Did you know that...
This area of South East London was part of the Lathe of Sutton at Hone which included the better part of Kent.
Mottingham became part of Eltham after all the extra-parochial areas were dissolved. The Domesday Book mentions Eltham Mottingham as part of the hundred of Greenwich. One century later, the hundred changed names to Blachehedfeld. In the 18th-century The Environs of London, Daniel Lysons speaks about a market on Tuesdays and two discontinued fairs. One fair was associated with the Holy Trinity festival and the other one celebrated St. Peter and St. Paul.
In 862 AD, Mottingham was recorded as “Modingahema”. It can be roughly translated as “the proud place”. In the 19th century, William Henry Ireland talks about this area in his England’s Topographer: Or A New and Complete History of the County of Kent. He records Modingham as the old name which derives from the Anglo-Saxon words “modig” which means proud and “ham” which means dwelling. In the 11th century, Mottingham was part of the manor of Lewisham. Eltham Mottingham is mentioned during the reign of King Edward I.
Eltham Mottingham started developing only in the mid-19th century after Eltham railway station was built in 1866. In 1927 the station was renamed Mottingham. Eltham is sometimes called “London’s Beverly Hills”. Celebrities such as Bob Hope, Kate Bush, Boy George, and Jude Law lived here. Several notable buildings can be found in this SE9 area. Eltham Palace is a former royal residence. It dates from the 13th century. It served as a royal residence between the 14th and 16th centuries. Supposedly, the incident that drove King Edward III to establish the Order of the Garter happened here. Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaiologos stayed here during his trip to England. St Andrew’s Church was established in 1884. The Lord Chancellor’s Lodging from the 14th century, Clapboard cottage from the 18th century, and several 19th-century villas are other Eltham Mottingham landmarks.
