Editing Erith (section)

==History==
[[File:Mudflats at Erith - geograph.org.uk - 198214.jpg|right|thumb|Mudflats on the Thames, with the [[Queen Elizabeth II Bridge]] in the far background]]

===Pre-medieval===
Work carried out at the former [[British Gypsum]] site in Church Manorway by the [[Museum of London]] Archaeological Service shows that the area was covered by a dense forest of [[oak]], [[taxus|yew]] and [[alder]] in the [[Neolithic|Neolithic Period]], which by the [[Bronze Age]] had given way in part to [[poor fen|sedge fen]].<ref name="molas01">[http://www.molas.org.uk/pages/siteSummariesDetailsAll.asp?year=summaries2001 Museum of London summary of archaeological work carried out in 2001] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050515074054/http://www.molas.org.uk/pages/siteSummariesDetailsAll.asp?year=summaries2001 |date=15 May 2005 }} accessed 6 April 2008</ref>

The museum's work at the former site of Erith School in Belmont Road revealed traces of prehistoric settlement and a substantial community or farmstead in the first century CE.<ref name="molas96">[http://www.molas.org.uk/pages/siteSummariesDetailsAll.asp?year=summaries1996 Museum of London summary of archaeological work carried out in 1996] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050325224515/http://www.molas.org.uk/pages/siteSummariesDetailsAll.asp?year=summaries1996 |date=25 March 2005}} Accessed 6 April 2008.</ref>

===Anglo-Saxons===
After the collapse of [[Roman Empire|Roman rule]] in the early 5th century, Britain was colonised by [[Anglo-Saxons|Anglo-Saxon]] invaders from northern Europe. The ''[[Anglo-Saxon Chronicle]]'' records that they won the [[Battle of Crecganford]] (thought to be modern [[Crayford]]) in 457 and shortly after claimed the whole of [[Kent]]. Their different way of life was reflected in their settlement pattern. The town and country estates of Roman bureaucrats gave way to a network of villages occupied by warriors and farmers. Erith was one such and has a Saxon name, originally ''Ærre hyðe'' meaning "old haven".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hasted |first=Edward |title='Parishes: Erith', in The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent: Volume 2 |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol2/pp227-263 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160102173932/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol2/pp227-263 |archive-date=2 January 2016 |access-date=1 January 2016 |website=British History Online |publisher=Canterbury |pages=227–263 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

There was probably a church on the site of the present St John the Baptist's in the Anglo-Saxon period.<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 May 1953 |title=Parish Church of St John the Baptist – Bexley – Greater London – England |url=http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-198724-parish-church-of-st-john-the-baptish-bex |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120126072846/http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-198724-parish-church-of-st-john-the-baptish-bex |archive-date=26 January 2012 |access-date=24 August 2012 |publisher=British Listed Buildings |df=dmy-all}}</ref> The early settlement was based around it, meaning that the centre of Erith was once west of its current location.

===Medieval===
[[File:Western Face of the Church of St John the Baptist, Erith (01).jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|right|The medieval Church of John the Baptist in Erith]]
The earliest written reference to the area is in a Latin charter of 695, recording a grant by the Bishop of the East Saxons of land at Erith. The surrounding area was known as Lesnes or Lessness, which is mentioned in the [[Domesday Book]] of 1086. After the [[Norman Conquest]], Lessness passed into the possession of [[Bishop Odo]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Bexley Area in the Domesday Book |url=http://www.bexley.gov.uk/article/10263/The-Bexley-Area-in-the-Domesday-Book |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160701040926/http://www.bexley.gov.uk/article/10263/The-Bexley-Area-in-the-Domesday-Book |archive-date=1 July 2016 |access-date=11 February 2017 |website=Bexley borough council |df=dmy-all}}</ref> In 1315, a [[Royal Charter]] was granted for a market to be held in Erith every Thursday, but it was noted in 1776 that the market was long discontinued.<ref name="market">[http://www.bexley.gov.uk/localstudies/local_history/guide_pdfs/51_historical_references_to_erith_market.pdf Bexley Local Studies Note 51 – Historical References to Erith Market]{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}} Accessed 6 June 2008.</ref>

Erith owes its existence to the Thames, and was until the 1850s essentially a small riverside port, given prominence by [[King Henry VIII]]'s decision to open a naval dockyard there, approximately where the Riverside Gardens are now. Henry's famous warship, ''[[Henri Grace à Dieu]]'', was fitted out there in 1515.<ref name="erithhistory">{{Cite web |title=History of Erith &#124; History of Bexley and Districts |url=http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/bexley/assets/histories/erith |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180715181811/http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/bexley/assets/histories/erith |archive-date=15 July 2018 |access-date=24 August 2012 |publisher=Ideal Homes}}</ref>

After the death of [[George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury]] in 1538, Erith "alias Lysnes" was granted to his widow, Elizabeth, by Henry VIII "with all its members and appurtenances, to hold in capite, by knight's service."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hasted |first=Edward |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol2/pp227-263 |title=The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent |publisher=W. Bristow |year=1797 |location=Canterbury |pages=227–263 |author-link=Edward Hasted |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160102173932/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol2/pp227-263 |archive-date=2 January 2016 |url-status=live |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Erith remained a popular anchorage until the 19th century. Ships often discharged cargo there to reduce their [[Displacement (ship)|displacement]] before entering shallows upstream.

===Industrial era===
In 1797 [[Edward Hasted]] described Erith as "one small street of houses, which leads to the water side", and mentions annual fairs at [[Ascension Day|Ascension]] and [[Michaelmas]].<ref name="hasted">{{Cite web |title=Parishes: Erith - British History Online |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=62813 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903013445/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=62813 |archive-date=3 September 2014 |access-date=7 May 2018 |website=www.british-history.ac.uk |df=dmy-all}}</ref> In 1831 Erith's population was 1,533. It was composed in 1840 "chiefly of two streets, one leading down to the water side, the other branching off to the left towards the church."<ref name="pigots">{{Cite web |title=RootsWeb.com Home Page |url=http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~shebra/pigots_1840_-_crayford,_erith_&c_.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080205235812/http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~shebra/pigots_1840_-_crayford%2C_erith_%26c_.htm |archive-date=5 February 2008 |access-date=7 May 2018 |website=freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

[[File:28 and 30 Erith High Street (II).jpg|thumb|right|28 and 30 Erith High Street, a building with eighteenth-century origins in Erith.]]

By 1849 Erith was enjoying a short spell as a riverside resort. Its pier and nearby hotel gave hospitality for [[day-tripper]]s arriving on Thames pleasure boats or by rail.<ref name=erithhistory/> An [[arboretum]] with extensive pleasure grounds was opened to attract visitors.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Blanchard |first=Edward Litt Leman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7htbAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA104 |title=Adams's Pocket Descriptive Guide to the Environs of the Metropolis, etc |date=1850 |publisher=W. J. Adams |page=104}}</ref>

The [[Local Government Act 1894]] brought into existence Erith Urban District, which became the [[Municipal Borough of Erith]] in 1938. It included [[Northumberland Heath]] and [[Belvedere, London|Belvedere]].

Erith Iron Works was established in 1864 on a riverside site at Anchor Bay, east of Erith's centre, by [[William Anderson (engineer)|William Anderson]].<ref name="anderson">[http://www.bexley.gov.uk/localstudies/local_history/guide_pdfs/66_sir_william_anderson_1834-1898.pdf Bexley Local Studies Note 66 'Sir William Anderson']{{dead link|date=December 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Accessed 6 June 2008.</ref>

On 1 October 1864 a 46½-ton [[Embanking of the tidal Thames#The Erith explosion|gunpowder explosion]] blew out the river wall, exposing large areas of South London to flooding at high tide. A crowd of navvies and soldiers directed by a local engineer managed to plug the gap just before high water.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Moore |first=Lewis |year=1865 |title=On the Erith Explosion, and the Repair of the Thames Embankment |url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101049914268&view=1up&seq=209&q1=erith |journal=Society of Engineers Transactions for 1864 |location=London |publisher=E & FN Spon |pages=183–199 |access-date=16 November 2020}}</ref>

From 1881 an area north-west of Erith's centre was the site of a cable works founded by William Callender. This became [[British Insulated Callender's Cables]] (BICC) and eventually [[Pirelli]], which announced its partial closure in 2003. The remainder became [[Prysmian]].

===20th century===
[[File:Erith Library (I).jpg|right|thumb|The Old Library, a [[listed building|Grade II listed building]] in Walnut Tree Road by William Egerton, opened on 7 April 1906.]]
[[File:Erith Town Hall - geograph.org.uk - 1278414.jpg|left|thumb|[[Erith Town Hall]], completed in 1932]]
Erith's first library, designed by local architect William Egerton and funded by philanthropist [[Andrew Carnegie]], opened in 1906.<ref name="Murphy-21Mar2019">{{Cite news |last=Murphy |first=Chris |date=21 March 2019 |title=Calls for help to save Erith's Old Library building |work=Bexley Times |url=https://www.bexleytimes.co.uk/news/campaign-to-save-old-library-building-in-erith-1-5950293 |access-date=6 March 2020}}</ref>

Engineering became an important industry in Erith, with armaments and cables as the main products. [[Vickers]] was a major employer, with links to the [[Royal Arsenal]] at nearby [[Woolwich]].<ref name=erithhistory/>

[[File:The De Lucile Fish Mosaic Sculpture.jpg|alt='The De Luci (dancing) Fish' mosaic sculpture on Bronze Age Way roundabout in Erith, Kent by artist Gary Drostle.|thumb|'The De Luci' 'dancing fish' mosaic statue at the roundabout in the town centre designed and created by artist [[Gary Drostle]] in 2006]]
During the [[World War I|First World War]] Erith was an important area for the manufacture of guns and ammunition, largely due to the presence of the large [[Vickers]] works. In the [[World War II|Second World War]], the town suffered heavy bomb damage, mainly because of its riverside position near the Royal Arsenal. The bomb damage and a gradual decline in local trade prompted major redevelopment in the 1960s.<ref name=erithhistory/>

[[File:Erith, Riverside shopping centre - geograph.org.uk - 717401.jpg|thumb|Riverside Shopping Centre]]
In 1961, Erith began to be redeveloped as a modern shopping and working environment, through the clearing of sub-standard housing by the riverside and alterations to the street layout. Some of the new buildings, such as the [[social housing]] [[tower block]]s, have a [[brutalism|brutalist]] form typical of [[overspill estate]]s built by councils in major cities as an affordable way to clear the slums.<ref>[http://society.guardian.co.uk/urbanregeneration/0,8145,392054,00.html Urban regeneration: the essentials] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130419083145/http://society.guardian.co.uk/urbanregeneration/0,8145,392054,00.html |date=19 April 2013}} ''[[The Guardian]]''</ref>

In 1965, under the [[London Government Act 1963]], Erith became part of the [[London Borough of Bexley]].

[[File:The White Hart in Erith.jpg|thumb|The ''White Hart'' in Erith featuring Thames Barge mural by Gary Drostle.]]
Demolition of the old town started in 1966 and continued in phases until 1980, leaving only a few reminders of the old town centre. Many of the original [[Victorian architecture|Victorian buildings]] were lost, but some original townscape remains, including the ''White Hart'' in the High Street and St John's Church in West Street.<ref name=erithhistory/>

[[File:Riverside apartments, Erith - geograph.org.uk - 198210.jpg|right|thumb|Riverside apartment blocks, just east of Erith town centre]]

===Regeneration===
Since the late 1990s Erith has undergone marked changes, culminating in the Erith Western Thames Gateway project.<ref>[http://www.bexley.gov.uk/service/erithwesterngateway/index.html] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007013402/http://www.bexley.gov.uk/service/erithwesterngateway/index.html|date=7 October 2008}}</ref> The regeneration falls within the remit of the Thames Gateway project, with Erith as a focus for [[Bexley London Borough Council|Bexley Council]], as its only population centre on the [[River Thames]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 May 2008 |title=London – Places – Why Thames Gateway is good for Bexley |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/articles/2007/03/08/thamesgateway_bexley_opinion_feature.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121110011723/http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/articles/2007/03/08/thamesgateway_bexley_opinion_feature.shtml |archive-date=10 November 2012 |access-date=24 August 2012 |publisher=BBC |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Since 2000 a significant number of new flats have been built on the river by private developers. The Erith Western Gateway will include riverside flats,<ref name="thamesgateway.gov.uk">{{Cite web |title=Erith Western Gateway |url=http://www.thamesgateway.gov.uk/index.html?rm%3Dnews%26article%3D22%26PHPSESSID%3D986aa54265aa061b23cb5883448aae85 |access-date=17 September 2007}}{{dead link|date=November 2016 |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> and is expected to include the regeneration of a large underused area of the town centre, earmarked by Bexley Council for a mixed-use development with up to 6,000 sq. m of new commercial space and over 500 new homes.<ref name="thamesgateway.gov.uk" />

In 2020, local campaigners secured National Lottery funding to restore the former library building as new community facilities.<ref name="OldLib">{{Cite news |last=Bennett-Ness |first=James |date=27 February 2020 |title=Old Library in Erith with fascinating history to be fully restored thanks to Bexley residents |work=News Shopper |url=https://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/18266529.old-library-erith-fascinating-history-fully-restored-thanks-bexley-residents/ |access-date=6 March 2020}}</ref>