Pall Mall, London
Haymarket | |
---|---|
West end | St James's Street |
Construction | |
Commissioned | July 1661 |
Inauguration | September 1661 |
Other | |
Known for |
Pall Mall
The area was built up during the reign of
Geography
The street is around 0.4 miles (0.6 km) long and runs east in the
History and topography
Early history and pall-mall field
Pall Mall was constructed in 1661, replacing an earlier highway slightly to the south that ran from the
Pall-mall, a ball game similar to croquet, was introduced to England in the early 17th century by James I. The game, already popular in France and Scotland, was enjoyed by James' sons Henry and Charles.[4] In 1630, St James's Field, London's first pall-mall court, was laid out to the north of the Haymarket – St James road.[5]
After the
A new road was built on the site of the old pall-mall court, and opened in September 1661.[3] It was named Catherine Street, after Catherine of Braganza, wife of Charles II, but was better known as Pall Mall Street or the Old Pall Mall.[5][7][b] The pall-mall field was a popular place for recreation, and Pepys records several other visits. By July 1665 Pepys used "Pell Mell" to refer to the street as well as the game.[9][c]
17th- and 18th-century buildings
In 1662, Pall Mall was one of several streets "thought fitt immediately to be repaired, new paved or otherwise amended" under the
The street was developed extensively during 1662–1667. The Earl of St Albans had a lease from the Crown in 1662 on 45 acres (18 ha) of land previously part of St James's Fields. He laid out the site for the development of
The Crown kept the freehold of the land south of the street except for No. 79, which was granted to Nell Gwyn's trustees in 1676 or 1677 by Charles II. The buildings constructed on the south side of Pall Mall in subsequent years were grander than those on the north owing to stricter design and building standards imposed by the crown commissioners.[3] When the main road was relocated further north, some houses suddenly had their backs facing the main road, losing available land for gardening. In 1664, residents filed a petition to turn the old road into gardens, which was successful. The trustees of the Earl of St Albans received a sixty-year lease on most of this from April 1665 so that trustees could issue sub-leases to their tenants.[3]
Several other portions of the old highway were leased for construction. At the east end, land was leased to
104 Pall Mall was rebuilt in 1761–2 by
Later history
By the 18th century, Pall Mall was well known for its shops as well as its grand houses. The shops included that of the Vulliamy family who made clocks at No. 68 between 1765 and 1854. Robert Dodsley ran a bookshop at No. 52, where he suggested the idea of a dictionary to Samuel Johnson. Writers and artists began to move to Pall Mall during this century; both Richard Cosway and Thomas Gainsborough lived at Schomberg House at Nos. 80–82.[13]
The street was one of the first in London to be lit by gas after Frederick Albert Winsor set up experimental lighting on 4 June 1807 to celebrate King George III's birthday. Permanent lighting was installed in 1820.[13] The eastern end of Pall Mall was widened between 1814 and 1818; a row of houses on its north side was demolished to make way for the Royal Opera Arcade.[3]
Pall Mall is known for the various
Pall Mall was once the centre of London's fine art scene; in 1824 the
The freehold of much of the southern side of the Pall Mall is owned by the
Pall Mall was the location of the
The street contained two other architecturally important residences. Schomberg House, at Nos. 80–82 Pall Mall was built in 1698 for
No 77-78 Pall Mall was the home of the
The Institute of Directors was founded in 1903 and received a
Cultural references
Pall Mall is the location of the fictional Diogenes Club in the Sherlock Holmes stories, written by Arthur Conan Doyle.
Pall Mall is part of a group of three squares on the British Monopoly board game, alongside Whitehall and Northumberland Avenue. All three streets converge at Trafalgar Square.[36] Rising house prices across London mean a small flat on Pall Mall, which is in the lowest-priced third of properties on the board, now sells for over £1 million.[37]
See also
- 77–78 Pall Mall
- Pall Mall Gazette
- List of gentlemen's clubs in London
References
Notes
- ^ In 1685, the boundary wall became the parish boundary for the parish of Westminster St James.
- ^ By 9 August 1662, Pepys's diary reports a duel "at the old Pall Mall at St. James's", in which Thomas Jermyn (nephew of the Earl of St Albans) was wounded and Colonel Giles Rawlins was killed.[8]
- ^ On 4 July 1665, Pepys wrote: "I observed a house shut up this day in the Pell Mell, where heretofore in Cromwell's time we young men used to keep our weekly clubs."[9]
- ^ Not to be confused with the Buckingham House that later became Buckingham Palace.[23]
Citations
- ^ a b "62 Pall Mall to 1 Pall Mall E". Google Maps. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, pp. 619–620.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j F. H. W. Sheppard (1960). "Pall Mall". Survey of London: volumes 29 and 30: St James Westminster, Part 1. Institute of Historical Research. pp. 322–324. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 619.
- ^ a b c Wheatley, Henry Benjamin (1870). Round about Piccadilly and Pall Mall. Smith, Elder & co. p. 319.
- ISBN 0-520-22167-2.
- ^ F. H. W. Sheppard (1960). "Piccadilly, South Side". Survey of London: volumes 29 and 30: St James Westminster, Part 1. Institute of Historical Research. pp. 251–270. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ISBN 0-520-22167-2.
- ^ ISBN 0-520-22167-2.
- ^ John Raithby, ed. (1819). "Streets, London and Westminster Act 1662". Statutes of the Realm: Volume 5: 1628–80: 351–357. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
- ^ Millar 1765.
- ^ "Pall Mall, South Side, Past Buildings: No 104 Pall Mall, The Countess of Dysart's House Pages 349–350 Survey of London: Volumes 29 and 30, St James Westminster, Part 1. Originally published by London County Council, London, 1960". British History Online.
- ^ a b c d Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 620.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, pp. 944–5.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 31.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 685.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 27.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 569.
- ^ F H W Sheppard, ed. (1960). "Plan Pocket". Survey of London. 29 and 30, St James Westminster, Part 1. London. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
- ISBN 9780215553201.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, pp. 530–1.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, pp. 131–2.
- ^ a b Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 107.
- ^ MOD 2001, pp. 5–8.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 826.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, pp. 107, 710.
- ^ F H W Sheppard, ed. (1960). "Pall Mall, South Side, Existing Buildings: Nos 77-78". St James Westminster, Part 1. Survey of London. Vol. 29 and 30. London: British History Online. pp. 418–419. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
- ^ "IoD Royal Charter". Institute of Directors. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
- ^ F H W Sheppard, ed. (1960). "Pall Mall, South Side, Existing Buildings: Nos 69–70 Pall Mall". Survey of London. 29–30, St James Westminster, Part 1. London: 425. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
- ^ Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 621.
- ^ "The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt 1725–1798" – via Project Gutenberg.
- ^ Thackeray, W. M. (1846). An Irish Sketch Book. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
- ^ Henry Benjamin Wheatley (1870). Round about Piccadilly and Pall Mall Or, A Ramble from Haymarket to Hyde Park: Consisting of a Retrospect of the Various Changes that Have Occurred in the Court End of London. Smith, Elder & Company.
- ^ "A Critic in Pall Mall : Being Extracts From Reviews And Miscellanies". Methuen. 1919.
- ^ "Queen Elizabeth II's Record Reign: 12 Facts About Britain's Monarch". NBC News. 7 September 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
- ^ Moore 2003, p. 45.
- ^ "Playing the Monopoly House Price Game". MoneyWise. 22 December 2015. Archived from the original on 2 May 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
Sources
- Millar, Andrew (16 July 1765). "I recd all yours wt ye Transactions..." Letter to Thomas Cadell. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
- Moore, Tim (2003). Do Not Pass Go. Vintage. ISBN 978-0-099-43386-6.
- ISBN 978-1-4050-4924-5.
- The Old War Office Building (PDF). Ministry of Defence. 2001.
Further reading
- OCLC 12878129
- Charles Dickens (1882), "Pall Mall", Dickens's Dictionary of London, London: Macmillan & Co.
External links
- Pall Mall on TourUK
- Panoramic photograph of Pall Mall
- 19th Century Gentleman's Clubs on Pall Mall (including photographs)