Thorney Island was the eyot on the Thames, upstream of mediæval London, where Westminster Abbey and Westminster Palace (now the Houses of Parliament) were built. It was formed by rivulets of the River Tyburn, which entered the Thames near the lowest point where it could be forded from the north bank at low tide. Look up ait in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Several places exist with the name Thames, and the word is also used as part of several brand and company names Most famous is the River Thames in England, on which the city of London stands Other Thames Rivers There is a Thames River in Canada There is a Thames... London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ... The Abbeys western facade The Collegiate Church of St John, Westminster, which is almost always referred to as Westminster Abbey, is a mainly Gothic church, on the scale of a cathedral, in Westminster, London, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. ... Clock Tower and New Palace Yard from the west The Palace of Westminster, on the banks of the River Thames in Westminster, London, is the home of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, which form the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ... This may refer to the: British Houses of Parliament. ... Tyburn is a place name, and may refer to: Tyburn, London Tyburn, Birmingham This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Several places exist with the name Thames, and the word is also used as part of several brand and company names Most famous is the River Thames in England, on which the city of London stands Other Thames Rivers There is a Thames River in Canada There is a Thames...

Thorney, or the Eyot of Thorns, is described in a purported charter of King Offa, which is kept in the Abbey muniments, as a "terrible place" - to the delight of generations of the Westminster Schoolboys who are nowadays most of the inhabitants of Thorney Island. Offa (died July 26/29, 796) was the King of Mercia from 757 until his death. ... The Abbeys western facade The Collegiate Church of St John, Westminster, which is almost always referred to as Westminster Abbey, is a mainly Gothic church, on the scale of a cathedral, in Westminster, London, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. ... Motto: Dat Deus Incrementum The Royal College of St. ...

Despite hardships and Viking raids over the next 300 years, the monks tamed the brambles, until by the time of Edward the Confessor it was "A delightful place, surrounded by fertile land and green fields". The College Garden remains delightful, a thousand years later, the oldest garden in England.

The level of the land has risen, the rivulets have been built over, and the Thames has been embanked. There is now no sign of Thorney Island. The name is retained only by Thorney Street, at the back of the Security Service building; but a local heritage organisation established by June Stubbs in 1976 took the name The Thorney Island Society. Current MI5 headquarters in Thames House, London MI5, officially called the Security Service, is a British counter-intelligence and security agency. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ...