Once part of Enfield Chase, an extensive and ancient royal hunting ground, with Enfield to the east, Potters Bar to the north, and the village of Monken Hadley to the west. At the southern tip was a gate giving entry to the Chase - and as the blue commemorative plaque next door to Wimpey's tells us, this is how Southgate got its name.

There remain two Chase Sides: one in Enfield Town; the other being Southgate's main shopping street. Chase Road runs between Southgate and Oakwood tube stations, and Chase Farm is the name of local hospital. Common rights over the Chase were enjoyed by the people from adjoining parishes from medieval times, including the right to graze cattle and collect firewood. In the autumn, pigs in large numbers were driven into the woodland to feast on acorns. But by the 17th century, with less royal interest in hunting, and increasing demand for land for farming to feed London's growing population, the status of the Chase was certain to change. By 1660 between 200 and 300 families had set up home on the its edges, and both timber and deer were plundered, which the local authorities were powerless to stop. In addition, London's successful merchants looked to turn their wealth into property by investing in land around London, and the farming community sought to change from the traditional open fields and commons to enclosed farms. The pressure from these influential groups led to legislation which allowed the Chase to be divided into plots and sold. However, the Enclosure Act of 1777 provided for a park to be maintained, thereby ensuring as open space what would become Trent Park.

The first owner was Richard Jebb, a doctor of strange methods, who cured the King's brother of a strange illness in Trento in Austria. He acquired part of the Chase shortly afterwards, and when knighted took the title Sir Richard Jebb of Trent Place - perhaps to please the King. Jebb built the first house, and a farm. The house was enlarged and improved by subsequent owners, and by the middle of the nineteenth century had become an impressive mansion set in a landscaped estate, fit for nobility.

The estate passed through a number of hands until being acquired by the Sassoon family and was inherited by 23 year-old Sir Philip Sassoon following the death of his father in 1912. Sassoon's impact on Trent Park is the most dramatic of any single individual, and the evidence of his work remains to this day. Sassoon, a cousin of the war poet Siegfried Sassoon, was extremely wealthy - a millionaire - but was clearly more interested in high society and politics than the merchant world of his family. He followed his father as MP for Hythe, a position he held for the rest of his life, and rapidly established himself as one of the most eligible bachelors in the country - although he was never to marry. He carried out major alterations to the mansion, which was lavishly decorated inside in great style, and at vast expense. The grounds were also developed, with a nine hole golf course north of the lake (not to be confused with the modern Golf Club next to Snakes Lane), and an airstrip which was laid parallel to the existing road which runs east from the Hockey Centre - the existing sports hall was the hangar. The large obelisk to the north was added to impress the honeymooning Duke and Duchess of Kent in 1934, and sweeping views across the estate to that landmark are maintained to this day, best seen from the mansion terrace.

Sir Philip became renowned for his glamorous parties held there in the 20s and 30s. Guests included Charlie Chaplin, George Bernard Shaw, Winston Churchill, David Lloyd George, and members of the Royal Family. Hospitality of such high standard was maintained by a battalion of domestic staff which would have put the finest hotels in the land to shame. Sassoon was not just a playboy - he pursued a successful political career, using his social contacts along the way. He was parliamentary private secretary to David Lloyd George, and later became an Air Minister. In 1937, with war looming, he hosted a conference to try to stem the tide of European fascism.

In 1939 a bout of 'flu turned into a fatal lung infection, and Trent Park's most influential owner died. His ashes were scattered over the estate by a plane from 601 Squadron. Whilst Sassoon had been overseeing major changes to the Trent Park estate, the local area was changing too.

When Southgate Hockey Club was formed in 1886, Southgate itself was a village, sizeable and relatively well-heeled, but some miles from what was then built-up London. The area around Southgate remained very rural up to the First World War, but the creep of urbanisation continued, with housing developers swallowing up most of the surrounding open land between the wars. This was accelerated due to the extension of the Piccadilly Line from Finsbury Park to Cockfosters, which was completed in 1933, taking a slice off Trent Park. Snakes Lane was diverted to its current exit, previously forming a crossroads with Chase Road and Bramley Road. A farmhouse demolished because of the Underground development and replaced to the east now houses the Trent Park Equestrian Centre. What is now suburban Oakwood was entirely created by the arrival of the underground station - known as Enfield West between its opening and 1946 - and the local architecture makes this clear.

During World War Two, the mansion was used as a 'Combined Services Detailed Interrogation Centre' and it is said that the first intelligence of the V2 campaign was learnt here. It is also believed that in 1941, the Enigma code breakers at Bletchley Park discovered a plan to try to rescue Rudolf Hess from Trent Park. Hess, Hitler's No2, had parachuted into Scotland on an unofficial mission to try to persuade Britain to fight against Communism, rather than Nazi Germany. Hess was actually held elsewhere, but a plan was hatched involved a bombing raid, which would mask a parachute drop of elite troops. The mission went ahead, and although full details have not been released, it is understood that at least two German soldiers were surprised and captured by waiting troops and police, wearing civilian clothes, but carrying German rations. Their fates can only be guessed at.

After the war the Ministry of Education requisitioned the mansion and five acres of land for a teachers' training centre, which opened in 1947. Hannah Gubbay, who had inherited the estate from her cousin Philip, moved into one of the smaller houses, where she lived until her death in 1968. In 1951 Middlesex County Council bought the remainder of Trent Park by compulsory purchase to preserve it as green belt, or it may very well have disappeared under the bulldozer - another moment of vision comparable to the Enclosure Act of 1777. The teachers' centre passed through a number of changes, becoming part of Middlesex Polytechnic in 1974. In 1992 Middlesex University was created.