What ever happened to borough 19? Once upon a time there were-----

5 local councils called------

• • • and • and • And

And very happy they all were!

• They all had their own councillors • They all had their own motto and/or arms • They shared their facilities like swimming baths and fire services (and very good they were too) • And they all had their own ideas of grandeur Bromley was the first to become a borough in 1903 • Thomas Dewey was the Charter Mayor

3 ravens represent the .  ‘Bromley is a field where broom grows.’ The Sun for the Manor of Sundridge. Scallop shells for the See of Rochester.  Silver horse of . Followed by Beckenham in 1935

In 1934, the arms were awarded without Tudor supporters Beckenham had to join with first Little Penge always wanted to be its own borough (suum cuique) Penge the ‘hill in the forest’ was historically part of the Manor of and made an UDC in 1900 so perhaps we should be Borough of PENGE! Each his own ‘Chiselhurst and Sidcup’ had its own UDC from 1934

The council 1958/59

They had no coat of arms and their motto was in English! Chislehurst also has a village sign

The sign in the shopping parade near the war memorial was erected in 1953 to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation UDC for Orpington and Petts Wood from 1934 River Cray in the centre The green edge is the Green Belt 2 red mural crowns represent urban development The crest is the Kent horse Sword and chain is the squadron

Progredior—I advance Then along came and V weapons of WWII £5,000 provided a Spitfire

The INVICTA squadron 131 of Kent Spitfires was provided by 22 Kent towns and businesses including Beckenham, Bromley, Chislehurst and Sidcup and . The aircraft bore the names of the sponsors. The squadron gave vital cover to the Dieppe operation in August 1942 Christmas card by a Beckenham AFS man Jack Maynard was a casualty of the night of 16.4.41 at the end of Court Downs Rd Beckenham’s fire service was excellent

Beckenham’s AFS practises in Kelsey Park

One reason for setting up the London boroughs was to rationalise their disparate services The memorial to the firemen at St Paul’s courtyard Many councils were very poor so--

• before the war ended • Sir Patrick Abercrombie had ideas------• for three areas of London • Inner (included poor old Penge) • Suburban (included Beckenham) • Green belt (where population was less than 5 per acre) The disagreements Bromley, Beckenham and Penge submitted plans in 1959 • Penge wanted ‘no change’ • Beckenham with a population of 75,000, financially stable and with a good record wanted to assume ‘county’ status independent of Kent County Council • Bromley wanted a joint board with Beckenham, Orpington, Penge, Sidcup and Chislehurst On 20.2.1963 the composition of B19 and B18 was decided • With a government majority of 50 the decision was: • B19 Beckenham, Bromley, Chislehurst, Orpington and Penge. • B18 Bexley, , Crayford and Sidcup. • BUT • In 1968, escaped from Bromley back to Kent. Cllr Lubbock for Orpington Eric Lubbock, Liberal MP for Orpington, proposed that a third borough should be formed from Orpington, Chislehurst and Sidcup where the education system was already united. He suggested that Orpington’s rapid development would raise the population to 200,000 by the early 1970s. Dame Patricia Hornsby Smith from Chislehurst • Chislehurst’s MP violently opposed the decision to separate Sidcup from Chislehurst.

• Sidcup had no affinity with the Bexley group and had merely been split off geographically by the A20

• Sidcup belonged with B19! Sir Keith Joseph disagrees

• He resisted both amendments • Orpington/Chislehurst/Sidcup had no natural centre • There were two such centres, Bexley and Bromley • The authorities must group round them • Sidcup will be placed with Bexley What shall we call the new borough 19? Suggestions

Orpington favoured Kentgate Beckenham and Penge wanted Ravensbourne Bromley and Chislehurst liked Bromley Other rejected names were Invicta, Churchill, West Kent 20.9.1963 Sir Keith Joseph says ‘BROMLEY’ and rejects all pleas by 24.1.1964 Whose Arms? Mr Turner’s suggestion for arms from Orpington o Green belt o Beckenham’s Tudor Supporters o Wat-Tyler like defenders armed with broomsticks o Biggin Hill fighter planes o Chislehurst village sign o Industry o Scallop shells as we are on Pilgrim’s Way o Kent horse and wavy lines for Cray and Ravensbourne o Wanted to include Buff Orpington’s eggs o But what about Penge? The coat of arms of London Borough of Bromley 1965 Servire Populi Cinquefoil for 5 councils. Scallop for Rochester Acorns are Kent Dragons and swords for London Kent’s silver horse

Some fears and worries

 Will Penge become completely forgotten? Will Beckenham lose its trade? Will Bromley become another ? Will Sidcup be lost for ever? Is the borough too big for its facilities to be shared equally among the five? Whose insignia?

A second chain was Mayor Duncan and deputy mayor attached for the last five show their chains and fur trimmed Beckenham mayors robes. The mace is used by the finishing with 1965’s Cllr London Borough of Bromley to this Johnson day.