Royal Liberty of Havering

Havering, also known as Havering-atte-Bower, was a royal manor and ancient liberty whose area now forms part of, and gives its name to, the London Borough of Havering in Greater London. The manor was in the possession of the Crown from the 11th to the 19th centuries and was the location of Havering Palace from the 13th to the late 17th century.[1] It occupied the same area as the ancient parish of Hornchurch which was divided into the three chapelries of Havering, Hornchurch and Romford.

Havering
Havering-atte-Bower
Area
 • 183112,550 acres (50.8 km2)
 • 189212,550 acres (50.8 km2)
Population
 • 18316,812
History
 • OriginHornchurch parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex
 • Created12th century
 • Abolished1 July 1892
 • Succeeded byReincorporated with Essex
StatusRoyal manor (11th century–1828)
Liberty (1465–1892)
GovernmentHavering Quarter Sessions
 • HQCourt House, Market Place, Romford

Seal of Havering
Subdivisions
 • TypeChapelries (later became parishes)
 • Units
  1. Romford
  2. Havering atte Bower
  3. Hornchurch

Three parishes of the liberty in 1881

History

Toponomy

The name Havering is recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book as "Haueringas" and means 'the settlement of the family or followers of a man called Hæfer', an ancient folk name.[2] From the 13th century the suffix -atte-Bower was added and means 'at the royal residence'.[2] Havering and Havering-atte-Bower continue to be used as the names of a London borough and a small settlement respectively.

Formation

A liberty was formed by charter for the royal manor of Havering in 1465. The manor was an ancient demesne that had formed part of the Becontree hundred of Essex. The area surrounding the royal manor house of Havering Palace had enjoyed special status since the 13th century and the liberty charter issued in 1465 by King Edward IV 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 was another privilege that was guaranteed under this arrangement.

Governance

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. The office of deputy steward was instituted by the 1465 charter, being appointed by the high steward.[3] 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.[4] Gallows Corner was used as the place of execution in the liberty.

The manor and liberty originally comprised the large ancient parish of Hornchurch which was divided into eight wards. By the 16th century 'Romford side' comprising the five northern wards of Romford Town, Harold Wood, Collier Row, Noak Hill, and Havering had achieved some degree of self-government. The remaining 'Hornchurch side' consisted of Hornchurch Town, North End, and South End wards. Hornchurch Town ward was absorbed into North End and South End around 1722. Havering ward grew independent of Romford in the 17th century and became a separate parish in the 1780s.[5][6] In 1849 Romford became a parish in its own right.[1]

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 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.[1] Under the Local Government Act 1888 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, continued to exist, and a high bailiff and coroner continued to be appointed.

On 21 October 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."[7] The Order in Council, under the Liberties Act 1850, was made on 9 May 1892, and came into effect on 1 July 1892. The last high bailiff was paid a pension of £3 for life, while the coroner became a county employee.[8]

In 1894, under the Local Government Act 1894, the central part of the Romford parish, named Romford Urban formed the Romford Urban District while the remaining parts of the liberty went on to form part of Romford Rural 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, Rainham, Upminster, Cranham, and Wennington. Modern day references to the liberty include the Liberty Shopping Centre and Royal Liberty School.

Geography

The liberty was partially bounded by rivers. To the south there was a short boundary with Erith in the Lessness hundred of Kent, formed by the River Thames.[9] To the east the River Ingrebourne formed a boundary with the Chafford hundred of Essex and the parishes of (from north to south) South Weald, Upminster and Rainham. To the north of the liberty was much higher ground and the boundary with the Ongar hundred and the parishes of (west to east) Lambourne, Navestock and Stapleford Abbots. The western boundary was with the reduced Becontree hundred and the parish of Dagenham, partially formed by the River Beam. To the south the lower elevation formed the Hornchurch Marshes. The London to Colchester Roman Road (now the A12) cut through the liberty further north. In 1831 the total population of the liberty was 6,812.

References
  1. "The liberty of Havering-atte-Bower". A History of the County of Essex: Volume 7. 1978. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  2. Mills, D. (2000). Oxford Dictionary of London Place Names.
  3. The People's History of Essex, Chelmsford, 1861
  4. The Parliamentary Gazetteer of England and Wales, Vol. II, 1848, p.288
  5. 'Hornchurch: Economic history and local government', A History of the County of Essex: Volume 7 (1978), pp. 39–45. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=42811 Date accessed: 28 August 2012
  6. 'Romford: Introduction', A History of the County of Essex: Volume 7 (1978), pp. 56–64. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=42815 Date accessed: 28 August 2012.
  7. The Essex Review, January 1892 (transcription at Essexpast.co.uk), accessed 26 March 2008
  8. London Gazette, issue 26287, published 13 May 1892
  9. "The hundred of Becontree: Introduction". A History of the County of Essex: Volume 5. 1966. Retrieved 2008-01-11.

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