Hampstead Heath is less than four miles from the centre of London. It covers over eight hundred acres and has some of the best views over the city. Since the railway opened Londoners have been coming to the heath to swim, fish, picnic and fly kites. However the heath was nearly lost.
During the 19th century there was a long battle to protect one of the last remaining “lungs of London.” The villain of the piece was Sir Thomas Maryon Wilson who inherited most of the heath from his father in 1821. He spent many years trying unsuccessfully to overturn a clause in his father’s will which prevented him granting leases of more than 21 years on any property. He even built a viaduct to make a road to a planned estate of houses. Eventually he admitted defeat and instead planted trees for timber and dug huge pits to extract the sand and clay for building.
It is ironic that a lot of the charm of the Heath today is provided by the many ponds and woods that his destruction created. After his death his brother sold much of his estate to the metropolitan board of works and it was confirmed as a public space. During the first and second world wars more sand was taken to make the sand bags which helped protect London.
Hampstead Heath Walk
After months of lockdown we are excited to be able to explore again. Twenty members of our walking group group met at Hampstead railway station wearing our walking boots and ready to discover more about the history of the Heath. I was able to stay with my son Richard who lives in London and he joined me on the walk. He has been swimming in one of the ponds. By the end of the day my Fitbit told me I had walked ten miles and I was exhausted.
London is pretty flat and as the weather has been dry it was very easy walking. I was suprised by the number of parakeets. The trees were starting to change colour.
Hampstead Heath has almost twenty small lakes, known as ponds. The most famous are probably the ladies and mens swimming ponds. There is also a pond for mixed bathing. Even in October they were still being used by some intrepid swimmers.
Hampstead and Highgate
Hampstead and Highgate on the edges of the heath were originally small villages. They grew rapidly after the plague and the great fire of London as people who could afford to do so moved out of central London.
Hampstead still feels like a village with narrow streets and independent shops. It attracted many famous painters and writers including John Constable and Keats. The large houses are now home to many millionaires. A quick look in an estate agents window will show how wealthy some of the locals are. Boy George lives in a beautiful gothic revival house overlooking the heath which is on the market for seventeen million pounds.
Karl Marx is buried buried in High Gate cemetery.
Kenwood House
We stopped for a lunch time coffee break at Kenwood House.
The house which was partially remodelled by Robert Adams was given to the nation by Edward Guinness the brewing magnate. It is managed by English heritage and has a very impressive art collection which is free to visit. It has works by artists such as Rembrandt, Gainsborough, Turner and Constable. The 112 acres of Parkland were designed by Humphrey Repton.
One painting depicts, two young ladies, one black , one white. They were the great nieces of a previous owner, Lord Mansfield and his wife Elizabeth. Lord Mansfield was Lord Chief justice and his great nieces were Elizabeth Murray and Dido Elizabeth Bell. Dido was the illegitimate daughter of a formerly enslaved back woman and his nephew a sea captain. It was extremely unusual for a mixed race child to be raised as part of an aristocratic family at that time.
The Pergola
The Pergola is one of the hidden delights of Hampstead heath. it was built by William H. Lever, later Lord Lever Hulme and is part of a beautiful landscape garden. It is free to enter and when we were there several couples were taking wedding photos.
Parliament Hill
Parliament Hill which forms part of Hampstead Heath provides some of the best views over London. It is said that in 1605 some of the gunpowder plot conspirators stood on the hill waiting for the houses of parliament to blow up. It is still a popular spot to watch the fireworks on bonfire night .
One response to “An autumn walk on Hampstead Heath”
I love autumn walks, and when there are walks for a cause that is even better!