The Chislehurst Guide - Introduction


   The Village
     Chislehurst is a unique village in southeast England. Firstly, it is 
     known as Chislehurst, Kent, and has a Kent postcode, so isn't 
     strictly speaking part of London. However, Chislehurst also has 
     London telephone numbers, and is in Greater London. It also 
     has the dubious honour of being "within the M25". 
     Chislehurst is lucky enough to have many green areas and ponds, 
     but also offers excellent transport links - by road and rail.

Royal Parade, and the village sign

The atmosphere is somewhat friendlier than neighbouring
London suburbs, and is less "anonymous", than the many
dreary side streets that make up parts of South London

The name "Chislehurst" is derived from the Saxon words "chisle"
which means gravel and "hurst" which means woodland and so
Chislehurst means 'gravel woodland'.

Chislehurst has been a desirable area for many centuries because
of its flint and extensive woodlands. The village is on Crown Land.
The high street was developed in the early 1800's. There have been
many royal connections over the centuries.

 The Village Sign 
  The Village sign, (see above), was produced in honour of Queen 
  Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953. It shows Thomas Walsingham, 
  the wealthy owner of the Scadbury  Estate in Chislehurst, being 
  knighted by Queen Elizabeth I.

  The Chislehurst Caves    
   The caves are a vast, ancient network of chalk-hewn passages 
   extending many miles underground, beyond Chislehurst, towards 
   Sidcup. During the war they provided a very important safe haven 
   from the bombs, and they sheltered several thousand people 
   throughout the war, many from London itself.Both    a hospital 
   and a chapel were constructed within the caves, and these 
   were fully utilised.

   It is believed that the caves were originally dug by the ancient Britons, 
   and subsequently expanded by the Romans and Saxons. Each of 
   these groups left their mark on the caves that they were responsible 
   for excavating. It is believed that the caves were used for ancient 
   religious ceremonies, some of which were sacrificial, by the Druids. 
   There are parts of the caves that are reputedly haunted.

   The most recent claim to fame for the caves was in the 1960's 
   when Status Quo, and later, Jimmy Hendrix hosted concerts in the
   caves, well known for their acoustic qualities. There was even an episode
   of "Doctor Who" filmed in the caves.  Pink Floyd performed a concert
   in the caves on December 8, 1967.  In the 1960's, several leading bands
   used the caves as a venue, and various events still take place in them 
   today. The caves are located by Chislehurst Station - easy to find 
   and well worth a visit.

  Napoleon III
   One of the more interesting historical facts that Chislehurst is noted for, 
  is its connections with Napoleon III and Empress Eugine, who were exiled 
  to Chislehurst, and made Camden Place their temporary residence. The 
  Emperor and Empress soon established a varied social life at Camden Place 
  and entertained much royalty and nobility there. The Emperor and Empress' 
  only child, Louis, Prince Imperial, was also residing in Chislehurst, although 
  he was stationed at the Royal Woolwich Military Academy as an officer 
  cadet in 1872. 
 
  In 1873, the Emperor, who had been ill for some time, died before Louis 
  was able to travel from the Military Academy to Chislehurst to see his 
  father for the last time.  Being a man of great importance the Emperor's 
  funeral was lavish, and the procession stretched from Camden Place across
  the common to St Nicholas Church. The Emperor's body was buried at St 
  Mary's Catholic Church. It was a great tragedy that Louis Prince Imperial 
  was to lie beside his father some years later, after being killed in South 
  Africa at the Umbanzi River, after his party were ambushed by Zulu warriers.

His body was taken back to Chislehurst in state, where his funeral cortege 
was even more grand than that of his father's. The Empress had the Mortuary
   Chapel built as an addition to St Mary's Church specifically to house the remains
of her husband and son. Their bodies were later moved to Farnborough, Hants.
   A marble memorial slab set into the floor of the church reminds visitors of its 
  illustrious past, and a stone memorial cross located in Prince Imperial Road 
  (aptly named) commemorates Louis' death at the hands of the Zulus in South Africa.
  
More local history

Click on the above image for pictures taken inside
the caves, and information on their use by the BBC
for the Sci-fi series 'Dr Who'