Hampstead was a civil parish and

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 London, England. It was an

ancient parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority. ...

in the county of Middlesex, governed by an

administrative vestry A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government for a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies which originally met in the vestry or sacristy of the parish church, and consequently became known colloquiall ...

. The parish was included in the area of responsibility of the Metropolitan Board of Works in 1855 and became part of the County of London in 1889. The parish of Hampstead became a metropolitan borough in 1900, following the London Government Act 1899, with the parish vestry replaced by a borough council. In 1965 the borough was abolished and its former area became part of the London Borough of Camden in Greater London.

Geography

It included Primrose Hill,

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

, Belsize Park, West Hampstead, South Hampstead, much of

Hampstead Heath Hampstead Heath (locally known simply as the Heath) is an ancient heath in London, spanning . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band o ...

and part of Kilburn and

Cricklewood Cricklewood is an area of London, England, which spans the boundaries of three London boroughs: Barnet to the east, Brent to the west and Camden to the south-east. The Crown pub, now the Clayton Crown Hotel, is a local landmark and lies north- ...

. Some street signs still bear the 'Borough of Hampstead' name.

Ecclesiastical parish

The ancient parish, was originally dedicated to

St Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

, but in 1747 it was rededicated to

St John Saint John or St. John usually refers to John the Baptist, but also, sometimes, to John the Apostle. Saint John or St. John may also refer to: People * John the Baptist (0s BC–30s AD), preacher, ascetic, and baptizer of Jesus Christ * John t ...

. It was 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 ...

. From 1852, as the population of Hampstead increased, a number of new parishes were formed: * Christ Church, Hampstead in 1852 * St Saviour, Haverstock Hill in 1856 * St Mary, Kilburn in 1856 * St Peter, Belsize Park in 1859 * St Paul, Avenue Road in 1864 * St Stephen, Hampstead in 1869 * Trinity, West Hampstead in 1872, (renamed Holy Trinity in c.1930) * St Mary the Virgin, Primrose Hill in 1873 * Emmanuel, West Hampstead in 1885 * St Cuthbert, West Hampstead in 1886 * St James, West Hampstead in 1888 * St Luke, West Hampstead in 1898 In addition, as the population of neighbouring areas increased, parts of Hampstead parish were included in new parishes: * All Souls, St John's Wood in 1865 ''with parts of All Saints, St John's Wood'' * St Augustine, Kilburn in 1870 ''with parts of St Mark, Marylebone and St Saviour, Paddington''

Coat of arms

The arms were granted in 1931, and are based on a device used by the Hampstead Vestry without authority, and adopted by the Council on its formation in 1900. The mitre stands for the Westminster Abbey, to which the Manor of Hampstead was granted by Ethelred the Unready in 986, and remained in its possession until 1539. The fleurs-de-lys and stag's head are from the arms of the Hickes family, one of whom, Viscount Camden, purchased the Manor. On his death in 1629 it passed to the Noel family from whose arms are taken the fretty chief. The Manor was sold to Sir William Langthorne in 1707, who is represented by the white cross and red fleurs-de-lys from his arms. The holly is from the seal of the old Hampstead Vestry, which grows profusely in the area. Charges from these arms were used, together with charges from the coats of arms of Holborn and of St. Pancras, when the new coat of arms of the London Borough of Camden was designed in 1965. The former coat of arms can still be seen on Hampstead War Memorial.

Population and area

The metropolitan borough was conterminous with the Vestry authority, when it was formed in 1900. Statistics compiled by the London County Council, in 1901 to show the population growth in London, over the preceding century. Hampstead had an area of in 1901. The populations recorded in National Censuses were: Hampstead Vestry 1801-1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900-1961

Politics

Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; however the parish of St John Hampstead did not exceed this number so was not divided into wards. By 1873 its population had increased enough for the incorporated vestry to be divided into four wards (electing vestrymen): No. 1 (18), No. 2 (15), No. 3 (15) and No. 4 (12). In 1894 as its population had increased further so the incorporated vestry was re-divided into five wards (electing vestrymen): Town (18), Belsize (12), Adelaide (9), Kilburn (21) and West End (12). The metropolitan borough was divided into seven

wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a priso ...

for elections: Adelaide, Belsize, Central, Kilburn, Priory, Town and West End.Ordnance Survey 'County Series 3rd Edition' Map of London (1912-14) at 1:2500 scale. Accessed at https://www.old-maps.co.uk/

Parliament constituency

For elections to Parliament, the borough was represented by one constituency: *