Envision water flowing to Hampton Court Palace. It traveled three and a half miles from Coombe Hill. This is Coombe Conduit.
Coombe Conduit is a remarkable Tudor aqueduct. It runs underground from Coombe Common to Hampton Court Palace. The palace is in Middlesex. The conduit runs from springs on the common. It goes down to the River Thames. Then it continues beneath the river. Finally, it rises at the palace.
King Henry VIII likely built the Coombe Conduit. However, it might have been Cardinal Wolsey. He built the palace for himself. The well-head was guarded. This prevented the poisoning of the King’s water. For 350 years, the conduit supplied Hampton Court Palace with water.
Let’s step back in time. The Coombe Conduit collected water from nearby springs. It channeled it to Hampton Court Palace. Gallows Conduit and Ivy Conduit did too. Research suggests the system was installed under Henry VIII. That was from 1529 onward. The lands belonged to Merton Priory until 1538. Then the priory was dissolved. Its lands fell to the Crown.
Originally, the Coombe Conduit had an upper and a lower chamber. They were 65 feet 6 inches apart. An underground vaulted passage connected them. The upper chamber collected spring water. It went into a tank. From there, lead pipes carried it to a tank in the lower chamber. Sediment settled there. Water was drawn off into the main conduit. It led to the palace. Intermediate tanks had stopcocks. These isolated sections of pipe for repairs.
The total length of piping was about 3.4 miles. The lead pipes were three inches in diameter. The lead was half an inch thick. The fall from head to foot of the system was 130 feet over three miles. This water pressure supplied running water to rooms on the second floor of the palace.
In the 17th century, they built another tank. It was on the north side of the upper conduit house. It was higher than the Tudor original. In the 18th century, a third tank was added. It was at a lower level on the south side.
The system supplied the palace until 1876. However, the supply became intermittent some time before. In 1896, the conduit houses and a length of lead piping were sold. They went to the Duke of Cambridge. His land they stood on. In 1900, the Crown relinquished all rights over the pipes.
In 1943, the upper chamber was badly damaged. A falling elm tree caused it. The tree had been weakened by German bombs. The roof remains came down. So did the two masonry gables and parts of the walls. It has since undergone restoration. The event was classified as war damage.
Around 1970, the area was developed residentially. Coombe Conduit was enclosed within the garden of 28 Lord Chancellor Walk.
Coombe Conduit is one of Kingston’s oldest buildings. The Coombe Conduit in Coombe Lane West was used around 1540. It gathered fresh water from springs in Kingston Hill. Then it channeled it to the king’s palace at Hampton Court.
Water still flows into lead-lined cisterns. These cisterns are in bricked chambers. An 80ft underground passage connects them.
Today, Coombe Conduit is managed by the Kingston Society.