Downe

Downe
George and Dragon public house, Downe
Downe Location within Greater London
OS grid reference	TQ435615
London borough	Bromley
Ceremonial county	Greater London
Region	London
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	ORPINGTON
Postcode district	BR6
Dialling code	01689
Police	Metropolitan
Fire	London
Ambulance	London
UK Parliament	Orpington
London Assembly	Bexley and Bromley
List of places UK England London 51°20′09″N 0°03′13″E / 51.3359°N 0.0535°E / 51.3359; 0.0535

Downe, formerly Down (/daʊn/), is a village in Greater London, England, located within the London Borough of Bromley, which formed part of Kent until 1965, and is beyond London's contiguous urban area. Downe is 3.4 miles (5.5 km) south west of Orpington and 14.2 miles (22.9 km) south east of Charing Cross. Downe lies on a low ridge (an outlier of the North Downs), and much of the centre of the village is unchanged^{[clarification needed][unchanged from what?]}; the former village school now acts as the village hall. The word Downe originates from the Anglo Saxon word dūn, latterly down, hence the South and North Downs. In April 1965, much of Orpington Urban District, including Downe, was transferred from the historic county of Kent and placed within the newly created London Borough of Bromley. Charles Darwin lived in Downe for forty years until his death in 1882.