The Fascinating History And Legends Of Four London Trees

Did you know London is officially a forest?! 1/5 of the capital is made up of trees making it (by UN standards) a forest.

Despite bringing nature and greenery into the urban landscape, trees are easy to overlook as subjects of particular historical interest. Some, however, have been with us for far longer than many of our oldest buildings. They have calmly witnessed many of the city’s great trials and tribulations over the years.

Some historic London trees in particular have fascinating stories, with a large helping of legend and myth thrown into the mix too. Here are 4 of my favourites.

Queen Elizabeth’s Oak- Greenwich

Queen Elizabeth’s Oak blew over in 1991 during a heavy storm so does not look like much now but it has an amazing history.

This once mighty and magnificent oak tree is thought to date back to the 12th century. To put that in context, this is the century when Richard the Lionheart went on crusade and Thomas Becket was murdered. That’s pretty darn old.

Greenwich Park was part of a manor following the Norman conquest. It became a popular spot with the Tudor monarchs in the 16th century. Henry VIII was born in Greenwich Palace (or the Palace of Placentia as it was known) and loved hunting in the park. The deer herd still there today are descended from the original herd introduced by Henry.

Legend has it that Henry once danced around the tree with Anne Boleyn and Queen Elizabeth I, also born in Greenwich Palace, supposedly picnicked under it.

According to the plaque, the hollow trunk may also have been used as a lock up for trouble makers! Not entirely sure how that would have worked but there we go.

It died in the 1800’s but remained standing due to the ivy encasing it before blowing down. The late Duke of Edinburgh planted another oak tree next to it in 1992. There is a plaque to commemorate this event.

I love Greenwich- you can read about another hidden gem in Greenwich here.

The Berkeley Square Plane Tree- Mayfair

You will see the London plane tree all over the city as they account for over half the trees in London.

They are probably a hybrid of the American Sycamore and the Oriental Plane and were first discovered in the 17th century by John Tradescant, the famous botanist who lived in Lambeth. They were then widely planted across the city in the 18th century. It is very resistant to pollution so was popular in smog-ridden Victorian London.

Many of the plane trees in London are historic but some of the oldest (if not the oldest) are thought to be those in Berkeley Square. They were planted in 1789- again for a bit of context that was the year the French Revolution started.

One of the trees is also one of the most valuable trees in Britain, valued at £750,000. It was valued as part of ‘The Capital Asset Value for Amenity Trees System’, first written in 2003. It bases its valuation on size, health, historical significance and how many people live/work nearby to enjoy the tree.

The Hardy Tree- King’s Cross

The Hardy Tree is one of London’s most unusual monuments and historic trees. It is located in St Pancras Gardens, which was the burial ground for St Pancras Old Church.

Back in the 1840’s, when part of the land was being cleared for the railway, lots of bodies needed to be exhumed and moved. This unpleasant task was given to the architect’s apprentice, who just happened to be, future famous author Thomas Hardy.

He decided to arrange the unearthed gravestones around an ash tree as you can see above. Thus was born the Hardy Tree. It presents an eerie and captivating image today, with the roots entangled amongst the gravestones.

You can read more about the tree and the other fascinating secrets of the gardens by clicking below.

Wood Street Plane Tree- City of London

This iconic tree on the corner of Wood Street and Cheapside in the City has remarkably managed to survive both the Blitz and developers. It is sometimes cited as the oldest tree in the City. Whether that is true or not no-one is sure but it is certainly one of the oldest.

It stands in the now disused churchyard of St Peter’s Cheap- a church destroyed in the Great Fire.

How old the tree is, again no-one is quite sure. William Wordsworth mentions the corner in a poem called The Reverie of Poor Susan from 1797, however does not actually specifically mention the tree.

At the corner of Wood Street, when daylight appears
Hangs a Thrush that sings loud, it has sung for three years
Poor Susan has pass’d by the spot, and has heard
In the silence of morning the song of the bird

It is recorded a number of times in the mid 19th century and was already large by this point. In 1846 a newspaper printed that: “It is a singular fact that at the present time there are two crows nests in a lofty tree at the corner of Wood Street, Cheapside; the birds are mated’.

In fact, the bookseller, Samuel Roe uses the tree in his address: “Samuel Roe, under the Tree, Cheapside.“

It is now thankfully protected so cannot be cut down! Hopefully it will be there for many more years to come.

Thank you for reading! More London historical gems below!