The Crown Rivers

This pub takes its name from the two royal rivers, Longford River and The Duke of Northumberland's River; these were diverted when Heathrow Airport was built, just after the Second World War. The course of each river was altered again more recently, to allow for the construction of Heathrow's Terminal 5.

Longford River (as it is now known) was dug for King Charles I, in the early 17th century, to improve the water supply at Hampton Court. It became known as the 'King's River'; by the mid 19th century, it was known as 'The Queen's or Cardinal's River'. The Duke of Northumberland's River is also an artificial waterway. He purchased it from King James I in the 1630s. The river was probably built in the 15th or 16th century, to power the water mill at Isleworth.