King's Cross (building)
King's Cross was a short-lived building in London which gave its name to the area still known as
History
The structure was built using public subscriptions, raised by its architect and promoter
It was constructed at the junction of
The statue cost no more than £25. It was constructed of bricks and mortar, and finished in a manner that gave it the appearance of stone, "at least to the eyes of common spectators".
The upper storey was used as a camera obscura. The base was used for exhibitions, then as a police station, and later a public house. The statue was shoddily built, never satisfactory, and was removed in 1842. The building remained in the middle of a public road, and became a hazard to traffic. The building was demolished in 1845, with a report in The Illustrated London News mentioning its "grandiloquent name of King's Cross'". King's Cross railway station opened nearby in 1852.[8]
In 2014, with the redevelopment of the King's Cross area, there was a proposal to "put the king back into Kings Cross" by erecting a plaque to the memorial.[9]
See also
- Duke of York Column, memorial to his younger brother in Whitehall
- Statue of the Duke of Kent, statue of his younger brother near Regent's Park
References
- ^ "King's Cross statue of George IV". London Remembers. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ 'Highbury, Upper Holloway and King's Cross', in Old and New London: Volume 2 (London, 1878), p. 273-279.
- ISBN 978-1-906221-40-9. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ 'Euston Road', in Survey of London: Volume 24, the Parish of St Pancras Part 4: King's Cross Neighbourhood, ed. Walter H Godfrey and W McB. Marcham (London, 1952), p. 114-117
- ^ "print | Elevation of Kings Cross". The British Museum. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ "The Architectural Magazine, conducted by J.C. Loudon F.L.S. &c. Vol. III. Nos. XXIII. to XXX". The Gentleman's Magazine. Vol. 6 (new series). 1836. pp. 627–8.
- ^ Page from Pugin's Contrasts
- ^ "Removal of King's Cross". The Illustrated London News. 6 (146): 108. 1845.
- ^ Perrin, William (28 April 2014). "Help Bob Stuckey create a plaque to commemorate George IV – the 'King' in Kings Cross". Kings Cross Environment. Archived from the original on 20 July 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
External links
- 'Plate 83: King's Cross. Memorial to George IV.', in Survey of London: Volume 24, the Parish of St Pancras Part 4: King's Cross Neighbourhood, ed. Walter H Godfrey and W McB. Marcham (London, 1952), p. 83
- Media related to King's Cross (building) at Wikimedia Commons