Enfield is a large town in north London, England, north of

Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Clockwise from north these are: the east side of Trafalgar Square leading to St Martin's Place and then Charing Cross Road; the Strand leading to the City; ...

. It had a population of 156,858 in 2018. It includes the areas of Botany Bay, Brimsdown,

Bulls Cross Bulls Cross is a road and hamlet in Enfield, England, on the outskirts of north London, forming part of the Metropolitan Green Belt. Although it now lies within the ceremonial county of Greater London, prior to 1965 it was in the historic ...

, Bullsmoor,

Bush Hill Park Bush Hill Park is an area of Enfield, located to the south-east of Enfield Town, on the outskirts of north London, and historically in Middlesex. Much of the district is a planned suburban estate, developed mainly in the late-19th and early-2 ...

, Clay Hill, Crews Hill, Enfield Highway, Enfield Lock, Enfield Town, Enfield Wash, Forty Hill,

Freezywater Freezywater is a neighbourhood of the traditional broad definition of Enfield, London, Enfield in the London Borough of Enfield, north London. It has a border with Hertfordshire. It is between Bullsmoor to the west, Enfield Lock to the east, Enfi ...

, Gordon Hill, Grange Park, Hadley Wood, Ponders End, and

World's End World's End or Worlds End may refer to: Arts and entertainment Literature Novels * ''World's End'' (Boyle novel), a 1987 novel by T. Coraghessan Boyle * ''World's End'' (Chadbourn novel), a 2000 novel by Mark Chadbourn * ''World's End'' (Sincl ...

. South of the

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

border and

M25 motorway The M25 or London Orbital Motorway is a major road encircling most of Greater London. The motorway is one of the most important roads in the UK and one of the busiest. Margaret Thatcher opened the final section in 1986, making the M25 the lon ...

, it borders

Waltham Cross Waltham Cross is a town in the Borough of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, England, located north of central London. In the south-eastern corner of Hertfordshire, it borders Cheshunt to the north, Waltham Abbey to the east, and Enfield to the south ...

to the north, Winchmore Hill and Edmonton to the south, Chingford and Waltham Abbey, across the

River Lea The River Lea ( ) is in South East England. It originates in Bedfordshire, in the Chiltern Hills, and flows southeast through Hertfordshire, along the Essex border and into Greater London, to meet the River Thames at Bow Creek. It is one of t ...

, to the east and north-east, with Cockfosters, Monken Hadley and Oakwood to the west. Historically 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 Edmonton Hundred of Middlesex, it was granted urban district status in 1894 and municipal borough status in 1955. In 1965, it merged with the municipal boroughs of Southgate and Edmonton to create the London Borough of Enfield, a local government district of

Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness, the state of being great *Greater than, in inequality (mathematics), inequality *Greater (film), ''Greater'' (film), a 2016 American film *Greater (flamingo), the oldest flamingo on record *Greater (song), "Greate ...

, of which Enfield is the

administrative centre An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

. Enfield Town, a market town chartered by

Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...

in 1303, is the commercial centre of Enfield and the location of

St Andrew's Enfield St Andrew's Enfield is a Church of England church in Enfield, London, and the original parish church of Enfield. It is a grade II* listed building with Historic England.parish church. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The east of Enfield, adjacent to the River Lea and

Lee Navigation The Lee Navigation is a canalised river incorporating the River Lea (also called the River Lee along the sections that are navigable). It flows from Hertford Castle Weir to the River Thames at Bow Creek; its first lock is Hertford Lock and it ...

, is renowned for its industrial heritage. The

Royal Small Arms Factory The Royal Small Arms Factory (RSAF) was a UK government-owned rifle factory in Enfield (though some parts were in Waltham Abbey), adjoining the Lee Navigation in the Lea Valley. The factory produced British military rifles, muskets and swords f ...

, at Enfield Lock, produced the famous

Enfield rifles Enfield may refer to: Places Australia * Enfield, New South Wales * Enfield, South Australia ** Electoral district of Enfield, a state electoral district in South Australia, corresponding to the suburb ** Enfield High School (South Australia) ...

. The

Brimsdown Industrial Estate Brimsdown Industrial Estate is located to the east of the residential part of Brimsdown in the London Borough of Enfield. The estate, which lies in the Lea Valley, is bordered to the west by the West Anglia Main Line portion of the Lea Valley Line ...

is home to heavy industry, warehousing and retail, and

Wright's Flour Mill Wright's Flour Mill is located in Wharf Road, Ponders End, Enfield. It is Enfield's oldest working industrial building. History Some of the present buildings date back to 1789 and include the brick Georgian miller's house and offices flanking ...

, at Ponders End, is Enfield's oldest running industrial building. Forty Hall, on the site of the Tudor Elsyng Palace, is in the north, with Enfield Chase, the former royal hunting ground, and

Chase Farm Hospital Chase Farm Hospital is a hospital in The Ridgeway, in Gordon Hill, Enfield, run by the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust. History The hospital has its origins in a Poor Law orphanage established in 1886. The oldest part of the hospital, ...

, in the west. The New River runs through Enfield from north to south, with the bypassed New River Loop encircling the town centre, through

Enfield Town Park Enfield Town Park is a 9.5-hectare park in the Enfield Town area of the London Borough of Enfield, first opened in 1902. The New River is present at the park but it has been cut off and straightened leaving the water motionless. References ...

History

St Andrew's Parish Church, Enfield Town - geograph

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

times, the

manor Manor may refer to: Land ownership *Manorialism or "manor system", the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of medieval Europe, notably England *Lord of the manor, the owner of an agreed area of land (or "manor") under manorialism *Man ...

of Enfield was held by Ansgar the Staller, a nobleman and

staller Staller is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Eric Staller (born 1947), American artist who uses light and architecture *George Staller (1916–1992), American outfielder, scout and coach in Major League Baseball *Ilona Staller (b ...

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066. Edward was the son of Æth ...

. The name 'Enfield' most likely came from

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

''Ēanafeld'' or similar, meaning "open land belonging to a man called Ēana". At the time of the Domesday Book in 1086, the manor of Enfield, spelt 'Enfelde', was the property of Geoffrey de Mandeville, a powerful Norman granted large estates by William the Conqueror. A priest is recorded in the Domesday Book as holding about 30 acres of land in Enfield, leading some to believe a priest may have ministered there at

St Andrew's Church ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

in this period, although the earliest written evidence of the parish church in Enfield was when the parish of Enfield, dedicated to St Andrew, and St Andrew's Church, was endowed to the monastery of

Walden Abbey Walden Abbey was a Benedictine monastery in Saffron Walden, Essex, England founded by Geoffrey de Mandeville, 1st Earl of Essex between 1136 and 1143. Originally a priory, it was elevated to the status of an abbey in 1190. Soon after its foundin ...

in Essex in 1136. In 1303, by

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...

Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of