All around London there are little-known gems that only a few people visit … and The Point in Greenwich is one of them.
Yesterday, Sue and I were visiting the Cat Protection shop at Blackheath Standard to drop off some clothes that we were donating to the charity, and off the cuff we decided to visit The Point. We drove across Blackheath towards Deptford and then turned right down Hyde Vale towards Greenwich. Almost immediately we turned left along West Grove, and as we descended the hill towards the River Thames, we found somewhere to park along the eastern side of The Point.
A short walk uphill took us to the entrance to The Point …
… which is a small, grassed area that is surrounded on three sides by trees.
This is a quiet haven in what is otherwise a very busy part of London … and has one of the most magnificent views across London!
The London Eye can be clearly seen on the horizon on the left of this photograph. Somewhat less clear is the Wembley Arch, which on the horizon to the right of this photograph.
Going from left to right are the BT Tower, the Shard, and the dome of St Paul's Cathedral.
Canary Wharf ... in all its glory!
At one side of the viewing platform is a memorial to Flight Lieutenant Richard Carew Reynell, who was killed on 7th September 1940 during the first major German bombing raid on central London.
Now we have found this little oasis of quiet solitude, Sue and I will no doubt revisit The Point again at some point.
Flight Lieutenant Richard Carew Reynell was born in Reynella South Australia on 12th April 1912. His father was Lieutenant Colonel Carew Reynell, a prominent winemaker, who died leading the 9th Light Horse Regiment at Gallipoli in 1915.
Reynell was educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide, and then studied Agriculture at Balliol College, Oxford from 1929 to 1931. On graduating he did not return to Australia to join the family business. Instead, he joined the RAF after serving with the Oxford University Air Squadron.
After becoming a pilot he joined 43 Squadron at Tangmere and later Duxford (where he flew the Hawker Fury) before becoming an instructor with No.8 Flying Training School based at Montrose, Scotland. He then took a job with Hawker Aircraft as a test pilot, and in married Enid Marjorie Watts-Allan on 24th September 1938.
He rejoined the RAF on the outbreak of war, but remained with Hawkers until 26th August 1940 when he rejoined 43 Squadron to assess the Hawker Hurricane's performance in combat. During this time he had one confirmed 'kill' (a Bf109 on 2nd September) and several 'possibles'.
He was recalled to Hawkers on 7th September 1940 but chose to complete that day's combat missions as a replacement for another pilot who had been killed. 7th September was the first day of the Luftwaffe's large-scale daylight bombing raids on London, and Reynell was one of twelve pilots from 43 Squadron who engaged over one hundred enemy aircraft over London. His aircraft (V7527) was hit by fire from a Bf109 over Blackheath and broke apart in midair. Unfortunately Reynell's parachute did not open, and he landed near The Point. He survived bailing out, but his injuries were so serious that he died soon afterwards.
He was buried in Brookwood Cemetery but does not have a Commonwealth War Graves headstone as his family wanted to provide their own.
Just trying to picture a cat wearing one of your old shirts...
ReplyDeleteStu Rat,
DeleteThe white tuxedo that was included in the stuff we dropped off would look very fetching on any cat … or customer of this charity shop.
All the best,
Bob
It looks like London and Jersey City share a couple things in common:
ReplyDeleteThe entire city appears to be under construction given all the cranes
and there's a giant ferris wheel much like the London Eye at the, unironically named, American Dream Mall in Secaucus.
It's nice to find a quiet spot hidden from everything else. We had a small reservoir that served as a park until the mayor decided it needed "improvements" and shut it down near the end of COVID. It was a nice little park that nature had taken over but now it's indefinitely under construction. Enjoy your find while you can!
Mr. Pavone,
DeleteThere are parts of London that are giant construction sites … and until the housing shortage is sorted out, this is likely to get worse. Yesterday I drove past a plot of land that used to have a single house on it. In the last year the original house has been demolished and three new ones built on the plot. This is not an unusual situation in our part of London, where perfectly good buildings that could be renovated are being demolished so that the site can be exploited by property developers.
The area of London where I live has a lot of public open spaces that are protected from building development. This is something my wife and I really appreciate having access to and we try to visit them as often as we can.
All the best,
Bob
This is one of the things I love about London. Every corner you turn there is some history. And obviously in this case, great views. Thanks for sharing this with us.
ReplyDeleteNundanket,
DeleteCheers! These little gems exist all over the place: it’s just a matter of finding them.
All the best,
Bob
Thanks Bob, most interesting, and I will try to go and take a look there sometime. My late mother was a child living in Grove Road, Deptford ( next to the docks! ) on Sept 7th 1940, and told us how they stood in the garden looking up at the formations of aircraft directly above - and seeing the bombs dropping from them, before being hustled into the air-raid shelter. It seems that in only a few days after that, the family's possessions were piled onto a horse-drawn cart and they all escaped to rural Kent - my grandfather had been making contingency plans! They moved back to London later - just in time for the V-bombs..
ReplyDeleteDavid in Suffolk,
DeleteIt’s a great place to sit and enjoy looking across London.
7th September 1940 is one of those days that is a turning point in British history … and I’m sure that it stuck in the mind of Londoners who lived through it. My parents both remembered seeing the bombers flying overhead and the dogfights taking place. Neither of them was evacuated as they were both teenagers and working, but they certainly spent time in shelters. My father joined the Home Guard but was kicked out when they discovered that he was underage. (He was big for his age and boxed asa heavyweight at the age of 15.) He then became a member of the Auxiliary Fire Service as a messenger, and until he was called up, he remained working in the City during the day and as a fireman during the evenings.
All he best,
Bob