Description
The Huguenot Burial Ground opened in c.1687 as the burial ground for the French Church, which was located opposite Wandsworth parish church of All Saints. The burial ground was used by the Huguenot refugees who settled in Wandsworth during the C16th and C17th, fleeing France after the Edict of Nantes in 1685. The burial ground later became know as Mount Nod; it was enlarged in 1700 and again in 1735. It was closed for burial in 1854 and in 1896 Mrs Basil Holmes describes it as 'closed and fairly tidy'. It later reopened as a public garden, and contains a number of historic monuments.
Practical Information
| Previously known as | Mount Nod; Huguenot Cemetery; East Hill Burial-ground |
|---|---|
| Site location | East Hill/Huguenot Place/St John's Hill |
| Postcode | SW18 2QZ |
| What3Words | ///worry.bumps.admiral |
| Type of Site | Public Gardens |
| Borough | Wandsworth |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | unrestricted |
| Special Conditions | no dogs |
| Public Transport | Rail/London Overground: Clapham Junction. Bus: 37, 39, 77A, 156, 170, 219, 337 |
| Research Updated | 1 May 2010 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
The burial ground has railings along the East Hill boundary and walled with spikes above to Huguenot Place. Within the ground is mainly grass, with trees and shrubs around the periphery. It contains a number of historic tombs including those of Peter Paggen (d.1720) of Wandsworth Manor House, and of John Gilham (d.1728). In 1911 a memorial was erected to the memory of the Wandsworth Huguenots 'who had found freedom in Wandsworth to worship God after their own manner. They established important industries and added to the credit and prosperity of the town of their adoption'. At the south end of the burial ground is the former Board of Works offices, built in 1888 by J Newton Dunn, now the headquarters of The Book House. At the east end a footpath separates the burial ground from St Mary Magdalen Roman Catholic Church.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ262747 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 0.19 |
| Site Ownership | LB Wandsworth |
| Site Management | Parks Service |
| Dates | 1687 |
| Listed Structures | LBII: Paggen Table Tomb; Cotterell & Allen Table Tomb; Samuel John Table Tomb; John Gilham Table Tomb; Errington Ward Table Tomb. Local list: The Book House |
| On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens | No |
| Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965 | No |
| Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931 | No |
| Local Authority | Wandsworth |
| In Conservation Area | Yes |
| Conservation Area Name | Wandsworth Town |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | Yes - Archaeological Priority Area |
| Other LA Designation | Incidental Public Open Space |
Gallery
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Nearby parks and gardens
The land here was once part of Wandsworth Common, built over for housing in the C19th. When St Anne's Church was built as a new parish church in 1820-24 it had a prominent position at the edge of the new suburbs. A Commissioners Church, St Anne's was designed by Robert Smirke in Greek Revival style. Alterations were made to the church in the 1890s when William White truncated the western gallery and E W Mountford added a chancel, Lady Chapel and vestries. The church is set within pleasant landscaping with lawns, some fine trees, shrub and flower beds. In front of the imposing west front of the church, which has a pedimented portico and circular domed tower, is a circular grass plot surrounded by roadway. The entrance gates and cast iron piers on St Anne's Hill were restored in 1993. St Anne's Crescent has some fine early Victorian houses, No. 18 having decorative wrought iron balconies.
Wandsworth Town Hall was built in a number of phases, the earliest central portion in 1926 by E L Elford, the addition to the east was built in 1935-37 and designed by E A Hunt, with relief sculptures as a frieze. The most recent buildings to the west date from the 1970s. There are formal gardens between the civic buildings and Wandsworth High Street and Fairfield Street. The gardens along Wandsworth High Street have fountain, lawns and floral displays, with three plane trees along the road frontage, bounded by railings. Along Fairfield Street the garden has lawn with flower beds and tubs.
Spencer Park was built on land that was formerly part of Wandsworth Common and the remains of more extensive commonland, part of the wastes of the Manor of Battersea and Wandsworth. After vigorous protests by local people to preserve the common from further encroachment, Earl Spencer, Lord of the Manor, agreed to transfer most of the common to the Common Defence Committee that had been established, excluding the area that became Spencer Park, named after him. By the late 1870s the development of Spencer Park was underway with houses overlooking the common and an enclosed private park formally laid out with grass, paths and trees.