Belvedere & Lesnes

The area of Bexley known as Belvedere and Lesnes which I represent consists of the Abbey Wood postal district within the borough boundaries, Upper and Lower Belvedere, and that part of the old 'Bostall' ward now contained in the new Lesnes Abbey ward as represented on Bexley Council. It is a large and varied area stretching southwards from the Thames reach at Crossness to the indeterminate suburbia of northern Bexleyheath to the south.

Lower Belvedere, historically known as Picardy, is a mixture of the remnants of the Erith marshes, and industrial installations and their accompanying smaller houses. Pirelli's Tyre Factory tower now dominates the area once inundated in the 1953 floods. Upper Belvedere, despite intrusive sixties developments, still retains a great deal of its original character as a genteel 'carriage class' mid nineteenth century suburb. 'The Priory', a rambling mansion at its hub, was the home of Flaxman Spurrel, a noted antiquarian, and his initials still grace one of the gables of the house.

Lesnes Abbey Woods, divided between the postal districts of Belvedere and Abbey Wood, boast the past and present glories respectively of its eponymous Abbey and park, whilst the woodlands themselves have a magnificent rolling topography and superb displays of spring daffodils. Also a large stock of Victorian and Edwardian architecture still remains hereabouts, notably West Heath House on the Woolwich Road - rebuilt in 1870 on the site of an earlier house occupied by Field Marshal Hulse, sometime aide-de-camp of George IV who visited him there. Later, after its rebuilding, it was the home of Sir Thomas Callender of the famous cable company fame, based nearby on the Erith marshes. Dennis Thatcher is said to have lived at 'The Croft', another Victorian survival in Upper Belvedere, a few yards to the east, when he ran Atlas Paint & Preservatives in Frazer Road, Erith.

An interesting link with the Sidcup district is the fact that there are a row of distinctly designed Edwardian 'semis' with art nouveau gables in the recently proposed conservation area in Erith Road, Upper Belvedere, which match exactly their southern counterparts, having the same builder.

Lower Belvedere can boast the romanesque church of St Augustine on the Abbey Road, and the elegant mid-Victorian Belvedere Hotel opposite Station Road. I still have a concert ticket for a musical evening held there in 1908, once possessed by my grandfather who was born in Bedonwell Hill, Upper Belvedere in 1889. The other church of note in my area is All Saints, Upper Belvedere (where my grandfather was christened). A church built in the early English style, with a flint knapped exterior, in 1861. The clock on the small church tower comes from Belvedere House, demolished in 1959 - sometime home of the Eardley family, the dominant influence in the district for one hundred years.

Crossness, of course, should need no introduction, being now nationally famous as an example of a happy conjunction of Victorian science and aesthetics. We look forward to its final restoration which will be a tribute to the vision and hard work of the members of the trust - many of whom belong to the Bexley Civic Society. North to South, the historic and environmental importance of my area is one of which I am extremely proud.

Article prepared by Peter Hofford

New Area Representative is Linda Atkinson

Bexley Civic Society