Maryon Park is an
urban
Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to:
* Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas
* Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities
Urban may also refer to:
General
* Urban (name), a list of people ...
public park
An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to re ...
located in
Charlton in the
Royal Borough of Greenwich
The Royal Borough of Greenwich (, , or ) is a London borough in southeast Greater London. The London Borough of Greenwich was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. The new borough covered the former area of the Metropolitan Borough ...
. It is situated on the
A206
List of A roads in zone 2 in Great Britain starting south of the River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the ...
south of the
Thames Barrier
The Thames Barrier is a retractable Flood barrier, barrier system built to protect the floodplain of most of Greater London from exceptionally high tides and storm surges moving up from the North Sea. It has been operational since 1982. When n ...
. There is access from Woolwich Road, Charlton Lane and Thorntree Road. It is part of the Maryon Wilson Park and
Gilbert's Pit
Gilbert's Pit is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Charlton in the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It was notified in 1985 and was formerly known as Charlton Sand Pit. It is a Geological Conservation Review site. It is also part ...
Local Nature Reserve.
History
Charlton sandpits, which were originally part of an area known as
Hanging Wood, were presented to the
London County Council
London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...
in 1891 by the
Maryon-Wilson family, and one of the pits became Maryon Park.
Another pit became
Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
's football ground,
The Valley.
The park was originally wooded and, together with what is now
Maryon Wilson Park, was known as Hanging Woods.
This was a wild wooded area and formed an ideal retreat for
highwaymen
A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to fo ...
who robbed travellers on
Shooters Hill
Shooter's Hill (or Shooters Hill) is a district in South East London within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It borders the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north of Eltham and south of Woolwich. With a height of , it is the highest point in t ...
and
Blackheath Blackheath may refer to:
Places England
*Blackheath, London, England
** Blackheath railway station
**Hundred of Blackheath, Kent, an ancient hundred in the north west of the county of Kent, England
*Blackheath, Surrey, England
** Hundred of Blackh ...
. Though it is popularly supposed that the wood was used for hanging those who were caught, a more likely explanation for the name is the wood's location on steep slopes so that the trees appear to hang from the slope. Such woods are often referred to as 'hanging woods'
(the word 'hang' comes from the Old English 'hangra', a wooded slope).
The park was opened in 1891, with
JJ Sexby
John James Sexby VD (known as JJ Sexby) (15 July 1847 – 10 May 1924) was a British civil servant who served as the first Chief Officer for Parks for the London County Council from 1892 to 1909, and was responsible for the creation of many of Lo ...
, then chief surveyor to LCC's parks department, designing serpentine paths around the slopes of the hill.
Flora
The park contains grassland, with
hawkweed
''Hieracium'' (),
known by the common name hawkweed and classically as (from ancient Greek ιεράξ, 'hawk'),
is a genus of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, and closely related to dandelion (''Taraxacum''), chicory ('' Cichorium'') ...
,
gorse
''Ulex'' (commonly known as gorse, furze, or whin) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. The genus comprises about 20 species of thorny evergreen shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae. The species are n ...
and
broom
A broom (also known in some forms as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. I ...
.
Attractions and facilities
The park includes Cox's Mount, which was used by the
Romans
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
as a
hill fort
A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...
, which was discovered in 1915.
In the 1850s, Cox's Mount was used to help ships on the nearby
River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...
adjust their compasses.
The park has hard
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
courts, a
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
court and a children's play area. The
Capital Ring
The Capital Ring is a strategic walking route promoted by London's 33 local councils, led by the City of London Corporation in partnership with the Greater London Authority and its functional body for regional transport, Transport for London, ...
walk and the
Green Chain Walk
The South East London Green Chain, also known as the Green Chain Walk, is a linked system of open spaces between the River Thames and Crystal Palace Park in London, England. In 1977 four London boroughs and the Greater London Council created ...
both pass through the park.
Nearby attractions
Adjacent to the park to the south is
Gilbert's Pit
Gilbert's Pit is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Charlton in the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It was notified in 1985 and was formerly known as Charlton Sand Pit. It is a Geological Conservation Review site. It is also part ...
, a
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...
.
Natural England Citation, Gilbert's Pit (Charlton)
The similarly named Maryon Wilson Park is located south of Gilbert's Pit.
In popular culture
Although it was not identified by name, the park was the filming location of key scenes in ''Blowup
''Blowup'' (sometimes styled as ''Blow-up'' or ''Blow Up'') is a 1966 mystery drama thriller film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and produced by Carlo Ponti. It was Antonioni's first entirely English-language film, and stars David Hemming ...
'' (1966), a drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...
mystery
Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters
*Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange''
Films
* ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film
* ''Mystery'' ( ...
-thriller film
Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre ...
directed by Michelangelo Antonioni
Michelangelo Antonioni (, ; 29 September 1912 – 30 July 2007) was an Italian filmmaker. He is best known for directing his "trilogy on modernity and its discontents"—''L'Avventura'' (1960), ''La Notte'' (1961), and ''L'Eclisse'' (1962 ...
and starring David Hemmings
David Edward Leslie Hemmings (18 November 1941 – 3 December 2003) was an English actor and director. He is best remembered for his roles in British films and television programmes of the 1960s and 1970s, particularly the 1966 mystery film ' ...
, Sarah Miles
Sarah Miles (born 31 December 1941) is an English actress. She is known for her roles in films ''The Servant'' (1963), ''Blowup'' (1966), ''Ryan's Daughter'' (1970), ''The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing'' (1973), '' White Mischief'' (1987) and '' Ho ...
and Vanessa Redgrave
Dame Vanessa Redgrave (born 30 January 1937) is an English actress and activist. Throughout her career spanning over seven decades, Redgrave has garnered numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Television Award, two ...
. The park is little changed since the making of the film.
The park also makes an appearance in the rarely seen promotional video for the Stranglers single Walk on By.
References
External links
*Database
In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases sp ...
(undated)
"Marion Park"
Descriptive page on Maryon Park a
greenwich.gov.uk
the Greenwich London Borough Council
Greenwich London Borough Council is the local authority for the Royal Borough of Greenwich in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. Greenwich is divided into 23 wards, electing ...
's official website. Retrieved 22 February 2011.
Greenwich Guide — Charlton's Parks
Friends of Maryon and Maryon Wilson Park
Where Did They Film That? — Location Information
{{LNRs in Greater London
Parks and open spaces in the Royal Borough of Greenwich
Charlton, London
Local nature reserves in Greater London