Richmonds of the World
The name of Richmond, meaning “strong hill”, has traveled the globe for almost 1000 years, starting with the Norman Conquest in 1071 when the first Richmond in Yorkshire was named, adapted from Richemont, in Normandy. The market town of Richmond grew up around the Norman Castle that was situated on a very strong hill. The name traveled again in the 1500’s when a community west of London known as Sheen was renamed Richmond. The second Richmond was also home to a very strong hill, now called Richmond Hill, as well as home to Queen Elizabeth I, and the place where she died. On May 24, 1607, Christopher Newport and a collection of English Settlers landed at the Falls of the James River in the New World called Virginia, the day the concept of another community named Richmond was born. In 1737 the third Richmond was officially named for Elizabeth’s Richmond, because it also is home to a very strong hill with a view of the James River remarkably similar to the view of the River Thames from Richmond Hill.
After seven hundred years and three Richmonds, the name quickly started to spread, fueled by America’s westward expansion and Great Britain’s colonialism. Richmond Texas is named for Richmond Yorkshire, home to the Duke of Richmond, who also inspired the names of Richmond Ontario and Richmond Quebec. Richmond California is named after Richmond Virginia, as is Richmond Kentucky and quite possibly Richmond Utah. Richmond British Columbia is named for a Richmond in Australia, although it is apparently unsure which one. Possibly it is Richmond New South Wales, named for Charles Lennox, the third Duke of Richmond, who was also the inspiration for the name of Richmond Massachusetts and Richmond County Georgia, home to Augusta and a little known golf tournament called The Masters.
The incredible variety of links between the Richmonds of the World is only surpassed by the number of places called Richmond. At last count, 80 communities on 5 continents (Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America) are named Richmond or have Richmond in their name, including 52 communities in the United States, 10 in Canada, 5 in Australia, and communities in Jamaica, India, South Africa, Fiji, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.
As we approach the end of the first 1000 years of Richmond, the world has changed dramatically and is currently facing a set of environmental, social and economic challenges that threaten the possibility of a second 1000 years of Richmond. The global community has officially arrived and forevermore all citizens of the Earth must heed the directive “think globally, act locally”. Thinking globally is easier said than done because most people, wherever they live, have little or no connection to the global community. Connecting the Richmonds all over the world is one way to immediately create a global connection for Richmonders across the world.
On May 24, 1981, Richmond Virginia and Richmond upon Thames, its namesake in England, formally became Twin Cities after decades of cultural interaction. The Twinning relationship between the two Richmonds has grown to involve many diverse elements of each community, including the arts, schools, business, government and sports to name a few. In 2007, Richmond and Virginia commemorated 400 years of history since the landing of English Settlers at Jamestown in 1607, with help from Richmond upon Thames and England, including a visit by Queen Elizabeth II. Heightened involvement between the two Richmonds in 2007 led to the creation of the concept of Richmonds of the World, a global community building initiative using the power of our connected past and our name Richmond to help shape our collective future, and the future of all mankind. In 2008 a delegation from Richmond Virginia visited Richmond upon Thames and the two Richmonds formally announced the formation of Richmonds of the World. The foundation for the Richmonds collaborative was made complete in 2009 when Richmond, Yorkshire – the original Richmond – joined Richmonds of the World.
Richmonds of the World has been conceived as we enter the second 1000 years of Richmond, and in honor of this new beginning Richmonds of the World will embrace a modern 21st century definition of Richmond grounded in our historic past – Richmond means Magnificent World, from riche, Middle English, “having great value or worth, magnificent” and monde, French, “world”. By working together through Richmonds of the World, Richmonders across the globe can affect a magnificent world for each community of Richmond, and for the global community of Richmond.