The first section of the walk starts at Wraysbury station. It is 13.15 miles and takes in Wraysbury, Ankerwycke, Church Lammas, St Mary's Church, Duncroft Manor, Staines Moor, central Staines-upon-Thames, Staines riverside, The Hythe, Thames Path, Runnymede, Old Windsor and Datchet.

For a map of section 1 visit MapMyWalk. The map can be downloaded as a GPX or KML file.

If you just want to print out the "Route Instructions" of section 1 of this walk, without all the blurb on the website, you can download this as a Word Doc by clicking on the blue button below.

Start at Wraysbury Train Station.. Grid Ref: TQ 01375 74233  Postcode TW19 5NJ  See Map of start. 

Follow the service road up to Station Road, then stay left towards Wraysbury village. After a short distance, turn left into Tithe Lane. This soon becomes a path between houses and an old gravel pit, now lake.

The path comes out through a metal stile onto the High Street just opposite the Baptist Church. Turn right and immediately after The Perseverance pub, turn left into The Green. The road soon narrows to cross a footbridge next to a pond and emerges onto The Green. To the left is the Wraysbury Bowls Club and behind that is the windmill.

The Green comes out onto Windsor Road with the large Edwardian house, "The Grange", opposite. Turn right past the George Inn.

The 17th century George Inn was once notorious as the venue of illegal boxing matches. Its close proximity to the county border made it easy for the contestants and spectators to escape from the local authorities. The pub website states Henry Cooper trained there.

Turn left into St Andrews Close and follow it to the lychgate of the church. Go straight through the gate, follow the path around to the back of the church and then turn left to a metal kissing gate and out onto a field.

Records of Wraysbury exist since Saxon Times. However, a find in 2013, just north of the station, at Kingsmead Quarry unveiled four Neolithic houses. This is one of the earliest settlements ever found in England. During Saxon Times, Wraysbury was just across the River Thames from the Royal town of Kingsbury (now Old Windsor). Old Windsor had its royal palace and was home to Saxon kings and their court for over 300 years after 750 AD. There was at least one ferry and this area was used as a royal hunting ground. To supplement the hunt, servant and nobles lived here at the time. The last known recording of Wraysbury, during this era was in 1041 when it owned by Edward the Confessor and held by a thegn named Edmund.

After the Norman Conquest, William the Conqueror gave the Manor of Wraysbury to a relative named Robert Gernon. The Domesday Survey of 1086 reads:

"In Stoke Hundred M. Robert Gernon holds Wirecesberie . It is assessed at Twenty hides. There is land for 25 ploughs. In the Demesne there are 5 hides and on it are 2 ploughs and 32 villeins with 8 bordars have 15 ploughs and there could be 8 ploughs more. There are 7 serfs and 2 mills worth 40 shillings yearly, meadow sufficient for 5 plough teams and hay for the beasts of the Court. Woodland to feed 500 swine and 4 fisheries in the Thames worth 27 shillings all but 4 pence. In all it was and is worth 20 pounds."

At the time of Magna Carta (1215), the Manor of Wraysbury was held by Richard de Montfichet, a servant of Richard the Lionheart and one of the twenty-five barons chosen to enforce Magna Carta.

St Andrews Church dates back to before Magna Carta. In 2012 the church celebrated its 900th anniversary. However, what we see today dates back to the early 13th century, with major additions made in the 15th and 19th centuries.

When Wraysbury was used as a royal hunting ground the land would have been flat and lush. There would have been forest and floodplain. The only water would have been that of the River Thames, its tributaries and the fish ponds. Since then the village has grown greatly and is served by a train station, giving easy access to London. The geology means the area is rich in sand and gravel and over the last 100 years this has been extensively extracted to provide building materials for roads and buildings. Today, extraction is much lower, the holes left in the ground have now filled up with water and provide lakes for boating, fishing and as places where wildlife can thrive. There is the large Queen Mother Reservoir to the north and the Wraysbury Reservoir to the east, both providing fresh water to London and the surround areas. Just a short distance away is the UK's largest airport at Heathrow. The land to the west and the south, apart from a few desirable dwelling, is still flat fields and has been mostly left untouched and forms a floodplain for the Thames. Almost half of the parish is now covered by water and any royal wishing to hunt her now, would need a boat.

Just upstream from Wraysbury, at Datchet, is where the Jubilee River re-enters the Thames after its 7.2 miles journey from Maidenhead. It was built in the late 1990's and early 2000's at a cost of £110 million and opened in 2002. Its purpose is to stop flooding in Maidenhead, Windsor and Eton. However, Maidenhead did flood in 2007 and 2014, the old part of Windsor is on a hill above the river and if that flooded we'd be in big trouble. In most ways it does protect Eton College, the school founded by Henry VI in 1440 to provide education for 70 poor boys who would then go on to Kings College at Oxford. However, in 2014 the severity of the floods did have consequences for Eton's playing fields. It's ironic to think that the Duke of Wellington is often quoted as saying “The Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing-fields of Eton”.

The Jubilee River is beautiful. It's as wide as the River Thames and more peaceful. There are no boats, no houses and no locks along it. There are many footpaths, interesting footbridges, it's a great habitat for wildlife and it forms a beautiful park. We'll be there later in this walk.

Although the Jubilee River gives protection to certain places along the River Thames, it also has consequences for others downstream. Wraysbury was to be one of these in 2014. Major flooding throughout southern England, and along the Thames, saw the Jubilee River put to full use. The consequences were devastating for Wraysbury. With two rivers in flood and taking out the use of flood-plains between Maidenhead and Datchet, Wraysbury (and other places) suffered greatly. The whole village went under water, yet the Government were very slow to act. The Saxon kings, or Norman followers never recorded such floods, and the Irish “Iron Duke” never spoke about wearing his wellingtons on the playing fields at Eton.

To see a news report of the flooding at Wraysbury, dated 10 February 2014, visit the link to Channel 4 News.

The path leaves St Andrew's churchyard through a metal kissing-gate and veers slightly right across a field to a tree. Stay to the right of the tree, along the treeline and follow the marked path across fields, eventually to a kissing gate out onto a lane.

Turn left to cross Magna Carta Lane and go through a kissing gate next to a wooden gate. and follow the trodden path across the field. – away to the right through the trees is Magna Carta Island.

We'll pass Magna Carta Island later in this section as we walk along the Thames Path through Runnymede. The island and property on it were up for sale in 2014 and the seller, Sotheby's Reality London, produced a video about the island which you can watch by visiting YouTube.

At the opposite side of the field, go over a bridge (through an opening), then veer left to a wooden kissing gate. Go through the gate and turn right along an tree-lined track. After 60 yards the Ankerwycke Yew is to your left and shortly after this, to the right are the ruins St Mary's Priory.

Although not obvious, you are now on Ankerwycke Island. The island and some of the area around was acquired by the National Trust in 1998 and is now listed at National Trust with it's sister site across the River Thames at Runnymede which we shall visit later. This is a lot less accessible than Runnymede and is a peaceful place with lots of wildlife and carpeted with snowdrops in the spring,

The Ankerwycke Yew is believed to be about 2,500 years old. There are many myths about the tree and some believe it to have holy and even magical powers. It is thought to have been an important meeting place in Saxon Times and for Druids. Today, the tree is usually covered with ribbons and other gifts left by pagans. It even gives its name to a local pagan group, “The Circle of Ankerwycke”

Tradition says the tree is where Henry VIII courted Anne Boleyn in the 1530s whilst he was still married to Katherine of Aragon. I have not found any hard evidence to prove these claims, but there is some basis to this story. According to British History Online:

“Wyrardisbury Manor was leased in 1282 to Christine de Marisco ... her life, ...she died in 1311, and six months later her executors surrendered the remainder of their claim on Wyrardisbury to the king in exchange for a tenancy of Overstone Manor, Northamptonshire, … Wyrardisbury was afterwards administered as a royal manor. In 1313 part of the issues of this manor was assigned to the chaplain and clerks of the chapel in Windsor Park, predecessors of the Dean and Canons of Windsor. The arrears for fourteen years amounted to £140 in 1327. In that year Wyrardisbury was given to Queen Isabella for life. It was afterwards assigned in dower to the queens of Edward III, Richard II and Henry IV. Sir John Fray was holding Wyrardisbury Manor for life in 1447, when the reversion was granted to Eton College. This grant, however, proved abortive, although Wyrardisbury was excepted from an act of resumption in 1455 and a fresh grant was made in favour of Eton College in 1457 during the lifetime of Sir John Fray. In 1465 this manor was settled on Elizabeth, queen of Edward IV, for her life It formed part of the dower lands of Elizabeth, queen of Henry VII, also of Katherine of Aragon, of Anne Boleyn, and of Jane Seymour. In 1627 a grant of Wyrardisbury Manor was made to John Sharrow ...”

The Benedictine Nunnery of Ankerwycke (at 2 miles) was founded c1160 in the reign of King Henry II, by Sir Gilbert Montfichet. It was built in honour of St. Mary Magdalene. In many parts of Europe the yew tree is associated with places of worship, especially the British Isles, France and northern Spain. In France almost all the oldest yews are in graveyards in Normandy. This may explain why a Norman nobleman founded the priory next to the old yew. The priory was home to around six nuns and a prioress. They controlled the fishing rights along this part of the Thames, looked after livestock, grew crops and there was a ferry. The priory was closed c1537, by Henry VIII as part of the “Dissolution of the Monasteries”. Today you can still see the ruins of the old priory / nunnery and what remains of the fish ponds they once managed.

Ankerwycke most likely holds many secrets. The name seems to refer to a holy hermit or anchorite who locked themself away here from the world to pray, even possibly in the hollow trunk of the old yew. History states that Magna Carta was sealed at Runnymede, just across the River Thames from here. However, there is no conclusive account to the exact spot. Runnymede was known to be an important and sacred place, even before Magna Carta and it was used by Saxon kings for their councils (or Witans)

Some suggest Magna Carta Island, just upstream from here, was the venue. A stone slab, named the Charter Stone, on which Magna Carta is thought to have been sealed was kept at Ankerwycke House until 1834. George Simon Hardwick, then Lord of the Manor, had the old fisherman's cottage on Magna Carta Island rebuilt to house the stone and covered the walls with the coats of arms of those present in 2015. He believed the island to be the most likely place, but no one is yet 100% sure. In recent years, evidence suggests the Ankerwycke Yew is a likely place. It is believed that on the day of Magna Carta, the Barons were stationed on one side of the river and the King on the other side as neither trusted the other. Discussions by representatives took place on an island on the Thames.

Below is a poem written by Joseph Strutt (1749 – 1802) and covers some of the events which happened at Runnymede.

"What scenes have pass’d, since first this ancient Yew

In all the strength of youthful beauty grew!

Here patriot Barons might have musing stood,

And plann’d the Charter for their Country’s good;

And here, perhaps, from Runnymede retired,

The haughty John, with secret vengeance fired,

Might curse the day which saw his weakness yield

Extorted rights in yonder tented field.

Here too the tyrant Henry felt love’s flame,

And, sighing, breathed his Anne Bolyn’s name;

Beneath the shelter of this Yew-tree’s shade,

The royal lover wood’d the ill-star’d maid;

And yet that neck, round which he fondly hung,

To hear the thrilling accents of her tongue;

That lovely breast, on which his head reclined

Form’d to have humanized his savage mind;

Were Doom’d to bleed beneath the tyrants steel,

Whose selfish heart might doat, but could not feel.

O had the Yew its direst venom shed,

Upon the cruel Henry’s guilty head,

Ere Englands sons with shuddering grief had seen

A slaughtere’s victim in their beauteous queen!"

The avenue of trees running down past the old yew are also yew trees. They are possibly off-spring of the old yew or even may have been planted to commemorate the sealing of Magna Carta. To see how magnificent the Ankerwycke Yew really is, you will have to go under its branches and right up to its trunk. The girth is about 30ft and the colours in the wood are beautiful.

In 2008, I asked a friend to paint the old yew, so I could award a signed copy as a prize to the oldest participant in a 220 mile charity relay race I organised, named the Green Belt Relay. Ironically, the first winner was Brian Bennett, a resident of Wraysbury who lived over-looking the River Thames at Magna Carta Lane. A photo of the painting is below.

In 2018 the National Trust announced they would introduce a ferry across the River Thames to join their two sites at Runnymede and Ankerwycke. As of yet, this has not happened, but may do sometime in the future

Two videos on YouTube about the tree are worth a visit:

1.     Notable Trees of the National Trust - The Ankerwyke Yew, by National Trust Charity.

2.    The Ankerwycke Yew - an ancient living legend, by Sarah Rees.

NOTE: Some of the next bit may look different as the National Trust have introduced an Ankerwycke Circular Walk. The main aim is to get to the B376 and turn right towards Staines-upon-Thames.

At the end of the track, cross over a stile next to a wooden gate and go straight across a field to a wooden kissing-gate next to the River Thames. Across the river you can see the road as it cuts through the flat meadow of Runnymede and in the distance is Cooper's Hill with the Airforces' Memorial on top.

Continue to follow the path next to the river avoiding paths off to the left, and soon across the river you can see the Runnymede Pleasure Grounds, an area popular with day-trippers.

Eventually, when you can no-longer follow the river, turn left onto a path going north-northeast and away from the river.

The path comes out onto Staines Road (B376), next to a house. Cross straight over and turn right along the pavement. Follow the road for just over half a mile, and when the pavement stops, cross over and continue along a residential road which runs parallel to the B376. Then in 700 yards, and immediately after passing under the large M25 road bridge, then turn left to cross over B376 and onto signed public footpath next to metal gate.

After just 50m turn right onto footpath with Staines Aqueduct to your RHS.

The aqueduct was built c1902 to feed the Staines Reservoirs which were constructed across the parish boundary in Stanwell a year earlier. It takes water from the River Thames at Hythe End, just above Bell Weir Lock. In later years it was used to feed the Hampton Water Works reservoirs at Kempton Park, plus the King George VI Reservoir built next to the Staines Reservoirs, between Staines and Stanwell and opened in 1947. The aqueduct continues to still feed all these reservoirs today. Overall it’s a wonderful piece of architecture passing over and under rivers, railways and roads.

The footpath is enclosed above the aqueduct and soon below the busy A30 by-pass. Follow the path for 550 yards, then turn right and down some steps to cross a footbridge over the aqueduct (there is a more gentle narrow path leading down 50m earlier). Now just over 4 miles into the walk. DO NOT turn left through the subway under the A30.

On coming down level with the aqueduct, there is also a path going off in the opposite direction to the footbridge. This goes through a tunnel under the A30 and goes north towards Staines Moor which we'll visit later.

Once over the footbridge follow the path through a green gate into a nature reserve. Turn right and then follow the path as it veers left and soon between two lakes.

The Church Lammas Nature Reserve was originally Lammas land and apparently used as a camp by some of the barons and their forces, before and during the sealing of Magna Carta. In the 20th century this area of Staines Lammas was extracted for gravel. Natural processes eventually turned the holes left into lakes and in the late 1990s and early 2000's the area was turned into an nature reserve with gravel paths around the lakes. It is a beautiful area of nature by day and very much underused by the local community, but frequented by under-age drinkers at night.

Why the Lammas Lakes Nature Reserve is so much underused is easy to see. Below is an excerpt from a guide to a walk around the history Staines which I completed in 2012. Since then there has been no progress, the link to their “disabled access” on their website is now for sale as a domain name and either there's no equivalent section or it's difficult to find.

“The Church Lammas Lakes were formed in the 1990's after mineral extraction and have been restored as a local amenity and for wildlife. Recent additional improvements have included level paths and a wheelchair accessible entrance to the lakes, providing an environment suitable for the elderly and people with mobility and other impairments. In 2005 the developers Robert Bretts won the Cooper Heyman Cup for the work they done to the area and making it accessible for people with disabilities.

This Nature Reserve is a beautiful area of lakes, parkland and footpaths. There are wooden platforms with great views over the lakes, gravel footpaths throughout and great areas to just relax or have a picnic. During the day the area is so peaceful and seems to be such a secret that it is really underused. The wildlife and flora is a delight to behold. All of those involved in creating the reserve should be really proud with what they have achieved here. However, it’s not very well advertised and most probably the large majority of local don’t even know it exists. OK, the car par is across the main road and Spelthorne Council website does state:

“Parking is currently only available in the Lammas Park, the entrance to which is on the opposite side of Wraysbury Road to the reserve. As yet there is no controlled crossing from Lammas Park to the entrance of the reserve, and at busy times it may be difficult to cross.”

Shortly before 1990, excavations here found long flint blades dating to 9,000 BC, thus providing evidence of late Upper Palaeolithic hunters in this area. For more information you can read the record at Exploring Surrey’s Past. There were also finds of an enclosure, a ditch, a pit, plus flints and pot from the Early to Middle Bronze Age (c 2,500 – 1,000 BC). Again see Exploring Surrey’s Past for more information on all the finds here at SHHER_605 and SHHER_5003, SHHER_15281”

After another 300m stay straight on along the main path, then 90m later, at fork, turn left onto a path through trees. Follow this for 200m to a viewing area over a lake, then turn left to exit the nature reserve onto Wraysbury Road.

Cross over Wraysbury Road (using traffic island to left and with great care) and go straight on into Lammas Recreation Park. Stay straight on along the drive until you reach the River Thames.

Near the Wraysbury Road entrance to Lammas Recreation Park is an information board providing details on the Colne Valley Regional Park. This is the first real green lung to the west of London. It stretches from the River Thames at Staines in the south to Rickmansworth in the north and covers an area of 27,500 acres. The park was originally established in 1967 to preserve areas suitable for leisure, recreation and conservation and has grown over the years with additions such as Church Lammas Nature Reserve. As well as the River Colne flowing through, and giving its name to the park, there are many other waterways, plus reservoirs and over 50 lakes left over as a consequence of gravel extraction. An 11 mile footpath, marked on OS maps as Colne Valley Way, goes north from the Thames (somehow not through Church Lammas Nature Reserve or along the River Colne through Staines), across Staines Moor, through Stanwell Moor and Colnbrook, where it then joins up with the Colne Valley Trail and other footpaths through the Colne Valley and along some of its tributaries. Collectively these are known as the Colne Valley Routes.

Church Lammas is an historical piece of common land used by people to grow crops and graze livestock. The word “Lammas” is derived from an ancient tradition dating back to at least Saxon Times and literary translated as “Loaf Mass”. Lammas Day was traditionally on 1st August, the festival of wheat and the first harvest of the year. On this day towns-people would bring a loaf of new harvest bread, to church to be blessed.

I have not yet ascertained how far back the Lammas dates - you may be able to help. However, we know the Barons camped here in 1215, and in 1814 records said they covered 200 acres, and there were about 60 acres of lammas’ land to the west of St Mary’s Church later in the century. In 1884 John Ashby, a member of one of Staines most wealthy families, bought the Lammas, removed Commoners’ rights and enclosed the land. After many battles over enclosure of common land, the rights to some of these lands were reinstated.

In the early 1900s people regularly swam in the Thames here, but local councillors complained there was nowhere to change into appropriate bathing costumes. So in 1922 John Ashby donated this land for a recreation ground and changing hut. The park opened here bore Ashby’s name as the Ashby Recreation Grounds. However, through public opinion and unable to forgive Ashby, in 1993, the local council changed the name back to the Lammas (sometimes referred to as Lammas Recreation Ground, Lammas Park or Church Lammas). The park now covers an area of 15.5 acres. On its west side is a stream, the Shire Ditch, which forms the boundary between Surrey and Berkshire. The facilities here include: parking; changing & showers; tennis courts; a skate park; a playground; mini train line, a youth shelter and is home to Staines & Egham Sea Cadets.

The London Stone dates from 1285 AD and sat on the River Thames, next to the old bridge and behind what is now the Town Hall. It marked the highest point along the Thames where the tide could be recorded and the limit of the jurisdiction of the City of London. In the 18th century it was then moved upstream to sit on a new base, next to where the Shire Ditch flows into the River Thames (see old photo). In 1986 the London Stone was removed and replaced by a replica. The replica stayed here until 2012 and was then moved back to near the original site, behind the Town Hall. The original stone is on view at Spelthorne Museum.

At River Thames turn left along the riverside and after 140m through a gate onto Church Street. Turn right along Church Street and follow it as it turns left and away from the river.

To the right of Church Street, as it turns away from the river, a footbridge crosses the back stream of the Thames to Church Island. This has a handful of houses on it and a few boats moored around it. Many years ago barrels of beer from the Ashby Brewery were transported here by chain ferry, then taken across the island and loaded onto boats. The old chain ferry, although looking a bit sad for itself, is still moored to the north side of the island. Some sources (Wikipedia is one) suggest “Ad Pontes” (Roman for Staines) referred to a crossing of the river via Church Island, where one bridge ran from the north bank of the Thames to the island and a second spanned the main stream of the river to the south bank. On studying maps, this is a real possibility as the old A30 into Staines High Street veers in the correct direction. However, shortly before reaching the Thames, the route would still have had to cross the Colne and thus suggest three bridges. Whichever theory is correct, it’s clear an important Roman Road ran from Holborn along Oxford Street, joining the route of the A402 through Shepherds Bush, the A315 through Hounslow High Street, and the A30 to and through Staines and onto the Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum (aka Silchester). Staines was a day’s march from London and would have been the stopping point before another two days march to Silchester. Calleva Atrebatum and London were both major Roman Towns and this also indicates Staines was hugely important at the time. Today it is still easy to follow this Roman route from London to Staines on modern maps and they show how towns still exist along this old road - their most important streets still line the route. You can see this at the link to the MapMyWalk route which I have drawn, though the route from the bottom of Staines High Street to Sunningdale is just an educated guess, using research on the Internet, and watching a video entitled "The Lost Roman Roads of Egham" by Jim Goddard see below. The map assumes the road crossed via Church Island.

Outside The Bells pub turn left into Vicarage Road, then left into the churchyard of St Mary's Church. Follow the footpath past the church and along the drive to the Wraysbury Road.

The Bells is a traditional old English pub owned by Young’s Brewery. It dates from 1780 with a later 19th century front. However, parts of the interior date from 1630. It was originally an old coaching inn and the stables have now been converted to a function room. As you can see from the pub sign, it takes its name from the bells of the neighbouring St Mary’s Church.

The wisteria clad house on the corner of Vicarage Road and Church Street is named Corner Hall, but was originally The Vicarage. It dates from the late 18th / early 19th century and was once owned by a member of the local influential Ashby Family. The wisteria which covers it was brought from Japan in the 1870s. A later Vicarage did exist on Vicarage Road to the north of Wraysbury Road.

British History On-line states: “The Medieval town of Staines grew up south of the St Mary’s Church and beside the bridge. The west and east bars of the town are mentioned in the 13th century.

The two bars mentioned above refer to the gravel islands on which the town was situated during this period. The first is the area around the church, named Binbury, and the other around what is now the bottom of the High Street.

St Mary’s sits on elevated ground to the north of the River Thames. According to the church website: "Traditionally the first stone church on this site was said to have been built by St. Ermingeld, Abbess of Ely, in 685 AD. However, on this site above the Thames, it is believed there were earlier places of worship". One reference from an old article on the Spelthorne Borough Council website (no-longer available) states:

“One particular building of interest in Staines Town Centre is St. Mary's Church in Church Street, which is believed to have been built on a site originally used for worship by the ancient Druids.”

The Domesday Book (1086) records that the “Vicarage of Staines was held by the Abbey of St. Peter, that is, Westminster Abbey”. The earliest written evidence of the church building is dated 1179, but little was known of the physical appearance of the medieval church.

In the 1820s Staines featured on the front page of national press, after a large part of the church had collapsed one Sunday morning. Shortly afterwards a private Act of Parliament allowed most of the remaining church to be blown up. It was then, in 1827, that the last Saxon remains of the early St Mary’s disappeared. The present church was begun in 1828. The oldest surviving part of the church is the tower. A plaque on the tower claims it was built in 1631 by the great architect, Inigo Jones. However, there is not much evidence to enforce this claim. After the Second World War, the stone pinnacles of the tower were deemed unsafe and removed. This was believed to be caused by a bomb falling nearby on the Wraysbury Road during the war.

There are many things of interest to see in the church and the churchyard. The eight bells, five of which date from 1734; the organ dates from before 1830; the font is believed to date from the 13th century, it was removed during Cromwell’s Commonwealth, but replaced in 1660, and the Trident Memorial Window which commemorates the 1972 Staines Air Disaster where 118 people lost their lives. The 118 stars in its border of the window represent those who died. The dove depicts flight and also symbolises peace. The trees and fields below represent the crash site and Staines Moor.

A 19th century window in the apse was donated by the Crown Prince & Princess of Prussia (Queen Victoria’s oldest daughter) in memory of Augusta Maria Byng who was governess to their children (one of which was later to be Kaiser Wilhelm II, the last German Emperor). Augusta, in later life was a resident of Binbury Row, Staines and is buried in the churchyard.

The inscription on the ornate headstone of her grave reads:

Sacred to the beloved memory of Augusta Maria Byng, daughter of W Bateman Byng of Ipswich and Ann his wife, born October 26 1830 departed this life March 14th 1882. “Well done thou good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of the Lord” Saint Matt. xxv 21. This stone is placed in affectionate and grateful remembrance of many years of devotion and faithful service by Frederick William Crown Prince of Germany and Prussia and Victoria Crown Princess of Germany and Prussia, Princess Royal of Great Britain and Ireland, and their children.

There are many other interesting graves here. A headstone next to the main entrance to the church is that of General Francois-Henri d’Harcourt (1726 - 1802), a representative of the exiled French King Louis XVIII. Another is that of Letitia Derby (died 1825, aged 67 years). She was a commoner and a colourful character who started life in a brothel, but through her beauty and horse skills rose to the highest level of society. She was mistress of the notorious highwayman John “Sixteen String Jack” Rann, and later mistress of Prince Frederick, Duke of York. She became wife to Sir John Lade, the Prince of Wales (later King George IV) was so besotted by her that he commissioned a painting by George Stubbs – this still remains in the Royal Collection at Windsor Castle.

Two other graves worth a mention are that of Elizabeth and George Hawkins (died 1761), a listed tomb, and the grave of John Tims, a boat-builder who set up shop in the 1870s, looked after the Royal Barge and a family business that still exists today.

St Mary’s played a part in the sealing of Magna Carta on the 15th June 1215 as the Barons stayed in Staines before travelling to meet King John at Runnymede. Below is a quote from the St Mary’s website.

“The proud position that St. Mary's held in Staines is again depicted in the stained glass window on the north side of the nave. This is a portrayal of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Stephen Langton who was present with King John at Runnemede in 1215. It was here at St Mary's that he consecrated the bishops of St.David's and Bangor. This was a ceremony that would have been performed only at a church of some importance. In the window can be seen the Charter of Liberties that formed the basis of the Magna Charta and which was drawn up by Henry I, an earlier Norman king. Langton’s was the first name of the witnesses of the Magna Charta. John had refused to accept his appointment as Archbishop and he was kept out of the see until 1213. No love lost there!”

Stephen Langton was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1207 to 1228 and you can read more about St Mary’s on the church website and on Wikipedia.

Turn right along Wraysbury Road, crossing over as soon as safe, then stay straight on past Vicarage Road to your left.

As you cross over Vicarage Road, divert a few yards along it to the entrance gates of a large house. This is Duncroft Manor, which has now been converted to flats (see old photo1 and old photo2) .

Duncroft Manor can tell lots of stories, and holds many secrets from over the centuries. The present building dates from 1631 but has been changed through the years. The original house on the site is thought to have been Saxon and according to “Exploring Surrey’s Past” there is evidence of activity here during the Bronze Age and from Roman Times (see HER_5058). Some sources claim that King John stayed here before sealing Magna Carta in 1215 at Runnymede. However, tradition claims it is more likely the Bishops and Barons stayed here the night before meeting King John at Runnymede on 15th June 1215 to seal Magna Carta. The Domesday Book (1086) mentions the Manor of Staines, and often the Manor House is referred to in other sources. However, there is no conclusive evidence to where the Manor House was. Duncroft is one place which could lay a claim, and excavations over the years have not disproved this.

Through the years Duncroft has been owned by many influential people including members of the Ashby brewing and banking family. Between 1948 and 1982 Duncroft was both a home and an approved school for girls. It was originally run by the Home Office, then the local authority and in October 1976 was then taken over by Dr Barnardo’s.

The girls here came from troubled backgrounds and many had high IQs. It was a requirement that girls entering Duncroft between 1962 and 1972 had an IQ in the top 10% of the population. Girls were either on care and protection orders, which indicated they were either promiscuous or from troubled backgrounds, or they had broken the law, usually some quite petty breach. It was considered by the Home Office to be a revolutionary approach to helping ‘troubled girls’. It was often visited by celebrities and even Royalty, most well-meaning and trying to help and encourage them. However, many of those who were “kept” here have unhappy memories of the place.

On a darker side, the old manor house has recently come to unveil some of its previously hidden secrets. In 2007 Sir Jimmy Savile (born 1926) was interviewed by Surrey Police, under caution, about an allegation of indecent assault against former pupils at Duncroft in the 1970s when he was a regular visitor. On looking at the case prosecutors decided there was insufficient evidence to take further action. However, in October 2012, a year after Savile’s death, it came to light that former staff at the school had not been questioned about the 2007 inquiry into sex claims. Jimmy Savile was one of Britain’s most acclaimed television & radio presenters and charity fund raisers. He died on 29th October 2011 aged 84. During his funeral, at Leeds Cathedral, he was widely praised for his charity work and his achievements as an entertainer. In December 2011 a BBC Newsnight investigation into allegations of sexual abuse by Savile was shelved as it clashed with two Savile tribute programmes shown over that Christmas period. On 3rd October 2012 an ITV documentary, Exposure: “The Other Side of Jimmy Savile”, was broadcast. It was researched and presented by Mark Williams-Thomas, an ex-policeman and later TV presenter. It revealed accounts of abuse from five former pupils at Duncroft. The programme was just the tip of the ice-berg and many others started coming forward with claims of abuse. Within days The Metropolitan Police had set up an investigation named “Operation Yewtree” to look into claims of sexual abuse by Savile and others. By December 2012 at least 589 alleged victims of abuse had come forward, 450 of these claims were against Savile and dated between 1955 and 2009. Of the alleged victims 82% were female and 80% were either children or young people. There were more than 214 offences reported across the UK including 57 at hospitals and hospices, 33 at TV and radio stations and 14 at schools. Overall, although now dead and not convicted, it makes Savile the worst known serial sex-offender this country has ever encountered. It has led to claims of cover-ups, repercussions for the police force, his employers at the BBC, the institutions where he carried out his alleged offences and the people who may have been also been implicated in his crimes.

You can read more about Jimmy Savile and his life, his works and his crimes at Wikipedia. One of the best TV reports I have watched on the “Savile Affair” is at a daily independent global news hour on DemocracyNow. You can watch the full documentary, Exposure: “The Other Side of Jimmy Savile” at YouTube. The BBC eventually broadcast a Panorama programme in late October 2012 you used to be able to watch this on YouTube but it's been removed.

On a brighter note, below is an excerpt from Jerome K Jerome’s famous and humorous book Three Men in a Boat (written 1889). The book tells the story of three upper class unprepared young gents and a fictional dog, named Montmorency, travelling up the River Thames from Kingston to Oxford on a skiff. Although not always accurate it does tell a hilarious story of what they encounter on their travels. The book was adopted into films on numerous occassions - you can watch BBC's 1976 version at YouTube. It also inspired the popular BBC2 comedy / documentary Three Men in a Boat starring Dara O’Briain, Rory McGrath, and Griff Rhys Jones. You can read more and about the films at Wikipedia (one is Russian) or even read the whole book at Forgotten Futures. Duncroft and its role in the signing of Magna Carta in 1215 take an important part in this extract from the book.

“Harris proposed that we should have scrambled eggs for breakfast. He said he would cook them. It seemed, from his account, that he was very good at doing scrambled eggs…

It made our mouths water to hear him talk about the things, and we handed him out the stove and the frying-pan and all the eggs that had not smashed and gone over everything in the hamper, and begged him to begin.

He had some trouble in breaking the eggs — or rather not so much trouble in breaking them exactly as in getting them into the frying-pan when broken, and keeping them off his trousers, and preventing them from running up his sleeve; but he fixed some half-a-dozen into the pan at last, and then squatted down by the side of the stove and chivied them about with a fork.

It seemed harassing work, so far as George and I could judge. Whenever he went near the pan he burned himself, and then he would drop everything and dance round the stove, flicking his fingers about and cursing the things. Indeed, every time George and I looked round at him he was sure to be performing this feat. We thought at first that it was a necessary part of the culinary arrangements.

We did not know what scrambled eggs were, and we fancied that it must be some Red Indian or Sandwich Islands sort of dish that required dances and incantations for its proper cooking. Montmorency went and put his nose over it once, and the fat spluttered up and scalded him, and then he began dancing and cursing. Altogether it was one of the most interesting and exciting operations I have ever witnessed. George and I were both quite sorry when it was over.

The result was not altogether the success that Harris had anticipated. There seemed so little to show for the business. Six eggs had gone into the frying-pan, and all that came out was a teaspoonful of burnt and unappetizing looking mess.

Harris said it was the fault of the frying-pan, and thought it would have gone better if we had had a fish-kettle and a gas-stove; and we decided not to attempt the dish again until we had those aids to housekeeping by us.

The sun had got more powerful by the time we had finished breakfast, and the wind had dropped, and it was as lovely a morning as one could desire. Little was in sight to remind us of the nineteenth century; and, as we looked out upon the river in the morning sunlight, we could almost fancy that the centuries between us and that ever-to-be-famous June morning of 1215 had been drawn aside, and that we, English yeomen's sons in homespun cloth, with dirk at belt, were waiting there to witness the writing of that stupendous page of history, the meaning whereof was to be translated to the common people some four hundred and odd years later by one Oliver Cromwell, who had deeply studied it.

It is a fine summer morning — sunny, soft, and still. But through the air there runs a thrill of coming stir. King John has slept at Duncroft Hall, and all the day before the little town of Staines has echoed to the clang of armed men, and the clatter of great horses over its rough stones, and the shouts of captains, and the grim oaths and surly jests of bearded bowmen, billmen, pikemen, and strange-speaking foreign spearmen.

Gay-cloaked companies of knights and squires have ridden in, all travel-stained and dusty. And all the evening long the timid townsmen's doors have had to be quick opened to let in rough groups of soldiers, for whom there must be found both board and lodging, and the best of both, or woe betide the house and all within; for the sword is judge and jury, plaintiff and executioner, in these tempestuous times, and pays for what it takes by sparing those from whom it takes it, if it pleases it to do so.

Round the camp-fire in the market-place gather still more of the Barons' troops, and eat and drink deep, and bellow forth roystering drinking songs, and gamble and quarrel as the evening grows and deepens into night. The firelight sheds quaint shadows on their piled-up arms and on their uncouth forms. The children of the town steal round to watch them, wondering; and brawny country wenches, laughing, draw near to bandy ale- house jest and jibe with the swaggering troopers, so unlike the village swains, who, now despised, stand apart behind, with vacant grins upon their broad, peering faces. And out from the fields around, glitter the faint lights of more distant camps, as here some great lord's followers lie mustered, and there false John's French mercenaries hover like crouching wolves without the town.

And so, with sentinel in each dark street, and twinkling watch-fires on each height around, the night has worn away, and over this fair valley of old Thame has broken the morning of the great day that is to close so big with the fate of ages yet unborn.

Ever since grey dawn, in the lower of the two islands, just above where we are standing, there has been great clamour, and the sound of many workmen. The great pavilion brought there yester eve is being raised, and carpenters are busy nailing tiers of seats, while `prentices from London town are there with many-coloured stuffs and silks and cloth of gold and silver.

And now, lo! down upon the road that winds along the river's bank from Staines there come towards us, laughing and talking together in deep guttural bass, a half-a-score of stalwart halbert-men — Barons' men, these — and halt at a hundred yards or so above us, on the other bank, and lean upon their arms, and wait.

And so, from hour to hour, march up along the road ever fresh groups and bands of armed men, their casques and breastplates flashing back the long low lines of morning sunlight, until, as far as eye can reach, the way seems thick with glittering steel and prancing steeds. And shouting horsemen are galloping from group to group, and little banners are fluttering lazily in the warm breeze, and every now and then there is a deeper stir as the ranks make way on either side, and some great Baron on his war-horse, with his guard of squires around him, passes along to take his station at the head of his serfs and vassals.

And up the slope of Cooper's Hill, just opposite, are gathered the wondering rustics and curious townsfolk, who have run from Staines, and none are quite sure what the bustle is about, but each one has a different version of the great event that they have come to see; and some say that much good to all the people will come from this day's work; but the old men shake their heads, for they have heard such tales before.

And all the river down to Staines is dotted with small craft and boats and tiny coracles — which last are growing out of favour now, and are used only by the poorer folk. Over the rapids, where in after years trim Bell Weir lock will stand, they have been forced or dragged by their sturdy rowers, and now are crowding up as near as they dare come to the great covered barges, which lie in readiness to bear King John to where the fateful Charter waits his signing.

It is noon, and we and all the people have been waiting patient for many an hour, and the rumour has run round that slippery John has again escaped from the Barons' grasp, and has stolen away from Duncroft Hall with his mercenaries at his heels, and will soon be doing other work than signing charters for his people's liberty.

Not so! This time the grip upon him has been one of iron, and he has slid and wriggled in vain. Far down the road a little cloud of dust has risen, and draws nearer and grows larger, and the pattering of many hoofs grows louder, and in and out between the scattered groups of drawn-up men, there pushes on its way a brilliant cavalcade of gay-dressed lords and knights. And front and rear, and either flank, there ride the yeomen of the Barons, and in the midst King John.

He rides to where the barges lie in readiness, and the great Barons step forth from their ranks to meet him. He greets them with a smile and laugh, and pleasant honeyed words, as though it were some feast in his honour to which he had been invited. But as he rises to dismount, he casts one hurried glance from his own French mercenaries drawn up in the rear to the grim ranks of the Barons' men that hem him in.

Is it too late? One fierce blow at the unsuspecting horseman at his side, one cry to his French troops, one desperate charge upon the unready lines before him, and these rebellious Barons might rue the day they dared to thwart his plans! A bolder hand might have turned the game even at that point. Had it been a Richard there! the cup of liberty might have been dashed from England's lips, and the taste of freedom held back for a hundred years.

But the heart of King John sinks before the stern faces of the English fighting men, and the arm of King John drops back on to his rein, and he dismounts and takes his seat in the foremost barge. And the Barons follow in, with each mailed hand upon the sword-hilt, and the word is given to let go.

Slowly the heavy, bright-decked barges leave the shore of Runningmede. Slowly against the swift current they work their ponderous way, till, with a low grumble, they grate against the bank of the little island that from this day will bear the name of Magna Charta Island. And King John has stepped upon the shore, and we wait in breathless silence till a great shout cleaves the air, and the great cornerstone in England's temple of liberty has, now we know, been firmly laid.”

Continue straight on, soon over the entrance to Moor Lane (now 5 miles into the walk). Then after just a few yards, turn left across the front of a yellow-brick building, left down the side of it and then left behind it.

On the lawn in front of the building is a sculpture remembering Pound Mill. The mill sat on the Wraysbury River, just north of the sculpture and from a footbridge over the river, you can still see the weir where the mill wheel would have sat.

According to British History Online:

Pound Mill derived its name from the neighbouring parish pound. The first reference found to it dates from 1747, when it was acquired by John Finch, meal-man. Although, it was then said to be newly erected, its ownership can be traced back to 1682, and in 1916 part of the machinery was dated 1712. Unlike Hale Mill, Pound Mill continued to be worked by the Finch family until it passed out of their hands. In the 19th century part of the mill was used to grind flour, but its chief business, carried on latterly under the name of Finch, Rickman & Co., was making mustard. The mill employed a considerable number of people in the mid-19th century, but its business seems to have declined by 1900, when it was sold. It continued to be used as a mill until 1912, and in 1916 it was purchased by the Linoleum Manufacturing Company who soon afterwards demolished it.

Also, according to British History Online:

Poor relief was naturally the vestry's chief preoccupation, though it also maintained fire engines from the 18th century, and parish cage, stocks, engine house, and pound. The pound, which stood near Pound Mill, was sold in 1824 with the workhouse, but a new one was in existence by 1895 beside the bridge leading over the railway to the moor.

The bridge mentioned above, is the “Old Cattle Bridge” which we will cross over slightly later in the walk.

The yellow-brick building was originally an old Georgian house built for Charles Finch and completed in 1820. He was owner of the adjacent thriving Pound Mustard Mill. The Great Western Railway (GWR) bought the house from his son Charles Waring Finch and opened Staines West Station here on 2nd November 1885. Although not obvious now, the front gardens of the house were at what is now the back of the building. These provided space to build tracks and a platform. This picturesque line ran north through Yeoveney, Poyle, and Colnbrook to West Drayton, where it joined the main line from Paddington to Reading. As well as passenger trains it also served the local industry such as the Lino Factory and the mills. As a consequence of the famous Beeching Axe, it closed to passengers on 29th March 1965. In 1964 the sidings and the goods yard was demolished and a rail accessed oil storage depot built in their place. On 19th June 1964 the new Shell Mex and BP private siding opened, and in October of that year a service of oil trains were introduced between Purfleet and Staines. However, construction of the M25 motorway resulted in the complete closure of the south end of the line, and the last working train ran into Staines West in January 1981. A connection was then laid between the oil depot and the Southern Region Line, but this closed ten years later and was subsequently removed and the depot demolished. The site of the oil depot is now a residential area named Wraysbury Gardens.

The old station house still remains and has been converted to the offices. At the rear the car park covers what were the line and the platform. It still stands and bears the sign “Staines West”. Part of the platform still exists and a section of the rail is embedded in the floor of the car park. Two of the cast iron supports for the canopy have been retained and now support the lights of the car park. A railway buffer sits outside against a wall, and across the Wraysbury Road you can still see the old mill cottages. You can view photos of the old station at Disused Stations and you can also see what remains of the line at Abandoned Stations.

On reaching the T-junction of Moor Lane and Wraysbury Gardens, cross straight over Moor Lane and turn right along Moor Lane. Soon past a timber merchants then past Great Western Cottages.

Below is excerpt from Keith Jaggers, an ex-Staines resident, who as a 16 year old boy witnessed the first oil tanker train arrive at Staines West.

“On 19 June 1964, while my school colleagues were undergoing a GCE "O" level examination in History, I had a free morning, and so encountered quite by chance the first oil tanker train to come down the branch, with large prairie tank 6143 in charge; even more fortunately, I had a camera with me..…

The enginemen could not comprehend my interest in the train at all and were much more concerned to impart to me the revelation that Christine Keeler, woman of ill-repute in the recent "Profumo" government scandal, lived in one of the "Great Western Cottages" not 20 yards from where we were standing. This I did not believe, but later read to be absolutely correct.”

I'm not sure if she did live here, but according to The Telegraph, an article dated 8th November 2007 claims, “Christine Keeler used to entertain John Profumo in a disused railway carriage near here”.

After another 400m and immediately before Herdsman's Cottage, turn right past a metal gate and a “Staines Moor” information board onto a wide track signed, “Public Footpath 21, Stanwell Moor 2”.

The two storey house retains its original design and is an historically listed building. It was originally known as Moor Lodge and as the name suggests, it was here the “Keeper (or Warden) of Staines Moor” lived. On the top front of the house is a plaque inscribed:

“1900. Herdsman’s Cottage erected by the Committee of Commoners out of funds received as compensation for the extinguishing of certain Common Rights Chas, F. Leake, Chairman.”

The wide track leads uphill and over three bridges of different dates joined end to end and built between 1850 and 1880. There is a plate girder bridge over the now closed Great Western Railway, a bridge with two yellow brick arches over the Wraysbury River and a single red brick span over the Southern Railway Staines to Windsor line. This access bridge is the largest surviving monument to the importance of Staines Moor and is known locally as the “Cattle Bridge” or Drover’s Bridge. It may be difficult to see, but as well as three bridges, there are also three levels. There are the bridges, the railways and Wraysbury River, plus below this is a tunnel carrying the Staines Reservoir Aqueduct.

The track soon leads towards the A30 and then turns right and gradually downhill and parallel to the road. The A30 Staines bypass was built in the early 1980s to join up with the newly opened M25. It starts from the Crocked Billet Roundabout (the Old Crocked Billet, like many old historic English pubs is now gone) and the road takes passing traffic away from the centre of Staines Town.

At the bottom of the track, turn left to follow the path through the subway under the A30 and as far as the Staines Moor information board entitled “Managing the Moor – animals and ancient rights”.

There are tasteful official murals of some of the animals from the moor on the walls of the subway. Here are links to just a few photos of them: photo1, photo2, photo3.

Staines Moor is one of the last remaining “Commons” of the medieval Manor of Staines. The Moor has been registered Common Land since 1065, a year before the Norman Invasion, and only registered Commoners are entitled to graze their animals on it. There is usually a mixture of cows and horses grazing freely, but they are removed during the winter months to allow the land to recover.

The Moor has been managed the same way for centuries. The grassland has never been ploughed or fertilised, and has always had animals graze on it. It supports a huge mix of plants and animals, many of which are rare elsewhere. Due to this unusual richness and its importance to nature conservation Staines Moor is a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest. It is one of the largest areas of neutral grassland in England which has not been extracted for gravel or agriculturally improved. The Moor and the River Colne attract wildfowl and waders including ruff and golden plover in winter. Other wildlife which can be seen includes kingfishers, skylarks, lapwings, butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies, as well as a wide range of wild-flowers and grasses. At over 200 years old, the Moor is home to the oldest recorded yellow meadow ant hills in Britain.

Staines Moor is owned by Brett Aggregates and as owners they hold the title of Lord of the Manor. The moor is managed by Spelthorne Borough Council, in partnership with the Moormasters and other community organisations. They meet once a quarter to discuss issues of the day.

From here aeroplanes are seen to be disappearing behind the wall of the King George VI Reservoir. From this view you get the impression they are landing on the water. However, they are on their final approach to Heathrow and just north of the reservoir. It is an impressive sight to see and worth waiting a few minutes to watch some planes disappearing beneath the wall.

The King George VI Reservoir was completed in 1939 but left empty until after the war. During World War II it was used by the military for training and sources claim a replica of Clapham Junction Station was built here to confuse German bombers. The reservoir was officially opened in 1947 by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother). You can watch a video of the opening ceremony at Britishpathe.

Retrace your steps back through the subway and to a metal gate. Go through the metal kissing gate and onto a footpath across open land. During certain times of the year you may encounter four legged friends here.

After 150m the path veers right between metal fences and over the aqueduct. It then veers left, soon past a metal kissing gate to your right (do not go through the kissing gate), then through some trees and eventually out via a wooden kissing gate onto an open meadow at Moormede. Once again there is another information board here, this time entitled “Trees that border Staines Moor”.

Veer slightly left and across the grass to a small paved area with a semi-circular brick wall and metal bench. Here, inlay in the ground, is a small plaque to commemorate the Papa India, Staines Air Disaster.

North of the town is London Heathrow Airport. This is one of the busiest in the world and continues to grow. The afternoon of 18th June 1972 was wet and cloudy. At 5.11pm, two minutes after take-off, British European Airways Trident G-ARPI Flight 548 crashed on Staines Moor, just a short distance from here, killing all 118 passengers and crew. The plane had many distinguished people on-board and went into a deep stall after the crew ignored warning signs. It was climbing too steeply and airspeed was much less than it should have been. The disaster could have been much worse as a few seconds later the plane would have been directly over the town. The amazing thing is this plane was also damaged in a crash four years earlier, when another plane lost a wing whilst landing and collided with two parked tridents, damaging one beyond repair but leaving G-ARPI in a state where it was repaired and continue to fly until its disastrous end. One of the recommendations after the crash enquiry was to install cockpit voice recorders in all British registered aircraft. You can watch a documentary about the crash at YouTube.

Turn right across recreation ground and over bridge to residential road (Waters Drive). Turn right staying on RHS pavement, soon past Kingfisher Drive and then after another 60m turn right onto signed path between houses. The path comes out onto industrial estate at Mill Mead Road. Go straight on and eventually out onto Staines High Street, turn right and under the iron railway bridge.

NOTE: Where you come out onto Staines High Street is at 6.2 miles. If you wish to cut section 1 in two, you can do so at this point and divert to Staines station where you can catch a direct train back to Wraysbury. Just cross straight over the High Street, turn left and then right into Station Path. After 0.3 miles Station Path leads direct to Staines Station.

In the early part of the 20th century, Mill Mead was a thriving community of terraced streets with many employees from the lino factory and the mills living here.

On 23rd April 1935 the whole country celebrated the Silver Jubilee of King George V. There were events all over Staines, at the Town Hall, the Lammas, the town’s cinemas and at Mill Mead. The street was especially praised by the effort the residents had taken to make it special. Old photos of the time show these people were not the upper class, having tea on the veranda, they were poor families whose breadwinners worked hard in the mills and factories of the town and lived in the small houses provided by their employers. However, like today they looked beyond their poverty, celebrated their heritage and did their best to party, to enjoy the occasion as a community and in the best way possible.

The original iron bridge erected here in 1844 was an arched cast-iron construction – the angled stone plates still form part of the walls under the bridge. The older bridge was replaced by “The Iron Bridge” in the early 20th century as double-decker buses could only get under the original bridge by driving in the middle of the road.

Staines High Street Station was opened in 1884 and was immediately north-west of the Iron Bridge. It consisted of two wooden platforms on stilts some 20 feet above ground level. There were steps up to the platforms from Mill Mead and Factory Path (now Mustard Mill Road), but it closed in 1916.

Go straight over the pelican crossing and into the pedestrian area of Staines High Street.

The two 'gateway' plinths we pass through have metal bollards to stop motor vehicles going onto the pedestrianised High Street. These can be lowered on market days to allow traders and for emergency services if needs be. Each plinth is home to panels of small mosaics. There are many more mosaics and other artworks along the High Street. All are done in good taste and tell history of the town or the surrounding area. Those on the plinths represent: the pedestrianisation of the High Street (2002); the first recorded Staines Fair (1228); the Speech Thorne Tree where councils in Saxon Times (500 AD), and the founding of Staines as the Roman town Ad Pontes (43 AD).

Just past this is the Metropolitan Drinking Fountain, constructed in the early 1890s. It originally comprised of a granite fountain with separate dog and cattle troughs and sat on the Market Square side of Clarence Street. It was moved to Moor Lane in the 1950s, then over 30 years later, and minus dog trough, was relocated here. From a Francis Frith photo, dated 1895, you can see the fountain at its original site and proudly supporting a street light.

The mosaic on the fountain represents the life giving waters which surround Staines. The plaque states:

“This Plaque Is Here To Commemorate One Hundred Years Of Prosperity in STAINES, Since The Chamber of Commerce Was Founded In 1903. It Also Commemorates The Pedestrianisation Of STAINES High Street And The Removal And Re-location Of The Plaque Celebrating The Silver Jubilee Of Her Majesty Queen ELIZABETH II”

The High Street stretches from Kingston Road to the Market Square. It basically follows the route of the old Roman Road (London to Silchester) and evidence of occupation from at least Roman Times to now have been uncovered along its whole length.

Up until a few centuries ago the active part of the High Street was the area close to the Market Square, and in later years this gradually grew northwards along the High Street. It was only with the opening of the railway station in 1848 when the northern side of the town really started to develop. By the end of the 19th century the influence of the railway brought more people and industry to the town. It resulted in the decline of horse-drawn coaches through here and associated industries such as coaching inns, blacksmiths, saddlers and veterinarians. On the south-side of the street there were banks, butchers, bakers (the candlestick-maker was north of here), basket-makers, ironmongers, inns, ale houses, cobblers, fishmongers, cycle stores, fruit & vegetable shops, and local “we sell everything stores”. It may be surprising, but by 1899 the High Street was still dominated by large private houses and had less than 70 shops. There were other outlets in adjacent streets, but within 40 years the large private houses along the High Street had either disappeared or their ground floors had been converted to retail outlets. The number of shops on the High Street doubled to cater for the growing needs of the increasing population brought in by the railway and the industries which grew up around it. As we walk along the High Street look up above the shops to see how the old houses of the wealthy have not all been knocked down. It's ironic to think that three days every week now the market stalls along the street kind of hide the ground floor shops and leave visible what remains of the old large houses.

Staines had a very early market due to its position as an important crossing point of the Thames. The first mention I can find is from 1218, but this most probably would have been a trading post back to Roman Times. It is also recorded as one of the merchant towns which were summoned to send representatives to the first parliament of Edward I in 1275.

The quote below comes from “British History Online”.

“In 1218 the Sheriff of Middlesex was ordered to see that Staines market was henceforward held on Friday, instead of Sunday. The Friday market continued until the early 19th century and the market rights and tolls belonged to the lords of the manor. The market place was where the High Street widens where it meets the bridge approach, just below the junction with Church Street. The marshy ground to either side of Bridge Street was reclaimed for habitation, perhaps gradually, but certainly by the end of the 16th century. The market house was in existence in 1662. Apparently by 1723, it was a small brick building of two stories, with a spire, and stood in the then main road, where the present Old Town Hall stands. The market declined in the 19th century and was discontinued by 1862. In 1872, following a vestry resolution, an Act was obtained under which the market house and neighbouring buildings were demolished, the Town Hall was erected, and a market was established. This widened the street to form the Market Square and provided the site on which the Memorial Gardens were laid out in 1897.”

With the pedestrianisation of the High Street in 2002, Staines was once again able to hold a market. Today there is a flourishing market on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

In the early 1930 both Marks & Spencer and Woolworth opened stores next to each other here. M&S still open today, but Woolworth closed in 2009 and is now occupied by Poundland and H&M. There is a wonderful story about how both store's football teams defied the Football Association by starting a yearly match in 1933. However, it wasn’t the men who played. The game was between the ladies who worked in each store and ticket receipts went to support Staines Cottage Hospital. Earlier in 1921 the Football Association banned women from playing on Football League grounds saying; the game of football is quite unsuitable for females and ought not to be encouraged. This ban was not lifted until 1971. Below is a photo of the Woolworth Ladies taken in 1934, and what a beautiful photograph. Ladies' Football has come a long way since 1971. To read more about Women’s Football at this time area visit Exploring Surrey’s Past.

After another 100m, and with the Elmsleigh Shopping Centre to your left, go straight on past Norris Road to your RHS.

The Elmsleigh Centre was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1980 and a plaque in its central area records the occasion. On the pavement outside is the a mosaic of the Spelthorne Coat of Arms. The grant of Armorial Bearings to a local authority is a Royal Privilege - Spelthorne’s was granted in 1975.

After another 120 yards turn right into Tilly's Lane.

On Staines High Street, just past where we turn into Tilly's Lane, is  a sculpture of two men carrying a roll of lino. This represents the “Staines Linoleum Company” and the fact that Staines gave lino to the world. It was made by David Annand and placed here in 2004 and is named “Roll Out The Lino”. A poem, by Richard Price and Leona Medlin, on the roll of lino goes as follows:

“Roll out the lino

from Staines to the world !

Release every pattern

from chessboard to twirl !

In every hopeful kitchen

let life unfurl,

bathrooms are art rooms

from soapsuds to swirl !

Roll out the lino

From Staines to the world !”

The brick carving, high on the wall to your left, as you enter Tilly’s Lane, was created by sculptor John McKenna in 2001. The two ladies, representing the Colne and Wraysbury rivers, pour water down the hills to join “Old Father Thames” reclining at the bottom. The Staines coat of arms is represented by the swan.

Tilly’s Lane is named after a 19th century barber. Tilly's House is half way along, on the right, and is now a cafe. With the redevelopment on the High Street and the building of Two Rivers Shopping Centre, Tilly's Lane was widened and the house was preserved by taking it down brick by brick and rebuilding it where it now sits. Excavations here, at the time, revealed Romano-British settlement established in the second half of the 1st century AD, soon after the Roman invasion of Britain in 43 AD. The settlement was built on a gravel island at an important bridging point across the Thames that formed the main route from London to the west of the Britain. The early settlement flourished and expanded in the 2nd century AD, but this was followed by a break in activity and an apparent contraction in the late 2nd /early 3rd centuries, although its occupation continued to the end of the Roman Empire in the 5th century. You can read more about this at Wessex Archaeology.

The Water Nymphs, high on the wall to the left, as you exit Tilly’s Lane, are made of stainless steel and by sculpture Clare Bigger. Tradition through Ancient Greek, Roman Times, Ancient Britain and even today, believed that spirits of nymphs lived in waters and gave life to the area. The nymphs, like rivers, would never grow old, yet they could produce off-spring. The Water Nymphs here represent the prosperity the two rivers, Colne and Wraysbury, have given to this area.

Tilly's Lane leads to Two Rivers Shopping Centre. This covers a huge area and is built around two large car parks divided by a road and the River Colne. I originally was not going to take the walk through the busy shopping area of the town, and the area around here is one of the reasons. As you'll see later, many years ago Staines seemed to turn its back on the River Thames, first by building the Town Hall facing away from the river and then cutting both off from the town by building a dual-carriageway. Here, the River Colne is lost to the car parks and the road, and with little access for it to be enjoyed. As for the Wraysbury River, it is hidden behind the large warehouse sized shops in the distance. OK, I suppose you have to be able to get to the drive-through McDonalds, and I should be glad both rivers haven't been submerged in pipes under the ground, as has been done with the old Roman waterway that flowed around the town. Anyway, I shan't go on about this as there are stories to tell.

Just in front, as you exit Tilly's Lane is "The Two River Sprites" statue, one of two sculptures by David Backhouse placed in this shopping in 2001. This plaque on the sculpture reads: “The “Two River Sprites” emerge from the water, hands linked. Their meeting is symbolic of the vitality and life of the waterways which converge on this site”. David Blackhouse's other sculpture, "Time Continuum", is 100 yards to the right of here at the entrance to Norris Road.

Staines is so naturally blessed with the number of rivers flowing through it. The River Thames, the River Colne, the Wraysbury River, the River Ash, the reservoirs aqueduct, Sweeps Ditch and a few minor streams. These waters brought mills and other industry here, even back to Roman Times. They brought life to the area. The Domesday Book of 1086 records six mills in Staines, so it must have been a hugely important settlement. It's little wonder why the Barons and the Bishops chose the town as a base before meeting King John on the field at Runnymede in 1215.

Almost all of the mills were powered by the Colne and Wraysbury rivers. These early mills , like everything else, in early Norman Times, would have been owned by the Crown, the Norman Lords and the clergy. They would have provided work for the ordinary people.

It was here that Fredrick Walton, the inventor of Linoleum, opened his famous Lino Factory in 1864 at Hale Mill. By 1930 the factory covered an area of 45 acres of what is now Two Rivers Shopping Centre. This was the main employer in the town and continued to produce for over a hundred years until its closure in 1970. This is remembered by the metal statue two workmen carrying a roll of lino which we passed earlier. An aerial photo of the Staines Linoleum Company Works, taken in 1928, can be viewed by following the link to “Britain from Above”. Within a few years of Walton opening the factory, others also started to manufacture lino. Walton brought a lawsuit against one company for trademark infringement on the use of the name “Linoleum”. However, he had not trademarked the name and lost the suit. The opinion of the court was also, that even if the name had been registered as a trademark, it was now so widely used it had become generic. This is considered the first product name to become a generic term.

Over the two days of 25 – 26 March 1969 a music documentary film, named “Supershow” was filmed in Hale Mill at the old lino factory. This was intended as Britain’s first music “super session” with many famous blues, jazz and rock artists coming together to perform. The whole project was planned in great secrecy and artists included: Led Zeppelin, Buddy Guy, Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Buddy Miles, Stephen Stills, plus many others. Allegedly, Jimi Hendrix was due to appear, but missed his plane from New York. You can read more about the film at Wikipedia and listen to Led Zeppelin (Dazed and Confused); Buddy Guy (Stormy Monday Blues); Eric Clapton v Buddy Guy (on guitar), Stephen Still (Black Queen) and more by following the links at YouTube.

On exiting Tilly's Lane turn left, along the covered pavement, with shops to your left and the car park to your right.

As you walk along here, take the odd glance to your right, in the road you may be able to see some circular plaques with the words "Sweeps Ditch" on them. To your right, just before reaching the entrance to VUE Cinema, is a tall, thin engraved stone. This is the Sweeps Ditch Stone. The stone and 15 round plaques, found on the ground throughout the Two Rivers car park, indicate the original route of Sweeps Ditch, an ancient man-made mill stream or defence ditch which flowed through Staines. In Roman & Medieval Times it formed the western and northern boundary of Town Island (sometimes referred to as High Street Island). Yet, with the building of the Elmsleigh Centre and the redevelopment of the town centre in the 1970s, the water source was cut. A new water source was provided by Thames Water in 1982, when it installed a pump house in the Riverside car park and this takes water from the Thames. However, the stream no longer goes through the centre of the town, instead it goes underground in a pipe across Thames Street and South Street and re-emerges to the south-east of the town centre, before flowing east and south to rejoin the Thames over a mile downstream near Penton Hook Lock. 

Once past VUE Cinema cross over a zebra crossing and turn right along the pavement, then left to cross a footbridge over the River Colne.

On walking over the footbridge look down to the right and you can see two rivers merge. The main river is to the right and is the River Colne and joining it here is the Wraysbury River. It is from these two rivers where the name of the shopping centre originates. If you look closely at the grassy area just before the two rivers merge you can see it's the beer garden of a pub, funnily enough named Two Rivers. The beer garden is accessed, from behind the pub, by a footbridge over the Wraysbury River.

To the left immediately before the footbridge, looks like another cut going off from the River Colne, but this time dried up. This was from where the Colne fed Sweeps Ditch.

Once over the footbridge, turn left along Church Street. Then cross over, where the road narrows as it crosses over the River Colne.

Church Street crosses over the River Colne via an old bridge. There was mention of a bridge which crossed the Colne at Church Street in 1503 named Longford Bridge. In 1826 it was said to have formerly taken foot-passengers only, while carriages had used a ford beside it.

Church Street is divided into two sections, this one which runs from the bottom of High Street to Bridge Street, and the one leading from The Cock to St Mary’s Church. The latter (western end) has been better preserved over the years. It’s a shame some older buildings have given way to office blocks along this section of the street, but I suppose that’s progress. However, many old buildings do still survive here. Before the opening of Staines Bridge in 1832 this would have been a busy thoroughfare joining the two parts of the town and not divided in the middle by Bridge Street. There were at least five coaching inns, four of which still survive today, albeit some now have different names. The bridge over the Colne is strategically placed immediately downstream from the confluence of the two rivers and the old outflow of Sweeps Ditch. The street also leads directly to Church Island, as if it's yearning to cross the Thames there. It then takes an abrupt sweeping turn to go north and join the, less prone to flood, Wraysbury Road. It's also highly likely this route existed in Roman Times, as a route further north would have meant three bridges: one over Sweeps Ditch, one over the River Colne and one over the Wraysbury River. This all makes things even more confusing when it comes to find where the Roman Road crossed the Thames: was it at the bottom of Staines High Street, was it at Church Island, was it at both places, or did Ad Pontes (by the bridges) refer to the three bridges over the minor streams and the main crossing of the Thames was further upstream? Maybe, sometime in the future, with further research, we'll find out and may even find the lost course of this old road between Staines and Sunningdale.

Just past the bridge is the London Stone pub, originally a coaching inn, named the Duke of Clarence. With the building of the present Staines Bridge in 1832, Clarence Street became the main thoroughfare for coaches and the inn was extended to have an entrance on both streets to maximise passing trade. Next to the pub you can still see the old coaching arch leading from Church Street. In 2003 the pub was taken over by the Wychwood Brewery and renamed The Hobgoblin, then in 2015 it was re-branded as the London Stone.

At the end of Church Street, turn sharp right, staying on the pavement along Clarence Street.

To your left, across Clarence Street, is the Town Hall with the old Market Square in front on it. Also to the left of this is The Blue Anchor, once a inn. Look closely as it still retains many of its original features and has five false windows, owing their existence to a “window tax” introduced in 1696 and repealed in 1851.

Staines Town Hall was designed by John Johnson, architect and District Surveyor of East Hackney, and was completed in 1880 in a Flemish Renaissance style with Italian and French motifs. It took nine years to build and cost a princely sum of £5,000. To make way for it the old small spired market-house was pulled down, as were a number of buildings to the east. This widened the street to form the Market Square and provided the site for the Memorial Gardens which were completed in 1897. However, there does seem to be a slight flaw - if you look closely at the front dial on the clock you will notice two XI, one at 9 and one at 11.

The reason we have the Town Hall is due to the Rennie Brothers choosing a site 200 yards upstream from earlier bridges to build the present bridge. It left a dead-end onto the river at a space where the bottom of old High Street led to the bridge. Locals complained by building the Town Hall with its back to the river, Staines had turned its back on the river. We are still lucky to have this wonderful building as in the early 1970s Staines Urban Borough Council voted by just one not to knock it down. It was thanks to a campaign by concerned local residents which tipped the balance. This led to the formation of the Staines Town Society, a charity whose purpose is to protect the old buildings and heritage of the town.

According to Exploring Surrey’s Past:

“HER 777 - Site of Staines Town Hall or Market House (Pre 1603 - Post 1712)

Staines Town Hall, or market house, originally stood in the middle of the highway and was afterwards removed to its later site. There in the Autumn of 1603 Sir Walter Raleigh was indicted before Commissioners and Middlesex jury. The current Town Hall was built in 1880/81 to replace a smaller one in a miserable and low thoroughfare known as Blackboy Lane. The original position has been sited to a widening of the High Street. The site of the meeting house lies just south of this part of the High Street. Sometime post 1712, the town hall or market house was moved to Blackboy Lane, which ran from where the present town hall stands south-eastwards to the river. It may be presumed that the present building stands very near to the site of the earlier one. The 1st edition of the OS 25" does not show it by name, but there is an isolated building in the centre of the roadway on the west side where the present Town Hall stands.”

Sources claim Sir Walter Raleigh was tried here, but this is not correct. It was here he was committed in 1603, before his trial at Winchester.

Over the years the Town Hall was used for many public events, including boxing tournaments, the local archaeological group, opera and stage plays. Famous rock bands who played here during the 1960s and 70s included, The Who, The Yarbirds and The Jaywalkers (with Richie Blackmore). The town hall was used for the court scene in the 1982 film Gandhi, where Judge Bloomfield sentences Ghandi to six years imprisonment for sedition It also featured in the 2002 film Ali G Indahouse - see excerpt.

Staines Town Hall was mainly occupied by the local council, under different names from it opened until 1972, when Staines Urban District Council moved to new offices at Knowle Green. The local Magistrates Court was based her between October 1967 and March 1976, when it also moved to new offices at Knowle Green. The Old Town Hall opened as new Arts Centre in 1993; officially opened on 15 April 1994 by actor and director Kenneth Branagh. In 2004 the building became a “Smith & Jones” pub. However, when I went there recently, it seemed to have been abandoned and signs on the windows were advertising the leasehold of the building being up for sale. Latest news -as of January 2018 there are plans to turn the building into flats.

Both of the red telephone kiosks at the front of the Town Hall, although looking a bit shabby at present, are grade II listed. The Old Fire Engine Shed, at the back right of the hall, was built c1880 and housed Spelthorne’s first museum from 1980 to 2003. You can read more about Staines Town Hall on the Historic England website.

Staines War Memorial sits on the north of the Market Square and is built of Portland Stone. It was unveiled by George Bingham, 5th Earl of Lucan, in 1920. It originally sat in the Memorial Gardens, but was moved here in 2002 as part of the town redevelopment scheme. It is mounted by a winged figure of Victory holding a torch and a wreath. On each corner is a figure of a serviceman – a soldier in field kit with a rifle; a sailor in day rig with signal flags; an airman in flying rig, and a marine in field kit with rifle stand on arms. The memorial also acts as a water feature, at its base (when turned on) named “Reflections”.

After 90 yards, turn left to cross over Clarence Street using the staggered pelican crossing. Then turn right along the pavement, soon over the River Colne.

Follow the pavement as it veer left and over Staines Bridge.

The history of a bridge across the Thames at Staines dates back to almost two millenniums. Geology has a large part to play here as Staines is the only place on the Thames above London where you can cross the river without leaving a gravel base and not come upon the more unstable alluvial soils. During the Bronze Age (2,500 – 800 BC) and well before the Romans came to Britain, there is evidence people crossed the Thames at Staines. We know the Romans built a bridge here around 43 AD to carry their main road from London to the south-west. In 1009 there are records of an invading Danish Army (The Vikings) crossing the river at Staines to avoid an English force assembling in London. After Roman Times, the first mention of a bridge here was in 1222, when the King (Henry III who reigned from 1216 – 1272) gave a tree from Windsor Forest for the repair of the bridge. For centuries the bridge was an important part of the route from London to the south-west and it underwent many changes, through royal grants, alms acquired from the surrounding areas and finance from merchants who used the bridge for their goods. Tolls were levied on traffic to maintain it and by 1376 these were also taken from boats passing it. An Act of 1597 included the Egham Causeway as part of that maintained. The quote below is from British History Online and tells us some more of the story of Staines Bridge up until 1832:

In 1549 the people of Staines prayed the Privy Council that they might not be compelled to break down the bridge to impede the rebels. Since the rebels, who had risen in the west country against the prayer book, did not in the event march on London, it is probable that Staines Bridge was spared, but a century later it was destroyed in the Civil War. In 1671 it was said that after the bridge was broken down in the war, the bridge-masters had replaced it by a ferry. A wooden bridge was mentioned in 1669 and 1675 but about 1684-7, when the bridge was rebuilt, a ferry was still working and had been doing so since the bridge was demolished. The bridge was again threatened with destruction in 1688 to impede William of Orange's advance on London. It was still made of wood in 1708.

Under an Act of 1791 a new stone bridge was built. It was designed by Thomas Sandby and opened in 1797, but part of it collapsed almost immediately and it was replaced in succession by a cast-iron bridge, opened in 1803, and a wooden and iron one opened in 1807. The old wooden bridge remained by the side of its successive replacements and was used while they were built. All these bridges spanned the river between the present Memorial Gardens and the Hythe, with Staines High Street extending to the foot of the bridge across the Town Hall site. The last iron bridge became unsafe in its turn and under Acts of 1828, 1829, and 1832 the present bridge was built and Clarence Street, Bridge Street, and the approaches were laid out.

Staines Bridge, as we now know it, was designed by George Rennie (1791 – 1866) and his younger brother John. They got their gift from their father and uncle who had achieved many great engineering fetes before them, including building other bridges over the Thames. The first stone was laid by Prince William, 1st Duke of Clarence on 14th September 1829. He later returned on 23rd April 1832, as William IV with his wife Queen Adelaide, to officially open the new bridge in great ceremony. In total the bridge cost over £40,000 to build. Up to now recent attempts to build a new bridge at Staines had failed disastrously. These had been had been further downstream, around the area of the town hall and where earlier bridges were. You can read more about this and see some lovely drawings and photos of older bridges at Where Thames Smooth Waters Glide.

Under Emperor Claudius the Romans invaded Britain in AD 43 and in the same year Staines was established as a Roman settlement, a fort and a crossing point of the Thames. It was the first crossing point upstream from London. The Roman settlement was named “Ad Pontes” (“by the bridges”) and suggests in Roman Times at least two bridges at Staines. However, this may refer to a bridge over the Thames and another over the River Colne, or even two bridges crossing the Thames by use of an island in the middle.

As with previous bridges, traffic using the Rennie Brothers’ Bridge had to pay a toll to cross. This continued up until 1871, when to the delight of local people and road users the toll was removed. However, I did read at Staines Museum, that prior to 1878 every pedestrian was charged a toll of half of one penny to cross Staines Bridge.

With the outbreak of World War II, a wooden Bailey bridge was built just upstream from Staines Bridge. Its purpose was to carry the extra wartime traffic and to act as a spare if the main bridge was damaged by enemy bombs. It closed to traffic 1947, but remained opened to pedestrians until 1959, when widening of the main bridge had been completed.

After crossing Staines Bridge turn left into The Hythe.

Immediately south of Staines Bridge is a large roundabout. This is thought to be the site of an ancient stone circle, sometimes called “The Old Stones of Staines” and (from some sources) where the town is believed to get its name. The group of nine stones is mentioned in the 12th century charter of Chertsey Abbey.

“Down to that Eyre that stands in the Thames at Lodders Lake and so along Thames by mid-stream to Glenthuthe, from Glenthuthe by mid-steam along Thames to the Huthe before Negen Stanes”

“Negen Stanes” is Saxon for “nine stones”, “Glenthuthe” is “Glanty” (now an M25 junction at Egham which we recently passed) and “Huthe” is “Hythe” (now named Staines Hythe). Apparently, each stone was on the path of a different ley line. Although, the all did not cross at a central point here. There used to be a great website showing all the lines passing through here and all the historical sites they aligned with, but I can no longer find this. However, see a link which covers some of the information.

As we turn left into The Hythe, to the right is a white metal post with the crest of the Corporation of London on the front. This is a coal & wine tax post and was erected here in 1861. Most of the posts were a result of the “London Coal & Wine Duties Continuance Act of 1861”. They formed an irregular loop of about 12 to 18 miles from London. Their purpose was to collect taxes for the Corporation of London, for coal and wine cargo passing these points. This paid for building parts of the City of London, bridges over the River Thames, and by the 1870s to free from toll a number of bridges over the Thames – including Kingston, Hampton Court, Walton-on-Thames, & Staines bridges. There were originally about 280 in total and 211 still exist. They are all grade II listed and their story gives a great insight into how London prospered in those days. You can read more about these posts at http://rhaworth.net/cowi/postlist.php, or at Wikipedia.

The Hythe (meaning “Landing Place on the river, island post”) is one of the best preserved areas of Staines. Evidence of a Roman settlement has been found here. In Saxon Times it was listed as a port on the River Thames and is mentioned in the 12th century Charter of Chertsey Abbey. The main road from Staines to Chertsey ran through here until 1937, bargees (river-men) frequented the inns and diarist Samuel Pepys (1633 – 1703) often visited the Swan Inn. There are some wonderful buildings dating back to the 16th and 17th, 18th centuries. The old houses and inns probably owe their existence to the older bridges which crossed the Thames to The Hythe. It was only with the building of the present Staines Bridge when much traffic stopped passing through The Hythe and thus allowed it to be preserved in the way we see it today. On 24th February 1970 the Hythe was designated a Conservation Area and all of the buildings are grade II listed. On the wall to the right as we walk along The Hythe, and just before Farmer’s Road is an old red George V wall mounted post box. Next to it is an information board showing the history of The Hythe.

Soon to the left is the The Swan Hotel, an 18th century coaching inn and now a Fullers managed house. Opposite it is the 16th century Anne Boleyn Hotel. Anne Boleyn, does have connections with Staines. Apparently, c1530 she often stayed at Staines, when the King was at Windsor. At the time they were having an affair whilst he was seeking an annulment of his marriage to his first wife Catherine of Aragon, thus allowing him to marry Anne. The young Miss Boleyn and the King meet, in secret, half way at the old Ankerwyke Yew near Wraysbury. Later, when Anne was married to Henry, they often travelled along the Thames from Hampton Court to Windsor via barge. I expect at times they may have stopped off at Staines on their journey. If you visit the link to Anne Boleyn on Wikipedia, you will see that Henry didn’t often keep a wife for very long and within three years he would have her head removed and their marriage annulled. I’m not sure when the hotel name was changed to “Anne Boleyn”, but as you can see from a photo on the Francis Frith website, dated 1895, it was then named “Ye Olde Bridge House”. The east side of the hotel is 17th century and was once a public house, aptly named “The Young Elizabeth” after Anne’s only child Princess Elizabeth and later Queen Elizabeth I.

After the Anne Boleyn Hotel go straight on along the Hythe and past Chertsey Lane to our right.

You can see by road marking the main road through here turns right and follows Chertsey Lane. As mentioned above, until 1937, the main route from Staines to Chertsey followed this route. Luckily, a new road (still named Chertsey Lane) was built just south of here and diverts traffic from The Hythe.

To our left, immediately after, Chertsey Lane is Old Bridge Cottage. This was built in c1791 as part of a toll-house on the site of an earlier Swan Inn which dated from the 15th century. In the late 18th century this inn was demolished to make way for a new bridge linking Staines to Egham and replacing the earlier wooden bridge. The bridge was made from stone, but soon developed cracks. It was replaced by a metal bridge, but this also failed. By 1808 the Government admitted defeat and reverted to using the old wooden bridge, which luckily had not yet been demolished. The abutment of one of the two failed bridge remains as part of the river wall. When the present Staines Bridge was opened in 1832 it was obvious the toll-house would no longer be used for its original use and was sold. Today it still stands as a private residence named “Old Bridge Cottage”. Soon after 1791 a new Swan Inn was built 50 yards upstream from the site of the older inn. This now still exists as The Swan Hotel.

To our right along this part of The Hythe are some beautiful old houses dating from the 17th and 18th centuries. If you look closely some have fire marks on the front wall. This meant they were insured if their house went on fire, and the local fire service would come to your rescue and try to save your house. One is named “Boatman’s Cottage” and this possibly provides an insight into their origins.

On reaching the end of The Hythe, and in front of the red brick office block, turn left towards the River Thames. At the river, turn left along the towpath and soon past the back of the Swan Hotel (at 7 miles).

From the towpath there are good views across to Staines. You can see the Memorial Gardens, the back of the Town Hall, the London Stone, Staines Pier, the footbridge over the River Colne, where it joins the Thames, Thames Edge Court and Staines Bridge.

The towpath soon goes behind Old Bridge Cottage, past the stone abutments of the earlier Staines Bridge built between 1791 and 1797 by Thomas Sandby (see historical record at SHHER_10365). It then passes the beer garden / terrace of The Swan Hotel (at 7 miles).

“Swan Upping”, a tradition which dates back to the 12th century, when The Crown claimed ownership of all mute swans in open water (see video). This “swan marking” event which takes place in the third week of July each year, starts at Sunbury Lock on the Monday and proceeds up river to finish at Abingdon on the Friday. In the Swan Upping ceremony, The Queen's Swan Marker, the Royal Swan Uppers and the Swan Uppers of the Vintners' and Dyers' livery companies are all dressed in traditional clothing and use six traditional Thames rowing skiffs. They mark the swans, check their health and record all their findings. It is traditional for the flotilla to stop at The Swan Hotel on the second day for lunch. On flickr.com you can see a photo from 2009 of the Swan Uppers leaving The Swan Hotel after having lunch (also see video from 2018 at YouTube).

A speeded up video from a boat going from Staines Pier to Old Windsor can be watched below. This covers from 7 to 10 miles of this walk and will giver you a different perspective. When watching just remember we are following the Thames Path on the LHS. You'll see where we are now, Staines Bridge, A30 /M25 road bridge, Bell Weir Lock, the large bend around Runnymede Pleasure Ground and much more depending how attentive you are. It finishes just after the Lutyens Lodges and before the Bells of Ouzeley pub. You may want to go back to it at the end of this section of the walk.

Follow the towpath over a footbridge and under Staines Bridge. This footbridge dates back to at least 1832 as it appears in a sketch of “Staines New Bridge 1832” on “Where Thames Smooth Waters Glide”. There is also a photo on Francis Frith from 1907 with two beautifully dressed ladies walking over this footbridge.

Some evidence of the origins of the footbridge appears to exist in old writings and maps. British History Online (1962) states:

“Staines lies on the east bank of the Thames, which separates it from Surrey, while the branch of the Colne known as the Shire Ditch divides it from Buckinghamshire. The town lies at the narrowest point of the parish, with two wider and roughly equal portions extending to north and south along the Shire Ditch and the river. By the bridge a piece of the Surrey bank, which was once an island, forms part of the parish and is technically in Middlesex.... changes in the river's course within historic times have been the disappearance of islands: the part of the parish across the river on the Surrey shore was an island as late as 1754,.” 

From studying boundaries on old maps it appears a stream may have exited the Thames about 400m upstream from Staines Bridge and rejoined the river at this point. If this is so, it would have formed a small island to the north of The Causeway, on the Surrey bank in the area which is now Watermans Business Park. Another possibility is this may have been a docking area for river craft.

For the next 6 miles our walk follows the Thames Path upstream.

The Thames Path is a long distance “National Trail” opened in 1996. It follows the River Thames for 184 miles, from its source near Kemble in the Cotswolds to the Thames Barrier in Greenwich. The route comes along the Thames from the west through Egham, crosses over Staines Bridge and continues along the northern bank, through Staines and on towards London.

After 250m, and directly across from the east tip of Church Island, the towpath crosses over the entrance to a small marina via an old wooden footbridge. A photo from Francis Frith dated c1890, and entitled Parris’ Bridge, may help to provide more information about the history of this footbridge and the small marina next to it. The same photo, this time dated 1870 and named Paris Bridge, was also on English Heritage Archives. Another clue may come from flickr.com and a photo entitled Biffin Bridge. This last one is a real possibility as Biffin’s Boathouse sat for decades on the south side of the Thames and just upstream from Staines Bridge.

Church Island remains to our right for 150m and past this is the Lammas Recreation Ground. Soon to your left you will see a coal & wine tax post. It is at this point across the Thames that the London Stone stood from the 18th century and the replica from 1986. If you look carefully you can also see where the Shire Ditch enters the Thames. It seems the presence of the coal post here may mark the old boundary referring to Staines Parish (or even Surrey / Middlesex) mentioned above. The Lammas Recreation Ground was once part of Church Lammas and it is believed some of the Barons and their armies were camped there before the sealing of Magna Carta.

Next to the coal post, a path goes left and into the car park of Halfords and Homebase. If you are cycling, then this information maybe useful. However, if you are lucky to be here at the right time, there is also usually a refreshments stand in the car park.

Within a short distance, across the river, although not obvious as an island, is Holm Island. It’s a wooded place with a house called “The Nest”, apparently a courting place in the 1930’s for King Edward VIII (later the Duke of Windsor) and Mrs Wallis Simpson, an American divorcee. Edward was the second member of the House of Windsor to become Monarch. His father (King George V) with German roots (Saxe-Coburg) got rid of the German family name at the start of World War I (1917) and chose a very English name for the Royal Family (Windsor sounded good and still continues to be their family name).

Edward VIII abdicated the throne of England on 11th December 1936, less than 11 months after he became monarch. He could have fought to keep it, but the Prime Minister at the time, Stanley Baldwin, put too many obstacles in the way and would not allow him to marry a divorcee. It was one of the great romances of the 20th century, but it almost brought the English Royal Family to its knees. He was made Duke of Windsor, and married Wallis at Chateau de Cande, near Tours in France on 3rd June 1937. Edward spent most of the rest of his life in France, and until the day he died was not forgiven by his family. Edward died on 28th May 1972. He is the only monarch to have ever voluntarily relinquished the throne of England. He is buried at Frogmore in the Home Park at Windsor. Wallis (Duchess of Windsor) died on 24th April 1986, and is buried next to her husband.

The towpath passes under the bridges carrying the M25 and the A30. The road bridges are only separated by three metres and together tower overhead for 80 metres. The M25 Road Bridge was opened in 1985 and the A30 Road Bridge in 1961. The latter was designed 20 years earlier by Sir Edwin Lutyens. During the construction, archaeologists uncovered a Bronze Age (2200 BC to 750 BC) settlement site, which overlaid a much older Neolithic (4000 BC to 2200 BC) site. Some of the findings from the site can be seen at the Spelthorne Museum and you can read more at the Exploring Surrey's Past SHHER_2645.

Immediately after the road bridges the Colne Brook stream joins the Thames across the river to the right. In front is Bell Weir Lock and on the left overlooking the towpath is the Runnymede Hotel (at 8 miles). The hotel was used as the venue for a party where Team GB (the 2008 British Olympic Squad) celebrated their success after returning from the Beijing Games in 2008. In early 2014, the hotel and most of the land around here went under water. The meadow at Runnymede turned into a huge lake and villages and towns along the Thames were flooded. You can watch a video of the floods on YouTube.

At 8.65 miles we come out onto Runnymede Pleasure Grounds. The area is a pleasant and peaceful setting and offers many facilities, including a café, toilets, parking, a paddling pool, a playground, information boards, and boat trips up the river to Windsor. On a warm sunny day, it is an ideal place for a family picnic, to play by the river, or to start a walk from.

There's a lot to see at Runnymede and we cover almost all of it in the next miles of this stage and the first few miles of section 4 of this walk. Here's a taster of what we'll see at YouTube.

Stay right on the path around Runnymede Pleasure Grounds and with River Thames to your right, then eventually past a car park to your left. Then stay right, through a kissing-gate along the Thames Path with river to right and road to your left (at 9 miles).

To the left, shortly before exiting from the Pleasure Grounds, is a 13ft tall statue of Queen Elizabeth II (see link). It is by sculptor James Butler and was unveiled on 14 June 2015 by the then Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow MP, to commemorate the 800th anniversary of the sealing of Magna Carta. 

The unveiling coincided with the second day of Thames River Relay Pageant from Hurley to Runnymede to commemorate 800 years since the sealing of Magna Carta. The flotilla of 200 boats was lead by the Royal Barge Gloriana carrying a replica of Magna Carta. You can read about the event at BBCNews and watch a video of the pageant arriving at Runnymede Pleasure Grounds below.

Across river is Ankerwycke Island (we were there earlier) and within 400 yards you'll be able to see the ruins of St Mary's Priory and, behind it, the Ankerwycke Yew. To the left across the road is the large open meadow of Runnymede and prominent above this on Cooper's Hill is the Air Forces Memorial.

According to different sources the name Runnymede translates to either a meadow by a river, or more probably, a meadow where a regular meeting (“runieg” in Saxon) was held. I assume the name runieg is derived from an early form of writing, using “runes” as letters to create words and verse just like we have our alphabet today. This method of writing was developed in Germany and brought over to England in the 5th century with the influx of Germanic tribes to Britain. I'll come back to this later.

We know that just upstream at Old Windsor there was a Saxon palace and from time to time, the “Witan” or “Witanagemot” (Saxon Royal Council Meeting) was held in the field at Runnymede. It was where the “Runes” would have been consulted, and at that time runes were very much associated with yew trees.

It was somewhere around this area that King John sealed Magna Carta in 1215. As to the exact point, no one can be 100% sure. Records do not pin-point the exact spot, but with the developments in the science of archaeology, sometime in the near future I am sure we will find the place where Magna Carta was sealed.

King John came to power after the death of his brother Richard I (aka Richard the Lionheart) in 1199. Richard's roots were from Normandy in France, and as well as being King in England he also held lands in France. Not trusting his younger brother John, Richard nominated his nephew, Arthur of Brittany, as his successor. However, John seized the throne of England for himself. He was unpopular in France and was forced to fight for his lands there. He captured Arthur during one battle, and soon Arthur was mysteriously killed. Arthur was just 16 years old and it is believed John was the murderer.

Through the years John continued to fight for his lands in France, but with little success. However, as a feudal king he controlled all of his lands. His nobles and barons only held their lands as tenants and in return for allegiance to the crown. This meant providing military support and paying taxes. These taxes filtered down to others and affected everyone on a noble's estate.

To pay for his increasing failure in battle he kept raising taxes and demanding more support. He was uncompromising and ruthless. Increases in taxes were usually agreed by the king and his barons. However, John took things into his own hands and kept asking for more without consulting the barons first. Eventually, many barons got so squeezed, things came to a head and they started to rebel.

Before this John also fell out with the Catholic Church in Rome over the appointment of the Archbishop of Canterbury. In 1207 Pope Innocent III over-ruled John's choice of Archbishop and instead chose Stephen Langton to fill the post. John go so incensed with this he proclaimed everyone a public enemy who recognised Stephen as Archbishop. He also expelled the Canterbury monks. Between 1207 and 1213 Langton lived in exile in France. During this time, and with John not backing down, the Pope placed England under “interdict” and eventually excommunicated King John. The interdict prohibited clergy from conducting religious services, with the exceptions of baptisms for children and confessions for the dying. It was the only time that Rome had ever put England under interdict. John as king became more unpopular as his people no longer had the blessing of the church, and in these times it was believed you could not enter heaven without the church's blessing.

It wasn't just that John was bad in wars, taxed his subjects to the point of rebellion, and upset the church. He was also a very selfish and cruel king. He upset the Irish, the Welsh and Scots and caused feuds in all three. He confiscated the lands of his nobles who were unable or just refused to pay the high taxes, and with one “offender” he had the baron's wife and daughter imprisoned at Windsor Castle and starved them both to death. During his disagreement with Rome and interdict he confiscated assets from the church. His many extra marital affairs included the wives of noblemen, which at the time was practically forbidden.

In 1213, under severe pressure on all sides, John backed down. Langton and his monks in exile were allowed to enter England. The Archbishop's first religious act was to absolve John, who had to swear to repeal his unjust laws, observer the liberties previously granted by King Henry I and promise to reimburse the church for its lost income caused by the dispute. However, as usual John violated his oath almost immediately. It was no wonder Stephen Langton and the barons got together to draw up a charter to curb the powers of the Crown.

John's last attempt to reclaim his lands in France in 1214 again resulted in failure. He returned to England greatly weakened. In the meantime the rebel barons had increased in numbers. John knew he had his back to the wall, but would send envoys to discuss the baron's grievances. However, he was using this as a delaying tactic whilst he waited for written backing from the Pope. In May 2015 the barons met at Northampton and renounced their feudal ties to John. They declared themselves as “The Army of God and Holy Church” and on 5th May appointed Robert Fitzwalter as their leader. On 24th May the entered London unopposed, the also took Lincoln and Exeter. Other barons began to join their ranks and numbers swelled. John by now had received the written support of the Pope. However, this huge show of strength and the threat of civil war left John with no choice but to meet them and discuss their grievances. He instructed the Archbishop of Canterbury, Stephen Langton, to arrange a peace treaty with them.

It was agreed the baron's would meet with the king in a field, between the towns of Windsor and Staines, named Runnymede. In the days before the meeting the barons assembled with their forces at Staines, the king was based at his stronghold of Windsor Castle. It appeared the barons were much better prepared.

When the two sides gathered at Runnymede it must have been one amazing sight. Around 60 barons and their armies on one side and the king with his still faithful supporters on the other. There were many bishops, abbots and other clergy present. There would have been huge numbers of servants and tradesmen to cater for and look after the needs of their noble lords. Word would have spread throughout the local area and beyond, attracting ordinary folk to the meeting. Unlike the football games of today, the number of people present at Runnymede is not recorded, but there were probably thousands and with numbers on their side, the baron's must have felt it like a home venue.

In the weeks before the meeting an draft charter was drawn up with consultation from both sides. This was likely compiled by Stephen Langton and some of his clergy. It was entitled the Articles of the Barons and this would have formed the starting point for Runnymede. The name even suggests that most of its contents came from the Barons.

Below is an excerpt from, Magna Carta (1215 – 1915). An address delivered on its seventh centenary, to the Royal Historical Society and the Magna Carta Committee. By Professor Wm. S McKechnie, LLB., D.Phil..

“It was on 15 June, then, in the year 1215, that the conference began between John, supported by a slender following of half-hearted magnates, on one side, and the mail-clad barons, backed by a multitude of determined and well-armed knights, upon the other. The conference lasted for eight days, from Monday of one week till Tuesday of the next. On Monday the 15th, John set seal to the demands presented to him by the barons, accepting every one of their forty-eight “Articles”, with the additional “Forma Securitatis” or executive clause, vesting in twenty-five of their number full authority to constrain King John by force to observe its provisions.

This was merely a preliminary measure. Numerous minor points had yet to be adjusted before the final settlement, which took place on Friday, 19th June, when the complete charter, containing the substance of the Articles in an altered sesuence, and with numerous additions and amendments as to points of detail, was also sealed, not merely in duplicate or triplicate but in considerable numbers, each of the great English Cathedral churches in particular receiving a certified parchment of its own. Four of these originals still exist, two of them in the British Museum, one at Lincoln and one at Salisbury....”

The meeting at Runnymede started on 15th June 1215 and events there continued for another seven days. Stephen Langton was the main mediator between both sides. As well as being Archbishop of Canterbury, he was a very clever man and left the world his own great legacy, I'll say why later. However, due to the huge pressure on King John, the royal seal was put to the document on the first day. Hence we remember 15th June 1215 as the day Magna Carta was sealed. Yet, this was not the finished copy. Apparently, John spent the following two days at Windsor whilst articles in the charter were discussed and agreed. He came back to Runnymede on 18th June to finalise things and the following day the barons reclaimed their loyalty to him as king. In the days following the charter was duplicated many times and all with the kings seal attached. They were dispatched throughout the whole country.

It is said that Magna Carta gave rights to all men, but it did not. At the time most men were not free, they were owned by their lords. So it was basically an agreement giving more powers to the nobles and to the church. It was the wording of Magna Carta and how it would be interpreted in the centuries after that would make it important for the freedom of all.

With four known originals of Magna Carta still in existence we know exactly what it said. For the first lime it meant that everyone, including the king, was subject to the law. In all 63 clauses were granted by King John, and most relating to grievances relating to his rule. Many of them were about agreeing taxes, especially to finance wars; rights of nobles and their heirs throughout the kingdom; ownership of lands and payments of rent; the freedom of and more power for the church; fishing, gaming and forestry rights, standardising weights and measures in commodities; rights for widows; rules on repayment of loans and debts; how a punishment should fit a crime; re-establishing local courts; returning Welsh and Scottish hostages; giving back ancient liberties and customs to the City of London, plus other towns and cities; the appointing of justices, sheriffs and constables, and their powers; the removal of foreign soldiers employed by the king, and a few others relevant at the time.

Of the original 63 clauses contained in Magna Carta, only four still exist in British Law. One defends the liberties and rights of the church, another confirms the liberties and customs of the City of London and other towns and cities. The third and fourth are the probably the most important and it was these two clauses that possibly made Magna Carta one of the most important documents in history. They are clauses 39 and 40 and they state:

39. No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land.

40. To no one will we sell, to no one deny or delay right of justice.

The piece below is from the British Library record on Magna Carta (it's worth a visit, and the video narrated by Monty Python's, Terry Jones is very good. I've put the YouTube version of the video below):

“This clause gave all free men the right to justice and a fair trial. However, ‘free men’ comprised only a small proportion of the population in medieval England. The majority of the people were unfree peasants known as ‘villeins’, who could seek justice only through the courts of their own lords.

Buried deep in Magna Carta, this clause was given no particular prominence in 1215, but its intrinsic adaptability has allowed succeeding generations to reinterpret it for their own purposes. In the 14th century Parliament saw it as guaranteeing trial by jury; in the 17th century Sir Edward Coke (1552-1634) interpreted it as a declaration of individual liberty in his conflict with the early Stuart kings; and it has echoes in the American Bill of Rights (1791) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948).”

It's incredible how something drawn up 800 years ago, to curb the powers of a selfish king, to improve the rights of nobles and well-off, and at the time, meaning to do nothing for the ordinary person, could still have such an effect on democratic society today.

King John only lived for another 16 months after Magna Carta, he died aged 49 caused by overindulgence at Newark in Nottinghamshire. However, in this short time he managed to have the Pope (Innocent III, his old foe and now friend) annul Magna Carta, excommunicate the barons and start a civil war. So he never really learned from his mistakes. Innocent III died two months before John.

Magna Carta was re-issued in 1216 by his son and heir King Henry III. He was only nine years old, a few changes were added, and the lad probably didn't understand what it all really meant. Through the years the “Great Charter” continued to be amended and was re-issued in 1217, 1225 and 1297.

For a list of the key players at Runnymede on 15 June 1215 see Wikipedia. It lists the 25 barons chosen to enforce Magna Carta, two Archbishops, ten other Bishops and twenty Abbots.

One of the twenty-five barons chosen to enforce Magna Carta could not have been more local. Richard de Montfichet was the Lord of the Manor of Wraysbury and had a house, just across the Rtver Thames, at Ankerwycke. He was the youngest of the twenty-five, and the last on them to die (died 1267).

Stephen Langton remained Archbishop of Canterbury until his death on 9 July 1228. There is no doubt he was very clever and much of what is written in Magna Carta is most likely down to him. He must have also been a great intermediary. Langton was also a great churchman and scholar. He is credited with having taken the Bible in its old unstructured form and divided it into the standard modern arrangement of chapters we use today.

As you continue along the river path, with the road to your left, the ruins of St Mary's Priory and the old Ankerwycke Yew can be seen across the Thames.

It's only recently that this view has been opened up again, and this is thanks to the work of the National Trust. In 1805 this view of St Mary's Priory was sketched by J.M.W. Turner. He most have loved the spot so much, as he came back to sketch it again in 1811 and c1816-19. You can see the sketches, and also read a poem he composed about Magna Carta, at Tate Britain.

This view would have also been here on that important day in 1215. The Benedictine Nunnery of Ankerwycke (aka St Mary's Priory) was founded c1160 and the Ankerwycke Yew was probably flourishing before Jesus walked on this earth – estimates put the tree at between 2,000 and 2,500 years old. However, what King John, the barons and the clergy would have seen is a small, yet thriving, house of nuns, looked down on by the venerable old yew. If the tree could talk, it could tell us stories about the sealing of Magna Carta.

According to British History Online:

“Ankerwycke Priory owned all weirs and fisheries in the Thames from Ankerwycke Ferry to Old Windsor”

I cannot be 100% certain as to the exact place the nuns of St Mary's had their ferry crossing, but it must have been very close to, and within view of their priory. This would mean somewhere around here or within the next 300m of our walk. During 2015, the 800th year after Magna Carta, there is talk of having a ferry running between Runnymede Pleasure Grounds and Ankerwycke, making it easier for people to visit the St Mary's Priory and the old yew.

On 15 June 2015 HM The Queen, other members of the Royal Family, Politicians and legal representatives from all over the free world turned up at Runnymede to celebrate 800 years since the sealing of Magna Carta. You can read about this at the BBC.

As you continue along the path, soon to the left, across the meadow, and near the foot of Cooper's Hill is a small circular monument. This is the “Magna Carta Memorial”. It was designed by Sir Edward Maufe, financed by the American Bar Association and unveiled on 18 July 1957.

Across the river, to the right, at this point and not really obvious as an island, is Magna Carta Island. It is one of the suggested sites on which Magna Carta was sealed. There is a octagonal stone slab named the “Charter Stone” on which is believed to have been used for the sealing ceremony. This was kept at Ankerwycke House until 1834, when the owner at the time, George Simon Harcourt, rebuilt the fisherman's cottage, decorated the walls with the coats of arms of some of the barons and had the stone framed in oak and inscribed;

"BE IT REMEMBERED, THAT ON THIS ISLAND, 25 JUNE 1215, JOHN KING OF ENGLAND SIGNED MAGNA CHARTA; AND IN THE YEAR 1834, THIS BUILDING WAS ERECTED, IN COMMEMORATION OF THAT GREAT AND IMPORTANT EVENT, BY GEORGE SIMON HARCOURT, ESQ LORD OF THIS MANOR, AND THEN HIGH SHERIFF OF THIS COUNTY." (Fn.1)

The cottage can be seen 200m later at the upstream edge of the island.

Just after the cottage comes into view, across the meadow to the left, and half way up Cooper's Hill, is a large white block. This is the John F. Kennedy Memorial. It is a large engraved slab of Portland stone designed by Geoffrey Jellicoe. It was unveiled by HM Queen Elizabeth II on 14th May 1965 in the presence of President Kennedy's widow, their children, and his brothers. By visiting the links to YouTube1, YouTube2 you can watch a short video of the ceremony. For a longer video of an insight of the architect design thoughts click HERE. In her speech the Queen proclaimed:

“This acre of English soil is now bequeathed in perpetuity to the America People in memory of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, who in death my people still mourn and whom in life they loved and admired.”

The lodges (or kiosks) and urn-topped pillars on both sides of the road were commissioned as a memorial to Urban H. Broughton after his death in 1929, by his widow Lady Fairhaven and his two sons. They were designed by Sir Edward Lutyens to mark the entrance and exits to Runnymede. There is another, similar but smaller set with octagonal kiosks, at the Egham end of the meadow. They were opened by the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) in 1932. Today on the Old Windsor side, the south lodge is a tearoom run by the National Trust, the north lodge used to be home to the Runnymede Gallery.

The video below, by National Trust, talks more about: the history of the site; the Egham Horse Races; the Egham Enclosure Act of 1814; the public outcry in 1921 when the Liberal - Conservative coalition proposed to auction Runnymede to raise extra funds for the Treasury; how in 1929 Lady Fairhaven bought this land and in 1931 she gifted the whole site to the National Trust. It also covers some of the work which has gone on here since, plus the memorials and works of art that been erected. We'll be visiting these on section 4 of this walk.

Continue along the Thames Path and past the French Brothers' Runnymede Boathouse (at 9.8 miles). If you wish to divert for some refreshments, turn left towards the main road (A308). Cross straight over (with care) and turn left to the Magna Carta Tearooms. Then retrace your steps back to the river and continue along the towpath.

Below is a video taking from the Thames Path and shows the Thames at Old Windsor. It starts at the French Brothers Runnymede Boathouse and slowly works its way upstream as far as Albert Bridge. It was taken in May 2020, during lockdown. Notice how all the French Bros' boats are parked up. There is no activity on the river or on the towpath. Even Old Windsor Lock is deserted. The only things moving are a couple of planes on their final decent to nearby Heathrow Airport, some traffic crossing Albert Bridge and a van going through the gates to the Royal Windsor Farm Shop.

The path soon comes out onto the pavement, next to the A308 (at 10 miles), but before reaching The Bells Of Ouzeley public house rejoins the river.

The Bells of Ouzeley (or Ouseley) seems to be a strange name for a pub. This was once an old coaching inn and was linked to the north bank of the river by a ferry. One story says the inn takes it name from the bells of Osney Abbey, in Oxford. In 1538, during Henry VIII's “Dissolution of the Monasteries” (1536 – 1541), the bells were being brought downstream to London but somehow the fell into the river here and sank into the wet clay, never to be seen again.

Ouseley Road runs down to the river on both sides of the Thames. On the north bank it links the Thames to the centre of Wraysbury, whilst on the Old Windsor bank it links the Thames to the Beaumont Estate. Hugo de Remenham owned the estate Estate in the 14th century, when it was named Remenham. The estate would have included much of the lands around here right up to the river, plus any inn or ferry. There is mention of an ancient inn here built in 1300, but there may possibly have been one going back to Saxon Times. There was also a Remenham Manor In Wraysbury, first mentioned in 1289, and in 1611 it's also recorded as owning a ferry.

The Beaumont Estate passed through many hand over the years, including Warren Hastings, first Governor-General of India. The last individual owner was the 4th Viscount Ashbrook, and shortly after his death in 1847, his widow sold the pub. She continued to live at Beaumont until 1854, then sold what remained of the estate to the Society of Jesus as a training college. For seven years it housed Jesuit novices and on 10th October 1861 it became a Catholic boarding school for boys with the title of St. Stanislaus College, Beaumont, widely known as the ‘Catholic Eton’. After the school moved in 1967, the estate was acquired by computing company ICL as a training centre. In 2003 it was bought by its present owners Hayley Conference Centres.

In 1936 the old inn burnt down and was rebuilt. The new building only lasted a few years as in 1944 a German V1 flying bomb hit the building, killing the owner and his wife and injuring others. Once again the inn had to be rebuilt. (Fn.4). It is currently owned by Harvester Restaurants.

From "The Thames from the Towpath" by E K W Ryan (1938) – (Fn.5)

“Presently ... we came to the quaint old white-fronted hostelry, The Bells of Ouseley, with a tea-garden, and tables round the trunks of apple trees.

The name refers to Osney, the vanished abbey of that name outside Oxford, whose bells had a special repute. The inn is said to have been built in the year 1300, and the beer which was once brewed there was supplied to Windsor Castle. When it was first built the river came almost to its doors, and subsequently it was raised four feet to avoid floods. Queen Elizabeth I, moving along the Thames in the royal barge, was wont to stop here for refreshment. In George III's reign a Chinese junk was brought up the river by the Duke of Cumberland, taken ashore at the Bells, and transported to Virginia Water.

The ancient inn was recently demolished [1936], but the building that replaces it is pleasing to the eye and in perfect sympathy with its surroundings. Alas, the apple trees are no more.”

After passing the Bells of Ouzeley continue along the Thames Path as it veers right and parts company with the A308 (Straight Road).

The next part of the walk, along a backwater of the Thames, is peaceful stroll towards the Saxon area of Old Windsor. If you look carefully across the river you will only see the gardens of desirable riverside residences. There is no path as there is little access to the river at Wraysbury. To enjoy a riverside walk in Wraysbury you need to go downstream to Ankerwycke.

0.6 miles after the Bells of Ouzeley, the Thames Path climbs slightly and veers right to cross a small footbridge over the entrance to a marina.

NOTE: Just before this an enclosed path goes left and if you have time you may wish to divert the short distance to follow it to the old part of Old Windsor. The diversion adds 0.38 miles (see map). I have written about this below. However, if you choose not to, then skip to the instruction at 10.75 miles.

DIVERSION: The path leads to what is the historical part of Old Windsor and in Saxon Time named Kingsbury. As you pass the marina (to your right), out of view to your left is a large 18th century house, named The Priory. It started life as a small riverside inn, but was transformed into an amazing gothic house, which looked like a monastery, hence “The Priory”. Just west of The Priory, and in its grounds, is where the Old Saxon Palace used to stand. Over the years, there have been many claims as to where the site of the Saxon Palace was. It was only in recent years evidence has found that a Saxon Settlement, going back to at least the 7th Century existed here and discover the actual site of the palace. Modern aerial maps can be great help with such things, and if you follow the link to StreetMap to see the site of the old palace in a triangular field, just south-west of the church and west of The Priory. You can use the outline of the palace on GoogleMaps.

After 200m, turn left through a small car park, then right and into the churchyard. On reaching the church turn left and exit the churchyard via the lych-gate.

The Parish Church of St Peter & St Andrew most probably sits on the site of an older Saxon church connected to the Old Palace. According to the church website:

“The Parish Church of St Peter and St Andrew was probably built on the site of the chapel attached to King Edward the Confessor’s hunting lodge, and it is possible that it was the king who added his favourite saint, Saint Peter, to an original dedication to St Andrew. Several synods or meetings of bishops took place here in the early days.

After King John had been obliged to set his seal to Magna Carta in 1215, mercenary French soldiers came through Old Windsor and destroyed the church, which may have been mainly built of wood. The church was rebuilt in 1218 and had thick walls and small windows. During medieval times some of these windows were replaced with larger ones.

In Georgian times, the church had a stone porch, in which weddings were sometimes celebrated, and on the tower was a small cupola. An avenue of larch trees, of which some stumps can still be seen, led to the north door. As wealthy families moved into the village, bringing their servants, there was not enough room in church and a gallery was built at the west end to accommodate the children. However, as they were badly behaved it was necessary to appoint a beadle to keep them in order. The church contained many large memorials.

By 1865 restoration was needed and the architect Giles Gilbert Scott carried out an extensive plan, removing the porch, the gallery and the three-decker pulpit, and installing the rood screen, pews and choir vestry which we have today. The spire was built to replace the cupola. Three extra bells were added to the five dating from 1775, to make the ring up to eight bells.

Subsequently, restoration campaigns have resulted in the replacement of much of the damaged stonework around the windows and on the tower. The spire has also been re-shingled several times. The church suffered a serious fire on Easter Day 2008 but has now been fully restored.”

There are some notable graves in the churchyard. Sir Henry George Macleod (died 1847), is buried at the side of the church and next to the path. He was Governor of Trinidad from 1840 to 1846. Mary “Perdita” Robinson (1758 – 1800) is interred in a large chest tomb with three inscriptions, two of which are poems. One by Samuel Jackson Pratt and one by herself. She was an actress, poet and writer, and a mistress of King George IV when he was Prince of Wales.

Kingsbury, at Old Windsor, was one of the largest settlements in Berkshire and one of the most important in England during Saxon Times. After the Norman Conquest, William the Conquer and his son Henry I still used this place for royal meetings. However, William built a castle a couple of miles upstream at what became to be known as New Windsor. During his reign, Henry I, turned this new castle into a royal household and Old Windsor went into decline. It was only as late as 1974 that New Windsor had its name changed to Windsor and what was Windsor (aka Kingsbury) became Old Windsor. This is totally a contradiction in terms and most probably confuses many visitors. What most people now see at the town of Old Windsor is “Straight Road”, some modern housing developments and, if able to find it, a well hidden away is the area around the church and the main history of the town. This was, one of the most important Saxon settlements in the country, yet most will never know, and most of the historic places are not accessible to the public. I suppose if they were, the public wouldn't even know.

The parish of Old Windsor does cover a huge area. It takes in most on Windsor Great Park, all the the way down to Sunninghill and the borders of Ascot; including half of Virginia Water lake, and the area bordering the park and Englefield Green.

After exiting the lych-gate, turn right. You have a choice of two narrow roads, veer right as the other is private and leads to The Manor. Follow this back past the marina and to the river.

As we choose to veer right, after exiting the churchyard, the alternative to the left leads to The Manor. This is now a modern care home for the elderly. However, a much older house existed here back to the Saxon era. In the 1920’s it became home to Maharaja Vijaysinhji of Raijpipla. He suceeded his father and became the 36th Gohil ruler and Maharaja of Rajpipla in 1915. He was well educated, and back in his home state in India built free schools, road and rail infrastructure, introduced health services and pensions, reduced taxes but greatly grew the economy. He helped the allies during World War I, became an officer in the British Army and was knighted. He was also a great sportsman and made sports mandatory in schools. Sports was his passion and horse racing was one of those. His horse, Windsor Lad (I suppose called after himself) won the Epsom Derby in 1934, King George V and Queen Mary invited him into the Royal Box to congratulate him. As a racehorse owner he won many great races including the Indian Derby a few times, the Irish Derby's and more. Overall is the most successful Indian racehorse owner ever. During World War 2 he again supported the allies. He was a bit of a playboy and enjoyed his time in England and at Old Windsor. He encouraged other provincial leaders in India to give up their principalities and become part of democratic India. On 10 June 1948 Rajpipla merged with the Indian Union, bringing to an end a 600 year rule over the state. In 1951 the Maharaja died at The Manor in Old Windsor and was cremated at Rampura on the banks of the holy river Narmanda, in his home state.

The website “o2have.uwclub.net”, by Geoff Thomason, gives a great insight into the history of Old Windsor. You can also read about Old Windsor at Wikipedia.

On reaching the river again, turn left and continue along the tow-path. You have now reached the END OF THE DIVERSION.

10.75 miles. Once over the footbridge continue along the Thames Path.

In just over 100m across the river is a boathouse. It was at this point the ferry ran between Old Windsor and Wraysbury. The ferry was in use in Saxon Times and continued right up to the 20th century. The boathouse is one of the few points of public access to the river in Wraysbury. The path connects to Old Ferry Drive and just a short distance from "King John's Hunting Lodge", although the lodge probably dates from after the king's time.

Soon the River Thames splits with the main stream going away to the right as we have no choice but to stay left and along the cut (named "New Cut") past Old Windsor Lock. The New Cut is just over half a mile long and was dug in 1822. Old Windsor Lock (at 11 miles into the walk), was completed the same year. The result was to cut of a large meandering bend and in the process produce Ham Island. At 125 acres it is one of the larger on the river, is home to a large water treatment works, 37 dwellings and a horse rescue centre. It is connected to the Old Windsor bank by a road bridge. During the early 2014 floods the island went under water.

Ham Lane is soon crossed and shortly afterwards, at Ham Island Weir, we rejoin the main stream of the Thames. The path continues along the river with fields to the left until Albert Bridge.

At Albert Bridge veer left to climb steps to a road. At the top, turn right on the narrow high pavement and cross the river. Shortly after crossing, turn sharp right and back down to the river (at 12 miles). Then turn right under the bridge and straight on along the Thames Path – it is all signed Thames Path.

On the opposite side of the road (B3021), after climbing the steps to the bridge, is a strange looking old door. It leads to a riverside, turreted lodge on the edge of the Royal Estate. Albert Bridge, as it now stands, was built in 1927 and replaced a cast-iron bridge dating from 1851. It’s named after Prince Albert, consort to Queen Victoria. At “Where Thames Smooth Waters Glide there are lots of photos and information collated about Albert Bridge over the years.

Across the Thames, from after Albert Bridge, is The Home Park. This is the monarch’s own park. The area was closed off as a private park with the passing of “The Windsor Castle and Town Approaches Act” by Parliament in 1848. The private part of the park contains many places of interest including: Frogmore House; the Royal Mausoleum (the resting place of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert); Adelaide Cottage; the Windsor Castle Golf Course (only open to members of the royal family and their staff); Home Farm and the Windsor Farm Shop.

After 400m follow the Thames Path as it turns right and away from the river. Then left between hedges, parallel to Southlea Road (B3021) and into Datchet.

Just before our walk enters Datchet Village we cross over a small waterway guarded by metal railings. This is a outlet sluice to take water away from the Thames and pumped into the huge, nearby Queen Mother Reservoir.

350m later, just past The Avenue to your right and where the pavement terminates, cross over the B3012 (Southlea Road) and continue straight on.

There are some lovely old houses along this stretch of the road and you may even get the odd glimpse of Windsor Castle. Datchet is claimed to be a pretty and quiet riverside village. It is, but it's only on reaching the bottom of the High Street when we can get access to the riverside. There is a beautiful, yet narrow and small riverside park overlooking the river. There's no longer a bridge or a ferry as the opposite bank is part of the Royal Estate.

By the late 13th century there is mention of a ferry from the south side of the High Street - this shortened the journey from Windsor to London. In 1706 the ferry was replaced by a wooden bridge commissioned by Queen Anne and there for public use. With disputes between Buckinghamshire and Berkshire Council about replacing the bridge, in 1836 they both decided to build an iron bridge here. They would build half each from their own banks. However, they never really met in the middle. It was known as “The Divided Bridge” and the unused constructions were both demolished in 1848. With the Act of Parliament that same year, Home Park on the Windsor side was closed off as the Monarch’s private park and has remained closed to the public ever since. A crossing point at this place in the Thames has never been rebuilt and is unique in being the only crossing point to have been lost. All that remembers the old crossing is a plaque erected by Datchet Parish Council.

The old bridge house and post house still exist at this end of the High Street. And across the river, a gap in the trees most likely shows the opposite landing place for both bridge and ferry. You can read more about Datchet Bridge and the ferry and the part royals played here back through kings and queens to Henry VII and early Norman kings by following the links.

We could stay along the river, but it would be a shame to bypass this beautiful village and all the history that comes with it. This guide will go into more of Datchet Village at the start of the next section of our walk. At present, I'll just take you up the High Street as far as Datchet Railway Station.

Turn right into the High Street and after 200m you arrive at a level crossing. Datchet railway station is to the right.

© Sean Davis 2015 - 2023