St Margarets is a suburb and neighbourhood in the

London Borough of Richmond upon Thames The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames () in southwest London forms part of Outer London and is the only London borough on both sides of the River Thames. It was created in 1965 when three smaller council areas amalgamated under the London ...

, about west-southwest of

central London Central London is the innermost part of London, in England, spanning several boroughs. Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define the scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local government. Its characteris ...

. It is bounded by the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

Tideway The Tideway is a part of the River Thames in England which is subject to tides. This stretch of water is downstream from Teddington Lock. The Tideway comprises the upper Thames Estuary including the Pool of London. Tidal activity Depending on ...

to the north-east, and the River Crane to the north-west and north where the land tapers between these rivers. Land and buildings closer to Richmond Bridge than the eponymous railway station are, traditionally distinctly, known as East Twickenham. Both places go by their post town and traditional parish, Twickenham quite often; in the 19th century the south of St Margarets was marked on maps as

Twickenham Park Twickenham Park was an estate in Twickenham in south-west London. History The New Park of Richmond, later called Twickenham Park, passed to Edward Bacon in 1574 and to the English philosopher, Francis Bacon, in 1593. In 1608 the property passed ...

. The area hosts a house that J. M. W. Turner saw built during his painting career and St Margarets railway station is within of

Marble Hill House Marble Hill House is a Neo-Palladian villa, now Grade I listed, in Twickenham in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It was built between 1724 and 1729 as the home of Henrietta Howard, Countess of Suffolk, who lived there until her ...

. Uniquely in London among the few places prefixed ''Saint'' it is named after a house. Specifically it is named after a large house together with appurtenant land of an 18th century Scottish-English aristocrat, rather than a church which began in 1930.

History

The place hosted, in the south-east, remnants of the site of an encampment of the barons and their men in 1261. This refers to a minor civil war of the last three weeks of June or so – a power struggle between the crown (ministry of

Henry III of England Henry III (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272), also known as Henry of Winchester, was King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Aquitaine from 1216 until his death in 1272. The son of King John and Isabella of Angoulême, Henry a ...

) and the aristocracy, a few uprisings later cemented into constitutional change led by de Montford. The net result of the uprisings was a settled parliamentary system enabling limits to the monarch's powers to tax and departure from such edicts as the

Provisions of Oxford The Provisions of Oxford were constitutional reforms developed during the Oxford Parliament of 1258 to resolve a dispute between King Henry III of England and his barons. The reforms were designed to ensure the king adhered to the rule of law and ...

and

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

. takes its name from the former Saint Margaret's House, the second guise of which stood from 1827 to 1853. It was the country house of

Archibald Kennedy, 1st Marquess of Ailsa Archibald Kennedy, 1st Marquess of Ailsa KT, FRS (February 1770 – 8 September 1846), styled Lord Kennedy between 1792 and 1794 and known as the Earl of Cassilis between 1794 and 1831, was a Scottish peer. Early life Kennedy was the eldest so ...

(12th Earl of Cassilis), and for a few final decades became the home of the

Earl of Kilmorey Earl of Kilmorey () is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1822 for Francis Needham, 12th Viscount Kilmorey, a General in the British Army and former Member of Parliament for Newry. He was made Viscount Newry and Mourne, in th ...

. Their names can be found in such streets as Kilmorey Gardens and Ailsa Road. Victorian and Edwardian houses dominate the housing stock. In 1854 the St Margaret's Estate was laid out for building family houses, becoming one of the first garden suburbs. Today's developed suburb dates from the arrival of the railway. The new railway station was preliminarily "Ailsa Crossing" as it passed through the estate, but it became "St Margarets" before opening. A memorial was unveiled in April 2017 to the 6000 Belgian refugees many of the adults of whom lived and worked locally during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It is on the west bank of the Thames at Warren Gardens, next to the site of the Pelabon Munitions Works.

Annual events

St Margarets Fair is held each July in Moormead Park by the River Crane, a channel from its larger stream, on the western limits.

Buildings

In 1814 the painter J. M. W. Turner had built Solus Lodge in Sandycoombe Road. The house survives as

Sandycombe Lodge Sandycombe Lodge is a Grade II* listed house at 40 Sandycoombe Road, Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. In the picturesque-cottage style, it was designed and built in 1813 by the artist J. M. W. Turner (1775–1851) as hi ...

. ''Gordon House'' is a

Grade II-listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Georgian mansion on the river Thames at St Margarets. Like St Margaret's House it was owned by Lord Kilmorey. The house has a

Robert Adam Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his o ...

wing, added in 1738. For many years, it was used as part of

Brunel University Brunel University London is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian engineer and pioneer of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. In June 1 ...

. In recent years the house has been redeveloped by Octagon Developments, with the former chapel and coachhouse converted to private homes. The

Kilmorey Mausoleum The Kilmorey Mausoleum, in St Margarets in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is a Grade II* listed mausoleum in the style of an ancient Egyptian monument and has been described as a "fine example of an Egyptian-style mausoleum, wit ...

has been moved several times, and is now on the northern edge of St Margarets. It was built in the 1850s by the 2nd Earl of Kilmorey and contains the bodies of the Earl and his mistress, Priscilla Anne Hoste. Now a Grade II* listed building, it was built to resemble an ancient Egyptian monument. It is jointly maintained by

Richmond upon Thames Council Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in London, the United Kingdom capital. Richmond upon Thames is ...

and

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

. The mausoleum is occasionally open to the public. The

Roman Catholic 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 ...

Church of St Margaret of Scotland on St Margarets Road was built to a modern design of the

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Austin Winckley and opened in 1969. In 1999 it became a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. Its forerunner stood on site from 1938, after the relevant mission begun in an adjoining house in 1930. Twickenham and Isleworth as broad encompassing areas have had no other churches named after the saint. In Anglicanism, two late-19th-century-founded Anglican church parishes serve the area. The place represents the north-west third of Saint Stephen's and the eastern two-fifths of All Souls, if the Crane is taken as the northern limit.

Education

There are three main schools nearby, in Twickenham:

Orleans Park School Orleans Park School is a coeducational secondary school with academy status, located in Twickenham area of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. It is situated 10 miles south-west of central London. Performance As with other s ...

(secondary), St. Stephen's Primary School (primary) an
Orleans Primary School
(primary).

Local commerce and townscape

Two main streets have a range of shops, cafés and bars/pubs serving food.

Twickenham Studios Twickenham Studios (formerly known as Twickenham Film Studios) is a film studio in St Margarets, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, that is used by various motion picture and television companies. It was established in 1913 by Ralph ...

are at the heart of the village and have recently announced plans to expand their presence in St Margarets. The high street has well-frequented local, independent businesses. Most roads are residential, some of which tree-lined. The most common house type is semi-detached; some detached, mainly those of three or four storeys have been subdivided. To the east of the "village" is the relatively verdant-setting houses and many classical flats (apartment buildings) of

Neighbouring areas

Direct neighbours comprise: *East Twickenham/Cambridge Park to the south-east. *

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

across the river to the east (accessible across Twickenham Bridge, Richmond Bridge and Richmond Lock Footbridge) *

Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...

from the west through to the south. *

Old Isleworth Isleworth ( ) is a town located within the London Borough of Hounslow in West London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane. Isleworth's original area of settl ...

and the Ivybridge estate,

Isleworth Isleworth ( ) is a town located within the London Borough of Hounslow in West London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane, London, River Crane. Isleworth's or ...

is to the north and northwest in the adjoining

London Borough of Hounslow The London Borough of Hounslow () is a London borough in West London, England, forming part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 when three smaller borough councils (forming part of the former Middlesex County Council area) amalgamated under ...

. Between Richmond Lock and

Kew Bridge Kew Bridge is a wide-span bridge over the Tideway (upper estuary of the Thames) linking the London Boroughs of Richmond upon Thames and Hounslow. The present bridge, which was opened in 1903 as King Edward VII Bridge by King Edward VII and Quee ...

is the first reach of the Thames proceeding upstream out of Central London with green, wooded expanses on both sides:

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanical garden, botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botany, botanical and mycology, mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1840, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its li ...

, associated golf course, and

Syon Park Syon Park is the garden of Syon House, the London home of the Duke of Northumberland in Isleworth in the London Borough of Hounslow. It was landscaped by Capability Brown in the 18th century, and it is Grade I listed by English Heritage under ...

which are all lightly wooded.

and Marble Hill Park are immediately to the south.

Transport

Road

In modern station-centric terms St Margarets is quite narrowly cut through, as to about , by the busy Chertsey Road (

A316 The A316, known in parts as the Great Chertsey Road, is a major road in England, which runs from the A315 Chiswick High Road, Turnham Green, Chiswick to join head-on the M3 motorway at Sunbury-on-Thames. Its initial London section Chiswick L ...

), which connects

to the M3 motorway. Much of south St Margarets is in a

controlled parking zone A Controlled Parking Zone or CPZ is a specific type of parking restriction used in the United Kingdom that may be applied to a group of roads within the zone. The intended purpose of a CPZ is to reduce the clutter that can arise from erecting sev ...

(CPZ), which restricts parking to residents and holders of vouchers.map of CPZ in south St Margarets
Author: London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

Rail

The normal service from St Margarets station is four stopping-service trains per hour to and from Waterloo. Both Richmond and Twickenham stations are a short bus journey from most parts of the suburb and have status as major stops on the transport network – meaning semi-fast and somewhat fast services call at those stations.

Bus

Two bus routes run through St Margarets: the

110 110 may refer to: *110 (number), natural number *AD 110, a year *110 BC, a year *110 film, a cartridge-based film format used in still photography *110 (MBTA bus), Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority bus route *110 (song), 2019 song by Capi ...

(

Hounslow Hounslow () is a large suburban district of West London, west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hounslow, and is identified in the London Plan as one of the 12 metropolitan centres in Gr ...

–

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. ...

) and the H37 (

–

). Other nearby bus routes are 33, R68, R70 and 490 coming from central Twickenham along Richmond Road; all of these, except 33, go past Richmond station.

Notable inhabitants

Living people

Historical figures

Footnotes and references

Footnotes

Citations

External links

St Margarets Community Website

St Margarets Fair

Turner's House Twickenham

Marble Hill House Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Margarets Areas of London Districts of London on the River Thames Districts of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Places formerly in Middlesex St Margarets, London Twickenham