Piccadilly
Piccadilly (/ˌpɪkəˈdɪli/) is a road in the City of Westminster, London, England, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road that connects central London to Hammersmith, Earl's Court, Heathrow Airport and the M4 motorway westward. St James's is to the south of the eastern section, while the western section is built up only on the northern side. Piccadilly is just under 1 mile (1.6 km) in length, and it is one of the widest and straightest streets in central London.
The street has been a main thoroughfare since at least medieval times, and in the
The
.Piccadilly has inspired several works of fiction, including Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest and the work of P. G. Wodehouse. It is one of a group of squares on the London Monopoly board.
History
Early history
The street has been part of a main road for centuries, although there is no evidence that it was part of a
A plot of land bounded by Coventry, Sherwood, Glasshouse and Rupert streets and the line of Smith's Court was granted by Elizabeth I to William Dodington, a gentleman of London, in 1559–60. A year or so later it was owned by a brewer, Thomas Wilson of St Botolph-without-Aldgate. The grant did not include a small parcel of land, 1+3⁄8 acres in area, on the east of what is now Great Windmill Street. That plot may have never belonged to the Crown, and was owned by Anthony Cotton in the reign of Henry VIII. John Cotton granted it to John Golightly in 1547, and his descendants sold it to a tailor, Robert Baker, in c. 1611–12. Six or seven years later, Baker bought 22 acres of Wilson's land, thanks largely to money from his second marriage.[3][nb 1]
Baker became financially successful by making and selling fashionable piccadills.[4] Shortly after purchasing the land, he enclosed it (the parishioners had Lammas grazing rights) and erected several dwellings, including a residence and shop for himself; within two years his house was known as Pickadilly Hall.[3][5][6][nb 2] A map published by Faithorne in 1658 describes the street as "the way from Knightsbridge to Piccadilly Hall".[8] A nearby gaming house, known as Shaver's Hall and nicknamed "Tart Hall" or "Pickadell Hall", was popular with the gentry of London. Lord Dell lost £3,000 gambling at cards there in 1641.[9]
After Robert Baker's death in 1623 and the death of his eldest son Samuel shortly afterward, his widow and her father purchased the wardship of their surviving children; the death of the next eldest son, Robert in 1630 allowed them to effectively control the estate.[3] Their only daughter died, and her widower Sir Henry Oxenden retained an interest in the land. Several relatives claimed it,[nb 3] but after Mary Baker's death in about 1665, the estate reverted to the Crown.[3] A great-nephew, John Baker, obtained possession of part of it, but squabbled over the lands with his cousin, James Baker; trying to play one another off, they paid or granted rights to Oxenden and a speculator, Colonel Thomas Panton, eventually losing out to them. By the 1670s, Panton was developing the lands; despite the claims of some distantly-related Bakers, he steadily built them up.[3]
Later 17th century
Piccadilly was named Portugal Street in 1663 after
The land to the south of Piccadilly was leased to trustees of the Earl of St Albans in 1661 for a thirty-year term, subsequently extended to 1740. Nos. 162–165 were granted freehold by the king to Sir Edward Villiers in 1674.[1] The White Bear Inn had been established between what is now No. 221 Piccadilly and the parallel Jermyn Street since 1685. It remained in use throughout the 18th century before being demolished in 1870 to make way for a restaurant.[1]
St James's Church was first proposed in 1664, when residents wanted the area to become a separate parish from St Martin in the Fields. After several Bill readings, construction began in 1676. The building was designed by Christopher Wren and cost around £5,000. It was consecrated in 1684, when the surrounding area became St James Parish.[16]
By 1680, most of the original residential properties along Portugal Street had been demolished or built over.
18th–19th centuries
Piccadilly was increasingly developed, and by the middle of the 18th century it was continuously built on as far as Hyde Park Corner.[20] The development of St James's and Mayfair, in particular, made Piccadilly one of the busiest roads in London.[21] Hugh Mason and William Fortnum started the Fortnum & Mason partnership on Piccadilly in 1705, selling recycled candles from Buckingham Palace.[22] By 1788, the store sold poultry, potted meats, lobsters and prawns, savoury patties, Scotch eggs, and fresh and dried fruits.[23]
The street acquired a reputation for numerous inns and bars during this period.[24] The Old White Horse Cellar, at No. 155, was one of the most famous coaching inns in England but was later destroyed.[23] The Black Bear and White Bear (originally the Fleece) public houses were nearly opposite each other, although the former was demolished in about 1820. Also of note were the Hercules' Pillars, just west of Hamilton Place, the Triumphant Car, which was popular with soldiers, and the White Horse and Half Moon.[24] The Bath Hotel emerged around 1790[25] and Walsingham House was built in 1887.[26] The Bath and the Walsingham were demolished when the Ritz Hotel opened on the site in 1906.[27]
No. 106, on the corner of Piccadilly and Brick Street, was built for
Several members of the
In the late 18th century, Piccadilly was a favoured place for booksellers. In 1765, John Almon opened a shop in No. 178, which was frequented by Lord Temple and other Whigs. John Stockdale opened a shop on No. 181 in 1781. The business continued after his death in 1810, and was run by his family until 1835. Hatchards, now the oldest surviving bookshop in Britain, was started by John Hatchard at No. 173 in 1797; it moved to the current location at No. 189-90 (now No. 187) in 1801. Aldine Press moved to Piccadilly from Chancery Lane in 1842, and remained there until 1894.[1]
The
The premises at 190–195, built in 1881–1883, housing the
20th–21st centuries
By the 1920s, most old buildings on the street had been demolished or were in institutional use; traffic noise had driven away residents, but a few residential properties remained. Albert, Duke of York lived at No. 145 at the time of his accession as King George VI in 1936.[20]
The clothing store
During the 20th century, Piccadilly became known as a place to acquire
Today, Piccadilly is regarded as one of London's principal shopping streets, hosting several famous shops. The Ritz Hotel,
Transport
Piccadilly is a major thoroughfare in the West End of London and has several major road junctions. To the east, Piccadilly Circus opened in 1819 connecting it to Regent Street. It has become one of the most recognised landmarks in London, particularly after a statue of Eros was constructed on the junction in 1893, and the erection of large electric billboards in 1923.[49] At the western end of Piccadilly is Hyde Park Corner, and the street has a major road junction with St James's Street and other significant junctions at Albemarle Street, Bond Street and Dover Street.[50]
The road is part of the
The
Cultural references
Piccadilly. is one of Letitia Elizabeth Landon's Scenes in London in Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1836. It is evocative of many aspects of life in the city, both by day and by night. [61]
The music hall song "It's a Long Way to Tipperary" mentions Piccadilly and Leicester Square in its lyrics. It was written in 1912 about an Irishman living in London, but became popular after being adopted by the mostly Irish Connaught Rangers during World War I.[62] The street is mentioned in Gilbert and Sullivan's 1881 operetta Patience, in the lyrics of the song "If You're Anxious For To Shine".[63] One of the major hit songs of the Edwardian musical play The Arcadians (1909) which enjoyed long runs in the West End of London and on New York's Broadway is "All down Piccadilly" (Simplicitas and Chorus, Act III, revised version), with music by Lionel Monckton who also co-wrote the words with Arthur Wimperis.[64]
Piccadilly is mentioned in several works of fiction.
In the 1963 movie The Great Escape the character Ashley-Pitt portrayed by David McCallum tells Squadron Leader Roger Bartlett "See you in Piccadilly, Scott's Bar" as he was making his escape from the tunnel.[73]
The street is a square on the British Monopoly board, forming a set with Leicester Square and Coventry Street.[74] When a European Union version of the game was produced in 1992, Piccadilly was one of three London streets selected, along with Oxford Street and Park Lane.[75]
In 1996, Latvian singer Laima Vaikule released an album titled Ya vyshla na Pikadilli ("I Went Out on Piccadilly").[76]
In 2019, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare featured a game level designed around the street.[77]
See also
- Bentley & Skinner jewellers
- Bomber Command Memorial
- British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA)
- Burlington Arcade
- Criterion Theatre[78]
- Egyptian Hall
- Embassy of Japan
- Fortnum & Mason
- Hatchards
- Le Méridien Piccadilly Hotel
- Gloucester House, accommodating Hard Rock Cafe (their first restaurant)
- High Commission of Malta, London
- Princes Arcade
- Piccadilly Arcade
- Piccadilly (movie)
- The Ritz Hotel, London
References
Notes
- ^ His second wife was Mary, daughter of Samuel Higgins, an apothecary.[3]
- ^ Piccadilly has also been described as a variation of the old Dutch word "Pickedillikens", meaning the extreme or utmost part of something.[7]
- ^ Edward Hobart, Robert's son-in-law, and a man claiming to be a great-nephew, John Baker, of Wellington, Somerset, or Payhembury, Devon.
- ^ The street was officially known as Portugal Street until c. 1750.[19]
Citations
- ^ a b c d e F. H. W. Sheppard, ed. (1960). "Piccadilly, South Side". Survey of London. 29–30. London: London County Council: 251–270. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
- ^ Kingsford 1925, p. 97.
- ^ a b c d e f g F. H. W. Sheppard, ed. (1963). "The Early History of Piccadilly". Survey of London. 31–32. London: London County Council: 32–40. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
- ^ Taggart, Caroline (13 June 2012). "The surprising reasons behind London's oldest place names". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ Kingsford 1925, p. 73.
- ^ Le Vay 2012, p. 112.
- ^ Dasent 1920, p. 8.
- ^ a b c d Kingsford 1925, p. 98.
- ^ Street 1907, pp. 3–4.
- ^ Wheatley 1870, p. 2.
- ^ Wheatley 1870, p. 83.
- ^ a b Kingsford 1925, p. 104.
- ^ Walford, Edward (1878). "Mansions in Piccadilly". 4. Old and New London: 273–290. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
{{cite journal}}
: Cite journal requires|journal=
(help) - ^ Moore 2003, p. 116.
- ^ "Burlington House". Royal Society. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
- ^ "Building History". St James's Church, Piccadilly. Archived from the original on 18 September 2020. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ Kingsford 1925, p. 40.
- ^ Wheatley 1870, p. xiv.
- ^ Wheatley 1870, p. 15.
- ^ a b c Weinreb et al 2008, p. 639.
- ^ McDonald 2004, p. 98.
- ^ Fullmann 2012, p. 61.
- ^ a b Binney 2006, p. 20.
- ^ a b Timbs 1866, p. 221.
- ^ "Cheshire House 66A Eaton Square, and 52 Eaton Mews West, SW1". Country Life. 196: 105. 2002. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
- ^ Macqueen-Pope 1972, p. 119.
- ^ Weinreb et al 2008, p. 640.
- ^ "Limkokwing University Campuses & Contact Centres". Limkokwing University of Creative Technology. Archived from the original on 31 December 2007. Retrieved 10 January 2008.
- ^ Bedoire & Tanner 2004, pp. 129–30.
- ^ Morton 2014, p. 155.
- ^ a b Weinreb et al 2008, p. 10.
- ^ Weinreb et al 2008, p. 766.
- ^ Jones 1833, p. 157.
- ^ Macqueen-Pope 1972, p. 77.
- ^ Nineteenth-century Studies 2004, p. 145.
- ^ Starkey & Starkey 2001, p. 48.
- ISBN 9781783660322. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
- ^ Historic England. "Former Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours premises, now forming part of Prince's House (1265805)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
- ^ "Welcome to BAFTA 195 Piccadilly". BAFTA. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
- ^ "Bawden and battenberg: the Lyons teashop lithographs". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
- ^ Gillian, Leslie (13 December 1998). "Design: Goodbye, Piccadilly...". The Independent. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ Duffy, Jonathan (25 January 2006). "When heroin was legal". BBC News. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ Burr 1983, p. 883.
- ^ Burr 1983, p. 885.
- ^ "Police storm squat in Piccadilly". BBC News. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ Berridge 1990, p. 162.
- ^ Raistrick & Davidson 1985, p. 110.
- ^ "Piccadilly Circus". Encyclopædia Britannica. 5 January 2013. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ a b c "Central London Bus Map" (PDF). Transport for London. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 July 2015. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ "Metropolitan Improvements – Hyde Park Corner". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 31 May 1883. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ "The Widening of Piccadilly". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 15 August 1901. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ "Traffic signals (Piccadilly)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 8 February 1932. Archived from the original on 29 March 2016. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ "Building the Hyde Park Corner Underpass". Museum of London. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Hyde Park South Carriage Drive". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 13 November 1962. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ Piccadilly to get its bus lane Commercial Motor 17 March 1972 page 22
- ^ Piccadilly bus lane stays Commercial Motor 26 July 1974 page 19
- ^ Piccadilly line Commercial Motor 19 November 1976 page 22
- ^ York 2013, p. 19.
- ^ Connor 2006, pp. 28–32.
- ^ Landon, Letitia Elizabeth (1835). "poem". Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1836. Fisher, Son & Co. p. 11.
- ^ Ciment & Russell 2007, p. 1083.
- ^ "Am I Alone – And Unobserved?". Gilbert and Sullivan Archive. Retrieved 17 November 2016..[
- ^ "The Arcadians, operetta~Act 3. All down Piccadilly". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- ^ Cook 2013, p. 56.
- ^ a b Karschay 2015, p. 109.
- ^ Halliday 2013, p. 71.
- OCLC 227016511.
- OCLC 227016511.
- ^ Panek 1979, p. 131.
- ^ McIlvaine, Sherby & Heineman 1990, pp. 30–31.
- ^ Dorothy Sayers (1923). "Whose Body". Digital.library server at Penn Libraries. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ^ "Films and Filming". Vol. 9. 1962. p. 21.
{{cite magazine}}
: Cite magazine requires|magazine=
(help) - ^ Moore 2003, p. 86.
- ^ Moore 2003, p. 113.
- ^ "Я вышла на Пикадилли" (in Russian). Laima.com. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
- ^ Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Update Adds Changes to Piccadilly Map – IGN, 12 November 2019, retrieved 29 December 2019
- ^ "Location Map – Criterion Theatre". Criterion-Theatre.co.uk. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
Foyer Entrance : 218–223 Piccadilly
Sources
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- Binney, Marcus (2006). The Ritz Hotel, London. Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0-500-51279-1.
- Burr, Angela (24 September 1983). "Increased Sale of Opiates on the Blackmarket in the Piccadilly Area". British Medical Journal (Clinical Research Ed.). 287 (6396). British Medical Journal (Clinical Research Edition): 883–885. (subscription required)
- Ciment, James; Russell, Thaddeus (2007). The Home Front Encyclopedia: United States, Britain, and Canada in World Wars I and II. Vol. 1. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-576-07849-5.
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- Dasent, Arthur Irwin (1920). Piccadilly in Three Centuries: With Some Account of Berkeley Square and the Haymarket. Macmillan and Company, limited.
piccadilly in three centuries.
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- McDonald, Guy (2 February 2004). England. New Holland Publishers. ]
- McIlvaine, E; Sherby, L.S; Heineman, J.H. (1990). P.G. Wodehouse: A comprehensive bibliography and checklist. New York: James H. Heineman. pp. 30–31. ISBN 087008125X.
- Moore, Tim (2003). Do Not Pass Go. Vintage. ISBN 978-0-099-43386-6.
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- Starkey, Paul; Starkey, Janet (22 September 2001). Travellers in Egypt. I.B.Tauris. ISBN 978-1-86064-674-4.
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- Timbs, John (1866). Club Life of London with Anecdotes of the Clubs, Coffee-Houses and Taverns of the Metropolis During the 17th, 18th, and 19th Centuries: By John Timbs. Richard Bentley. p. 221.
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Further reading
- OCLC 12878129