137-597: Gerald Seymour (born 25 November 1941 in Guildford , Surrey) is a British writer of crime and espionage novels. Gerald Seymour was born to William Kean Seymour and his second wife, Rosalind Wade . He was educated at Kelly College, now known as Mount Kelly in Tavistock , Devon, and took a BA Hons degree in Modern History at University College London . Initially a journalist, he joined ITN in 1963, covering such topics as
274-509: A Scheduled Monument . The area consists of a number of residential streets many of which are characterised by beech hedges. Parts of Onslow Village have been designated as conservation areas, enforcing a number of planning restrictions that are intended to protect the character and identity of the locality. Local amenities include the 5th Guildford Scout Group, a community news website, a Tennis Club and Onslow Arboretum. It also has its own football team, Onslow FC, established in 1986. There
411-501: A 2nd-century villa were discovered at Broadstreet Common during an excavation in 1998. There is thought to have been an Anglo-Saxon settlement in the Guildford area by the early 6th century, although its precise location is unclear. Excavations in the 1930s revealed a Saxon cemetery at Guildown at the east end of the Hog's Back. Burials took place at the site up to the mid-11th century, but
548-570: A consignment of timber to Woking, was made via the canal in 1947. By the mid-1960s, the canal was derelict, but between 1970 and 1976 it was purchased by Surrey and Hampshire county councils. Restoration of the canal was completed in 1991 and the canal is now open for navigation from the Wey to the eastern portal of Greywell Tunnel . The construction of the London and Southampton Railway began in October 1834 and
685-577: A dairy. Using a milk separator , they bought milk from local farmers, and after extracting the cream and whey, sold the skim back to the farmers for pig feed. In 1888 three more of the Gates brothers and their sons joined the business, which led to the formal registration of the company under the name of the West Surrey Central Dairy Company , which after the development of its dried milk baby formula in 1906 became Cow & Gate . In 1900,
822-453: A garden city to be modelled on the ideas of Ebenezer Howard 's Garden City Movement . It was their intention to build a self-contained community with smallholdings, public buildings, open spaces, recreation grounds, woodland and a railway station, as well as developing sites for churches, hotels and factories. On Saturday 1 May 1920, ten weeks after the formation of the Society, the foundations of
959-721: A junction in May 1845 when the branch to Guildford was opened. Three other railway stations were built in the present borough: Brookwood (opened in June 1864), Worplesdon (opened in March 1883) and West Byfleet (opened in December 1887 as Byfleet). The track through Woking station was quadrupled in 1904 and electrified in 1937. The London Necropolis Company was established by an Act of Parliament in 1852 to create Brookwood Cemetery . New burials had been banned in central London graveyards in 1850, and
1096-403: A large field, several tennis courts, toilets and a scout hut. Park Barn consists of a former and present social housing estate in Guildford. It is bordered to the south by the railway line , the east by Westborough, the north by Rydes Hill and the west by Broadstreet Common. The estate is home to King's College , a school for 11 – 16-year-olds. There are also a number of primary schools in
1233-491: A major railway junction as well as several Vickers factories making aircraft parts, made Woking an obvious target for enemy bombing. The most severe attack took place in January 1941, in which seven people were killed. By the end of 1944, the borough had experienced 58 air raids, during which around 25 houses had been destroyed and almost 2300 damaged. The final bomb attack on Woking, a V-2 rocket , fell on 2 March 1945. The town
1370-409: A major suburb of Guildford. Guildford Park and Dennisville are small residential neighbourhoods immediately south of and at the foot of Stag Hill. Dennisville was founded in 1934 to provide accommodation for workers at Dennis Brothers Woodbridge Hill factory. Both neighbourhoods are close to Guildford railway station to the southeast and become, without division, Onslow Village to the south. As
1507-559: A market house was built "beneath the Gild Hall", but by 1626 it was no longer suitable to store the "graine accustimablie sold there" and the corn market was moved to the Tun Inn on the south side of the High Street. A purpose-built Corn Exchange was erected there in 1818. In 1865, the market was relocated to North Street and in 1895, it moved to Woodbridge Road. Guildford's early prosperity
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#17330847648631644-501: A new factory, known as the Lion Works, on the site of the former Oriental Institute . By 1919, over 600 Buzzard biplanes had been produced in Woking, but following the end of the war, demand for aircraft declined, and the company closed in 1924. In 1926, the site of the Lion Works was purchased by James Walker, whose company specialised in the production of packaging materials. By 1939,
1781-468: A population of 103,900 in 2021. The main urban centre stretches from Knaphill in the west to Byfleet in the east, but the satellite villages of Brookwood , Mayford , Pyrford and Old Woking retain strong individual identities. Around 60% of the borough is protected by the Metropolitan Green Belt , which severely limits the potential for further housebuilding. Recent developments have included
1918-556: A result of the wool trade, and the town was granted a charter of incorporation by Henry VII in 1488. The River Wey Navigation between Guildford and the Thames was opened in 1653, facilitating the transport of produce, building materials and manufactured items to new markets in London. The arrival of the railways in the 1840s attracted further investment and the town began to grow with the construction of its first new suburb at Charlotteville in
2055-447: A royal property at the start of the 14th century. Edward II granted it to Piers Gaveston , but following Gaveston's downfall in 1312, it reverted to the Crown. Anne of Denmark , wife of King James I was the manor's last royal owner and thereafter it was held by a series of private individuals. The current manor house dates from 1686, but it was restored and extended in 1905. Pyrford
2192-472: A total of 17,000 tonnes of cargo was transported in 1776. Traffic on the Wey and Godalming Navigations declined following the opening of the railway lines in the late 1840s. The National Trust acquired the two waterways in the 1960s and have owned them ever since. The first railway to be constructed in Surrey was the London to Southampton line , which opened in stages from May 1838. Woking railway station ,
2329-476: A wharf was provided at Horsell for the use of local farmers. In the first half of the 19th century, bricks were manufactured in the area now occupied by Goldsworth Road and were transported to London via a wharf adjacent to the Rowbarge pub. The canal declined sharply after the opening of the London and Southampton Railway in the late 1830s and traffic west of Woking had ceased by 1921. The final commercial delivery,
2466-492: Is a small village centre, with a parade of shops and a village hall. Onslow has one infant school, Onslow Infant School, as well as Queen Eleanor's School, a primary school. The local Anglican church is All Saints. The Village also has a Residents' association , the Onslow Village Residents' Association (OVRA) which was set up in 1956 and whose object is to "safeguard the amenities of Onslow village and to promote
2603-563: Is a suburb in the north of Guildford lying adjacent to Slyfield Industrial Estate and Stoughton. The area includes private estates as well as current and former social housing estates. Christ's College, Guildford 's senior school and Pond Meadow special needs school are in Bellfields. The neighbourhood includes St Peter's Shared Church and the Guildford Family Centre. Slyfield is a small mixed land-use area north of Guildford that
2740-521: Is a town and borough in northwest Surrey , England, around 23 mi (36 km) from central London . It appears in Domesday Book as Wochinges , and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The earliest evidence of human activity is from the Paleolithic , but the low fertility of the sandy local soils meant that the area was the least populated part of the county in 1086. Between
2877-498: Is also likely to have been used since antiquity. By the Tudor period, this route had become an important military supply line, linking London and Chatham to Portsmouth . A turnpike road through Guildford, between London and Portsmouth, was created in 1749 and nine years later the roads across the Hog's Back and towards Leatherhead were also turnpiked. The present Farnham Road was built c. 1800 . The most recent major change to
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#17330847648633014-501: Is in the parliamentary constituency of Woking and has been represented at Westminster since July 2024 by Liberal Democrat Will Forster . Councillors are elected to Surrey County Council every four years. The borough is covered by seven divisions, each of which elects one councillor. The seven divisions are: "The Byfleets", "Goldsworth East and Horsell Village", "Knaphill and Goldsworth West", "Woking North", "Woking South", "Woking South East" and "Woking South West". Elections to
3151-418: Is largely indeterminate from Bellfields, however to its east is Guildford's largest industrial and commercial park, Slyfield Industrial Estate. There was a cattle market held in the south of the industrial area until 2000 which moved to Maidstone, Kent . Slyfield has a community hall and a school, Weyfield Primary. To the north of Slyfield is Stoke Hill, on top of which is a park, Stringer's Common, across which
3288-535: Is mentioned in a c. 1200 copy of an early 8th-century letter from Pope Constantine to Hedda, Abbot of Bermondsey and Woking. The first part of the name "Woking" is thought to refer to an Anglo-Saxon individual, who may have been called "Wocc" or "Wocca". The second part is derived from the Old English - ingas and means "people of" or "family of". The Borough of Woking covers an area of 64 km (25 sq mi) in northwest Surrey. Woking town,
3425-593: Is mentioned in the will of Alfred the Great from c. 880 . The exact location of the main Anglo-Saxon settlement is unclear and the current site of the modern town centre may not have been occupied until the early 11th century. Following the Norman Conquest , a motte-and-bailey castle was constructed; which was developed into a royal residence by Henry III . During the late Middle Ages , Guildford prospered as
3562-466: Is named for the business owned by the Stedman family, which operated from the 1860s until the 1910s. Byfleet Brewery, the largest in the modern borough, was active for much of the second half of the 19th century, but production was moved to Guildford after the company was taken over by Friary Ales in the 1890s. The multinational brewing and beverage company, SABMiller , was based in Woking from 1999 until it
3699-465: Is that it was built as a motte-and-bailey castle soon after the Norman Conquest . A polygonal stone shell keep was built in chalk and flint rubblestone around the top of the motte in the early 12th Century, the remains of which are still visible. The square keep , known as the Great Tower, was constructed in the mid-12th century from Bargate stone . Originally built with only two floors, it
3836-512: Is the Jacobs Well neighbourhood which is part of Worplesdon civil parish. Stoughton is a mainly residential suburb north of Guildford town centre. It is the location of the former Stoughton Barracks , which was redeveloped for housing in the 1990s and renamed Cardwell's Keep. In Stoughton is The Wooden Bridge pub where both the Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton performed concerts at
3973-450: Is written as Gildeford in Domesday Book and later as Gyldeford ( c. 1130 ), Guldeford ( c. 1186 – c. 1198 ) and Guildeford (1226). The first part of the name is thought to derive from the Old English gylde , meaning gold, possibly referring to the colour of the sand to the south of the town, or to a local concentration of yellow flowers such as the common or marsh marigold . The second part of
4110-685: The 'Jackmanii' and the 'Belle of Woking'. By 1900, horticulture was one of the most important industries in the area, but following the end of the Second World War, most firms closed or relocated, and their land was sold for housebuilding. Heavy industry arrived in Woking during the First World War with the establishment of the Martinsyde Aircraft Works on Oriental Road. The founders, H. P. Martin and George Handasyde were unable to expand their existing factory at Brooklands and set up
4247-544: The Dennis Brothers company constructed what was probably the first purpose-built car factory in the country, on Bridge Street. This is now known as the Rodboro Buildings , after a later occupant. The company soon outgrew the site, and between 1905 and 1913 production was gradually moved to a new factory near Woodbridge Hill. At the start of the Second World War, 2500 children were evacuated from southwest London to
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4384-684: The Great Train Robbery , Vietnam War , The Troubles , the Munich Olympics massacre , Germany's Red Army Faction , Italy's Red Brigades and Palestinian militant groups . His first book, Harry's Game , was published in 1975, and Seymour then became a full-time novelist, living in the West Country. In 1999, he featured in the Oscar-winning documentary, One Day in September , which portrayed
4521-662: The Local Government Act 1894 , the Woking Local Board became an urban district council (UDC) . Byfleet, Horsell and Pyrford became part of the Chertsey Rural District, although the parish of Horsell was transferred into the Woking Urban District in 1907, It was not until 1933, when the Chertsey Rural District was abolished, that both Byfleet and Pyrford joined the Woking Urban District. The council
4658-468: The Maguire Seven . The Guildford Four were convicted for carrying out the bombings in October 1975 and received life sentences . All four maintained their innocence and, after a campaign of almost fifteen years, their convictions were quashed in October 1989. In the 21st century Guildford still has a High Street paved with granite setts , and is one of the most expensive places to buy property in
4795-700: The North Downs has been in use since ancient times. In the late 19th century it was dubbed the Pilgrims Way , but there is no convincing evidence of its use by pilgrims. The route consists of multiple parallel tracks and hollow ways running along the top of and beneath the North Downs escarpment and is typical of other ridgeway routes in the UK and Europe. Similarly, the path alongside the River Wey, running broadly north–south,
4932-459: The River Thames and Guildford, and the waterway opened in 1653. The navigation had a positive impact on the economy of west Surrey. By the end of the 17th century, timber was being transported via the river from the county boundary with West Sussex and in 1724, Daniel Defoe wrote that corn from Farnham was being sent by barge to London. The Act also allowed passengers to be transported via
5069-645: The Robbins Report recommended that all colleges of advanced technology should be given the status of universities. In May 1963, Edward Boyle , the Secretary of State for Education , announced that the Battersea College would relocate to Guildford as the University of Surrey. The northern part of Stag Hill was chosen as the campus and the construction of the first buildings began in January 1966. The Royal Charter
5206-574: The University occupies the top and north of Stag Hill, it is a popular location for student lodgings. Onslow Village is a sloped suburb on the western outskirts of Guildford. It, with one outlying road continuation, forms a wedge between the A3 road and A31 roads south of the junction of the A3 and Egerton Road, Guildford's Cathedral Turn and directly below Henley Fort , the 1880s built London Defence Position and
5343-616: The Woking Convict Invalid Prison and Brookwood Hospital in the mid-19th century. Modern Woking began to develop between the mid-1860s and late-1880s, as the London Necropolis Company sold excess land that had not been used for Brookwood Cemetery. The High Street had been laid out by 1863, and a post office opened there in 1865. By 1869, the first houses had appeared on Ellen Street (now West Street), Providence Street (now Church Street) and Commercial Road. By
5480-512: The line from Surbiton via Effingham Junction was opened in February 1888, with a new station to the northeast of the town centre, which was later named London Road (Guildford) . It is unclear when the first market took place at Guildford, but by 1276 one was being held in the High Street every Saturday. In the 1530s, there were three markets each week, for corn (the most profitable), for cattle, and for general produce and household items. In 1561,
5617-864: The 11th Battalion of the South Eastern Home Guard . Training was carried out at Mizens Farm, Horsell, and included a mock battle with Canadian, Polish and Free French troops in 1941. Dedicated Home Guard units were responsible for guarding the Woking Electric Supply Company power station, the GQ parachute factory and the Sorbo Rubber Works. Woking railway station was defended by troops operating light anti-aircraft artillery. Air raid shelters were opened on Commercial Road and at Wheatsheaf Recreation Ground in 1939, followed in 1941 by further shelters, including at Victoria Gardens. The presence of
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5754-476: The 11th century. The basic street layout is likely to have been established in Medieval times, and there was a period of strong growth following the grant of a market in 1662. The settlement expanded northwards during the interwar period , and Old Woking is now contiguous with the main urban area of the borough. The majority of the borough is drained by the River Wey, which flows along the southeastern boundary of
5891-529: The 1860s. The town became the centre of a new Anglican diocese in 1927 and the foundation stone of the cathedral was laid in 1936. Guildford became a university town in September 1966, when the University of Surrey was established by Royal Charter. Guildford is surrounded on three sides by the Surrey Hills National Landscape , which severely limits its potential for expansion to the east, west and south. Recent development has been focused to
6028-539: The 1870s. In 1956, the brewery merged with the Meux Brewery of Nine Elms to form Friary Meux. The combined company was taken over by Allied Breweries in 1963 Brewing ceased in December 1968 and the site was sold to the developer, MEPC plc . The brewery was demolished in 1974 and, after archaeological investigations had been concluded, construction of the Friary Centre began in 1978. The east–west route along
6165-420: The 1890s, most of the land to the north of the railway line had been sold, but the London Necropolis Company had been unable to find a buyer for Hook Heath, to the south. The company decided to develop the area itself and divided it into plots for large, detached houses. A golf course was built on part of the heath to attract residents and visitors. The first council housing in Woking was constructed following
6302-399: The 1944 Greater London Plan , Pyrford and Byfleet were identified as areas for overspill development and homes for 3,250 former London residents were expected to be built in the borough. In 1947, London County Council purchased 230 acres (93 ha) at Sheerwater and by 1951 had constructed 1,279 houses and flats for new tenants. In 1965, much of the remaining open space in the borough
6439-507: The 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford , which had around 145,673 inhabitants in 2022. The name "Guildford" is thought to derive from a crossing of the River Wey , a tributary of the River Thames that flows through the town centre. The earliest evidence of human activity in the area is from the Mesolithic and Guildford
6576-469: The Crown until 1189, when Richard I granted it to Alan Basset , who later received the manor of Sutton from King John . Woking was inherited by his descendants until it passed, through marriage, to Hugh le Despenser . It remained in the Despenser family until 1326 when it was granted to Edmund Holland, the fourth Earl of Kent . In the mid-15th century, the manor was inherited by Margaret Beauchamp . It
6713-496: The Guildford Poor Law Union was formed, with responsibility for a total area of 12 sq mi (31 km ) stretching from Godalming to Woking . As a result of the Local Government Act 1888 , several responsibilities were transferred from the borough to the newly formed Surrey County Council . The borough boundaries were extended again in both 1904 and 1933. The final enlargement took place in March 1974, when
6850-458: The Guildford area and in June the following year, evacuees arrived from Brighton. The borough council built 18 communal air raid shelters , including the shelter at Foxenden Quarry, capable of accommodating 1000 people. In late 1940, six British Restaurants were opened in the town and, in May the following year, the first nursery school for children aged between two and five was opened, enabling their mothers to participate in war work. Over
6987-851: The Horse and Groom in North Street at 8:50 pm, killing two members of the Scots Guards , two members of the Women's Royal Army Corps and one civilian . The second exploded around 35 minutes later at the Seven Stars in Swan Lane, injuring six members of staff and one customer. In early December 1974, Surrey Police arrested three men and a woman, later collectively known as the Guildford Four . A few days later, seven further individuals were arrested who became known as
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#17330847648637124-529: The London terminus was bombed. Construction of St John's , the only significant area where housebuilding was directly stimulated by the opening of the Basingstoke Canal, began in the first decades of the 19th century. In the 1790s, there had been a few scattered smallholdings and squatters' cottages to the south of Knaphill, but the opening of a wharf to serve the nurseries and new brickworks attracted new workers, requiring more extensive accommodation. By
7261-556: The Munich massacre. He has been a full-time writer since 1978. Television adaptations have been made of his books Harry's Game , The Glory Boys , The Contract , Red Fox , The Informant based on Field of Blood , A Line in the Sand and The Waiting Time . Guildford Guildford ( / ˈ ɡ ɪ l f ər d / ) is a town in west Surrey , England, around 27 mi (43 km) south-west of central London. As of
7398-646: The Park Barn Estate, the Westborough Estate was built in the 1920s due to the growing population at the start of the 20th century. Westborough is home to a United Reformed church and to a community primary school on Southway. There is a small parade of shops where Southway meets Aldershot Road. Westborough is also a ward of the Borough of Guildford . Its population at the 2011 Census was 9,307. Woking Woking ( / ˈ w oʊ k ɪ ŋ / WOH -king )
7535-725: The Peace were expanded to take greater responsibility for law and order in the area. Following the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 , the parish of Woking was included in the Guildford Poor Law Union, whilst the parishes of Byfleet, Horsell, and Pyrford were included in the Chertsey Poor Law Union. These unions then formed the basis for the rural sanitary districts established in 1872, which gradually took on more local government responsibilities. Surrey County Council
7672-405: The River Wey, to the north of the Town Ditch (now North Street). Excavations in the 1970s revealed that the original buildings were arranged around three sides of a central cloister, with a church to the south, chapter house to the east and kitchen to the north. The community was never large; in 1336 there were only 20 friars and by the time of its dissolution in 1537, there were only seven. In
7809-443: The UK outside London. The town has a general street market held on Fridays and Saturdays. A farmers' market is usually held on the first Tuesday of each month. There is a Tourist Information Office, guided walks and various hotels including the historic Angel Hotel which long served as a coaching stop on the main London to Portsmouth stagecoach route. Charlotteville is one of the first planned suburbs in Britain. The estate
7946-405: The Wey and the maximum one-way fare was capped at 1s, which was raised in 1671 to 1s 4d. The Godalming Navigation was authorised in 1760 and was completed four years later. Four locks were built as part of the works and the Town Bridge was altered to allow barges to pass beneath it. The period of the American War of Independence (1775–1783) was particularly profitable for the two waterways, and
8083-399: The Weye". The River Wey Navigation was authorised by Act of Parliament in 1651. Twelve locks (including two flood locks), and 9 mi (14 km) of new cuts were constructed between the Thames and Guildford , of which three are in the borough. The opening of the new navigation had a modest effect on the local area, and, by the 18th century, flour produced by watermills at Woking
8220-410: The area of Park Barn, including Guildford Grove Primary School , which has a specialist sign-supported rescue base on the site that supports pupils with profound hearing impairments , known as The Lighthouse. The Football team, Park Barn FC, plays in League 4 of the Guildford and Woking Alliance League. Guildford City Boxing Club moved from Bellfields to Cabell Road in Park Barn in 2014. Adjacent to
8357-436: The borough council take place in three out of every four years. A total of 30 councillors serve at any one time, ten of whom are elected at each election. The council is led by an executive committee consisting of the Leader and six portfolio holders. Each year, one of the councillors serves as Mayor of Woking for a period of twelve months. The role of mayor is primarily ceremonial and the post has little political power. Among
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#17330847648638494-403: The borough on a daily basis. According to the 2015–2016 Annual Population Survey, 85% of the working-age population are in employment (compared to the Surrey average of 80%) and 14% are self-employed (compared to the county average of 12%). However, economic prosperity is not spread uniformly across the borough; two areas of Sheerwater are the most deprived parts of Surrey. In the mid-2010s,
8631-418: The borough sits were deposited in the Cenozoic . The sandy Bagshot Beds are the main outcrop around the town centre and to the north. In the west of the borough, around Knaphill and Brookwood, are the younger Bracklesham Beds . The Bracklesham Beds have a higher clay content than the Bagshot Beds, and brickmaking has historically taken place at Knaphill. The River Wey primarily runs across alluvium and
8768-452: The borough, from Jacobs Well to Byfleet. The Hoe Stream, which joins the Wey near Pyrford Village , runs from Fox Corner through Mayford. The Basingstoke Canal runs from west to east, broadly following the course of the partly culverted Rive Ditch, and the northern part of the borough is drained by the tributaries of the River Bourne . There have been major flooding events in Woking in 1968, 2000, 2014 and 2016. The strata on which
8905-413: The charter of incorporation, which placed the administration of the borough in the hands of a mayor and burgesses, appointed from the merchants' guild. The modern system of local government began to emerge in the 1830s. Under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835 , a democratically elected council replaced the mayor and burgesses, and the borough expanded beyond the medieval town boundaries. A year later,
9042-404: The company was able to purchase 2,268 acres (918 ha) of common land in the Woking area in 1854. The cemetery was consecrated by the Bishop of Winchester in November 1854. Coffins were transported to Brookwood by train and the cemetery was served by a short single-track branch line with two stations . The company ran funeral trains to Brookwood at least twice a week until April 1941, when
9179-432: The company was wound up and many shareholders and tenants had the chance to buy their homes at affordable prices. Onslow Village never got its railway station, however, it did eventually get its woodland: the Onslow arboretum, developed by Guildford Borough Council as a specialist collection of eighty tree species from around the world. The Onslow arboretum is located right next to the recreation area which has its own park,
9316-459: The consecration service took place on 17 May 1961. Construction work finally ceased in 1965. The campaign to found a university in Guildford began as an initiative of the local Rotary Club in 1962, to explore an approach to the University Grants Commission. At around the same time, the governors of the Battersea College of Advanced Technology were looking for a new campus, as their institution had outgrown its own south London site. A year later,
9453-443: The construction of two residential tower blocks in the town centre and the conversion of former industrial buildings to apartments. There are six Sites of Special Scientific Interest within the borough boundaries, of which three form part of the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area . Almost the entire town centre dates from the 20th and 21st centuries. Elsewhere in the borough, there are several historic buildings, including
9590-534: The course of the war, seven people were killed in the town as a result of enemy bombing, three of whom died when a V-1 flying bomb landed in Aldersey Road in August 1944. At the start of the war, Stoughton Barracks became a training centre for army recruits and George VI visited twice in late 1939. The defence of the town was the responsibility of the 4th Battalion of Surrey Home Guard and defensive installations included dragon's teeth close to London Road station, numerous pillboxes and an anti-tank ditch that
9727-432: The early Bronze Age . Pollen samples taken from the westernmost barrow suggest that the local environment at the time of construction was predominantly open heathland with some areas of deciduous woodland. Aerial photographs suggest that there may have been field systems on Horsell Common, Smarts Heath and Whitmoor Common in the same period, although the local soils are relatively infertile and could not have sustained
9864-504: The early 21st century, Woking has a strong economy relative to the rest of the UK; the borough was awarded first place in the UK Vitality Index of Local Authorities, compiled by Lambert Smith Hampton in 2021, and was placed in the top 20% of all Local Authorities for economic vibrancy by Grant Thornton in 2016. University graduates comprise more than 60% of the workforce, although around 53% of all working residents commute out of
10001-462: The early stages of their respective careers. Another pub of historic note was The Royal Hotel in Worplesdon Road, which hosted an early U2 concert and was owned by the former wrestler Mick McManus . This is now a Chinese restaurant. Stoughton has one junior school, Northmead Junior School and one infant school, Stoughton Infant School. Jacob's Well is another former village that is now
10138-580: The end of the First World War, and by the summer of 1921, around 100 families had moved into new properties in Old Woking, Horsell, Knaphill and Westfield. In the same year, Chertsey Rural District Council developed their own schemes in Byfleet and Pyrford, and, in the two decades to 1939, Woking UDC constructed a total of 785 houses. Following the end of the Second World War, the borough council began to build estates at Maybury, Barnsbury and St Mary's Byfleet. In
10275-519: The end of the Napoleonic Wars and then demolished in 1818. The grounds are indicated on an 1841 map of Guildford as the "Barrack Field" and shortly afterwards the area was divided into plots and sold for housebuilding. In 1858, the Chennel family set up a steam-powered flour mill on the site of the friary church and cloisters, which was subsequently purchased and converted to a brewery by Thomas Taunton in
10412-458: The factory was the largest employer in Woking and, in the mid-1950s, 8% of the local workforce was working for the company. Manufacturing ceased in Woking in 1993, but the company headquarters is still based in the town. The factory site was redeveloped into the Lion Retail Park. The Sorbo Rubber Works opened in 1920 on the site of the former steam laundry on Maybury Road. It specialised in
10549-425: The farming practices of the time for very long. Roman occupation in the borough appears to have been concentrated in the Old Woking and Mayford areas. The sites excavated to date show evidence of low-status dwellings, possibly connected to iron working and pottery making. Roman tiles can be found in the lower part of the tower of St Peter's Church. The earliest documented reference to Woking suggests that there
10686-430: The first train ran between Nine Elms and Woking on 12 May 1838. When it opened, Woking station was surrounded by open heath and was 2 km (1.2 mi) from what is now the village of Old Woking. Nevertheless, it quickly became the railhead for west Surrey and the main entrance was positioned on the south side of the tracks for the convenience of those travelling by stagecoach from Guildford. The station became
10823-413: The first two houses were laid and by March 1922 ninety-one houses had been built. Due to a lack of funding the scheme never reached full completion, with about 600 houses actually being built. Original drawings however showed that there were further plans to develop the farmland at Manor Farm, north of the A3. By the mid-1970s, one-third of the properties were still owned by Onslow Village Ltd. Then, in 1984,
10960-486: The former Unwins' Print Works at Old Woking into the Gresham Mill apartment complex. Until the mid-19th century, the local economy was dominated by agriculture, although large areas of the modern borough were covered by infertile waste land. Acts of Inclosure were passed for Byfleet, Sutton and Pyrford in 1800, 1803 and 1805, respectively, allowing landowners to rededicate land for pasture and growing crops. Inclosure
11097-472: The headquarters of the group, was formally opened by Elizabeth II in 2004. The 50 ha (120-acre) site, to the north of the town centre, includes the McLaren Production Centre, the primary manufacturing facility for McLaren Automotive . In 2013, McLaren was the largest employer in the borough. During the Second World War, the defence of Woking and the surrounding area was coordinated by
11234-468: The historic manor of Stoke at its centre, now the site of Guildford College . To the north of the park is the Guildford Spectrum leisure and sports centre. To the south of this mostly residential neighbourhood is London Road railway station, On Stoke Road there is a listed hotel, The Stoke . Burpham and Merrow are former villages that are now a major suburbs of Guildford. Bellfields
11371-405: The importance of manorial courts and the day-to-day administration of towns became the responsibility of local vestries . By this time, the modern Borough of Woking was divided between four parishes: Woking, Byfleet, Horsell and Pyrford. The vestries appointed constables, distributed funds to the poor and took charge of the repair of local roads. From the 17th century, the roles of Justices of
11508-405: The keep was still habitable, although the associated outbuildings are thought to have been ruinous by this time. In 1885, the borough purchased the castle grounds and opened them to the public three years later. The Guildford Black Friary was a community of Dominicans , founded by Eleanor of Provence , wife of Henry III, around 1275. It occupied a site of around 10 acres (4.0 ha) beside
11645-466: The largest church in the town, became the cathedral. However, by May of the following year, it was obvious that it was too small to hold the status permanently and the Diocesan Conference resolved to build a new cathedral in the town. In November 1927, The Earl of Onslow offered 6 acres (2.4 ha) of land at the summit of Stag Hill as the site. The design of the cathedral, by Edward Maufe ,
11782-409: The late 14th century and by the end of the 16th century, there were at least six dye works in the town. The trade began to decline at the end of the Tudor period, possibly as a result of fraudulent activity on the part of the wool merchants, who were accused of stretching the cloth. Attempts to revive the struggling industry in the early 17th century were unsuccessful and the last remaining fulling mill
11919-456: The late 1830s, the new village, initially known as Kiln Bridge, was large enough to support the construction of a chapel dedicated to St John the Baptist . The chapel was replaced by a larger church , designed by George Gilbert Scott and consecrated in 1842, and the surrounding area acquired the name "St John's" at around the same time. Further expansion in the area continued with the opening of
12056-456: The late Tudor period, the building was occasionally used as a royal residence until 1606, when it was demolished and the materials used for construction projects elsewhere in the town. In 1630, John Annandale purchased the friary grounds and built a house there. The property passed through a series of private owners until 1794, when it was bought by the War Office. It was used as a barracks until
12193-472: The local road network was the opening of the A3 Guildford Bypass in 1934. The River Wey has been used for navigation since ancient times and during the Medieval period, there is thought to have been a wharf at Millmead. The River Wey Navigation was authorised by Act of Parliament in 1651. Twelve locks (including two flood locks), and 9 mi (14 km) of new cuts were constructed between
12330-437: The main population centre, is surrounded by smaller, distinct settlements, such as West Byfleet and Byfleet in the east and Knaphill to the west. The villages of Brookwood and Mayford retain strong individual identities and lie just outside the primary built-up area of the borough. Around 60% of the land in the borough is part of the Metropolitan Green Belt , which severely limits the potential for urban expansion. Of
12467-473: The manors had two mills and one church, and the settlement was among the largest 20% of those recorded in the country in 1086. Three other manors in the modern borough are listed in Domesday Book: Byfleet and Pyrford were held by the abbeys of Chertsey and Westminster respectively; Sutton was held by Durand Malet as lesser tenant and by Robert Malet as tenant-in-chief . Woking was held by
12604-528: The manufacture of rubber sponges but also made toys for children. Production moved to Arnold Road in 1922, and during the Second World War, the company made self-sealing aircraft fuel tanks for the Royal Air Force . The company was acquired by its competitors, P. B. Cow Ltd, in 1948. The first known brewery in the area was founded in Old Woking in 1715 and continued to trade until 1890. Brewery Road in Horsell
12741-693: The mid-17th and mid-19th centuries, new transport links were constructed, including the Wey Navigation , Basingstoke Canal and London to Southampton railway line . The modern town was established in the mid-1860s, as the London Necropolis Company began to sell surplus land surrounding the railway station for development . Modern local government in Woking began with the creation of the Woking Local Board in 1893, which became Woking Urban District Council (UDC) in 1894. The urban district
12878-561: The mushroom farms in Chobham or for the James Walker company. Many started their own landscaping or ice cream businesses. St Dunstan's Catholic Church in Woking holds masses in Italian. The Italian population in Woking, including second- and third-generation members, numbers between two and three thousand. There is a large Pakistani population in Woking, centred on Maybury and Sheerwater. In
13015-477: The name ( ‑ford ) refers to a crossing of the River Wey . The earliest evidence of human activity in the Guildford area is from St Catherine's Hill , where Mesolithic flint tools have been found. There may also have been Bronze Age and Iron Age settlements on the hill. The areas now occupied by Christ's College and Manor Farm were farmed in the Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman period . Traces of
13152-526: The north of the town in the direction of Woking . Guildford now officially forms the southwestern tip of the Greater London Built-up Area , as defined by the Office for National Statistics . The oldest surviving record of Guildford is from a c. 1000 copy of the c. 880 – c. 885 will of Alfred the Great , in which the settlement appears as Gyldeforda . The name
13289-506: The north, was the primary area of settlement. In Domesday Book of 1086, Guildford appears as Gildeford and is divided into seven parts, all of which were the property of William I . Two of the areas were held by reeves and four were held by lesser tenants , one of whom was Ranulf Flambard . The land directly controlled by the king included 175 homagers (heads of household), who lived in 75 hagae . Flambard's holding included three hagae that accommodated six homagers and, in total,
13426-547: The oldest skeletons were buried in the late 6th century. The first written record of Guildford is from the will of Alfred the Great , dated to around 880, in which the settlement was left to his nephew, Aethelwold . Although it does not appear in the Burghal Hidage , compiled c. 914 , by the end of the 10th century the town was sufficiently important to be the location of a Royal Mint . Coins were struck at Guildford from 978 until at least 1099. Around 220 of
13563-736: The people and organisations to have received the Freedom of the Borough are Howard Panter , Rosemary Squire and the Army Training Centre Pirbright . Woking is twinned with: Amstelveen , Netherlands (since 1989); Le Plessis-Robinson , France (since 1993); Rastatt , Germany (since 2001). In December 2014, the borough council announced that it would establish a task group to explore potential twinning opportunities with towns in Brazil , Russia , India , China and South Africa . In 2021,
13700-511: The policy of the borough council has been to permit high-density residential development in this area, exemplified by two residential towers completed in Spring 2022 as part of the Victoria Square project. Elsewhere in the borough, the conversion of former industrial land to residential use is encouraged in preference to building on greenfield sites. Recent examples include the redevelopment of
13837-500: The population of the Borough of Woking was 103,900. According to the 2011 Census , 83.6% of the inhabitants were white , 11.6% were of Asian descent and 2.4% were mixed race . There has long been a large Italian community in Woking, most of whom originated from the Sicilian town of Mussomeli . The majority of the original arrivals worked in the Britax factory in Byfleet and others on
13974-526: The present local authority was created from the merger of the borough with the Guildford Rural District. Guildford Castle is to the south of the modern town centre. Although it is not explicitly mentioned in Domesday Book, it is possible that it was included in one of the areas of land held by Ranulf Flambard. The date of its original construction is uncertain, but the consensus among historians
14111-529: The rebuilding of the castle following a fire in the mid-13th century, converting it into one of the most luxurious palaces in England. In 1245, he bought land to extend the castle grounds and Castle Arch was constructed on his orders in 1256. The castle ceased to be a royal residence in the Tudor period and it was leased from the Crown by Francis Carter in the reign of James I . A Parliamentary survey in 1650 noted that
14248-434: The ruins of Woking Palace , a royal residence of Henry VII and Henry VIII . Parts of St Peter's Church in Old Woking date from the reign of William I and Sutton Place , built for Richard Weston c. 1525 , is one of the earliest unfortified houses in England. The Shah Jahan Mosque , constructed in 1889, was the first purpose-built Muslim place of worship in the UK. There are numerous works of public art in
14385-435: The settlements of Old Woking and West Byfleet are built on river gravels. The earliest evidence of human activity in the Woking area is from the Paleolithic . Flints dated to c. 13000 years before present (BP) have been found at Horsell, and knife blades from c. 12000 – c. 11000 BP have been discovered at Pyrford. Two bell barrows and a disc barrow at Horsell are thought to date from
14522-652: The six Sites of Special Scientific Interest , five are areas of heathland and the sixth covers the majority of the Basingstoke Canal . Woking town centre is around 23 mi (36 km) from central London. It covers an area of about 50 ha (120 acres) to the north and south of the station, although the primary shopping and office spaces are between the railway line and the Basingstoke Canal. The two main shopping centres, The Peacocks and Wolsey Place, adjoin Jubilee Square. A second public space, Victoria Square,
14659-458: The skeletons excavated at Guildown are thought to be the remains of soldiers massacred during the arrest of Alfred Aetheling in 1035 or 1036. Contemporary accounts are somewhat contradictory, but the modern consensus is that Aetheling, a pretender to the throne and the brother of Edward the Confessor , was travelling through Guildford with a large bodyguard when the incident occurred. Aetheling
14796-612: The then mayor as its first president, and the Charlotteville Jubilee Trust charity, formed at the time of the Golden Jubilee . Two schools were established in the village - one infant and one junior school. merging to form the Holy Trinity Pewley Down School in the late 2000s. The last of the shops closed in 2006. Stoke next Guildford , the central northern area of the town, contains Stoke Park and
14933-468: The tower of which was built c. 1040 . Its location, on Quarry Street, may indicate that, at the time of its construction, the High Street had either not been laid out or was not the principal road. There is no significant archaeological evidence of human activity in the modern town centre before the 11th century and it is possible that, for the majority of the Saxon period, Stoke next Guildford , to
15070-522: The town centre , including a statue of the author, H. G. Wells , who wrote The War of the Worlds while living in Maybury Road. Much of the novel is set in the Woking area. The earliest surviving record of Woking is from Domesday Book of 1086, in which the manor appears as Wochinges . In the 12th century, it is recorded as Wokinges , Wokkinges , Wokinge and Wochinga . The "monastery at Wocchingas "
15207-538: The town its first borough charter in January 1257, which permitted it to send two representatives to parliament. In August of the same year, he designated Guildford as the location of the Surrey County Court and Assizes . In 1366, Edward III issued a fee farm grant , enabling the town to become partially self-governing in exchange for a yearly rent of £10. Henry VII was responsible for granting Guildford its coat of arms in 1485 and, three years later, he awarded
15344-530: The town provided an annual income of £30 for the king. William I is also listed as holding Stoke-by-Guildford, which had a population of 24 villagers, ten smallholders and five slaves. The manor had sufficient land for 22 plough teams, 16 acres of meadow, woodland for 40 swine and two mills. Guildford remained a property of the Crown throughout the Middle Ages and several kings, including Henry II and John are known to have visited regularly. Henry III granted
15481-531: The town through Charlotteville to the downs and towards St Martha's Hill and Albury . It houses a great many cottages and a few large, mostly privately owned properties. The official designation of the heart of Charlotteville as a conservation area means that Peak's work may survive . The development introduced institutions such as the Cork Club, the Charlotteville Cycling Club , founded in 1903 with
15618-514: The welfare, interests and well-being of the residents". The Onslow Village Society was formed with the aim to tackle the acute shortage of decent working-class housing following the First World War . Onslow Village Ltd acquired 646 acres (261 hectares) or just over a square mile of land from the Earl of Onslow in 1920 for approximately one-quarter of its market value at the time. The aim was to create
15755-535: The works expanded following the opening of a wharf at Kiln Bridge. Although the local soils were unsuitable for large-scale agriculture, nurseries were established on the Bracklesham Beds in the 1790s, to satisfy the increasing demand for ornamental garden plants from the growing middle class in London. The Clematis specialist, George Jackman , was among those who established nurseries at Mayford and Goldsworth Park. Cultivars first grown by his firm include
15892-481: Was granted a coat of arms in 1930 and three years later it applied to the Privy Council for borough status , but without success. A similar request made in 1955 was also declined. It was not until the 1974 reorganisation of local government that Woking finally became a borough. The parishes within the borough were abolished at the same time, making it an unparished area . A civil parish council for Byfleet
16029-428: Was a "solar keep" and functioned primarily as a private residence, rather than as an administrative centre. At an unknown later date, a third storey was built directly on top of the crenelations, to bring the structure to its present height. Part of the keep was in use as a prison by the end of the 12th century and new, royal apartments were constructed in the 13th century in the southwestern corner. Henry III commissioned
16166-467: Was a religious foundation in the area in the early 8th century. Around this time, the settlement was the administrative centre for northwest Surrey, with its western border as the watershed between the Rivers Mole and Wey and its southern border as the North Downs . By 775, there was a minster in Woking, which may be the forerunner of St Peter's Church and by the mid-late 9th century, the settlement
16303-401: Was arrested by Godwin, Earl of Wessex and his men were killed. Many of the skeletons showed evidence of a violent death and the skulls of two were between their legs, suggesting that they had been executed by decapitation. Aetheling was taken to Ely , where he was blinded, and he is thought to have died there in February 1036. The oldest extant building in Guildford is St Mary's Church ,
16440-513: Was being shipped to London from a new wharf at Cartbridge near Send . The Basingstoke Canal was authorised by an Act of Parliament in 1778 and was intended to provide a route for the transport of farm produce and timber from Hampshire to London. The section between the Wey Navigation and Horsell opened in 1791 and the canal was finally completed in 1794. Although the route was too far from Old Woking for it to have an effect on its development,
16577-571: Was bought by Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV in 2016. As part of the takeover deal, several former SABMiller brands, including Peroni and Grolsch , were purchased by the Japanese firm, Asahi Breweries . As of 2022, the UK headquarters of Asahi Breweries is in Woking. The McLaren Group was founded in 1981 by Ron Dennis following his acquisition of the McLaren Formula One team . The McLaren Technology Centre , designed by Foster + Partners as
16714-418: Was briefly held by the Crown before it was passed to her daughter, Margaret Beaufort , in 1466. On her death in 1509, Woking was inherited by her grandson, the future Henry VIII . James I sold the manor to Edward Zouch , but it reverted to the Crown in 1671. In 1752, it was bought by Richard Onslow, the third Baron Onslow and remained in his family's possession until the mid-19th century. Byfleet became
16851-468: Was built on the south side of the tracks for the convenience of those travelling by stagecoach from Guildford and quickly became the railhead for the western half of the county. Guildford railway station opened in 1845 as the terminus of a branch from Woking. Four years later, the line was extended to Godalming and the Reading, Guildford and Reigate Railway opened at the same time. The final railway line,
16988-411: Was chosen following an open competition. The building is constructed of bricks made from the clay excavated for the foundations and crypt . The foundation stone was laid in 1936, but by the outbreak of the Second World War, only the choir had been completed. The crypt was finished following the end of the war and was dedicated in 1947. Building work on the rest of the structure was also resumed and
17125-411: Was completed in 2022 as part of a project to construct two high-rise residential apartment blocks and a 23-storey hotel. Old Woking , around 1 mi (1.6 km) south of the town centre, close to the River Wey, is the location of the original settlement of the manor of Woking. The village is thought to have grown as an unplanned settlement surrounding St Peter's Church , parts of which date from
17262-474: Was converted to grind corn in 1714. After the death of their father in 1882, brothers Charles Arthur and Leonard Gates took over the running of his shop, which held the local distribution franchise for Gilbey's wines and spirits, and also sold beer. However, in 1885, the brothers were persuaded to join the temperance movement , and they poured their entire stock into the gutters of the High Street. Left with no livelihood, they converted their now empty shop into
17399-454: Was created in 1990, but was abolished in April 2010. As of 2022, there are no parish councils in the borough. The unimproved River Wey is thought to have been used for the transport of goods and passengers from ancient times. In the early Tudor period, there was a wharf at Woking Palace and in 1566 there is a reference to a "certaein locke... between Woodham lands and Brook lande upon the water of
17536-601: Was dug across Stoke Park. Local factories were rededicated to the war effort: The Dennis works produced Churchill tanks , water pumps, bombs and aircraft parts, RFD in Stoke Road produced life rafts and flotation aids for the Royal Navy and Warner Engineering produced tank tracks and brass bomb noses. The Diocese of Guildford was created in 1927 out of the northern part of the Diocese of Winchester . Holy Trinity Church ,
17673-483: Was established in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888 to operate as a higher-tier authority alongside the sanitary districts. In 1893 a separate local board was established for the parish of Woking, making it its own urban sanitary district, independent from the Guildford Rural Sanitary District. After elections, the first meeting of the Woking Local Board was held on 4 October 1893. Under
17810-428: Was founded on the wool trade. The North Downs provided good grazing land for sheep, there were local deposits of Fuller's earth in Surrey and the Wey provided a source of both water and power for fulling mills . The town specialised in the manufacture of kersey , a coarse cloth, dyed and sold as "Guildford Blue". The Italian merchant, Francesco di Marco Datini , is known to have purchased cloth from Guildford in
17947-407: Was funded by a local doctor, Thomas Sells, and named after his wife, Charlotte. It was developed by the Guildford architect Henry Peak in 1862 and is loosely bound between Shalford Road and Sydenham Road, encompassing the beauty spot of Pewley Down. The area's roads were named after English doctors, including Addison Road, Cheselden Road, Harvey Road and Jenner Road. Public footpaths lead from
18084-474: Was granted in September of the same year and the first students were officially admitted in the autumn of 1968. On the evening of 5 October 1974, the Provisional Irish Republican Army detonated two gelignite bombs at two pubs in the town. The venues are thought to have been chosen as they were popular with off-duty military personnel from Aldershot Garrison . The first bomb exploded at
18221-413: Was held by Westminster Abbey until the dissolution of the monasteries when it became the property of the Crown. Elizabeth I granted the manor to Edward Clinton, the first Earl of Lincoln in 1574 and it was sold repeatedly until the mid-17th century. In 1677, Richard Onslow, the first Baron Onslow purchased Pyrford, and it was owned by his family until 1805. Reforms during the Tudor period reduced
18358-435: Was not completed at Woking until the London Necropolis Company purchased the common land in 1854. No Act was passed for Horsell, and the large area of common land to the north of Woking remains free of development as a result. The opening of the Basingstoke Canal in 1794 enabled new industries to be established in the west of the borough. Brickmaking had been taking place on a small scale at Knaphill since at least 1709, but
18495-477: Was placed into the Metropolitan Green Belt , restricting the potential for future development of greenfield land . Nevertheless, housebuilding continued in the 1970s, including the 20 ha (49-acre) Lakeview development and the construction of 440 homes on the former Inkerman Barracks site. Redevelopment has resulted in the demolition of the majority of the Victorian buildings in the town centre. Since 2012,
18632-461: Was significantly enlarged in 1907 when it took in the parish of Horsell , and again in 1933 when it took in the parishes of Byfleet and Pyrford . The UDC was granted a coat of arms in 1930 and Woking gained borough status in the 1974 reorganisation of local government . In 2022, a total of 30 elected representatives serves on the council, each with a term length of four years. The Borough of Woking covers 64 km (25 sq mi) and had
18769-556: Was the centre of a royal vill . Towards the end of the Saxon period, Surrey was divided into hundreds , of which Woking Hundred was one. Woking appears in Domesday book as Wochinges . In 1086, it was partly held by William I and partly by two lesser tenants of the Bishop of Exeter . Together the two holdings had sufficient land for 15 + 1 ⁄ 2 ploughteams, 46 acres (19 ha) of meadow and woodland for 160 swine . Between them,
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