Enfield Chase is an area of Enfield that is named for a former royal hunting ground. It comprises the majority of the open countryside within the London Borough of Enfield, and land north of the M25 within Hertfordshire. At the time of a survey by Francis Russell in 1776-7, the Chase extended from Monken Hadley in the west to Bulls Cross in the east, and from Potters Bar to Southgate.
While parts of the former area of the Chase including at Southgate, Oakwood, and Hadley Wood have been developed, areas that remain undeveloped include Trent Park, Whitewebbs Park, Hadley Common, Fir and Pond Wood near Potters Bar, and the valleys of the Salmons Brook, Turkey Brook, and Merryhills Brook, as well as golf courses at Hadley Wood and Whitewebbs. Remnants of the Chase now within the urban area of London include Chase Green near Enfield Town and Boxer's Lake Open Space in Oakwood.
Etymology
Enfield Chase was recorded as Enefeld Chacee in 1325 and chace of Enefelde in 1373, from the Middle English chace, meaning "a tract of ground for breeding and hunting wild animals".
History
In the reign of Henry II the parish of Edmonton and adjoining parishes were for the most part a forest which was then so extensive that it reached from the City of London to about north. Enfield Chase was part of this forest and also belonged to the citizens of London.
By 1154 what had been known as the Park of Enfield or Enfield Wood had been converted into a hunting ground, or chase. It appears it was not known as Enfield Chase until the early 14th century, by which time it was referred to as 'Parcus Extrinicus' (Latin, 'the Outer Park') to distinguish it from the older and smaller Enfield Old Park ('Parcus Intrinsicus' ('the Inner Park') which was mentioned in the Domesday Book as a park and was later used for rearing game to be released into the adjacent Chase.
For hundreds of years the chase was owned at first by the Mandeville and then the de Bohun families while local inhabitants of Edmonton and Enfield manors claimed common rights. It is believed that Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth I) often hunted on the Chase after she was granted the estate of West Lodge Park by her brother Edward VI in 1547. In a charter of 1166-89 the hamlet of Southgate, sited around what is now Southgate Underground station, receives a mention. It takes its name from its location at the South Gate of the old hunting ground, later known as Enfield Chase.
By the Act for the Division of Enfield Chase in 1777, the chase ceased to exist as an entity. According to a survey drawn up by the Duchy of Lancaster surveyor Francis Russell, the Chase then covered an area of . According to the map accompanying the Act, the Chase was cut up and divided among the following authorities:
The Chase after the Division of 1777
Based on the map entitled Survey and Admeasurement of Enfield Chase by Francis Russell in 1776/7, the Chase extended from Monken Hadley in the west to Bulls Cross in the east, and from Potters Bar to Southgate.
In 1777 George III leased the central part of the Chase to Sir Richard Jebb, his favourite doctor, as a reward for saving the life of the King's younger brother, the then Duke of Gloucester. This land later became Trent Park.
The opening of Enfield station on the Great Northern line in 1871 (renamed Enfield Chase station in 1924 to avoid confusion with Enfield Town station) resulted in the first period of sustained housebuilding on former Chase lands. This began with 'artisan's cottages' built along Chase side in the 1880s and accelerated after the opening of new stations at Gordon Hill and Crews Hill in 1910.
The grounds of South Lodge were acquired by developers Laing, who built a new housing estate in the period 1935-1939. Boxers Lake and Lakeside, once part of South Lodge, are the only remaining open spaces.
In 1936-7 Middlesex County Council purchased around 4,000 hectares for inclusion in the Green Belt, which was drawn at the limits of urban development in 1939. Some of the land purchased became golf courses, whilst others, for example at Trent Park, Whitewebbs and Forty Hall, became public parks. The remainder of the Council-owned land was leased to tenant farmers.