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BRENTFORD |
sprang up across Brentford, with many of the high rise buildings
being named as a tribute to the contemporary industrial companies
and leaders of the area.
The streets of Brentford Dock however, were named in tribute to
great leaders from an even earlier era. Work began on the development
of the former Great Western Railway’s dock in 1972, under the
supervision of the Greater London Council. The first residents
intended to be local authority tenants but in fact mainly private
buyers, arrived in 1978.
When GLC leader Horace Cutler officially opened the estate in 1980
it was named the Tiber Estate. Sitting on the River Thames it would
appear strange to have named the estate after a famous waterway in
Italy but the connection comes from the remains of Roman settlements
that were found in Brentford. It has even been suggested that Julius
Caesar himself crossed the Thames at the spot where the dock now stands.
Although the name of the Tiber Estate was eventually changed, the road
names still reflect the Roman heritage. The main road through Brentford
Dock is Augustus Close, after Emperor Augustus-Rome’s first Emperor.
Augustus was born with the given name Gaius Octavius on September 23
63BC. He took the name Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (Octavian) in
44BC after the murder of his great uncle, Julius Caesar, who had adopted
him and made him his heir. Octavain was a shrewd, brilliant and astute
politician. Following Caesar’s assassination, Octavian marched on Rome
and forced the senate to name him consul. He later took on and defeated
Marc Antony after marring Antony’s sister Octavia and abandoning, her
for Cleopatra. He was then granted the name Augustus, meaning “the
exalted", by the Roman Senate. He restored peace after 100 years of
civil war, maintained an honest government and a sound currency system,
extended the highway system connecting Rome with its far-flung empire.
Developed an efficient postal service, fostered free trade among the
provinces and built many bridges, aqueducts and buildings.
Photographs of Brentford
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