Battersea Park peace pagoda

The bandstand in Battersea Park

The cover of Petula Clark's 2001 box set, Meet me in Battersea Park

Battersea Park is a 200 acre (0.83 km²) green space in Battersea, London, situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea. Download high resolution version (598x725, 198 KB)Photograph taken by Colin Gregory Palmer on 2004-11-04. ... Download high resolution version (598x725, 198 KB)Photograph taken by Colin Gregory Palmer on 2004-11-04. ... Photograph taken by Colin Gregory Palmer on 2004-11-04. ... Photograph taken by Colin Gregory Palmer on 2004-11-04. ... http://www. ... http://www. ... Petula Clark on the cover of her latest DVD/CD release Petula Clark, CBE is a British singer, actress, and composer best known for her upbeat popular international hits of the 1960s. ... Battersea, as defined by the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea, part of the old County of London, England, before 1965 Battersea is a place in the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. ... London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ... Chelsea is a district of London, loosely defined by the area around the Kings Road, beginning at Sloane Square at one end, and the Worlds End public house at the other, the River Thames and the Victorian artists district to the south, and some parts between the King...

The park occupies a mix of marshland reclaimed from the Thames, and land formerly used for market gardens serving the growing London population.

Battersea fields' as it was once known was once a popular spot for duelling. On March 21, 1829, the Duke of Wellington and the Earl of Winchilsea met on Battersea fields to settle a matter of honour. When it came time to fire, the Duke deliberately aimed wide and Winchilsea fired into the air. Winchilsea later wrote the Duke a grovelling apology. March 21 is the 80th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (81st in leap years). ... 1829 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1 May 1769–14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and statesman, widely considered one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century. ...

Original designs for the park were laid out by Sir James Pennethorne between 1846 and 1864; albeit the park as opened in 1858 varies somewhat from Pennethorne's vision. Sir James Pennethorne (4 June 1801-1871) was a notable 19th century English architect and planner, particularly associated with buildings and parks in central London. ...

Battersea Park hosted very first exhibition game of football played under the rules of the recently formed Football Association on 9 January 1864. The members of the opposing teams were chosen by the President of the FA (A. Pember) and the Secretary (E.C Morley) and included many well-known footballers of the day. The striker (wearing red jersey) has run past the defender (in white jersey) and is about to take a shot at the goal, while the goalkeeper positions himself to stop the ball. ... The Football Association (The FA) is the governing body of football in England (and the Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man). ... January 9 is the 9th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1864 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

In 1951 the park was transformed into the "Festival Gardens" as part of the Festival of Britain celebrations. As well as a new water-garden and fountains, new features included a "Tree-Walk" which consisted of a series of raised wooden walkways linked together by tree house-like platforms suspended amongst the branches of a number of trees. 1951 was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition which opened in May 1951 in London. ... A tree house is a house that is built among the branches of a mature tree. ...

Another part of the transformation was the addition of Battersea Fun Fair: rollercoasters, swings, roundabouts and general fun for all the family. It was this element that drew the Park to be immortalised in Petula Clark's 1954 single "Meet Me In Battersea Park". The song was co-authored by Clark's father, Leslie, and her accompanist, Joe "Mr Piano" Henderson. It was also the title of a 2001 boxset focusing on this early part of Petula's career. Petula Clark on the cover of her latest DVD/CD release Petula Clark, CBE is a British singer, actress, and composer best known for her upbeat popular international hits of the 1960s. ... 1954 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... This article does not give much verifiable information about the subject. ... 2001 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The song's lyrics are:
If you're a Londoner just like me, meet me in Battersea Park
If you are young or you'd like to be, meet me in Battersea Park
We'll strong along by the riverside in sunshine or after it's dark
There's music and dancing, place for romancing so meet me in Battersea Park

See the people riding on the roundabouts and swings
Children so delighted at the puppets on the strings
Cheer at planes a-whirling as they fly through the air
Take a holiday, have a jolly day, come to the fair

[repeat chorus, then last two lines of chorus]

Written by Joe Henderson, Leslie Clark and David Valentine

The fun fair's most spectacular ride, The Big Dipper, was permanantly closed down in 1972 after five children were killed an accident when one of the cars broke loose and collided with another. The lack of a main attraction led to the decline in the popularity of the fun fair and its eventual closure in 1974. The former site of the fair was levelled and became a site for travelling fairs and exhibitions. 1972 was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ...

The park is home to a small zoo, all-weather outdoor sporting facilities including tennis courts, a running track and football arena; a boating lake, as well as being the site of the London Peace Pagoda, erected amidst some controversy during Ken Livingstone's tenure as leader of the now abolished Greater London Council. Ken Livingstone, Mayor of London Kenneth Robert Livingstone, known as Ken Livingstone (born June 17, 1945) is the current Mayor of London. ... The Greater London Council (GLC) was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to its abolition in 1986. ...

In 1985 a replica of the bronze statue of a dog that was the focal point of the historic vivisection-related Brown Dog affair was erected in this park. 1985 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Brown Dog affair was a controversy and cause célèbre for a brief period in Edwardian England, from 1903 to 1910, and revolving around vivisection and a statue erected in memory of a dog killed in the cause of medical research. ...

Over the course of 2002-4, the park underwent an £11m refurbishment funded in part by the Heritage Lottery Fund, and was re-opened on the 4th June 2004 by Prince Phillip. HRH The Duke of Edinburgh His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (Philip Mountbatten, formerly Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark), styled HRH The Duke of Edinburgh (born 10 June 1921), is the consort of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom. ...

Nearby train stations:

• Battersea Park
• Queenstown Road (Battersea)