The manor is said to have been granted to the monks of
Westminster Abbey in Saxon times by
Abbot Aelfric, though this cannot be substantiated from any documentary evidence. However, the location was clearly a prized site on the east side of London. In 1086 the
Domesday Book states that Wanstead Manor was held from the Bishop of London by one Ralph son of Brian.[1] Wanstead was then densely wooded, being situated within the
Forest of Essex. It was part of the forest
bailiwick of
Becontree during the Middle Ages and later of the
Leyton "Walk".
Wanstead House and the Parklands - a History, www.wansteadwildlife.org.uk. (June 2010). This article has drawn heavily from this source.
Cornish, Alan. M.Sc. Wanstead Park - A Chronicle. (Originally published by the Friends of Wanstead Parklands in 1982, updated and republished by Wanstead Parklands Community Project in 2006.)
Starkey, David. Henry: Virtuous Prince. London, 2008.(Tudor history of Wanstead)
Ramsey, Winston G. & Fowkes, Reginald L. Epping Forest: Then and Now. Published by Battle of Britain Prints International Ltd., 1986.