Local History from 1221 to modern times

by Charles
Hainault: A Brief History

The early years

The name of Henehout first recorded in 1221 and had changed to Hyneholt by 1239. At this time the area was heavily forested and owned by Barking Abbey, which was the largest land owner in the area.
At the time of the Domesday Book in 1086 Barking Abbey held over 9000 acres in Essex. 
The “holt” element of the name is Saxon and means “a wood”, the meaning of the first part is uncertain but may refer to “(monastic) community wood”.
The modern spelling of Hainault is due to a fictitious connection with Phillippa of Hainault (France) who married Edward III in 1328.
From the time of Edward the Confessor(1066) the Forest in Essex has been described as Royal Forest.
This meant that the King had rights over hunting. Grants were given to others for limited hunting, felling of timber, and even commoners could obtain a license to put cattle and pigs on to Forest land.
Boundaries were not rigid and would be changed under various Monarchs since they were also a good source of revenue.
Henry III ordered the cutting down of a large number of oak to trees for building purposes in 1269.
Edward I conducted a perambulation in1301 to set the boundaries of the “Forest of Waltham”.
The perambulation started at Bow bridge, on the River Lea, travelled through Ilford towards Romford, and included Leyton, Walthamstow, Wanstead, Woodford and Barking. The boundary curved north towards Navestock then via Theydon Bois and Epping to Nazeing rejoining the River Lea.
 
During the 15th Century a chapel existed in a clearing in Hainault Forest, probably for the use of forestry workers as there was no permanent village or settlement in the area at that time.
After the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII in 1539 the land became Crown Property.
Parcels of land were granted to various Lords and prominent families.
In 1628, during the reign of Charles I the Manor of Barking was granted to Sir Thomas Fanshawe with the exception of the woodland which was retained by the Crown and became known as King’s Woods, where the King owned the soil as well as the legal forest rights.
The King’s Woods included the area now known as Hainault.
Both James I and his son, Charles I enjoyed hunting in these woods and also forested the timber for shipbuilding.
In 1641, Charles I had a new perambulation of the forest boundaries carried out and had the eastern boundary marked with stones, many of which remain to this day.
The families who were responsible for parcels of land employed keepers to look after the land and the forest and they lived in houses provided within the forest.
Many oaks were felled to build ships for the Royal Navy.
They were carted to Barking to be transferred to ships or barges and transported to Woolwich Dockyard.
Samuel Pepys was appointed at this time as administrative head of the navy, and in that role he visited Hainault Forest on a number of occasions to inspect the work of cutting the timber.

Disaforrestation

Early in her reign, 1702-1714, Queen Anne visited the Fairlop Oak, in Hainault Forest, one of the largest trees in the land, its girth measured 36 feet (11 metres) and the branches cast a shadow with a circumference 300 feet (92 metres).
By 1793 Hainault Forest comprised of approximately 17000 acres of which 2939 acres was Kings Wood.
In June of 1805 the Fairlop Oak was accidentally set on fire during the annual Fair.
During a severe gale in 1820, the Fairlop Oak, already dead, was blown down, but the annual Fair continues.
Due to the demise of wooden ships there was less demand for timber, whereas the requirement for produce to feed the fast growing London became a priority.
In consequence an Act of Parliament in 1851 authorised the Disafforestation of much of Hainault Forest.
Approximately 100,000 trees were scrubbed out by specially developed steam tractors in about six weeks, by teams working night and day, and the land was drained and turned over to agriculture.
Hainault Lodge was built about this time on Hog Hill, adjacent to an older building known as Hog Hill House, which was occupied by a forest keeper.
The area that was the Kings Wood was still the property of the Crown.
In 1855 Forest Farm, Hainault Farm and Fox Burrows farm were built. Many of the buildings still exist and bear this date and VR Victoria Regina (Queen Victoria).
The last Fairlop Fair was held in 1899, having been relocated to Fencepiece Road area when the forest was cleared.

A new beginning

The present Hainault Forest (approx 800 acres) was purchased by the London County Council after persuasion from Edward North Buxton, Chairman of Truman Hanbury Buxton Brewery, in 1903.
Money was provided by Essex County Council, local Urban District Councils and private donations.
Improvement followed, to make the area more accessible, and was finally dedicated as a public open space on 21st July 1906. A Centenary celebration is proposed on the 15th July 2006.

In 1909 the Hainault Golf Course was opened.  

During the First World War, Hainault played its part by having an airfield built on Hainault Farm, becoming operational in October 1915.  
It was operated by the Royal Flying Corps, initially with just two Sopwith Camel airplanes, in the defence of London.
 The hangers and accommodation for the ground crew were canvas. The pilots were billeted in the disused farm buildings, but they were expected to provide their own bedding.
Hainault RFC took part in the shooting down of the first airship to be brought down on British soil, on 3rd September 1916.
An airfield at Forest Farm for the Royal Navy Air Service was also operational about this time.

Also in 1916 Henry Hughes & Sons (Kelvin Hughes) opened a factory in New North Road, where it remains to this day, making navigational aids for the Admiralty.

After the War, the airfields reverted to farmland.

In 1935, the City of London Corporation expressed a desire to build a Civic Airport on the site of Fairlop Plain, (Heathrow Airport did not exist at this time).
They purchased 1000 acres of the Plain, in 1937, intending to develop an airport, but the scheme was rejected by the Government, and with the threat of the Second World War the whole scheme was shelved, never to be restored.

By 1941, Fairlop Plain was developed to become an airfield operated by the Royal Air Force, for fighter squadrons, in the defence of the Capital.

Many bombs were dropped on the area, included several V1 Flying bombs (Doodle Bugs), and V2 Rockets. 

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