Battle of Brentford (1642)

In the autumn of 1016, the Danish prince Cnut the Great (Canute) successfully invaded England. Cnut's father, Sweyn Forkbeard, had previously conquered and briefly ruled England for less than five weeks. The Battle of Brentford was fought in 1016 some time between 9 May (the approximate date Canute landed at Greenwich) and 18 October (the date of the later Battle of Assandun) between the English led by Edmund Ironside and the Danes led by Cnut. It was one of a series of battles fought between Edmund and Canute, ultimately resulting in the lands held by Edmund's father Ethelred the Unready being divided between the two. Edmund was victorious in this particular battle, but ultimately failed to defend the lands inherited from his father. "Then collected he [Edmund] his force the third time, and went to London, all by north of the Thames, and so out through Clayhanger, and relieved the citizens, driving the enemy to their ships. It was within two nights after that the king went over at Brentford; where he fought with the enemy, and put them to flight: but there many of the English were drowned, from their own carelessness; who went before the main army with a design to plunder.(Anglo-Saxon Chronicle)" The Battle of Assandun (or Essendune) was fought between Danish and English armies on 18 October 1016. There is disagreement whether Assandun may be Ashdon near Saffron Walden in north Essex or, as long supposed, Ashingdon near Rochford in southeast Essex, England. It ended in victory for the Danes, led by Canute the Great, who triumphed over the English army led by King Edmund Ironside. The battle was the conclusion to the Danish reconquest of England. The battle is mentioned briefly in Knýtlinga saga which quotes a verse of skaldic poetry by Óttarr svarti, one of Canute's court poets. King Knut fought the third battle, a major one, against the sons of Æthelred at a place called Ashingdon, north of the Danes' Woods. In the words of Ottar: At Ashingdon, you worked well in the shield-war, warrior-king; brown was the flesh of bodies served to the blood-bird: in the slaughter, you won, sire, with your sword enough of a name there, north of the Danes' Woods. During the course of the battle, Eädnoth the Younger, Bishop of Dorchester, was killed by Cnut's men whilst in the act of saying mass on behalf of Edmund Ironside's men. According to Liber Eliensis, Eadnoth's hand was first cut off for a ring, and then his body cut to pieces. The Ealdorman Ulfcytel Snillingr also died in the battle. Following his defeat, Edmund was forced to sign a treaty with Canute. By this treaty, all of England except Wessex would be controlled by Canute and when one of the kings should die the other would take all of England, that king's son being the heir to the throne. After Edmund's death on 30 November, Canute built a church, chapel or holy site after winning the battle to commemorate the soldiers who died in battle. A few years later in 1020 the completion took place of the memorial church known as Ashingdon Minster, on the hill next to the presumed site of the battle in Ashingdon. The church still stands to this day. Canute attended the dedication of Ashingdon Minster with his bishops and appointed his personal priest, Stigand, to be priest there. The church is now dedicated to Saint Andrew but is believed previously to have been dedicated to Saint Michael, who was considered a military saint: churches dedicated to him are frequently located on a hill.

The Battle of Brentford was fought in 1016 between invading forces of the Kingdom of Denmark under Cnut and the defending forces of the Kingdom of England led by Edmund Ironside. The battle was fought as part of a campaign by Cnut to conquer England. The battle was a victory for the English, who nevertheless lost a large number of men. Cnut's invasion continued after the battle and a peace was made after Edmund lost the battle of Assandun later in the year. Under these terms Cnut gained Mercia and payment for his army, while Edmund held Wessex. Cnut would gain the whole of England after Edmund's death on 30 November 1016.

Syon House is the west London residence of the Duke of Northumberland. A Grade I listed building, it lies within the 200-acre (80 hectare) Syon Park, in the London Borough of Hounslow. The family's traditional central London residence had been Northumberland House, now demolished. The eclectic interior of Syon House was designed by the architect Robert Adam in the 1760s.

Syon Park is the garden of Syon House, the London home of the Duke of Northumberland in Isleworth in the London Borough of Hounslow. It was landscaped by Capability Brown in the 18th century, and it is Grade I listed by English Heritage under the Historic Buildings and Ancient Monuments Act 1953 for its special historic interest. The 56.6-hectare (140-acre) main gardens are a Site of Borough Importance for Nature Conservation, Grade I, and the flood meadows next to the River Thames are a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation.

Syon Abbey , also called simply Syon, was a dual monastery of men and women of the Bridgettine Order, although it only ever had abbesses during its existence. It was founded in 1415 and stood, until its demolition in the 16th century, on the left (northern) bank of the River Thames within the parish of Isleworth, in the county of Middlesex, on or near the site of the present Georgian mansion of Syon House, today in the London Borough of Hounslow. It was named after the biblical holy "City of David which is Zion" (1 Kings 8:1), built on the eponymous Mount Zion (or Sion, Syon, etc.). At the time of the dissolution, the abbey was the wealthiest religious house in England. Syon Abbey maintained a substantial library, with a collection for the monks and another for the nuns. When Catherine of Siena's Dialogue of Divine Revelation was translated into English for the abbey, it was given a new title, "The Orchard of Syon," and included a separate prologue written to the nuns.

Brentford railway station opened on 1 May 1860 on the Brentford Branch Line (the only line of the Great Western and Brentford Railway Company) which had opened in 1859 from Southall to Brentford Dock. It stood immediately north of Brentford High Street (the A315 road) on the embankment leading to the viaduct into the dock. The station closed on 22 March 1915 as a wartime economy measure, re-opened on 12 April 1920 and closed permanently on 4 May 1942. The station was demolished in 1957.

The River Brent is a river in west and northwest London, England, and a tributary of the River Thames. 17.9 miles (28.8 km) in length, it rises in the Borough of Barnet and flows in a generally south-west direction before joining the Tideway stretch of the Thames at Brentford.

The London Butterfly House was a visitor attraction in Brentford, Middlesex, England where the public could view butterflies, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and arachnids. Set in Syon Park, the grounds of Syon House, the facility consisted of three purpose built greenhouses situated overlooking a lake. The facility contained hundreds of the world's most exotic species of butterfly, along with descriptions and illustrations. It also contained a small aviary. The London Butterfly House closed on 28 October 2007, due to the Duke of Northumberland's plans to build a hotel complex on the land. The greenhouses were demolished in November/December 2007 and the 5 star hotel built in their place. The London Syon Park (part of the Hilton Worldwide Waldorf Astoria Hotels and Resorts) opened in March 2011 with conference facilities, restaurants, and a spa.There was a proposal to build a replacement Butterfly House in Gunnersbury Park, but this was rejected.The owners of the London Butterfly House acquired The Butterfly and Wildlife Park in Long Sutton, Lincolnshire, to which the creatures and many of the plants have been re-located. Unfortunately this closed in 2012 due to rising costs and reduced visitor numbers.

Brentford School for Girls is a secondary school and sixth form with academy status for girls aged 11–18, in Brentford, Greater London, England.

Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, 8 miles (13 km) west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings which mark the start of the M4 corridor; in transport it also has two railway stations and Boston Manor Underground station on its north-west border with Hanwell. Brentford has a convenience shopping and dining venue grid of streets at its centre. Brentford at the start of the 21st century attracted regeneration of its little-used warehouse premises and docks including the re-modelling of the waterfront to provide more economically active shops, townhouses and apartments, some of which comprises Brentford Dock. A 19th and 20th centuries mixed social and private housing locality: New Brentford is contiguous with the Osterley neighbourhood of Isleworth and Syon Park and the Great West Road which has most of the largest business premises.

The Richmond War Memorial is located in front of Whittaker Avenue, between the Old Town Hall and the Riverside in Richmond, London. It marks the deaths of local individuals who died fighting in World War I and World War II. The memorial was designed by the local architects Messrs Goodale and Co of Richmond and was unveiled by Field Marshal Sir William Robertson on 23 November 1921. The Mayor of Richmond and the corporation attended the ceremony.The memorial has been Grade II listed on the National Heritage List for England since 2017.It is in the form of a column with an orb on top, standing on a double plinth. On the north side is the statue of a sailor, on the south side the statue of a soldier, and on the east and west sides are the coat of arms of the former Municipal Borough of Richmond, accompanied by this quotation: PRO PATRIA1914–1918 On the west side there is a further inscription: IN REMEMBRANCEOF THE MEN OF THIS BOROUGHWHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE SERVICE OF THEIR KING AND COUNTRYDURING THE GREAT WARS1914–1918 AND 1939–1945 The names of the war dead are engraved into walls that jut out from the memorial. The walls of names were added to the memorial after a newspaper campaign in 1989. The head of the sailor was cut off by vandals in 2003.

Queen Charlotte's Cottage is an 18th-century cottage orné within the grounds of Kew Gardens on the banks of the River Thames in London. It is named after Queen Charlotte, who was responsible for its construction. Dating from 1772, the cottage is Grade II* listed. The cottage is maintained by Historic Royal Palaces, and is open to visitors.