Kelvedon Hatch
Encyclopedia
Kelvedon Hatch is a village and civil parish
in the Borough of Brentwood in south Essex
, England
. It is situated just north of Pilgrims Hatch
, approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) to the north of Brentwood
and is surrounded by Metropolitan Green Belt. The village today is no longer a rural backwater with a large proportion of its population commuting to work elsewhere. It has a population of 2,563.
It is home to the Kelvedon Hatch Secret Nuclear Bunker
, the largest and deepest cold war
bunker
open to the public in South East England
. Hidden in a wood off the A128 Ongar (now well signposted for the tourist trade), Brentwood Road, is a small bungalow (guardhouse) which hides a three-level bunker complex 125 feet (38.1 m) underground; a long corridor leads down to a place in which up to 600 people would have been confined behind blast-proof doors in the event of a nuclear war. The bunker was originally built in 1952/3 by the construction firm Peter Lind & Company Ltd, as part of ROTOR
, an urgent government building programme to improve Britain's air defence network and became the Sector Operations Command for the RAF Fighter Command with responsibility for the London Sector. It subsequently became adopted as a potential ‘regional government bunker’ as the threat of nuclear war grew in the 1960s. The bunker was sold in the 1990s and is now a tourist attraction and film location. The bunker is currently owned and operated by the family who originally owned the land before the military moved in. It has a many historical items remaining intact including a BBC
studio. A souvenir shop in the original canteen sells items, including government literature produced for the public in the early 1980s.
with the latter meaning Speckled Hill. From its early days in the Mediaeval period until the mid-20th century the main activity in Kelvedon Hatch was agriculture. Records from 1871 show 82 households of which showed only 3 ‘white collar’ households and 4 landowners or of independent means, with the majority of the rest engaged in a local agricultural economy. During the Victorian years, however, many younger people gravitated towards the main towns, encouraged by railway links at Ongar
and Brentwood
and the decline in the local ‘agriconomy’ has its roots in that exodus.
, the main estate building of the village was Kelvedon Hall. The manor was sold to John Wright a yeoman
from South Weald in 1538 and it remained in the family until the early 20th century; the manor house was rebuilt in the 18th century by the seventh John Wright. St Nicholas’ Church adjacent to the manor, dated back to 1372 and may have existed prior to that – the church was abandoned in 1895 in favour of a church in the main village.
Other mansions in the area of Kelvedon Hatch are Brizes, originally built in the late 15th century with the current building on the site dating back to the 1720’s; and Great Myles, named for Miles de Muntenay, dating back to the Domesday Book
but was largely demolished in 1837 although a few subsidiary buildings remain today.
To the west of Kelvedon Hatch, at Kelvedon Common, lies Dudbrook Hall, once owned by the Waldegrave family
and which dates back to 1602. During World War II
it was used to billet RAF
officers based at Stapleford
and Weald
aerodromes. It is now a care home for the elderly. 51.663547°N 0.248603°W
, playwright, was from Kelvedon Hatch, and referred to the village in the pseudonym "Marie Kelvedon", under which her fourth play, Crave
, was initially published.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in the Borough of Brentwood in south Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is situated just north of Pilgrims Hatch
Pilgrims Hatch
Pilgrims Hatch is a residential suburb of Brentwood, Essex, in the east of England. There is a borough council ward bearing the name 'Pilgrims Hatch' which covers the Bishops Hall and Flower estates and a small rural area to the north up to Ashwells Road and Days Lane. Pilgrims Hatch usually...
, approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) to the north of Brentwood
Brentwood, Essex
Brentwood is a town and the principal settlement of the Borough of Brentwood, in the county of Essex in the east of England. It is located in the London commuter belt, 20 miles east north-east of Charing Cross in London, and near the M25 motorway....
and is surrounded by Metropolitan Green Belt. The village today is no longer a rural backwater with a large proportion of its population commuting to work elsewhere. It has a population of 2,563.
It is home to the Kelvedon Hatch Secret Nuclear Bunker
Kelvedon Hatch Secret Nuclear Bunker
The Secret Nuclear Bunker at Kelvedon Hatch, in the Borough of Brentwood in the English county of Essex, is a large underground bunker maintained during the cold war as a potential regional government headquarters...
, the largest and deepest cold war
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
bunker
Bunker
A military bunker is a hardened shelter, often buried partly or fully underground, designed to protect the inhabitants from falling bombs or other attacks...
open to the public in South East England
South East England
South East England is one of the nine official regions of England, designated in 1994 and adopted for statistical purposes in 1999. It consists of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
. Hidden in a wood off the A128 Ongar (now well signposted for the tourist trade), Brentwood Road, is a small bungalow (guardhouse) which hides a three-level bunker complex 125 feet (38.1 m) underground; a long corridor leads down to a place in which up to 600 people would have been confined behind blast-proof doors in the event of a nuclear war. The bunker was originally built in 1952/3 by the construction firm Peter Lind & Company Ltd, as part of ROTOR
ROTOR
ROTOR was a huge and elaborate air defence radar system built by the British Government in the early 1950s to counter possible attack by Soviet bombers...
, an urgent government building programme to improve Britain's air defence network and became the Sector Operations Command for the RAF Fighter Command with responsibility for the London Sector. It subsequently became adopted as a potential ‘regional government bunker’ as the threat of nuclear war grew in the 1960s. The bunker was sold in the 1990s and is now a tourist attraction and film location. The bunker is currently owned and operated by the family who originally owned the land before the military moved in. It has a many historical items remaining intact including a BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
studio. A souvenir shop in the original canteen sells items, including government literature produced for the public in the early 1980s.
History
The name is recorded variously as Kelenduna, Kalenduna and Kelvenduna in the Domesday BookDomesday 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...
with the latter meaning Speckled Hill. From its early days in the Mediaeval period until the mid-20th century the main activity in Kelvedon Hatch was agriculture. Records from 1871 show 82 households of which showed only 3 ‘white collar’ households and 4 landowners or of independent means, with the majority of the rest engaged in a local agricultural economy. During the Victorian years, however, many younger people gravitated towards the main towns, encouraged by railway links at Ongar
Chipping Ongar
Chipping Ongar is a small market town, and a civil parish called Ongar, in the Epping Forest district of the county of Essex, England. It is located East of Epping, South-East of Harlow and North-West of Brentwood.-Geography:...
and Brentwood
Brentwood, Essex
Brentwood is a town and the principal settlement of the Borough of Brentwood, in the county of Essex in the east of England. It is located in the London commuter belt, 20 miles east north-east of Charing Cross in London, and near the M25 motorway....
and the decline in the local ‘agriconomy’ has its roots in that exodus.
Kelvedon Hall and other mansions
First mentioned in the Domesday BookDomesday 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...
, the main estate building of the village was Kelvedon Hall. The manor was sold to John Wright a yeoman
Yeoman
Yeoman refers chiefly to a free man owning his own farm, especially from the Elizabethan era to the 17th century. Work requiring a great deal of effort or labor, such as would be done by a yeoman farmer, came to be described as "yeoman's work"...
from South Weald in 1538 and it remained in the family until the early 20th century; the manor house was rebuilt in the 18th century by the seventh John Wright. St Nicholas’ Church adjacent to the manor, dated back to 1372 and may have existed prior to that – the church was abandoned in 1895 in favour of a church in the main village.
Other mansions in the area of Kelvedon Hatch are Brizes, originally built in the late 15th century with the current building on the site dating back to the 1720’s; and Great Myles, named for Miles de Muntenay, dating back to the 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...
but was largely demolished in 1837 although a few subsidiary buildings remain today.
To the west of Kelvedon Hatch, at Kelvedon Common, lies Dudbrook Hall, once owned by the Waldegrave family
Waldegrave family
Waldegrave, the name of an English family, said to derive from Walgrave in Northamptonshire, but who long held the manor of Smallbridge in Bures St. Mary, Suffolk.Sir Richard Waldegrave served as a Knight of the Shire in 1339 in Lincolnshire...
and which dates back to 1602. 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...
it was used to billet RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
officers based at Stapleford
Stapleford Aerodrome
Stapleford Aerodrome is an airfield in the Epping Forest district of Essex, England near to the village of Abridge. It is about south of North Weald Airfield and north of Romford...
and Weald
North Weald Airfield
North Weald Airfield is an operational airfield, near the village of North Weald Bassett in Epping Forest, Essex, England. It was an important fighter station during the Battle of Britain, when it was known as the RAF Station RAF North Weald. It is the home of North Weald Airfield Museum...
aerodromes. It is now a care home for the elderly. 51.663547°N 0.248603°W
Notable people
Sarah KaneSarah Kane
Sarah Kane was an English playwright. Her plays deal with themes of redemptive love, sexual desire, pain, torture — both physical and psychological — and death. They are characterised by a poetic intensity, pared-down language, exploration of theatrical form and, in her earlier work, the use of...
, playwright, was from Kelvedon Hatch, and referred to the village in the pseudonym "Marie Kelvedon", under which her fourth play, Crave
Crave (play)
Crave is a one-act play by British playwright Sarah Kane. It was first performed in 1998 by the theatre company Paines Plough, with which Kane was writer-in-residence for the year, at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh...
, was initially published.