- Plot :...
(1970), The Dark KnightThe Dark Knight (film)The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins...
(2008) and 13 Hrs (2010). - Wellers Auctioneers in Chertsey Town Centre has been featured in many daytime television programmes such as Flog It.
Chertsey Television
Chertsey Television is a channel on the YouTubeYouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
platform which shares and celebrates local culture broadcasts local events that have taken place in and around Chertsey.
It is also an opportunity for Chertsey to show the world what rich culture and community it have in its society.
Chertsey Television mostly broadcasts Town events such as the Black Cherry Fair etc. It also gives information about local events around Chertsey.