Battersea

Battersea, a suburban parish and township in the county of Surrey, 4 miles S.W. of London, lying S. of the Thames, and opposite to Chelsea. It comprises 2,343 acres, and returns a member to Parliament. In the early part of the century much of the district was open country, and in 1829 the Duke of Wellington fought his memorable duel with the Earl of Winchilsea in Battersea Fields. The market gardener for some years clung to the soil, but had to give way to the speculative builder, and only here and there are traces left of rural simplicity. The Church of St. Mary, rebuilt in the abominable taste of the close of the last century, contains an interesting monument to Lord Bolingbroke, and others of the St. John family, whilst the east window was the gift of Anne Boleyn's father. The Grammar School has been remodelled on modern lines. Battersea Park, 185 acres in extent, with a sub-tropical garden of four acres, was opened in 1858, and is connected with the Middlesex side by the handsome new Chelsea bridge.