Becontree Hundred facts for kids

Becontree was a very old area in the southwest part of Essex, England. It was known as a "hundred," which was a type of local area used for government and meetings a long, long time ago. Today, the land that was once Becontree is now part of London. You might know its name because it was reused in 1921 for the huge Becontree estate, a large housing area built by the London County Council. The old Becontree area now includes parts of the London Borough of Newham, the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, and some bits of the London Borough of Waltham Forest and the London Borough of Redbridge. It even used to include parts of what is now the London Borough of Havering.

Discovering Becontree's Past

The name Becontree first appeared in a very old book called the Domesday Book in 1086. Its name, Beuentreu, meant "tree of a man called Beohha." This special tree was located at Becontree Heath. It was where important meetings for the hundred used to take place.

How Becontree Changed Over Time

Before 1465, Becontree included an area called the Royal Liberty of Havering. This area had parishes like Hornchurch, Romford, and Havering-atte-Bower. After the Havering area became separate, Becontree still included many other parishes. These were Barking (which included Great Ilford), Dagenham, East Ham, Leyton, Little Ilford, Walthamstow, Wanstead, and West Ham.

Becontree's Borders

Becontree had natural borders. The River Thames formed its southern edge, separating it from the Blackheath hundred in Kent. To the east, it bordered the Havering liberty and other hundreds like Waltham and Ongar. The River Lea marked its western boundary, next to the Tower division of the Ossulstone hundred in Middlesex. The River Roding also flowed through the middle of the area.

Population and Size

In 1831, Becontree covered about 35,950 acres (145.5 km²). By 1851, around 46,777 people lived there. The population grew quite a lot, reaching 73,023 by 1861. By 1887, the area had grown slightly to about 37,705 acres (152.59 km²), and the population had jumped to 221,217 people.

Becontree's Modern Legacy

Over time, the old system of "hundreds" became less important for local government. New ways of organizing local areas took over. By 1894, the hundreds were replaced by new local government districts. These districts changed and combined over the years. Finally, in 1965, they were replaced by the London boroughs that we know today.

Where is Becontree Now?

The table below shows how the old parishes of Becontree became parts of today's London boroughs:

See also

• Hundreds of Essex