Kennington Common

Kennington Common was a large area of common land in Lambeth, South London, notable for being one of the earliest venues for cricket within London in the eighteenth century. The common was also used for public executions, public gatherings, and fairs. The Kennington Oval, a cricket ground, was built there in 1845. 

Parent Map

Map to Accompany Road to Women's Suffrage Timeline
Map: Race, Gender, Class, Sex
Map: Race, Gender, Class, Sex
Map: Race, Gender, Class, Sex
Map: Race, Gender, Class, Sex

Coordinates

Latitude: 51.483751200000
Longitude: -0.114911200000

View on the COVE Master Map

Timeline of Events Associated with Kennington Common

Date Event Manage
10 Apr 1848

Chartist Rally, Kennington

Poster for Chartist DemonstrationOn 10 April 1848, Chartists rally on Kennington Common, south London. Image: Poster advertising the "Monster" Chartist Demonstration, held on 10 April 1848, proceeding to Kennington Common, Rodney Mace, British Trade Union Posters: An Illustrated History. This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

Led by Feargus O’Connor, an estimated 25,000 Chartists meet on Kennington Common planning to march to Westminster to deliver a monster petition in favor of the six points of the People’s Charter. Police block bridges over the Thames containing the marchers south of the river, and the demonstration is broken up with some arrests and violence. However, the large scale revolt widely predicted and feared fails to materialize.

Articles

Jo Briggs, “1848 and 1851: A Reconsideration of the Historical Narrative”

Chris Vanden Bossche, "On Chartism"