Harefield
Encyclopedia
Harefield is a village in the London Borough of Hillingdon
in northwest London
, England. It is situated on top of a hill, 17 miles (27.4 km) northwest of Charing Cross
, near the Greater London
boundary with Buckinghamshire
to the west and Hertfordshire
to the north. The area is famous for its local hospital, Harefield Hospital
, where pioneering heart surgery techniques were developed.
The village fête is held annually in July.
The nearest places to Harefield are: Denham
, Ickenham
, Northwood, Rickmansworth
, Ruislip
and Uxbridge
.
The population of Harefield was recorded as 7,522 in 2008, by the Office for National Statistics
.
artefacts. Harefield enters recorded history through the Domesday Book
(1086) as Herefelle, comprising the Anglo-Saxon words Here "[danish] army" (c.f. the English fyrd) and felle (later feld), "field". Before the Norman conquest of England
Harefield belonged to Countess Goda, the sister of Edward the Confessor
. Her husbands were French
, Dreux of the Vexin and Count Eustace of Boulogne.
Following the Norman conquest, ownership of Harefield passed to Richard FitzGilbert, the son of Count Gilbert of Brionne. It was listed in the Domesday Book as comprising enough arable land for five ploughs, with meadow land only sufficient for one plough. Woodland areas in Middlesex
were registered in the number of pigs which could be supported there; Harefield had 1,200, the second highest in the Hundred of Elthorne to Ruislip, with 1,500. Ten villeins (tennants) are also counted; they held their land freely from the lord in exchange for rent payments and labour. By the 12th or 13th century their land is believed to have passed back to the lord and become unfree. There were also seven bordars (poorer tenants) with five acres each, while one had three. In addition, three cottars, who owned a cottage and garden, also feature.
Harefield was eventually split into the main manor of Harefield, and the two smaller submanors of Brackenbury and Moorhall. It had been owned by the Clares, descended from Richard FitzGerald, before passing to the Batchworths by 1235. In turn, the Swanlord family took possession in 1315. By 1446, the Newdigate family owned Harefield - they still owned some land in the 1920s. John Newdigate exchanged most of his land in 1585 with the Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, Sir Edmund Anderson.
During World War I
, Harefield Park was used as an Australian military hospital. The bodies of the servicemen who died there were buried with full military honours within the graveyard of St. Mary's Church; this area, which also included the ground where the Harefield Place building stood, became a military cemetery.
is a world-famous heart
and lung
hospital
. It is part of the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK, and among the largest in Europe
. Its sister hospital in the trust is the Royal Brompton Hospital
in Chelsea
.
Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub
FRS, consultant cardiothoracic
surgeon at Harefield Hospital (1969–2002), carried out the first live lobe lung transplant
, and went on to perform more transplants than any other surgeon in the world. By the end of the 1980s Harefield Hospital
was the leading transplant centre. Magdi Yacoub was involved in the development of heart and heart-lung transplants.
(1086). In the late 12th century the advowson
was given to the Knights Hospitallers
, although the Newdigate family
later became patrons of the church. The church building has some medieval
features, but was restored and altered in 1768, and again in 1841.
The church cemetery contains the graves of over 100 soldiers of the First Australian Imperial Force
who died at No. 1 Australian Auxiliary Hospital (Harefield Park Hospital) after being wounded in World War I
. The hospital became Harefield prior to World War II
. Each year on Anzac Day
a commemoration service is attended by local dignitaries, representatives from the Australian and New Zealand governments, local school children and many retired servicemen. Following the church service the congregation move to the cemetery and form around the Anzac memorial. The last post and reveille are played, followed by a wreath-laying ceremony. Local school children also place flowers on the well-kept grave sites.
The church holds the tomb in which Alice Stanley, Dowager Countess of Derby
was laid to rest in January 1637. Dowager Stanley was a Spencer
, from Althorp
in Northamptonshire
, of the family to which Diana Princess of Wales belonged. She was the widow of Ferdinando, 5th Earl of Derby, who had been poisoned because of his closeness to the throne of England. Very soon after Ferdinando's murder in 1594 Alice had to move out of Lathom
and Knowsley
in Lancashire. She came to live at Harefield Place in considerable splendour. The house stood to the south of the present church and parts of its moat and brickwork can still be seen.
Alice, Dowager Countess of Derby
was also Dowager Viscountess Brackley
. Her second husband Thomas Egerton, Lord Ellesmere
, an eminent lawyer and Lord Chancellor of England, had died in 1617. But the Derby title was the one she preferred to be known by, and it is the one by which she is described on her funeral monument, which is surely one of the finest of its time anywhere in England. The mourning daughters beside the tomb are not meant to be lifelike representations of her actual daughters, Anne, Frances and Elizabeth; they conform to a stereotype often observed on grand monuments of this kind. But the figure of Alice Countess of Derby is probably closer to historical reality. She wears the coronet of a Countess, not a Viscountess, and at the foot of her tomb is a coroneted eagle, a reminder of the Stanleys' armorial crest. This commemorates their descent from the Lathoms, which was the foundation of their fortunes.
from about 1440. The old Manor house, Harefield Place, adjacent to St Mary the Virgin church, was replaced in 1786, when a new mansion house was built at Harefield Lodge. The old 'Harefield Place' fell into disrepair and was demolished in 1813, whereupon the new Manor house became known as Harefield Place. It was sold by Charles Newdigate Newdegate
in 1877. In 1938 it was acquired by the local authority to serve as a hospital. In 1959 the land was redeveloped and is now the Harefield Place Golf Club.
Harefield House, a Grade 2 listed building, High Street, Harefield, was built by Sir Roger Newdigate
in about 1750. From about 1765 to 1809 it was occupied by J. M. Bruhl. During World War I
it served as No. 1 Australian Auxiliary Hospital. In 1937 it was acquired by the Ministry of Defence
and was occupied by the Aeronautical Inspection Directorate. After 1982 the building was restored and converted to office use.
The School is set in the village of Harefield on the edge of the Green Belt and is adjacent to the commencement of agricultural land.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), a number of Directors of Watford Football Club
, and the London Borough of Hillingdon worked together to seek to bring about a significant improvement in educational and health standards.
The Harefield Academy project is part of the Government's Academies initiative.
, which was founded in 1868 and is the is the oldest in Middlesex.
Harefield is home to Harefield Cricket Club, whose first and second teams play their matches at the Woods Cricket Ground on Breakspear Road North. In 2008, however, the Dairy Farm Ground (behind the current first team pitch) was opened in order to accommodate the third and fourth XIs. This was done in conjunction with the Harefield Parochial Charity. In 2009, the first XI achieved promotion to the Home Counties Cricket League, and are therefore one division away from the highest level of club cricket in England and Wales. In 2010, HCC had the most successful season in its history, with the 2nd, 3rd & 4th XI's all winning their respective leagues. The Sunday Academy side won their division of the Chess Valley League; even their Tea Lady won an award for the Best Teas in Middlesex.
Harefield is also home to an Elite Gymnastics Academy. The Harefield Academy, Northwood Road, opened in September 2005 on the John Penrose School site.
or VC
is the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. It is remarkable that a village the size of Harefield is associated with three VC
recipients. Two booklets in the Reference section of Harefield library give details of the three recipients of the award.
A gold plaque in the Royal British Legion Hall honours the exceptional bravery of both Goodlake
VC
and Ryder
VC
. In 2011, Hillingdon Council erected a blue plaque
in honour of the courage of Kinross
VC
at the place of his birth on the anniversary of his birthday, 17 February.
or railway
station in Harefield, buses in the area link to Northwood
and Uxbridge
tube stations and Denham
and Rickmansworth stationRickmansworth railway stations.
operating between Uxbridge
and Ruislip
, and route U9 between Uxbridge
and Harefield Hospital
.
London Borough of Hillingdon
The London Borough of Hillingdon is the westernmost borough in Greater London, England. The borough's population was recorded as 243,006 in the 2001 Census. The borough incorporates the former districts of Ruislip-Northwood, Uxbridge, Hayes and Harlington and Yiewsley and West Drayton in the...
in northwest 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...
, England. It is situated on top of a hill, 17 miles (27.4 km) northwest of Charing Cross
Charing Cross
Charing Cross denotes the junction of Strand, Whitehall and Cockspur Street, just south of Trafalgar Square in central London, England. It is named after the now demolished Eleanor cross that stood there, in what was once the hamlet of Charing. The site of the cross is now occupied by an equestrian...
, near the Greater London
Greater London
Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...
boundary with Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
to the west and Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
to the north. The area is famous for its local hospital, Harefield Hospital
Harefield Hospital
Harefield Hospital is located in Harefield, Middlesex. It is part of the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, which describes itself as "the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK and among the largest in Europe". Harefield's sister hospital is the Royal Brompton Hospital in...
, where pioneering heart surgery techniques were developed.
The village fête is held annually in July.
The nearest places to Harefield are: Denham
Denham, Buckinghamshire
Denham is a village and civil parish in the South Buckinghamshire district of Buckinghamshire, England. It is north west of Uxbridge and north of junction 1 of the M40 motorway. Denham contains the Buckinghamshire Golf Club.-Origin:...
, Ickenham
Ickenham
Ickenham is a suburban area centred on an old village in Greater London, part of the London Borough of Hillingdon.While no major historical events have taken place in Ickenham, settlements dating back to the Roman occupation of Britain have been discovered during archaeological surveys, and the...
, Northwood, Rickmansworth
Rickmansworth
Rickmansworth is a town in the Three Rivers district of Hertfordshire, England, 4¼ miles west of Watford.The town has a population of around 15,000 people and lies on the Grand Union Canal and the River Colne, at the northern end of the Colne Valley regional park.Rickmansworth is a small town in...
, Ruislip
Ruislip
Ruislip is a suburban area, centred on an old village in Greater London, and is part of the London Borough of Hillingdon.It was formerly also a parish covering the neighbouring areas of Eastcote, Northwood, Ruislip Manor and South Ruislip in the area. The parish appears in the Domesday Book, and...
and Uxbridge
Uxbridge
Uxbridge is a large town located in north west London, England and is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. It forms part of the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is located west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres...
.
The population of Harefield was recorded as 7,522 in 2008, by the Office for National Statistics
Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
.
History
Two sites near Dewes Farm have produced late MesolithicMesolithic
The Mesolithic is an archaeological concept used to refer to certain groups of archaeological cultures defined as falling between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic....
artefacts. Harefield enters recorded history through 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...
(1086) as Herefelle, comprising the Anglo-Saxon words Here "[danish] army" (c.f. the English fyrd) and felle (later feld), "field". Before the Norman conquest of England
Norman conquest of England
The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...
Harefield belonged to Countess Goda, the sister of Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
. Her husbands were French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
, Dreux of the Vexin and Count Eustace of Boulogne.
Following the Norman conquest, ownership of Harefield passed to Richard FitzGilbert, the son of Count Gilbert of Brionne. It was listed in the Domesday Book as comprising enough arable land for five ploughs, with meadow land only sufficient for one plough. Woodland areas in Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
were registered in the number of pigs which could be supported there; Harefield had 1,200, the second highest in the Hundred of Elthorne to Ruislip, with 1,500. Ten villeins (tennants) are also counted; they held their land freely from the lord in exchange for rent payments and labour. By the 12th or 13th century their land is believed to have passed back to the lord and become unfree. There were also seven bordars (poorer tenants) with five acres each, while one had three. In addition, three cottars, who owned a cottage and garden, also feature.
Harefield was eventually split into the main manor of Harefield, and the two smaller submanors of Brackenbury and Moorhall. It had been owned by the Clares, descended from Richard FitzGerald, before passing to the Batchworths by 1235. In turn, the Swanlord family took possession in 1315. By 1446, the Newdigate family owned Harefield - they still owned some land in the 1920s. John Newdigate exchanged most of his land in 1585 with the Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, Sir Edmund Anderson.
During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Harefield Park was used as an Australian military hospital. The bodies of the servicemen who died there were buried with full military honours within the graveyard of St. Mary's Church; this area, which also included the ground where the Harefield Place building stood, became a military cemetery.
Harefield Hospital
Harefield HospitalHarefield Hospital
Harefield Hospital is located in Harefield, Middlesex. It is part of the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, which describes itself as "the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK and among the largest in Europe". Harefield's sister hospital is the Royal Brompton Hospital in...
is a world-famous heart
Heart
The heart is a myogenic muscular organ found in all animals with a circulatory system , that is responsible for pumping blood throughout the blood vessels by repeated, rhythmic contractions...
and lung
Lung
The lung is the essential respiration organ in many air-breathing animals, including most tetrapods, a few fish and a few snails. In mammals and the more complex life forms, the two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of the heart...
hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
. It is part of the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK, and among the largest in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Its sister hospital in the trust is the Royal Brompton Hospital
Royal Brompton Hospital
Royal Brompton Hospital is the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the United Kingdom .The hospital is part of Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust is a national and international specialist heart and lung centre based in Chelsea, London and Harefield, Middlesex...
in Chelsea
Chelsea, London
Chelsea is an area of West London, England, bounded to the south by the River Thames, where its frontage runs from Chelsea Bridge along the Chelsea Embankment, Cheyne Walk, Lots Road and Chelsea Harbour. Its eastern boundary was once defined by the River Westbourne, which is now in a pipe above...
.
Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub
Magdi Yacoub
Sir Magdi Habib Yacoub, FRS , is Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Imperial College London.Yacoub's major achievements may be summarised:1. Established Heart Transplantation in UK and became leading transplant surgeon in the world....
FRS, consultant cardiothoracic
Cardiothoracic Surgery
Cardiothoracic surgery is the field of medicine involved in surgical treatment of diseases affecting organs inside the thorax —generally treatment of conditions of the heart and lungs .-Cardiac / Thoracic:...
surgeon at Harefield Hospital (1969–2002), carried out the first live lobe lung transplant
Lung transplantation
Lung transplantation, or pulmonary transplantation is a surgical procedure in which a patient's diseased lungs are partially or totally replaced by lungs which come from a donor...
, and went on to perform more transplants than any other surgeon in the world. By the end of the 1980s Harefield Hospital
Harefield Hospital
Harefield Hospital is located in Harefield, Middlesex. It is part of the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, which describes itself as "the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK and among the largest in Europe". Harefield's sister hospital is the Royal Brompton Hospital in...
was the leading transplant centre. Magdi Yacoub was involved in the development of heart and heart-lung transplants.
St Mary the Virgin Church
St Mary's Parish Church (in Countess Close, off Church Hill) is Harefield's oldest building and an important focal point for the Harefield community. A priest is first mentioned in the manor of Harefield in the Domesday BookDomesday 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...
(1086). In the late 12th century the advowson
Advowson
Advowson is the right in English law of a patron to present or appoint a nominee to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living, a process known as presentation. In effect this means the right to nominate a person to hold a church office in a parish...
was given to the Knights Hospitallers
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
, although the Newdigate family
Newdigate Baronets
The Newdigate Baronetcy, of Arbury, Warwickshire, was created on 24 July 1677 in the Baronetage of England for Richard Newdigate of Arbury Hall. It became extinct on the death of the 5th Baronet on 2 December 1806.-Baronets of Arbury :...
later became patrons of the church. The church building has some medieval
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
features, but was restored and altered in 1768, and again in 1841.
The church cemetery contains the graves of over 100 soldiers of the First Australian Imperial Force
First Australian Imperial Force
The First Australian Imperial Force was the main expeditionary force of the Australian Army during World War I. It was formed from 15 August 1914, following Britain's declaration of war on Germany. Generally known at the time as the AIF, it is today referred to as the 1st AIF to distinguish from...
who died at No. 1 Australian Auxiliary Hospital (Harefield Park Hospital) after being wounded in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. The hospital became Harefield prior to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Each year on Anzac Day
ANZAC Day
Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand, commemorated by both countries on 25 April every year to honour the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps who fought at Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. It now more broadly commemorates all...
a commemoration service is attended by local dignitaries, representatives from the Australian and New Zealand governments, local school children and many retired servicemen. Following the church service the congregation move to the cemetery and form around the Anzac memorial. The last post and reveille are played, followed by a wreath-laying ceremony. Local school children also place flowers on the well-kept grave sites.
The church holds the tomb in which Alice Stanley, Dowager Countess of Derby
Alice Spencer
Alice Spencer, Countess of Derby was an aristocratic English woman, and a noted patron of the arts. Poet Edmund Spenser represented her as "Amaryllis" in his pastoral poem Colin Clouts Come Home Againe and dedicated his The Teares of the Muses to her. Her first husband was Ferdinando Stanley, 5th...
was laid to rest in January 1637. Dowager Stanley was a Spencer
Spencer
-Names:*Spencer , a surname**List of people with surname Spencer*Spencer , a given name -Australia:*Spencer, New South Wales, on the Central Coast...
, from Althorp
Althorp
Althorp is a country estate of about and a stately home in Northamptonshire, England. It is about north-west of the county town of Northampton. The late Diana, Princess of Wales is buried in the estate.-History:...
in Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
, of the family to which Diana Princess of Wales belonged. She was the widow of Ferdinando, 5th Earl of Derby, who had been poisoned because of his closeness to the throne of England. Very soon after Ferdinando's murder in 1594 Alice had to move out of Lathom
Lathom
Lathom is a village and civil parish in Lancashire, England, about 5 km northeast of Ormskirk. It is in the district of West Lancashire, and with the parish of Newburgh forms part of Newburgh ward...
and Knowsley
Knowsley
-Places:in England*Knowsley, Merseyside, a village.**Knowsley Safari Park*Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, a local government district of Merseyside.*Knowsley Safari Park, a zoological tourist attraction....
in Lancashire. She came to live at Harefield Place in considerable splendour. The house stood to the south of the present church and parts of its moat and brickwork can still be seen.
Alice, Dowager Countess of Derby
Alice Spencer
Alice Spencer, Countess of Derby was an aristocratic English woman, and a noted patron of the arts. Poet Edmund Spenser represented her as "Amaryllis" in his pastoral poem Colin Clouts Come Home Againe and dedicated his The Teares of the Muses to her. Her first husband was Ferdinando Stanley, 5th...
was also Dowager Viscountess Brackley
Brackley
Brackley is a town in south Northamptonshire, England. It is about from Oxford and miles form Northampton. Historically a market town based on the wool and lace trade, it was built on the intersecting trade routes between London, Birmingham and the English Midlands and between Cambridge and Oxford...
. Her second husband Thomas Egerton, Lord Ellesmere
Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley
Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley PC was an English Nobleman, Judge and Statesman who served as Lord Keeper and Lord Chancellor for twenty-one years.-Early life, education and legal career:...
, an eminent lawyer and Lord Chancellor of England, had died in 1617. But the Derby title was the one she preferred to be known by, and it is the one by which she is described on her funeral monument, which is surely one of the finest of its time anywhere in England. The mourning daughters beside the tomb are not meant to be lifelike representations of her actual daughters, Anne, Frances and Elizabeth; they conform to a stereotype often observed on grand monuments of this kind. But the figure of Alice Countess of Derby is probably closer to historical reality. She wears the coronet of a Countess, not a Viscountess, and at the foot of her tomb is a coroneted eagle, a reminder of the Stanleys' armorial crest. This commemorates their descent from the Lathoms, which was the foundation of their fortunes.
Manor of Harefield
The ancient Manor of Harefield was held by the Newdigate familyNewdigate Baronets
The Newdigate Baronetcy, of Arbury, Warwickshire, was created on 24 July 1677 in the Baronetage of England for Richard Newdigate of Arbury Hall. It became extinct on the death of the 5th Baronet on 2 December 1806.-Baronets of Arbury :...
from about 1440. The old Manor house, Harefield Place, adjacent to St Mary the Virgin church, was replaced in 1786, when a new mansion house was built at Harefield Lodge. The old 'Harefield Place' fell into disrepair and was demolished in 1813, whereupon the new Manor house became known as Harefield Place. It was sold by Charles Newdigate Newdegate
Charles Newdigate Newdegate
Charles Newdigate Newdegate was a British Conservative politician.-Early life:He was the only son of Charles Parker Newdigate Newdegate of Harefield Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, and his wife, Maria Boucherett, of Lincolnshire. He was educated at Eton College, King's College London, and Christ...
in 1877. In 1938 it was acquired by the local authority to serve as a hospital. In 1959 the land was redeveloped and is now the Harefield Place Golf Club.
Harefield House, a Grade 2 listed building, High Street, Harefield, was built by Sir Roger Newdigate
Roger Newdigate
Sir Roger Newdigate, 5th Baronet was an English politician and collector of antiquities.He was born in Arbury, Warwickshire, the son of Sir Richard Newdigate, 3rd Baronet and inherited the title 5th Baronet and the estates of Arbury and of Harefield in Middlesex on the early death of his brother...
in about 1750. From about 1765 to 1809 it was occupied by J. M. Bruhl. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
it served as No. 1 Australian Auxiliary Hospital. In 1937 it was acquired by the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
and was occupied by the Aeronautical Inspection Directorate. After 1982 the building was restored and converted to office use.
The Harefield Academy
The Harefield Academy replaced the John Penrose School in September 2005. The new Academy is an age 11 to 18 school with accommodation for 750 students aged 11 to 15 and a further 250 post-16 students.The School is set in the village of Harefield on the edge of the Green Belt and is adjacent to the commencement of agricultural land.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), a number of Directors of Watford Football Club
Watford F.C.
Watford Football Club is an English professional football club based in Watford, Hertfordshire. It is often referred to as Watford F.C., Watford, or by the team's nickname The Hornets . Watford Rovers, Founded in 1881, entered the FA Cup for the first time in 1886, and the Southern League a decade...
, and the London Borough of Hillingdon worked together to seek to bring about a significant improvement in educational and health standards.
The Harefield Academy project is part of the Government's Academies initiative.
Sport
Harefield is home to Harefield United Football ClubHarefield United F.C.
Harefield United F.C. are an English football club based in Harefield in the London Borough of Hillingdon. They joined Division Two of the Athenian League in 1975 and reached the quarter-finals of the FA Vase in the 1989-90 season...
, which was founded in 1868 and is the is the oldest in Middlesex.
Harefield is home to Harefield Cricket Club, whose first and second teams play their matches at the Woods Cricket Ground on Breakspear Road North. In 2008, however, the Dairy Farm Ground (behind the current first team pitch) was opened in order to accommodate the third and fourth XIs. This was done in conjunction with the Harefield Parochial Charity. In 2009, the first XI achieved promotion to the Home Counties Cricket League, and are therefore one division away from the highest level of club cricket in England and Wales. In 2010, HCC had the most successful season in its history, with the 2nd, 3rd & 4th XI's all winning their respective leagues. The Sunday Academy side won their division of the Chess Valley League; even their Tea Lady won an award for the Best Teas in Middlesex.
Harefield is also home to an Elite Gymnastics Academy. The Harefield Academy, Northwood Road, opened in September 2005 on the John Penrose School site.
Victoria Cross recipients
The Victoria CrossVictoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
or VC
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
is the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. It is remarkable that a village the size of Harefield is associated with three VC
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
recipients. Two booklets in the Reference section of Harefield library give details of the three recipients of the award.
- Lieutenant-General Gerald GoodlakeGerald GoodlakeLieutenant General Gerald Littlehales Goodlake VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
VCVictoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
(1832-1890), who served with the Coldstream GuardsColdstream GuardsHer Majesty's Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, also known officially as the Coldstream Guards , is a regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division or Household Division....
in the Crimean WarCrimean WarThe Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
, is buried in St Mary's parish churchyard.
- Private Cecil John KinrossCecil John KinrossCecil John Kinross VC was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
VCVictoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
(1896-1957), who distinguished himself at Passchendaele in World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, was born in Harefield; he moved with his family in 1912 to Lougheed, AlbertaLougheed, AlbertaLougheed is a village in central Alberta, Canada. It is located 94 km south-east of Camrose, along Highway 13.- Demographics :The population of the Village of Lougheed according to its 2010 municipal census is 254, a 5.8% increase over its 2009 municipal census population of 240.In 2006,...
.
- Sergeant Robert Edward RyderRobert Edward RyderRobert Edward Ryder VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
VCVictoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
(1895-1978), who served in World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
in the Middlesex RegimentMiddlesex RegimentThe Middlesex Regiment was a regiment of the British Army. It was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms when the 57th and 77th Regiments of Foot were amalgamated with the county's militia and rifle volunteer units.On 31 December 1966 The Middlesex Regiment was amalgamated with three...
, was born and is buried in Harefield. A blue plaqueBlue plaqueA blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
on The Old Workhouse marks his birthplace.
A gold plaque in the Royal British Legion Hall honours the exceptional bravery of both Goodlake
Gerald Goodlake
Lieutenant General Gerald Littlehales Goodlake VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
VC
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
and Ryder
Robert Edward Ryder
Robert Edward Ryder VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
VC
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
. In 2011, Hillingdon Council erected a blue plaque
Blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
in honour of the courage of Kinross
Cecil John Kinross
Cecil John Kinross VC was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
VC
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
at the place of his birth on the anniversary of his birthday, 17 February.
Other notable people
- Brian ConnollyBrian ConnollyBrian Francis Connolly was a Scottish musician, best known as the lead singer of the British rock band, Sweet.-Early life:...
(1945-1997), singer of glam rockGlam rockGlam rock is a style of rock and pop music that developed in the UK in the early 1970s, which was performed by singers and musicians who wore outrageous clothes, makeup and hairstyles, particularly platform-soled boots and glitter...
band The SweetSweet (band)Sweet was a British rock band that rose to worldwide fame in the 1970s as one of the most prominent glam rock acts, with the classic line-up of lead vocalist Brian Connolly, bass player Steve Priest, guitarist Andy Scott, and drummer Mick Tucker.Sweet was formed in 1968 and achieved their first...
grew up in Harefield and HayesHayes, HillingdonHayes is a town in the London Borough of Hillingdon, West London. It is a suburban development situated west of Charing Cross. Hayes was developed in the late 19th and 20th centuries as an industrial locality to which residential districts were later added in order to house factory workers...
from the age of 12
- Thomas Egerton, Lord EllesmereThomas Egerton, 1st Viscount BrackleyThomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley PC was an English Nobleman, Judge and Statesman who served as Lord Keeper and Lord Chancellor for twenty-one years.-Early life, education and legal career:...
(1540-1617) and wife Alice SpencerAlice SpencerAlice Spencer, Countess of Derby was an aristocratic English woman, and a noted patron of the arts. Poet Edmund Spenser represented her as "Amaryllis" in his pastoral poem Colin Clouts Come Home Againe and dedicated his The Teares of the Muses to her. Her first husband was Ferdinando Stanley, 5th...
(1559-1637) lived in Harefield from 1601; Queen Elizabeth IElizabeth I of EnglandElizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
visited the couple in July 1602
- Alexander FlemingAlexander FlemingSir Alexander Fleming was a Scottish biologist and pharmacologist. He wrote many articles on bacteriology, immunology, and chemotherapy...
(1881-1955), biologist and Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winner for the discovery of penicillinPenicillinPenicillin is a group of antibiotics derived from Penicillium fungi. They include penicillin G, procaine penicillin, benzathine penicillin, and penicillin V....
, was Regional Pathologist at Harefield HospitalHarefield HospitalHarefield Hospital is located in Harefield, Middlesex. It is part of the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, which describes itself as "the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK and among the largest in Europe". Harefield's sister hospital is the Royal Brompton Hospital in...
, 1939; this is recorded on a blue plaqueBlue plaqueA blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
at the main entrance door to the Hospital
- Beatle George HarrisonGeorge HarrisonGeorge Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
(1943-2001) was treated in Harefield HospitalHarefield HospitalHarefield Hospital is located in Harefield, Middlesex. It is part of the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, which describes itself as "the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK and among the largest in Europe". Harefield's sister hospital is the Royal Brompton Hospital in...
following the December 1999 knife attack at his Friar ParkFriar ParkFriar Park is the 120-room Victorian neo-Gothic mansion previously owned by the eccentric Sir Frank Crisp in Henley-on-Thames and bought by the musician George Harrison in 1970, as he left his former home Kinfauns, in Esher.-History:...
home
- Politician Charles NewdigateCharles Newdigate NewdegateCharles Newdigate Newdegate was a British Conservative politician.-Early life:He was the only son of Charles Parker Newdigate Newdegate of Harefield Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, and his wife, Maria Boucherett, of Lincolnshire. He was educated at Eton College, King's College London, and Christ...
(1816-1887) lived in Harefield, and was buried in Harefield Church, which he had personally spent much money restoring
- Judge Sir Richard NewdigateSir Richard Newdigate, 1st Baronet-Life:He was born on 17 September 1602, a younger son of Sir John Newdigate of Arbury Hall, in the parish of Chilvers Coton, Warwickshire, by Anne Fitton, eldest daughter of Sir Edward Fitton, baronet, of Gawsworth in Cheshire. John Newdegate was his grandfather...
(1602-1678) lived in Harefield, and was buried in Harefield parish church, where a monument was raised to his memory
- Thomas WakleyThomas WakleyThomas Wakley , was an English surgeon. He became a demagogue and social reformer who campaigned against incompetence, privilege and nepotism. He was the founding editor of The Lancet, and a radical Member of Parliament .- Life :Thomas Wakley was born in Membury, Devon to a prosperous farmer and...
(1795-1862), medical and social reformer, and founder of The LancetThe LancetThe Lancet is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal. It is one of the world's best known, oldest, and most respected general medical journals...
, lived at Harefield Park, 1845-1856; he has a memorial stone in the grounds of Harefield HospitalHarefield HospitalHarefield Hospital is located in Harefield, Middlesex. It is part of the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, which describes itself as "the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK and among the largest in Europe". Harefield's sister hospital is the Royal Brompton Hospital in...
Transport
Although there is no eponymous tubeLondon Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
or railway
National Rail
National Rail is a title used by the Association of Train Operating Companies as a generic term to define the passenger rail services operated in Great Britain...
station in Harefield, buses in the area link to Northwood
Northwood tube station
Northwood is a station on the Watford branch of the Metropolitan Line, in Travelcard Zone 6. The line serves as the sole continuous link between the town of Northwood and London, key for a region known as Metro-Land. Northwood used to be a terminus for many Metropolitan trains, similar to the...
and Uxbridge
Uxbridge tube station
Uxbridge is a London Underground station in Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, north-west London. The station is the terminus of the Uxbridge branches of both the Metropolitan Line and the Piccadilly Line. The next station towards London is Hillingdon. The station is 15.5 miles west of...
tube stations and Denham
Denham railway station
Denham railway station is in Buckinghamshire, England, on the Chiltern Main Line north west of Marylebone towards High Wycombe.-History:The station was built just to the north of Denham village as part of the Great Western and Great Central Joint Railway from Grendon Underwood junction to...
and Rickmansworth stationRickmansworth railway stations.
Buses
Harefield is served by route 331London Buses route 331
London Buses route 331 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, United Kingdom. The service is currently contracted to First Centrewest.-History:...
operating between Uxbridge
Uxbridge
Uxbridge is a large town located in north west London, England and is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. It forms part of the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is located west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres...
and Ruislip
Ruislip
Ruislip is a suburban area, centred on an old village in Greater London, and is part of the London Borough of Hillingdon.It was formerly also a parish covering the neighbouring areas of Eastcote, Northwood, Ruislip Manor and South Ruislip in the area. The parish appears in the Domesday Book, and...
, and route U9 between Uxbridge
Uxbridge
Uxbridge is a large town located in north west London, England and is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. It forms part of the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is located west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres...
and Harefield Hospital
Harefield Hospital
Harefield Hospital is located in Harefield, Middlesex. It is part of the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, which describes itself as "the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK and among the largest in Europe". Harefield's sister hospital is the Royal Brompton Hospital in...
.
Nearest tube stations
- Northwood tube stationNorthwood tube stationNorthwood is a station on the Watford branch of the Metropolitan Line, in Travelcard Zone 6. The line serves as the sole continuous link between the town of Northwood and London, key for a region known as Metro-Land. Northwood used to be a terminus for many Metropolitan trains, similar to the...
- Rickmansworth stationRickmansworth stationRickmansworth is a London Underground and National Rail station in the town of Rickmansworth, in the Three Rivers district of Hertfordshire to the north-west of London...
- Uxbridge Station
External links
- Harefield Park Hospital, Australian War MemorialAustralian War MemorialThe Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of all its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in the wars of the Commonwealth of Australia...
, 11 June 1974