Tourist's guide to visit Havering-atte-Bower

Visit Havering-atte-Bower – things to do & explore

Overview of Havering-atte-Bower history & facts by Walkfo

---

Planning a visit to Havering-atte-Bower?

Havering-atte-Bower is a village and outlying settlement of Greater London, England. It is located in the far north of the London Borough of Havering, on the border with Essex, and is 15 miles (24 km) northeast of Charing Cross. It was one of three former parishes whose area comprised the historic Royal Liberty of Havering. Havering-atte-Bower has been the location of a number of palaces and large houses including Bower House, The Round House, Pyrgo Palace and Havering Palace.

Havering-atte-Bower history

---

The history of Havering dates back at least to Saxon times, with the format of the name indicative of an early Saxon settlement while archaeological finds in and around Havering Country Park suggest a Roman villa or similar structure in the area. The village is also steeped in royal history and Edward the Confessor was the first monarch known to take interest in the area when he established a hunting lodge which, over the years would become a palace or ‘bower’. It is believed, though disputed, that he may have died in the house that he had loved so much before being buried at Westminster Abbey. It appears that Havering retained this royal connection as the Domesday Book lists it has being in the possession of King Harold in 1066 and King William in 1086. At that time there were 45 households and the land consisted of 100 acres of meadow with additional woodland and a mill. The surrounding areas, including the parishes of Hornchurch and Romford, formed the Royal Liberty of Havering from 1465 to 1892. Until the 17th century, royalty used the house of Havering Palace for various reasons, adding the architectural style of the day to the expanding palace. Another palace, east of the village, called Pyrgo, was purchased by Henry VIII to relieve the now ageing Havering Palace. By the 17th century, the Royal Palace of Havering was in decline, and it was eventually pulled down. Pyrgo was also demolished later, in the 18th century. Only one set of plans exists from the original Havering Palace, courtesy of a survey by Lord Burghley in 1578. The village green still has on display its original village stocks, while on the opposite side of the road is a pond known as “Ducking Pond”, rumoured to have been used for trials of witches. Though the name of the pond suggests such a history, hard evidence is yet to be uncovered. However, there are currently plans to construct a replica ducking stool at the site.

Havering-atte-Bower etymology

The name is of Saxon origin and is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Haueringas. The last syllable is the only clear difference in pronunciation as v was written as u in Middle English and Anglo-Norman orthography. It is an ancient folk name meaning settlement of the followers of a man called Hæfer. The history of Havering-atte-Bower today is inextricably linked with Edward the Confessor and comparison can be made with Old Windsor in Berkshire, which had a Saxon Palace that predated Windsor Castle as both villages are situated on high ground and have great views into London. It has been suggested that Edward the Confessor would have travelled to and from his palaces at both Havering-atte-Bower and Old Windsor. A story relating to the return of a ring to Edward the Confessor and attributing the name Havering to the words “have ring” was widely recounted in the 17th century, but is now considered to be no earlier than the 15th century, the story of the return of the ring predating this explanation of the place name by several hundred years. The name is recorded as Hauering atte Bower in 1272 and from this time Havering and Havering-atte-Bower are used interchangeably. The atte Bower suffix is taken to mean at the royal residence and to refer to Havering Palace which was situated here, although some link the use of Bower to other locations in Essex such as Bowers Gifford where Bower means a rural dwelling. Circumstantially it has been suggested that a different meaning of the word Bower relating to a dwelling specifically set aside for a woman could relate to the use of the Palace by Eleanor of Provence, mother of Henry III, when she was Queen Dowager although there is no documentary evidence for this interpretation. Whichever meaning is correct, it appears that the great house here was known as “The Bower” in the late 13th century.

Havering-atte-Bower geography / climate

The village sits on one of the highest points in London, in the far north of the borough and near the M25 motorway. It is situated 344 feet (105 m) above sea level with striking views of east London, Essex and Kent. To the north is open countryside and to the south are the large suburban developments of Harold Hill and Collier Row. The village is surrounded by three large parks: the dense woodlands of Havering Country Park (site of one of only two redwood plantations in England, imported from California); Bedfords Park; and Pyrgo Park. The most notable residence in the village now is Bower House, built in 1729 by John Baynes, using some of the materials of the former Havering Palace. The area is on the route of the London Loop long-distance footpath. A village sign, funded by the East London Community Foundation and Havering-atte-Bower Conservation Society, was unveiled by Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, on 3 September 2010.

You can visit Havering-atte-Bower, COUNTY/BOROUGH & use Walkfo to discover the best walking places with our free digital tour guide app created especially for Havering-atte-Bower. Walkfo Havering-atte-Bower has 300 locations with history, culture & travel facts, that you can explore the same way you can a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Havering-atte-Bower, being in the moment, without digital distraction and no limitations to a specific walking route – you choose where you want to go, when you want to go and Walkfo Havering-atte-Bower will keep up.

When you visit Havering-atte-Bower

---

When you visit Havering-atte-Bower, Walkfo is your digital tour guide while exploring by foot, bike or bus. With numerous walks, hikes, tourist locations & travel destinations available in Havering-atte-Bower, our travel AI guide helps you get the best from your visit to Havering-atte-Bower & the surrounding areas. Our explore Havering-atte-Bower app for iPhone & Android, allows you to experience the hidden history, culture and amazing facts throughout Havering-atte-Bower whilst out walking. The digital tour guide creates interactive audio stories driven by where you walk, so you can exploration Havering-atte-Bower’s National Heritage sites, tourist attractions, historic locations or city streets freely, without the restrictions of a predefined walk & walk map.

“The Walkfo AI has curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 0 audio facts in Havering-atte-Bower alone that form an interactive Havering-atte-Bower walking map for you to explore.”

Best Havering-atte-Bower places to visit

---

Havering-atte-Bower has hundreds of places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are five of Havering-atte-Bower’s best destinations to visit when exploring the area. We have condensed the information with much more detail available within Walkfo when you visit the destinations.

Visit Havering-atte-Bower plaques

Experience Havering-atte-Bower audio walks & tours

Visiting Havering-atte-Bower with Walkfo’s things to do interactive map
The “Havering-atte-Bower things to do map” below is a preview of the places you can visit in Havering-atte-Bower and surrounding areas with our digital audio tour guide app. Each spot has content for a plaque, a building, a street or general area, providing history, culture or tourism information the you can explore.

Interactive ‘Explore Havering-atte-Bower Map’     This Havering-atte-Bower tourism map shows points of interest within a 4km radius of Havering-atte-Bower centre

Walkfo App     Walkfo

Walkfo is free to download & use (for a limited time period), so if you are looking to explore Havering-atte-Bower, go to your App Store to search for “Walkfo” or follow a links below and install on your mobile phone. Walkfo is designed for use with headphones or AirPods, so you can walk & explore whilst learning about the things around you without digital distraction.

  Apple App Store

  Google Play Store

Things to do & visit in Havering-atte-Bower and surrounding areas

---

Getting to / around Havering-atte-Bower – transport links, stations, streets & traffic map

---

Getting around in Havering-atte-Bower using public transportation may include roads, streets, trains, undergrounds, buses or trams. Walkfo has the following important Havering-atte-Bower public transport locations with historic / cultural / factual content when you visit:

Havering-atte-Bower Notable Public Transport Stations		Havering-atte-Bower Notable Streets & Roads

[transportsummary]

Attention local Havering-atte-Bower historians, tour guides & Havering-atte-Bower tourism agents