Kingsbury is a district of northwest London in the London Borough of Brent. Its ancient scope stretches to include various distinct areas that were once small villages until the inter-war period. Kingsbury was in 2001 a

ward 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 pris ...

and in 2011 was identifiable with the Fryent and Barnhill wards approximately. Today it forms a quiet suburb between Fryent Country Park to the west and the

Brent Reservoir The Brent Reservoir (popularly called the Welsh Harp) is a reservoir in North West London. It straddles the boundary between the boroughs of Brent and Barnet and is owned by the Canal & River Trust. The reservoir takes its informal name from a p ...

to the east, along with a Jubilee line tube station and accompanying shopping district on the western side. The postal district is NW9 which it shares with

Colindale Colindale is a district in the London Borough of Barnet; its main shopping street on the A5 forming the borough boundary with neighbouring Brent. Colindale is a suburban area, and in recent years has had many new apartments built. It's also th ...

and

West Hendon West Hendon is a district of Hendon in North London, in the London Borough of Barnet. It is the NW9 part of Hendon, located around the A5 Edgware Road and the Welsh Harp (Brent Reservoir). The area is known for the West Hendon Estate which is un ...

Etymology

The name ''Kingsbury'' means "The King's fortification".

History

Kingsbury was an ancient parish of a fairly modest in the Hundred of Gore and county of

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

. Following local government redrawing of electoral wards Kingsbury corresponds to the Fryent and Barnhill wards and in all of its various older guises, a minority or all of the Queensbury ward. The early English kings had parted with their manor of Kingsbury long before the

Conquest Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms. Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, t ...

. An estate called Tunworth, in the northern part of Kingsbury parish, was granted by Edwy to his

thegn In Anglo-Saxon England, thegns were aristocratic landowners of the second rank, below the ealdormen who governed large areas of England. The term was also used in early medieval Scandinavia for a class of retainers. In medieval Scotland, there ...

Lyfing in 957. By 1066 it probably formed part of the manor of Kingsbury, which was then held by Wlward White, a thegn of the Confessor, and passed from him to Ernulf of Hesdin who died in 1097 and his lands passed to the family of Walter of Salisbury. Thereafter the overlordship of Kingsbury descended with Edgware manor. By 1086 on the Domesday survey of property, Ernulf's manor in Kingsbury had been

subinfeudated In English law, subinfeudation is the practice by which tenants, holding land under the king or other superior lord, carved out new and distinct tenures in their turn by sub-letting or alienating a part of their lands. The tenants were termed ...

to Albold as Lord. It was not mentioned again until 1317, when, under the name of the manor of Kingsbury, it belonged to Baldwin Poleyn of Tebworth. Kingsbury developed little in housing and population in the 19th century, remaining a polyfocal village. In this age, Oliver Goldsmith, writer and playwright, lived at Hyde Farm, Kingsbury (1771–1774); the third

Lord Mansfield William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, PC, SL (2 March 170520 March 1793) was a British barrister, politician and judge noted for his reform of English law. Born to Scottish nobility, he was educated in Perth, Scotland, before moving to Lond ...

was buried at

St. Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( grc-koi, Ἀνδρέᾱς, Andréās ; la, Andrēās ; , syc, ܐܰܢܕ݁ܪܶܐܘܳܣ, ʾAnd’reʾwās), also called Saint Andrew, was an apostle of Jesus according to the New Testament. He is the brother of Simon Peter ...

's churchyard in 1840. Although it lay close to London, development started slowly, and it was not until after the First World War that the district became built up. An aircraft industry was established in the part of Kingsbury adjacent to Hendon aerodrome during the war, while the road network was improved to cater for the

British Empire Exhibition The British Empire Exhibition was a colonial exhibition held at Wembley Park, London England from 23 April to 1 November 1924 and from 9 May to 31 October 1925. Background In 1920 the British Government decided to site the British Empire Exhibi ...

in nearby

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...

in 1924."Places in Brent: Kingsbury"
Grange Museum of Community History and Brent Archive, accessed 28 January 2008. The number of inhabited houses in the

civil 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 authorit ...

increased from just 140 in 1901 to 3,937 in 1931. By 1951 this had risen to 11,776."Kingsbury: Introduction"
''Victoria County History of Middlesex'', Volume 5 (British History Online), accessed 28 January 2008. Between 1921 and 1931 Kingsbury's population increased by 796%. Population growth meant the existing parish church, built in 1884, dedicated to the Holy Innocents, and adjacent to the more historic Old St Andrew's church, became too small. It was replaced during the 1930s. The current church, completed to designs by

Samuel Daukes Samuel Whitfield Daukes (1811–1880) was an English architect, based in Gloucester and London. Family background Daukes was born in London in 1811, the son of Samuel Whitfield Daukes, a businessman with coal mining and brewery interests, who b ...

in 1847, had originally been constructed in

Wells Street Wells Street is a street in the City of Westminster. It runs from Riding House Street in the north to Oxford Street in the south. It is crossed by Mortimer Street and Eastcastle Street. It is joined on its western side by Marylebone Passag ...

in central London but after its use declined it was deconstructed, transported and rebuilt (by

Holland, Hannen & Cubitts Holland, Hannen & Cubitts was a major building firm responsible for many of the great buildings of London. History The company was formed from the fusion of two well-established building houses that had competed throughout the later decades of ...

, directed by architect William Adam Forsyth) in its entirety in Kingsbury in 1933–34.St Andrew’s Church, formerly in Wells Street, now at Kingsbury, Middlesex.
Survey of London,University College London, 1 April 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2017. Green Man Kingsbury

John Logie Baird John Logie Baird FRSE (; 13 August 188814 June 1946) was a Scottish inventor, electrical engineer, and innovator who demonstrated the world's first live working television system on 26 January 1926. He went on to invent the first publicly dem ...

's experimental television transmissions from the United Kingdom to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

, Germany were transmitted from the stable block of Kingsbury Manor; this later housed the Veterans Club, and is now a children's nursery. From 1923 to 1979 Kingsbury Road was the location of the

Vanden Plas Vanden Plas is the name of coachbuilders who produced bodies for specialist and up-market automobile manufacturers. Latterly the name became a top-end luxury model designation for cars from subsidiaries of British Leyland and the Rover Group, ...

specialist motor body works, body makers for Bentley and later part of Austin, BMC, and

British Leyland British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd (BLMC), following the merger of Leyland Motors and British Motor Holdings. It was partl ...

. The site is now Kingsbury Trading Estate. 154 Slough Lane

A congregation of Jews affiliated to the

United Synagogue The United Synagogue (US) is a union of British Orthodox Jewish synagogues, representing the central Orthodox movement in Judaism. With 62 congregations (including 7 affiliates and 1 associate, ), comprising 40,000 members, it is the largest ...

is first recorded in Kingsbury in 1939. In 1942 Eden Lodge at Kingsbury Green was registered for worship, becoming Kingsbury district synagogue in 1954.

Local government

In 1894, the area of the medieval ancient parish of Kingsbury was included in the urban district of

. However, as Kingsbury had only three councillors on the urban district council to Wembley's nine, Kingsbury's councillors felt the needs of the area were not well-served. In 1900 Kingsbury became a separate urban district with six councillors. The new council was immediately involved in controversy and in 1906 it failed to make a rate or meet its financial commitments. Following an inquiry initiated by ratepayers, the councillors numbered nine, not halting fiscal accusations directed towards the initial three councillors."Kingsbury: Local Government"
''Victoria County History of Middlesex'', Vol. 5, (British History Online), accessed 28 January 2008. In 1934 the Kingsbury Urban District was abolished and merged once more in Wembley Urban District. The urban district became a

municipal borough Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...

in 1937 and in 1965 the area became part of the London Borough of Brent.

Locale and amenities

Station area

Kingsbury tube station on the

Jubilee line The Jubilee line is a London Underground line that runs between in east London and in the suburban north-west, via the Docklands, South Bank and West End. Opened in 1979, it is the newest line on the Underground network, although some secti ...

is located in the western part of the district. This part of the road with an urban atmosphere contains supermarkets, banks, Arabic and Indian food and vegetable shops, and other businesses for the surrounding community. There is also a council-run library here. At its western end is Kingsbury Circle, a roundabout where roads leading to

Wembley Park Wembley Park is a district of the London Borough of Brent, England. It is roughly centred on Bridge Road, a mile northeast of Wembley town centre and northwest from Charing Cross. The name Wembley Park refers to the area that, at its broade ...

, Kenton & Harrow, and Queensbury & Stanmore along with Kingsbury Road meet.The surrounding area has places to dine. This area remained agricultural until the Metropolitan Railway extension to Stanmore opening the station in 1932. This effectively caused further development in the station's vicinity and a new population centre for Kingsbury. The Kingsbury Odeon cinema opened in 1934 and existed until 1972 - today it is an

Aldi Aldi (stylised as ALDI) is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 10,000 stores in 20 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when ...

supermarket. A public house called the Prince of Wales existed in front of the roundabout, which was demolished and replaced by a

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues and the ninth-largest in th ...

supermarket and flats in 2008.

Fryent Country Park

A major part of the district is the large Fryent Country Park which contains fields, woods, a fish pond, and a farm, and adjoins Barn Hill to the south.

Kingsbury Green and Fryent

Kingsbury Church amidst the trees - geograph

The centre of Kingsbury Green which is today around the Kingsbury Road/Church Lane crossing was historically the centre of Kingsbury in the 15th century, built 1 mile north from the former settlement at Blackbird Hill. To its south, Church Lane leads to the St Andrew's parish church, built in 1933. In Slough Lane and Buck Lane there exist 1920s timbered houses designed by Ernest Trowbridge . On the east side of the green is the Kingsbury Trading Estate, which formerly housed a

United Dairies United Dairies is a former United Kingdom-based creamery, milk bottling and distribution company. The company was formed in 1915 and merged to form Unigate in 1959. During World War I, there were dire shortages of men, horses and vehicles com ...

depot. This area was once an

aerodrome An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...

run by the Barningham brothers under their company

Kingsbury Aviation Kingsbury Aviation was an English aircraft manufacturer and engineering business based at Kingsbury Aerodrome, Kingsbury, London from 1916. From 1915 the engineering company Barningham Limited used a building near Kingsbury House to manufacture e ...

, until the 1920s. Afterwards the site was taken by

. The Kingsbury Works site continued manufacturing vehicles until it closed in 1979. On the west side of the green lies Kingsbury Synagogue. Fryent (between Kingsbury Green and Blackbird Hill) meets the Welsh Harp to its east and has a road crossing the reservoir towards

. This part in the south retains traces of the district's quiet, wooded appearance. Church lane NW9.jpg, Church Lane, Kingsbury Green Salmon St5.jpg, Salmon Street Kinloch dr.jpg, Kinloch Drive bungalows, Fryent Salmon Street NW9.jpg, Salmon Street

Roe Green Village

The Roe Green Garden Village is located to the east of Roe Green Park. In 1968 the area became a conservation area and it retains the atmosphere of a historic village green. The

garden suburb The garden city movement was a 20th century urban planning movement promoting satellite communities surrounding the central city and separated with greenbelts. These Garden Cities would contain proportionate areas of residences, industry, and ...

estate was originally built during the First World War for workers at the nearby Aircraft Manufacturing Company. The rest of the area was opened up by the early 1930s. The area is next to a previous medieval village called Roe Green, at the junctions of Stag Lane, Hay Lane and Bacon Lane, of which little remains. The Kingsbury Manor in Roe Green Park, built in 1899, is today Grade II listed. Roe Green Park is community maintained by the Barnhill Conservation Group. White Castle Mansions, Buck Lane, Kingsbury.JPG, White Castle Mansions in Buck Lane Highfort court.jpg, Highfort Court

Blackbird Hill

Blackbird Hill is the ancient centre of Kingsbury which is today the very southern end of the district, separating west–east

and

Neasden Neasden is a suburban area in northwest London, England. It is located around the centre of the London Borough of Brent and is within the NW2 ( Cricklewood) and NW10 (Willesden) postal districts. Neasden is near Wembley Stadium, the Welsh Har ...

. Today it is an important road that connects various suburbs in and around Kingsbury and Wembley to the

North Circular Road The North Circular Road (officially the A406 and sometimes known as simply the North Circular) is a ring road around Central London in England. It runs from Chiswick in the west to Woolwich in the east via suburban North London, connecting ...

. Little remains of the medieval village: the southern part was redeveloped into shops in the inter-war period, while the former farmhouse was demolished in the 1950s to make way for a public house, The Blackbird, later renamed Blarney Stone, which itself was demolished in 2011. The building of the old St Andrew's Church still exists on Old Church Lane. Because of its location it is often referred to as being in Wembley Park or Neasden.

The Hyde

Holy Innocents church is located on Kingsbury Road, next to Oliver Goldsmith Primary School and opposite the Silver Jubilee Park. Next to the park is a large mandir complex including offices that opened in 2014 and combines Indian architecture with eco friendly technology. The community of the mandir moved over from a previous site located in

Golders Green Golders Green is an area in the London Borough of Barnet in England. A smaller suburban linear settlement, near a farm and public grazing area green of medieval origins, dates to the early 19th century. Its bulk forms a late 19th century and ea ...

Demography

Kingsbury has large Asian and Irish communities. The local crime rate is average to below-average compared to London overall. The 2011 census showed that the Fryent ward's largest ethnic group was Indian at 21%. Whites as a whole form 34% (20% Black Caribbean, 14% Other, 6% Black African). 11% was Other Asian. 41% were Christian, 21% Muslim and 20% Hindu. The Welsh Harp ward, which covers southern areas of Kingsbury Green, was 17% White Other, 17% Indian, and 16% White British.

In film, literature and music

The first two series of BBC children's drama ''

Grange Hill ''Grange Hill'' is a British children's television drama series, originally produced by the BBC and portraying life in a typical comprehensive school. The show began its run on 8 February 1978 on BBC1, and was one of the longest-running progra ...

'' were filmed at Kingsbury High School. Video of ''

Round Here Round or rounds may refer to: Mathematics and science * The contour of a closed curve or surface with no sharp corners, such as an ellipse, circle, rounded rectangle, cant, or sphere * Rounding, the shortening of a number to reduce the number ...

'', about George Michael's childhood, features Roe Green Park, Roe Green Primary School and other local landmarks.

Notable people

* John Beard (trade unionist), had his last home in 27 Wyndale Avenue at the time of his death in 1950. *

James Hanratty James Hanratty (4 October 1936 – 4 April 1962), also known as the A6 Murderer, was a British criminal who was one of the final eight people in the UK to be executed before capital punishment was effectively abolished. He was hanged at Bedfo ...

, among last condemned to hang for murder, lived in Kingsbury. * Charlie Watts, drummer of

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

, was raised in Kingsbury. * *

Julie Rogers Julie Rogers (born Julie Rolls, 6 April 1943, Bermondsey, London, England) is an English pop singer. She is best known for her multi-million selling song, " The Wedding". Career Rogers, the youngest of five children, had piano lessons and star ...

, singer, was educated and lived in Kingsbury. *

Shirley Eaton Shirley Jean Eaton (born 12 January 1937) is an English actress, author and singer. Eaton appeared regularly in British films throughout the 1950s and 1960s, and gained her highest profile for her iconic appearance as Bond Girl Jill Masterson in ...

, actress. *

Courtney Pine Courtney Pine, (born 18 March 1964), is a British jazz musician, who was the principal founder in the 1980s of the black British band the Jazz Warriors. Although known primarily for his saxophone playing, Pine is a multi-instrumentalist, also ...

, jazz musician, was raised in Kingsbury from age 14. *

Chris Squire Christopher Russell Edward Squire (4March 1948 – 27June 2015) was an English musician, singer and songwriter best known as the bassist and backing vocalist of the progressive rock band Yes. He was the longest-serving original member, having r ...

, bassist of Yes and

The Syn The Syn are an English band that were active from 1965 to 1967, and then reunited as a progressive rock band in 2004. The band was founded by Steve Nardelli, Chris Squire, Andrew Pryce Jackman, Martyn Adelman and John Painter. Chris Welch, in ...

, was born in Kingsbury. *

Steve Nardelli Stephen Louis Nardelli (born 10 April 1948 in London) founded the Syn in 1966 with Chris Squire, Martyn Adelman and others. In 1968, Nardelli left the band for a business career in the fashion and sports industries before reforming the band in 2 ...

, guitarist and vocalist wth

, went to Kingsbury County Grammar School. *

Tony Kanal Tony Ashwin Kanal (born 27 August 1970) is a British-American musician, record producer, songwriter, and animal rights activist. Kanal is the bassist and co-writer for the American rock bands No Doubt and Dreamcar. His musical work outside of t ...

, bassist of

No Doubt No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. For most of their career, the band has consisted of vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal, and drummer Adrian Young. Since the mid-1990s, the ...

, was raised in Kingsbury. *

Mutya Buena Rosa Isabel Mutya Buena (born 21 May 1985) is an English singer and songwriter who rose to fame as a member of girl group the Sugababes. With the Sugababes, Buena had four UK number one singles, an additional six top-ten hits and three multi-p ...

and

Keisha Buchanan Keisha Kerreece Fayeanne Buchanan (; born 30 September 1984) is an English singer and a founding member of the girl group Sugababes alongside Mutya Buena and Siobhán Donaghy. With the Sugababes, she had six number one singles and two number ...

, singer/songwriters,

Sugababes Sugababes are a British girl group composed of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan and Siobhán Donaghy. The lineup changed three times before returning to the original lineup in 2011. Formed in 1998 by All Saints manager Ron Tom, Sugababes releas ...

, born and raised in Kingsbury. *

Mick Tucker Michael Thomas Tucker (17 July 1947 – 14 February 2002) was an English musician, best known as the drummer and backing vocalist of the glam rock and hard rock band Sweet. Biography Mick Tucker was born on July 17, 1947, in Kingsbury, North ...

, drummer of

Sweet Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketone ...

, was born in Kingsbury *

Jet Harris Jet, Jets, or The Jet(s) may refer to: Aerospace * Jet aircraft, an aircraft propelled by jet engines ** Jet airliner ** Jet engine ** Jet fuel * Jet Airways, an Indian airline * Wind Jet (ICAO: JET), an Italian airline * Journey to Enceladus ...

, musician with

Tony Meehan Daniel Joseph Anthony Meehan (2 March 1943 – 28 November 2005), professionally known as Tony Meehan, was a founder member of the British group the Drifters, with Jet Harris, Hank Marvin and Bruce Welch, which would evolve into the Shadows. ...

and

The Shadows The Shadows (originally known as the Drifters) were an English instrumental rock group, who dominated the British popular music charts in the late 1950s and early 1960s, in the pre- Beatles era. They served as the backing band for Cliff Richard ...

, was born in Kingsbury. * Gary Waddock, former

Wycombe Wanderers Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They play their ho ...

manager, was born in Kingsbury. * Jasmyn Banks, actress, was educated in Kingsbury. * Stuart Pearce, footballer, raised in Kingsbury. * George Michael, singer and songwriter, was raised in Kingsbury. * Brian Michaels, theatre and opera director, was born and raised in Kingsbury. * Lorraine Silver, English singer known for her single "Lost Summer Love" (1965), which came to be regarded as a classic of Northern soul, went to Oliver Goldsmith Primary School.

Geography

Much of Kingsbury lies between and above sea level. A part at the foot of Fryent Country Park peaks at and the northern tip of Silver Jubilee Park peaks at an elevation of . Roe Green Garden Village is particularly steep; the area here peaks at an elevation of near the crossing of Buck Lane and Wakemans Hill Avenue.

Transport

Roads

Kingsbury Road A4006 is the largest road within the district. Fryent Way A4140 cuts through the country park and its southern section is Salmon Street. Church Lane (and Tudor Gardens) is the other main road. The A5 Edgware Road lies closely to the east and the A406

is also nearby to the south-east.

Buses

London Buses serving Kingsbury are:

Tube

Stations in the area are: * Kingsbury Station (

)

Local parks

* Barn Hill Open Space * Fryent Country Park * Kingsbury Green Recreation Ground * Roe Green Park * Silver Jubilee Park * Grove Park Open Space * Eton Grove Park

Schools

* Kingsbury High School *

Jewish Free School JFS (formerly known as the Jews' Free School and later Jewish Free School) is a Jewish mixed comprehensive school in Kenton, North London, England and was founded in 1732. Amongst its early supporters was the writer and philanthropist Charlot ...

(JFS) *Fryent Primary School *

Oliver Goldsmith Primary School Oliver may refer to: Arts, entertainment and literature Books * ''Oliver the Western Engine'', volume 24 in ''The Railway Series'' by Rev. W. Awdry * ''Oliver Twist'', a novel by Charles Dickens Fictional characters * Ariadne Oliver, ...

* Kingsbury Green Primary School * Roe Green Primary School * St Robert Southwell Primary School

References

External links

Kingsbury heritage

. Designed in the style of a fortified castle by local architect E. G. Trobridge

{{Authority control Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Brent Places formerly in Middlesex District centres of London