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LATEST NEWS<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

THE RICHMOND LOCAL HISTORY SOCIETY SUMMER SEASON WALKS, 2026<\/h2>\n

All walks start from the Little Green opposite The Richmond Theatre at 7.00 pm and finish with an adjournment to a local pub around 9.00 pm. Walks are free to members and we will always give preference to members when there is high demand. Non-members\/guests \u00a35 pp subject to availability.<\/p>\n

To reserve a place, please contact the Secretary, Liz Velluet, by e-mail on
\nrich.hist@yahoo.co.uk or by phone on 020 8891 3825.<\/p>\n

Wednesday 6th May – Lanes, courts and alleyways of Richmond<\/strong>
\nA walk led by the Society\u2019s President, Paul Velluet, exploring some of the many generally known and lesser-known, historic byways and modest urban spaces in the town, past and present.<\/p>\n

Wednesday 3rd June – Richmond in the Second World War<\/strong>
\nA walk led by Simon Fowler, Vice-Chair of the Richmond Local History Society and author of Richmond at War, a revised and extended edition of which has just been published, recreating the walk taken by many servicemen during the War when they rushed up Richmond Hill from the Town to get to their barracks in the Park before the gates shut promptly at midnight, and hearing stories of heroism and tragedy by local people between 1940 and 1945.<\/p>\n

Wednesday 1st July – <\/strong>Richmond and the Americas
\n<\/strong>A walk led by local guide Paul Jackson, author of the recently-published Richmond Revealed \u2013 Richmond in six walks, marking the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence, exploring some of Richmond\u2019s remarkable connections with the Americas, from Tudor times to the present day \u2013 from early colonisation to Ted Lasso.<\/p>\n

Wednesday 29th July – Three Hundred Years of The Prospect of Richmond in Surry<\/strong>
\nA walk around the lower slopes of the Hill led by Stephen Orr with Paul Velluet, celebrating the publication of Overton and Hoole\u2019s famous view of the Town in 1726 and the survival of much of its early-18th-century heritage.<\/p>\n

\"\"Presidents, Explorers, a\u00a0General and a Princess:\u00a0Richmond\u2019s Links with British America and the War of Independence, 1580-1783<\/h1>\n

This month, and to mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we welcomed Simon Targett, chair of RLHS, to talk about the links between Richmond (and the local area), British America and the War of Independence.<\/p>\n

As you may know, Richmond, the capital of Virginia, was named after Richmond-upon-Thames by William Byrd, a wealthy plantation owner who had studied law in England and who was struck by the similarity between the bend in the James River as viewed from Libby Hill and the bend in Thames,as viewed from Richmond Hill.<\/p>\n

But this is just one of many connections between Richmond (and Kew, Petersham, and Twickenham) and British America (up to 1776 and the American War of Independence). As Simon Targett will explain in his talk, the first connections date back to the 1580s, when Sir Francis Drake held secret talks with Queen Elizabeth I at Richmond Palace about the land he named in her honour near what is now San Francisco.<\/p>\n

After that, the connections deepened, and Simon told about, among others, Matoaka (otherwise known as Pocahontas), Elihu Yale (after whom Yale University is named), Thomas Pownall (a former governor of Massachusetts), General William Howe
\n(Commander-in-Chief of the British Army during the War of Independence)\u2014as well as future presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson.<\/p>\n

Dr Simon Targett is a writer, historian, and award-winning journalist. A former Associate Editor of the Financial Times, he is a Departmental Tutor at Oxford University, where hlectures on Anglo-American and media history. He is coauthor of New World, Inc.: How England\u2019s Merchants Founded America and Launched the British Empire (2018). He has a PhD in history from Cambridge University.<\/p>\n

Image formerly attributed to George Gower”: https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Armada_Portrait#\/media\/File:Elizabeth_I_(Armada_Portrait).jpg<\/a><\/p>\n

New videos<\/span>
\n<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Richmond’s Venetian river fetes<\/strong><\/h1>\n
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Venetian Fete on the Thames at Richmond 15 August 1892. Painting by Henry Charles Seppings Wright 1849-1937<\/p><\/div>\n

Andrew George\u00a0<\/strong>gave an action-packed performance\u00a0in talking to us on 9 February about late Victorian Richmond’s Venetian river fetes:<\/strong> it was a joy to watch. You can view \u2013 or relive \u2013 his presentation by going to our YouTube channel<\/a><\/strong>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Alan Hertz’s talk<\/strong> (December 2025) on Emma Hamilton <\/strong>and Tony Cartwright’s talk <\/strong>(January 2026) on a history of vaccines and antivaxxers<\/strong> are available to watch also.<\/p>\n

There are now more than thirty videos on our YouTube channel, including Andrew George’s 2022 talk on “Black Jack” Needham<\/strong>, the 2nd Earl of Kilmorey, his ward and lover Priscilla Hoste and the Kilmorey Mausoleum in St Margarets.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>We’ve also added a video on Richmond and Kew in the Second World War<\/strong>. It was produced for the Society by professional video makers Victoria Weatherby<\/strong> and the sadly now late Norman Harvey<\/strong>, who very kindly donated their services. The video is based on the Society’s books Richmond at War 1939-1945<\/em> and Kew at War 1939-1945<\/em>, and on Simon Fowler’s script for a dramatised reading that was voiced by members of the Kew-based amateur theatre group Q2 Players in 2015 as part of our talks programme.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Recent additions to our online bookshop<\/span><\/strong><\/h1>\n

Did you know that in the 1940s Richmond hosted a large community of European refugees, including women and children evacuated from Gibraltar?<\/strong> Buckingham House and Marlborough House, newly-built blocks of flats in Courtlands, housed 540 Gibraltarians during the Second World War.<\/p>\n

You can read more about Richmond’s wartime refugee population in the newly published and expanded second edition of Simon Fowler’s popular book <\/strong>Richmond at War 1939-1945<\/strong>. <\/em>It has been thoroughly updated with new sections on Richmond’s war heroes and Britain’s first radio observatory (in Richmond Park).\u00a0 Find out more<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

The book i<\/em>s available from\u00a0Kew Bookshop<\/a>, Sheen Bookshop<\/a>, the Museum of Richmond<\/a>, The Open Book<\/a> at King Street, Richmond and our online bookshop<\/a>.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Also in our online bookshop is another new publication, Richmond Revealed<\/strong><\/em>, a book by experienced local tour guide and Richmond Local History Society member Paul Jackson. Richly illustrated in full colour, it describes, with the help of very clear maps, six fascinating walks in Richmond, Ham and Petersham. Find out more<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The Society’s Newsletter has now gone digital<\/span><\/h1>\n

Because of rising postage costs, future issues of the Newsletter will be despatched by email only.<\/strong> Printed copies will be available, free of charge, at our events. However, if you would still like to receive the Newsletter by post you can order a year’s subscription for only \u00a36.00<\/strong> at www.richmondhistory.org.uk\/wordpress\/products\/<\/a> or in person at the Welcome Desk at any of our talks.<\/p>\n

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WELCOME TO THE RICHMOND LOCAL HISTORY SOCIETY<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Our Society explores the history of Richmond, Kew, Petersham<\/span> and Ham and the people who have lived here.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Each of these areas has a rich tapestry of history that includes royal connections, significant architectural developments, and a deep cultural heritage. Exploring their history offers an insight into the broader historical narrative of England, especially in terms of royal influence, horticultural advancements, and architectural heritage.<\/p>\n

What we offer:<\/p>\n