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Coordinates: 51°25'44?N 0°32'52?W? / ?51.4289, -0.5479
Egham is a small town in the Runnymede borough of Surrey, in the south-east of England. Forming part of the London commuter belt, it is situated 20 miles (32.2 km) southwest of central London on both the River Thames and Junction 13 of the M25 motorway.
Egham town has a population of 5,724[1] and contiguous Egham Hythe has a population of 6,345.[2]
On 12 September 2007 a suspected case of foot-and-mouth disease was found in Egham, 12 miles (19 km) from the previous outbreak found in early August 2007.[3]
[edit] History
Egham predates 666 which was when Chertsey Abbey was founded with lands which included that of Ecga's Ham, from which the name Egham derives.
Egham appears in Domesday Book of 1086 as Egeham. It was held by Chertsey Abbey. Its domesday assets were: 15 hides; 12 ploughs, 120 acres of meadow, woodland, herbage and pannage worth 75 hogs. It rendered £30 10s 0d. [4]
The village of Egham was previously an ancient parish covering land totalling 7,435 acres (30 km²) in the counties of Berkshire and Surrey; incorporating Egham, Egham Hill, Coopers Hill, Englefield Green, Virginia Water, Shrubs Hill, Runnymede, Egham Hythe, and a considerable portion of Windsor Great Park.[5]
The manor of Egham, which includes Runnymede belonged formerly, and in 1215, to Chertsey Abbey, and after the dissolution (around 1540) became the property of the Crown, though granted to various tenants (holders) at different times.[6]
The Magna Carta was sealed at nearby Runnymede in 1215, and is commemorated by a memorial, built in 1957 by the American Bar Association, at the foot of Cooper's Hill (a small rise adjacent to the Thames floodplain, immortalised in verse by such luminaries as John Denham ('Cooper's Hill') and Alexander Pope ('Windsor Forest')).
There is also another, more sizeable memorial at the top of the hill (technically located in the nearby village of Englefield Green) that commemorates Allied airmen, whose bodies were never recovered, killed whilst serving with Commonwealth forces in World War II. This structure is of particular architectural interest as the first new-built British building to be listed in the post-war era. The memorial (administered by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission) is freely open to the public year-round and offers excellent views towards London, Windsor and the Surrey Hills, as well as being a place of quiet contemplation and reflection.
Egham at one time held horse races which took place at the Runnymede meadow, which interfered with the Inclosure Act of 1814 (54 G. III, c. 153), and the consequent award made in 1817, which divided up the meadow, as the Act stipulated that any enclosures which should interfere with the holding of Egham races at the end of August upon on its usual course must be removed every year. In 1836 the races was presided over by William IV, who gave a plate to be run for at the meeting, which coincided with festivities at Windsor for his daughter's marriage. The races ceased in 1884.[6]
The principal properties were 'Egham Park', and 'Egham Wick'.[7]
There is a grave in Egham Churchyard where the coffin is suspended on chains as a result of a strange will in which the deceased said that he did not want to be buried or remain above the ground after death. The strange solution enabled his family to inherit.
[edit] Governance
Egham once lay within the Godley hundred, which for a time may have been external to the historic county boundaries of Surrey.
Egham Rural District was a Local Government District within the administrative county of Surrey. It was created in 1894 and replaced in 1906 with Egham Urban District, which was later abolished in 1974. Since 1974, Egham has lain within the Runnymede borough of Surrey.
[edit] Geography
Egham's neighbouring towns are Staines, Sunningdale, Englefield Green and Virginia Water. Windsor Great Park and the towns of Old Windsor and Windsor are a few kilometres to the northwest.
The area between Egham and Staines town centres is known as Egham Hythe.
Just to the north of Egham is Wraysbury, home of the British Disabled Waterski Association. Just to the South is Thorpe Park, a large theme park of rides and attractions.
[edit] Economy
Egham is home to a large research centre for Procter & Gamble on a site called Rusham Park Technical Centre (formally owned by Shell oils). P&G has over 550 employees in Egham, working on Fine Fragrance, Beauty Care and Health Care brands, such as Hugo Boss, Olay, and Vicks. Other notable employers include Research in Motion (makers of BlackBerry) and the Runnymede Hotel & Spa.
Egham and near by towns are full of connections with prestige sports cars. Egham has been Ferrari's spiritual home in the United Kingdom located in the listed Tower Garage. Lagonda Cars were based at Egham Hythe where Sainsbury's is now located.
[edit] Transport
Egham railway station is situated on the railway lines from Waterloo in London to Reading and Weybridge. Passenger services are operated by South West Trains. Several bus routes connect the town and Royal Holloway to Staines and nearby London Heathrow Airport. Junction 13 of the M25 motorway is nearby.
[edit] Education
Strode's College is an institution in Egham dating back to 1704 and was a grammar school before being designated a sixth form college in 1975.
Royal Holloway, University of London is a college of the University of London located between Egham and Englefield Green, and caters for about 8000 students.
The Magna Carta School, formerly Egham County Secondary, is in Egham Hythe.
[edit] Notable people
Various notable people were born in the town including: Frederick James Furnivall in 1825, he was one of the co-creators of the Oxford English Dictionary and Hugh Reginald Haweis, the cleric and writer, in 1838.
John Denham (poet) wrote poetry about the town in the 17th century. The provisions merchant Edward Budgen resided in the town in the 20th century.[8]
[edit] References
- , Census data Egham Town
- , Census data Egham Hythe
- , Suspected case of foot-and-mouth, BBC News, 12 September 2007
- , Surrey Domesday Book
- , John Marius Wilson, depiction of Egham in the Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72)
- , a b H.E. MALDEN, M.A. Magna Carta Commemoration Essays, 1917
- , 1887, John Bartholomew's Gazetteer of the British Isles
- , St Paul's church
[edit] External links
(Source: Wikipedia) |