Battersea Park - History

History

Prior to 1846 the area now covered by the park was known as Battersea fields, and was once a popular spot for duelling. On March 21, 1829, the Duke of Wellington and the Earl of Winchilsea met on Battersea fields to settle a matter of honour. When it came time to fire, the Duke deliberately aimed his duelling pistol wide and Winchilsea fired his into the air. Winchilsea later wrote the Duke a groveling apology.

Separated from the river by a narrow raised causeway, the fields consisted of low, but fertile, marshes intersected by streams and ditches where the chief crops were carrots, melons, lavender (all the way up to Lavender Hill) and the famous ‘Battersea Bunches’ of asparagus. These crops served the London markets.

Running along the riverside from the fields were industrial concerns and wharfs, including a pottery, copper works, lime kiln, chemical works, and, increasingly, the new railways. The site of Battersea Power Station was partly occupied by the famously bawdy Red House Tavern, patronised by Charles Dickens. Access was via the rickety wooden Battersea Bridge or, more directly, by ferry direct from the Chelsea bank.

In 1845, spurred partly by the local vicar and partly by Thomas Cubitt, the builder and developer, whose yards were located across the river in the still marshy and undeveloped area of Pimlico, an application was made to Parliament for a Bill to form a Royal Park of 320 acres. The Act was passed in 1846 and £200,000 was promised for the purchase of the land.

And so the Commission for Improving the Metropolis acquired 320 acres of Battersea Fields, 198 acres went on to become Battersea Park, which was opened in 1858 and the remainder of the land was to be let on building leases.

Original designs for the park were laid out by Sir James Pennethorne between 1846 and 1864, although the park as opened in 1858 varied somewhat from Pennethorne's vision.

The park’s success depended entirely on the successful completion of the new Chelsea Bridge, in 1858 Queen Victoria declared the newly-completed Bridge open. In her honour, the road alongside the eastern edge of the Park was called Victoria Road, and was linked to Queens Road by Victoria Circus (now the Queenstown Roundabout). Prince of Wales Road (now Prince of Wales Drive, London) was laid out along the southern boundary of the Park and Albert Bridge Road was constructed along the western side.

Battersea Park hosted the first football game played under the rules of the recently formed Football Association on 9 January 1864. The members of the opposing teams were chosen by the President of the FA (A. Pember) and the Secretary (E.C. Morley) and included many well-known footballers of the day.

From the 1860s, Battersea Park was home to the leading amateur football team Wanderers F.C., winners of the first-ever FA Cup in 1872. One team they are known to have played against at Battersea was Sheffield F.C. in the 1860s. The Wanderers are planning to reform, although it is unknown whether Battersea Park will be used as their home ground again.