Renaissance scholar John Dee's library was renowned. Other Tudor luminaries figure in Mortlake's riverine history which ends in a Boat Race

Mortlake manor, described in the Domesday Book, also included what we know as Putney, Barnes, Roehampton and Wimbledon. The manor house, which Thomas Cromwell acquired in 1536, was situated conveniently on the Thames between the palaces at Westminster and Hampton Court. The church of St Mary the Virgin was built in 1543, soon after Henry VIII broke with Rome.

Elizabeth I, especially when in residence at Richmond Palace, often visited alchemist, astrologer, bibliophile and magus John Dee, who lived in a riverside house. She called him her philosopher.

The Mortlake Tapestry Works took over Dee’s house, and Huguenot silk weavers moved into the village. Numerous grand houses along the riverbank were built from the 15th century, at the start of what’s called the Arcadian Thames, where Nature feels more present along both sides of the river.

The annual Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race ends here, viewed by many from The Ship, where we’ll take a short break.

Passageways are plentiful in Barnes and Mortlake, and a good part of the walk follows the Thames Path. Market gardens, pottery and beer-brewing also figure in the history of this often-overlooked village of London.

It’s a 3-hour walk ending at Mortlake Station.

The Naked Anthropologist is Laura’s longtime blog, now dedicated to historical walks that highlight issues of Gender, Sex and Class.