Royal Liberty of Havering
Encyclopedia
Havering, also known as Havering-atte-Bower, was a royal manor
Royal Manor
A royal manor is an area of land in the United Kingdom owned by the Crown, such as the Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, the Prince of Wales, a Duke/Duchess, or a Lord. One such example is the Isle of Portland in Dorset....

 and ancient liberty
Liberty (division)
Originating in the Middle Ages, a liberty was traditionally defined as an area in which regalian rights were revoked and where land was held by a mesne lord...

 whose former area now forms part of, and gives its name to, the London Borough of Havering
London Borough of Havering
The London Borough of Havering is a London borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in Havering is Romford and the other main communities are Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham. The borough is mainly characterised by suburban development with large...

 in 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...

. The manor was in the possession of the Crown from the 11th to the 19th centuries and was the location of Havering Palace
Havering Palace
Havering Palace was one of the many royal residences in England. It was located in the village of Havering-atte-Bower in what is now the London Borough of Havering...

 from the 13th to the late 17th century.

Toponomy

The name Havering is recorded in the 1086 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 Haueringas and means 'the settlement of the family or followers of a man called Hæfer', an ancient folk name. From the 13th century the suffix -atte-Bower was added and means 'at the royal residence'. Havering
London Borough of Havering
The London Borough of Havering is a London borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in Havering is Romford and the other main communities are Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham. The borough is mainly characterised by suburban development with large...

 and Havering-atte-Bower
Havering-atte-Bower
Havering-atte-Bower is a village and outlying settlement of the London Borough of Havering, located 15 miles northeast of Charing Cross and close to the Greater London boundary. It was one of three former parishes whose area comprised the historic Royal Liberty of Havering...

 continue to be used as the names of a London borough and a small settlement respectively.

History

A liberty was formed by charter for the royal manor
Royal Manor
A royal manor is an area of land in the United Kingdom owned by the Crown, such as the Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, the Prince of Wales, a Duke/Duchess, or a Lord. One such example is the Isle of Portland in Dorset....

 of Havering in 1465. The manor was an ancient demesne
Demesne
In the feudal system the demesne was all the land, not necessarily all contiguous to the manor house, which was retained by a lord of the manor for his own use and support, under his own management, as distinguished from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants...

 that had formed part of the Becontree
Becontree (hundred)
Becontree was an ancient hundred in the south west of the county of Essex, England. Its area has been entirely absorbed by the growth of London; with its name reused in 1921 for the large Becontree estate of the London County Council...

 hundred of Essex. The area surrounding the royal manor house of Havering Palace
Havering Palace
Havering Palace was one of the many royal residences in England. It was located in the village of Havering-atte-Bower in what is now the London Borough of Havering...

 had enjoyed special status since the 13th century and the liberty charter issued in 1465 by King Edward IV
Edward IV of England
Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...

 reconfirmed many existing rights. The event was celebrated by the issue of a copper token for currency in the late 18th century, which uniquely among the many coins of that era bears the date 1465. The charter gave residents of the area freedom from taxation, its own local magistrates and gaol, and, earlier, freedom from the service of writs by the Essex Quarter Sessions. The famous Romford Market
Romford Market
Romford Market is a large open market with 270 stalls, located in Romford, London Borough of Havering, east London, England. The market is open on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 8.30 am to 4.30 pm...

 was another privilege that was guaranteed under this arrangement.

The government of the liberty was in the hands of a high steward, deputy steward, clerk of the peace and coroner. The high steward was chosen by the lord of the manor
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...

. The office of deputy steward was instituted by the 1465 charter, being appointed by the high steward. The clerk of the peace and coroner were elected by the tenants and inhabitants of the liberty. In 1848 other officers of the corporation were a high bailiff, under bailiff, two head constables and nine petty constables. Gallows Corner
Gallows Corner
Gallows Corner is an area and major road junction in the London Borough of Havering near Romford.The junction is a large roundabout with five exits and a flyover...

 was used as the place of execution in the liberty.

The manor and liberty originally comprised the large ancient parish of Hornchurch which included the chapelries of Havering-atte-Bower and Romford. However in the 1780s Havering-atte-Bower was split off as a separate parish and in 1849 Romford also became a parish in its own right. In 1831 the total population of the liberty was 6,812. It bordered Chafford
Chafford (hundred)
Chafford was an ancient hundred in the south west of the county of Essex, England. Its area has been partly absorbed by the growth of London; with its name reused for the modern housing development of Chafford Hundred...

 hundred to the east, Ongar
Ongar (hundred)
Hundred of Ongar was an ancient hundred in the west of the county of Essex, England. It was centred on the town of Chipping Ongar.It contained the following parishes: *Abbess Roding*Beauchamp Roding*Berners Roding*Bobbingworth or Bovinger*Chigwell...

 hundred to the north and the reduced Becontree
Becontree (hundred)
Becontree was an ancient hundred in the south west of the county of Essex, England. Its area has been entirely absorbed by the growth of London; with its name reused in 1921 for the large Becontree estate of the London County Council...

 hundred to the west. 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,...

 formed a short boundary with Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...

 to the south.

Replacement

The manor was sold by the Crown in 1828 and the right to appoint the high steward and justices of the liberty was transferred to the private owners. During the 19th century ad-hoc boards, such as unions for poor law or public health, started to erode the powers of the liberty. It was unreformed by the Municipal Corporations Act 1835
Municipal Corporations Act 1835
The Municipal Corporations Act 1835  – sometimes known as the Municipal Reform Act, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in the incorporated boroughs of England and Wales...

 and the Municipal Corporations Act 1883 made provision for the liberty to be absorbed into the county of Essex, but did not force the amalgamation. Under the Local Government Act 1888
Local Government Act 1888
The Local Government Act 1888 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which established county councils and county borough councils in England and Wales...

 the property of the liberty was merged with that of the county, and the offices of high and deputy steward were no longer filled. The separate court of quarter sessions, limited to three justices
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...

, continued to exist, and a high bailiff and coroner continued to be appointed.

On October 21, 1891 the Essex quarter sessions resolved "that a petition be presented to Her Majesty praying that an Order in Council be made to unite the Liberty of Havering-atte-Bower to the County of Essex, so far as the same is not already united by the Local Government Act, 1888." The Order in Council, under the Liberties Act 1850
Liberties Act 1850
The Liberties Act 1850 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that provided a mechanism to enable the various liberties or independent jurisdictions in England and Wales to be merged into the geographical counties in which they lay.-Background:Throughout England and Wales there were...

, was made on May 9, 1892, and came into effect on July 1, 1892. The last high bailiff was paid a pension of £3 for life, while the coroner became a county employee.

In 1894, under the Local Government Act 1894
Local Government Act 1894
The Local Government Act 1894 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level under the Local Government Act 1888...

, the central part of the Romford parish, named Romford Urban formed the Romford Urban District
Municipal Borough of Romford
Romford was a local government district in southwest Essex from 1851 to 1965. It was significantly expanded in 1934 and gained the status of municipal borough in 1937...

 while the remaining parts of the liberty went on to form part of Romford Rural District
Romford Rural District
Romford Rural District was a local government district in south west Essex, England from 1894 to 1934. It surrounded, but did not include, Romford which formed a separate urban district...

. The modern day London Borough of Havering, created in 1965, takes its name from the liberty and incorporates the original area and other territories formerly part of Chafford hundred, including North Ockendon
North Ockendon
North Ockendon is an outlying settlement of northeast London, England and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east northeast of Charing Cross and consists of a dispersed settlement within the Metropolitan Green Belt...

, Rainham
Rainham, London
Rainham is a suburban town in northeast London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. Located east of Charing Cross, it is one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan and is surrounded by a residential area, which has grown from the historic village,...

, Upminster
Upminster
Upminster is a suburban town in northeast London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. Located east-northeast of Charing Cross, it is one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan, and comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential...

 and Wennington
Wennington, London
Wennington is a small village in the London Borough of Havering on the outskirts of east London. It is situated 14.8 miles east of Charing Cross....

. Modern day references to the liberty include the Liberty Shopping Centre
Liberty Shopping Centre
The Liberty, is a covered shopping mall located in the London Borough of Havering. It is the largest mall in Romford, a metropolitan centre of Outer London. It was originally built in 1968 as the Liberty Shopping Centre and underwent a four-year redevelopment completed in 2004. The centre takes its...

 and Royal Liberty School
Royal Liberty School
The Royal Liberty School, once a traditional English grammar school, now a state comprehensive boys senior school in Gidea Park in the London Borough of Havering in east London, United Kingdom.-Admissions:...

.

External links

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