Colney Hatch

Colney Hatch was the name of an insane asylum in London. Its original name was The Middlesex County Pauper Lunatic Asylum at Colney Hatch. Opening its doors in 1851, it was the largest asylum in Europe.

Workshops for tailoring and a farm gave the patients a chance to learn a trade or enhance a current one. The hospital was originally created to hold 1000 patients but as the population expanded in Middlesex, the hospital itself expanded to hold a maximum of 2000 patients. In the decades that followed the large number of new patients made it impossible for the staff to cope and thus the staff resorted to restraining methods such as the straight jacket.

By the 1880's, public perception of those with mental disorders, as well as conditions in the hospital itself, made the words "Colney Hatch" come to mean anything unusual or irrational. As more patients were added (to a maximum population of 2500 patients), wooden huts were made to house them all. 1903 saw a fire in the wooden huts claim the lives of 51 patients, becoming the worst hospital fire in Britain.

Trivia
When Jadis publicly declared herself Empress, one of the bystanders said "Three cheers for the empress of Colney Hatch!".