Richmond was originally a village called Sheene. Edward III turned the manor house into a palace. It ended badly for him. On his death bed his mistress and servants stripped him of rings and jewels and left him to die alone. Henry VII rebuilt palace in 1497 after it burnt down and renamed it “Richmond Palace” after Richmond in Yorkshire – Henry Tudor was the Earl of Richmond before he became king. “Sheen” is still used for the area outside Richmond proper. The palace fell into disrepair after Charles II’s time and all that remains is Henry VII’s gateway. Charles I set up Richmond Park as a hunting ground between his Richmond and Hampton Court palaces. Richmond Park is the largest city park in Great Britain at 2,470 acres. Nearby are also two gardens and the Old Deer Park. Pageants were held on Richmond Green in mediaeval England, and a theatre was built there in the 18th-century. Richmond Bridge was constructed in 1774 across the river to Twickenham.

Richmond Green lies between George Street and Old Deer Park. Pembroke Villas and Portland Terrace run along the north side of the Green. Pembroke Villas contains some large Victorian houses, while Portland Terrace has mainly modern houses. Old Palace Lane running off the Green towards the river contains Georgian houses varying in size from cottages to large homes. This is where the original town grew up in Tudor times and houses to be found in streets with names like Maids Of Honour Row, Old Palace Terrace and Yard, and The Wardrobe. For example, St Helena’s Terrace contains a row of Georgian houses with views of the river, and Friar’s Lane contains Georgian houses and also more modern flats. There is a 1980s development of the riverside towards Richmond Bridge which includes neo-Georgian flats. Past the bridge along Petersham Road, there are houses backing on to the river. Away from the river there are some streets between Kew Road and Old Deer Park. In Sheen Road running from George Street there are 1930s mansion blocks.

Richmond Hill leads upwards from the town centre. The roads of it contain very sought-after houses, with the older streets being nearest the town centre. There are Queen Anne houses in Ormond Road and Georgian houses in the Vineyard. Large Victorian houses are to be found in Mount Ararat Road, Grosvenor Road and Montague Road. At the top of the hill, there are large houses in Downe Terrace and there is a large mansion block from the 1930s, Richmond Hill Court, near the top. There are more mansion blocks and large Victorian and Georgian houses on Queens Road and the roads off it such as Cambrian and Park Roads. Between Albert Road and Princes Road and there is a group of cottages known as “the Alberts”. In the district above Sheen Road, from Dunstable Road to Manor Road, there are Victorian houses but also some Edwardian houses. There are more cottages and some modern homes in streets off Lower Mortlake Road such as Cedar Terrace and Sheendale Road. On the east side of Manor Road there are 1930s houses and post-war houses, which are sought after because they are close to Richmond Park. There is also a large 1930s mansion block called Courtlands.

Nearby are the villages of Petersham and Ham Common. Petersham contains huge mansions from the Georgian and Victorian era, as well as more modern detached houses in Sandy Lane and streets off it and in River Lane. Ham Common contains Georgian houses near the Common, but also a quantity of 1970s houses and council houses. The Parkleys Estate near Richmond Park is grade II listed although built in the 1960s.