Bethnal Green was a civil parish and a

metropolitan borough A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan districts within metropolitan ...

in the

East End of London The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...

, England. It was formed as a civil parish in 1743 from the Bethnal Green hamlet in Stepney ancient parish, and the church of

St Matthew, Bethnal Green St Matthew's, Bethnal Green, is an 18th-century church in Bethnal Green, London, England. It is an Anglican church in the Diocese of London. History of the building The church was built 1743–46, to a Classical design by George Dance the Elde ...

, was dedicated in 1746. The vestry became an electing authority to the Metropolitan Board of Works in 1855 and in 1889 it became part of the County of London. In the 1900 reform of local government caused by the London Government Act 1899 the parish became a metropolitan borough which bordered Hackney, Poplar, Stepney and

Shoreditch Shoreditch is a district in the East End of London in England, and forms the southern part of the London Borough of Hackney. Neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets are also perceived as part of the area. In the 16th century, Shoreditch was an impor ...

. In 1965 it was abolished and merged into the

London Borough of Tower Hamlets The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London boroughs, London borough covering much of the traditional East End of London, East End. It was formed in 1965 from the merger of the former Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London, metropol ...

Origins

Until 1743 Bethnal Green formed a hamlet within the large parish of Stepney. By the 17th century the settlement had achieved a measure of self-government, with its own overseer,

constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

and beadle. It remained a rural area until the beginning of the 18th century, when the expansion of suburban London saw the development of the

Brick Lane Brick Lane (Bengali: ব্রিক লেন) is a street in the East End of London, in the borough of Tower Hamlets. It runs from Swanfield Street in Bethnal Green in the north, crosses the Bethnal Green Road before reaching the busiest ...

area in the south west of the hamlet. The population rapidly increased and in 1743 an act of parliament constituted Bethnal Green as a separate parish. As well as forming a parish for ecclesiastical purposes, Bethnal Green was also created a civil parish with responsibility for relief of the poor and maintenance of highways. The government of the parish was shared by a vestry, governors of the poor and two separate bodies of trustees. A further board of paving and lighting commissioners were established in 1843. In 1855 the parish was included within the area of the Metropolitan Board of Works to which it nominated one member and the various local government bodies were replaced by a single incorporated vestry which consisted of 48 elected vestrymen. Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000

ratepayers Rates are a type of property tax system in the United Kingdom, and in places with systems deriving from the British one, the proceeds of which are used to fund local government. Some other countries have taxes with a more or less comparable role ...

was to be divided into wards; as such the incorporated vestry of St Matthew Bethnal Green was divided into four wards (electing vestrymen): No. 1 or East (9), No. 2 or North (9), No. 3 or West (15) and No. 4 or South (15). In 1889 the Metropolitan Board was replaced by the London County Council, and Bethnal Green was formally removed from Middlesex to the new County of London.

Ecclesiastical parish

Bethnal Green was part of the ancient parish of St Dunstan's, Stepney, in the

Diocese of London The Diocese of London forms part of the Church of England's Province of Canterbury in England. It lies directly north of the Thames. For centuries the diocese covered a vast tract and bordered the dioceses of Norwich and Lincoln to the north ...

; in 1743 the area was split off to form a new parish dedicated to

St Matthew Matthew the Apostle,, shortened to ''Matti'' (whence ar, مَتَّى, Mattā), meaning "Gift of YHWH"; arc, , Mattai; grc-koi, Μαθθαῖος, ''Maththaîos'' or , ''Matthaîos''; cop, ⲙⲁⲧⲑⲉⲟⲥ, Mattheos; la, Matthaeus a ...

. From 1837, as the population of Bethnal Green increased, a number of new parishes were formed: * St John, Bethnal Green, in 1837 * St Peter, Bethnal Green, in 1843 * St Andrew, Bethnal Green, in 1843 * St Philip, Bethnal Green, in 1843 * St James the Less, Bethnal Green, in 1843 * St Bartholomew, Bethnal Green, in 1844 * St James the Great, Bethnal Green, in 1844 * St Jude, Bethnal Green, in 1844 * St Matthias, Bethnal Green, in 1844 * St Simon Zelotes, Bethnal Green, in 1844 * St Thomas, Bethnal Green, in 1844 * St Paul, Bethnal Green, in 1865 * St Barnabas, Bethnal Green, in 1870 In addition, as the population of neighbouring Shoreditch increased, parts of Bethnal Green parish were included in the new parish of: * Holy Trinity, Shoreditch, in 1866

Creation of the borough

Under the London Government Act 1899 the various vestries and district boards within the County of London were abolished and replaced by metropolitan borough councils. Accordingly, in 1900, a borough council consisting of a mayor, five aldermen and 30 councillors replaced the vestry. The boundaries of the borough and parish were realigned at the same time.

Bethnal Green Town Hall Bethnal Green Town Hall is a former municipal building on the corner of Cambridge Heath Road and Patriot Square in Bethnal Green, London. It is a Grade II listed building. History The building was commissioned to replace an aging mid-19th centu ...

in Patriot Square was opened in 1910, and extended in 1936–9. The architects were Percy Robinson and William Alban Jones. In 2010 the building was reopened as a hotel; much of the original art deco interior has been retained.

Borough seal

The borough seal depicted a scene based on ''The Beggar's Daughter of Bednall Green'', a poem in Percy’s ''

Reliques of Ancient English Poetry The ''Reliques of Ancient English Poetry'' (sometimes known as ''Reliques of Ancient Poetry'' or simply Percy's ''Reliques'') is a collection of ballads and popular songs collected by Bishop Thomas Percy and published in 1765. Sources The basis ...

'', published in 1765, but probably dating from the era of Elizabeth I. According to the legend related in the poem, a blind beggar living in Bethnal Green was in fact Henry de Montfort, eldest son of Simon de Montfort, having escaped from the field of the

Battle of Evesham The Battle of Evesham (4 August 1265) was one of the two main battles of 13th century England's Second Barons' War. It marked the defeat of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, and the rebellious barons by the future King Edward I, who led the ...

in 1265. His identity was revealed at the wedding feast of his daughter Bessie. A depiction of the beggar had appeared on the head of the beadle's staff dating from 1690.

Politics

In the first election to the borough council, held on 1 November 1900 the

Progressives Progressivism holds that it is possible to improve human societies through political action. As a political movement, progressivism seeks to advance the human condition through social reform based on purported advancements in science, techno ...

gained a majority, with 22 of the 30 councillors. The Moderates (supported by the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

) formed the 8 member opposition group. The Progressives increased their majority to 24 at the 1903 elections, and in 1906 they won all the seats on the council. The Progressives held the council against the Municipal Reform Party until 1919 when the Labour Party gained a majority. Progressives and Liberals regained control at the 1928 election, holding power until 1934. In 1934, Labour again took control, and from that date held all the seats on the council until the borough's abolition. For parliamentary elections, Bethnal Green was divided into two constituencies in 1885. Each consisted of two wards of the borough and earlier vestry: * Bethnal Green North East (north and east wards) * Bethnal Green South West (south and west wards). In 1950, the borough's representation was decreased to a single constituency of Bethnal Green, which in 1955 was expanded to also include three wards from the neighbouring

Metropolitan Borough of Hackney The Metropolitan Borough of Hackney was a Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London, Metropolitan borough of the County of London from 1900 to 1965. Its area became part of the London Borough of Hackney. Formation and boundaries The borough ...

Population and area

The area of the borough was . It included the districts now known as Bethnal Green, Cambridge Heath, Bow, Whitechapel and

, stretching to include part of the

Boundary Estate The Boundary Estate is a housing development in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London. It is positioned just inside Bethnal Green's historic parish and borough boundary with Shoreditch, which ran along ''Boundary Stre ...

in the west and parts of Mile End Park and

Victoria Park Victoria Park may refer to: Places Australia * Victoria Park Nature Reserve, a protected area in Northern Rivers region, New South Wales * Victoria Park, Adelaide, a park and racecourse * Victoria Park, Brisbane, a public park and former golf ...

in the east. In the south its boundary stopped just short of The Blind Beggar pub on Whitechapel Road. The populations recorded in National Censuses were: Bethnal Green Vestry 1801-1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900-1961

Second World War

During World War II, the Borough suffered from heavy aerial bombing. It is estimated that 80 tons of bombs fell on this area alone, affecting 21,700 houses, destroying 2,233 and making a further 893 uninhabitable. During the course of the aerial bombardment, 555 people were killed, and 400 were seriously injured.''Bethnal Green: Building and Social Conditions from 1915 to 1945'', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 11: Stepney, Bethnal Green (1998), pp. 132–135
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References

External links

''MB Bethnal Green'' (A Vision of Britain) archived.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bethnal Green, Metropolitan Borough of Parishes governed by vestries (Metropolis) Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London History of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Former civil parishes in London 1900 establishments in the United Kingdom 1965 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Districts abolished by the London Government Act 1963 Bills of mortality parishes Metropolitan Borough of