Bedford Square
Encyclopedia
Bloomsbury
-Places:* Bloomsbury is an area in central London.* Bloomsbury , related local government unit* Bloomsbury, New Jersey, New Jersey, USA* Bloomsbury , listed on the NRHP in Maryland...
district of the Borough of Camden
London Borough of Camden
In 1801, the civil parishes that form the modern borough were already developed and had a total population of 96,795. This continued to rise swiftly throughout the 19th century, as the district became built up; reaching 270,197 in the middle of the century...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Built between 1775 and 1783 as an upper middle class residential area, the sqare has had many distinguished residents, including Lord Eldon
John Scott, 1st Earl of Eldon
John Scott, 1st Earl of Eldon PC KC FRS FSA was a British barrister and politician. He served as Lord Chancellor of Great Britain between 1801 and 1806 and again between 1807 and 1827.- Background and education :...
, one of Britain's longest serving and most celebrated Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
s, who lived in the largest house in the square for many years. The square takes its name from the main title of the Russell family, the Dukes of Bedford, who were the main landlords in Bloomsbury.
Set piece
Set piece may refer to:* Set piece , an elaborate sequence which sees either a chase, fight, or other action taking place in an original and memorable way...
s of Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
in London, but most of the houses have now been converted into offices. Numbers 1-10, 11, 12–27, 28–38 and 40–54 are grade I listed buildings. The central garden remains private. Bedford College, the first place for female higher education in Britain, was formerly located in (and named after) Bedford Square.
Current occupants
- Nos. 1 and 2: Cameron MackintoshCameron MackintoshSir Cameron Anthony Mackintosh is a British theatrical producer notable for his association with many commercially successful musicals. At the height of his success in 1990, he was described as being "the most successful, influential and powerful theatrical producer in the world" by the New York...
(Overseas) Limited - No. 3: Winston House (University of North Carolina at Chapel HillUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel HillThe University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
's European Study Center) - Nos. 4, 5 and 6: New York UniversityNew York UniversityNew York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
's London Academic Facility. - No. 7: Birkbeck, University of London
- No. 11: Royal Holloway, University of London
- No. 14: http://www.redhouselane.com Redhouse Lane
- No. 16: Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British ArtPaul Mellon Centre for Studies in British ArtThe Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art is a scholarly centre in London devoted to the study of British Art. It was founded in 1970 and opened to the public in 1977, and is endowed by a gift from Paul Mellon. Since 1996, it has been situated at 16 Bedford Square in a Grade I listed building...
- No. 19: Morse Plc
- No. 24: http://www.creighton.co.uk Creighton & Partners
- No. 25: InferMed Ltd
- No. 29: London office of the Turkish Republic of Northern CyprusTurkish Republic of Northern CyprusNorthern Cyprus or North Cyprus , officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus , is a self-declared state that comprises the northeastern part of the island of Cyprus...
- No. 30: Sotheby's Institute of Art
- No. 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38 and 39: Architectural Association School of ArchitectureArchitectural Association School of ArchitectureThe Architectural Association School of Architecture, more usually known as the AA, is an architectural school in London, United Kingdom...
. - No. 47: Yale University PressYale University PressYale University Press is a book publisher founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day. It became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but remains financially and operationally autonomous....
, London. - No. 9: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
- Nos. 49, 50 and 51: Bloomsbury Publishing PlcBloomsbury Publishing PlcBloomsbury Publishing plc is an independent, London-based publishing house known for literary novels. It is a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap Index. The company's growth over the past decade is primarily attributable to the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. Bloomsbury was named Publisher of...
Former occupants
- No. 6: Lord EldonJohn Scott, 1st Earl of EldonJohn Scott, 1st Earl of Eldon PC KC FRS FSA was a British barrister and politician. He served as Lord Chancellor of Great Britain between 1801 and 1806 and again between 1807 and 1827.- Background and education :...
— Lord Chancellor - No. 10: Charles GilpinCharles Gilpin (politician)Charles Gilpin was a Quaker, orator, politician, publisher and railway director. Amongst his many causes were the movement to repeal the Corn Laws, to establish world peace through the Peace Society, abolition of the death penalty and the anti-slavery movement, enfranchisement by providing...
- MP - No. 11: Henry CavendishHenry CavendishHenry Cavendish FRS was a British scientist noted for his discovery of hydrogen or what he called "inflammable air". He described the density of inflammable air, which formed water on combustion, in a 1766 paper "On Factitious Airs". Antoine Lavoisier later reproduced Cavendish's experiment and...
— scientist - No. 13: Harry RicardoHarry RicardoSir Harry Ricardo was one of the foremost engine designers and researchers in the early years of the development of the internal combustion engine....
— engine designer — born here - No. 22: Johnston Forbes-RobertsonJohnston Forbes-RobertsonSir Johnston Forbes-Robertson was an English actor and theatre manager. He was considered the finest Hamlet of the nineteenth century and one of the finest actors of his time, despite his dislike of the job and his lifelong belief that he was temperamentally unsuited to acting.-Early life:Born in...
— actor - No. 30: Jonathan CapeJonathan CapeJonathan Cape was a London-based publisher founded in 1919 as "Page & Co" by Herbert Jonathan Cape , formerly a manager at Duckworth who had worked his way up from a position of bookshop errand boy. Cape brought with him the rights to cheap editions of the popular author Elinor Glyn and sales of...
- renowned 20th Century publishing company. - No. 35: Thomas HodgkinThomas HodgkinThomas Hodgkin was a British physician, considered one of the most prominent pathologists of his time and a pioneer in preventive medicine. He is now best known for the first account of Hodgkin's disease, a form of lymphoma and blood disease, in 1832...
— physician, reformer and philanthropist - No. 35: Thomas WakleyThomas WakleyThomas Wakley , was an English surgeon. He became a demagogue and social reformer who campaigned against incompetence, privilege and nepotism. He was the founding editor of The Lancet, and a radical Member of Parliament .- Life :Thomas Wakley was born in Membury, Devon to a prosperous farmer and...
— founder of The LancetThe LancetThe Lancet is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal. It is one of the world's best known, oldest, and most respected general medical journals... - No. 41: William ButterfieldWilliam ButterfieldWilliam Butterfield was a Gothic Revival architect and associated with the Oxford Movement . He is noted for his use of polychromy-Biography:...
— architect - No. 41: Sir Anthony Hope Hawkins — novelist
- No. 44: Margot AsquithMargot AsquithMargot Asquith, Countess of Oxford and Asquith , born Emma Alice Margaret Tennant, was an Anglo-Scottish socialite, author and wit...
— wife of the Prime Minister H. H. AsquithH. H. AsquithHerbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, KG, PC, KC served as the Liberal Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1908 to 1916...
-- and before that, Ottoline Morrell - No. 48: Elizabeth Jesser ReidElizabeth Jesser ReidElizabeth Jesser Reid , was an English social reformer, anti-slavery activist and philanthropist. She is best remembered as the founder of Bedford College....
— anti-slavery activist and founder of Bedford College for Women - No. 49: Francis WalkerFrancis WalkerFrancis Walker may refer to:*Francis Walker , U.S. Congressman from Virginia*Francis Walker , British entomologist*Francis A. Walker , Albertan politician...
— entomologist; before that Ram Mohan RoyRam Mohan RoyRaja Ram Mohan Roy was an Indian religious, social, and educational reformer who challenged traditional Hindu culture and indicated the lines of progress for Indian society under British rule. He is sometimes called the father of modern India...
— Indian scholar and reformer - No. 50: Karthik Parthiban — Famous Indian scholar
- No. 52: Was used as the contestants' house in the 2010 seriesThe Apprentice (UK series six)Series Six of The Apprentice is a British reality television series. The series started on BBC One on 6 October 2010 and ran for twelve weekly hour-long episodes, as in all previous years...
of The Apprentice
See also
Other squares on the Bedford EstateBedford Estate
The Bedford Estate is a historic central London estate owned by the Russell family who possess the peerage of Duke of Bedford. The estate was originally based in Covent Garden, then stretched to include Bloomsbury in 1669...
in Bloomsbury included:
- Bloomsbury SquareBloomsbury SquareBloomsbury Square is a garden square in Bloomsbury, Camden, London.- Geography :To the north of the square is Great Russell Street and Bedford Place, leading to Russell Square. To the south is Bloomsbury Way. To the west is the British Museum and Holborn tube station is the nearest underground...
- Gordon SquareGordon SquareGordon Square is in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden, London, England . It was developed by Thomas Cubitt in the 1820s, as one of a pair with Tavistock Square, which is a block away and has the same dimensions...
- Russell SquareRussell SquareRussell Square is a large garden square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden. It is near the University of London's main buildings and the British Museum. To the north is Woburn Place and to the south-east is Southampton Row...
- Tavistock SquareTavistock SquareTavistock Square is a public square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden with a fine garden.-Public art:The centre-piece of the gardens is a statue of Mahatma Gandhi, which was installed in 1968....
- Torrington SquareTorrington SquareTorrington Square is a square in Bloomsbury, owned by the University of London, located in central London, England. Today it is a square in name only, most of the houses having been demolished by the university. Birkbeck College and the School of Oriental and African Studies are located here. To...
- Woburn SquareWoburn SquareWoburn Square is the smallest of the Bloomsbury Squares and owned by the University of London. Designed by Thomas Cubitt and built between 1829 and 1847, it is named after Woburn Abbey, the main country seat of the Dukes of Bedford, who developed much of Bloomsbury.The original construction was of...
- List of eponymous roads in London
External links
Blue plaques
A number of houses have blue plaqueBlue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
s recording famous residents:
- Plaquemap.com London blue plaque scheme — For exact location of these plaques within the square.