Coombe is a neighbourhood of Greater London

Greater London

Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...

 in England, within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames

Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames

The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames is a borough in southwest London, England. The main town is Kingston upon Thames and it includes Surbiton, Chessington, New Malden and Tolworth. It is the oldest of the three Royal Boroughs in England, the others are Kensington and Chelsea, also in London,...

. It lies to the east of the main town area, and prior to local government re-organisation in 1965 formed the northern part of the former Municipal Borough of Malden and Coombe

Municipal Borough of Malden and Coombe

Malden and Coombe was a local government district in Surrey, England from 1866 to 1965.New Malden Local Government District was formed in 1866 under the Local Government Act 1858 from part of the ancient parish of Kingston upon Thames...

. It centres on what was originally Coombe House, a large, now-demolished, residence. To the north lies Richmond Park

Richmond Park

Richmond Park is a 2,360 acre park within London. It is the largest of the Royal Parks in London and Britain's second largest urban walled park after Sutton Park, Birmingham. It is close to Richmond, Ham, Kingston upon Thames, Wimbledon, Roehampton and East Sheen...

; to the east, Wimbledon Common and borders the four boroughs that surround Kingston

Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames

The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames is a borough in southwest London, England. The main town is Kingston upon Thames and it includes Surbiton, Chessington, New Malden and Tolworth. It is the oldest of the three Royal Boroughs in England, the others are Kensington and Chelsea, also in London,...

. Merton

London Borough of Merton

The London Borough of Merton is a borough in southwest London, England.The borough was formed under the London Government Act in 1965 by the merger of the Municipal Borough of Mitcham, the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon and the Merton and Morden Urban District, all formerly within Surrey...

, Sutton

London Borough of Sutton

The London Borough of Sutton is a London borough in South London, England and forms part of Outer London. It covers an area of and is the 80th largest local authority in England by population. It is one of the southernmost boroughs of London...

, Wandsworth

London Borough of Wandsworth

The London Borough of Wandsworth is a London borough in southwest London, England, and forms part of Inner London.-History:The borough was formed in 1965 from the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea and much of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, but...

 and Richmond

London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is a London borough in South West London, UK, which forms part of Outer London. It is unique because it is the only London borough situated both north and south of the River Thames.-Settlement:...

.

Coombe appears in Domesday Book

Domesday Book

Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...

 as Cumbe. It was held partly by Hunfrid (Humfrey) the Chamberlain and partly by Ansgot the Interpreter. Its domesday assets were: 1½ hide

Hide (unit)

The hide was originally an amount of land sufficient to support a household, but later in Anglo-Saxon England became a unit used in assessing land for liability to "geld", or land tax. The geld would be collected at a stated rate per hide...

s; 4 plough

Plough

The plough or plow is a tool used in farming for initial cultivation of soil in preparation for sowing seed or planting. It has been a basic instrument for most of recorded history, and represents one of the major advances in agriculture...

s, 12 acres (48,562.3 m²) of meadow

Meadow

A meadow is a field vegetated primarily by grass and other non-woody plants . The term is from Old English mædwe. In agriculture a meadow is grassland which is not grazed by domestic livestock but rather allowed to grow unchecked in order to make hay...

, herbage worth 4 hogs. It rendered £8.

Coombe Warren was a wild woodland on Coombe Hill which was used for hunting and public fairs. Jerry Abershaw, 'The Coombe Wood Highwayman', frequented the area, being based at the "Bald Face Stag" pub and he sheltered in the woods. In 1822 the Admiralty opened a semaphore station in the Warren, which was part of the semaphore line from London to Portsmouth. The station has disappeared, but survived in the name of "Telegraph Cottage. The Warren is now covered by the Coombe Hill estate and Coombe Wood Golf Course.

The Coombe Hill estate consists of Coombe Hill Road, and cul-de-sacs in it, such as Greenwood Park and Devey Close. The estate is highly prestigious and house prices are commonly in to the millions.

Education

For education in Coombe, Kingston upon Thames see the main Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames article.

Notable residents and visitors

Coombe Park is one of the more affluent private roads in Coombe and is home to television personality Jimmy Tarbuck

Jimmy Tarbuck

Jimmy Tarbuck OBE or Tarby is an English comedian. Growing up he was a schoolmate of John Lennon.His first television show was It's Tarbuck 65! on ITV in 1964. He has also hosted numerous quiz shows, including Winner Takes All, Full Swing, and Tarby's Frame Game...

 and tennis player Annabel Croft

Annabel Croft

Annabel Croft is a former professional tennis player and current radio and television presenter. As a tennis player she won the WTA Tour event Virginia Slims of San Diego and represented Great Britain in the Fed Cup and the Wightman Cup.After retiring from tennis, she turned to television...

. Rolling Stones bassist Ronnie Wood also lives in an estate on Kingston Hill, located opposite to the entrance of Coombe Park.
One of Saddam Hussein's daughters had a house in Golf Club Drive for a number of years, and Elisabeth Murdoch

Elisabeth Murdoch (businesswoman)

Elisabeth Murdoch is an executive in the British television industry and a daughter of international media mogul Rupert Murdoch...

 also lived in Coombe for several years. Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...

, when Supreme Allied Commander

Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force

Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force , was the headquarters of the Commander of Allied forces in north west Europe, from late 1943 until the end of World War II. U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower was in command of SHAEF throughout its existence...

 during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, based in Bushy Park

Bushy Park

- External links :***...

, lived at "Telegraph Cottage" in Coombe, which was adjacent to the golf course which he used at weekends. William Ewart Gladstone

William Ewart Gladstone

William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...

 spent extended periods as a house-guest of friends in Coombe. Dame Nellie Melba lived in a house here for many years.