.gif)
Mornington Crescent (street)
Encyclopedia
Mornington Crescent is also a street off the A4 near Heathrow Airport.
Mornington Crescent is a street in Camden
, London
, England
. It was built in the 1820s, on a greenfield site just to the north of central London. The crescent was named after the Earl of Mornington
, brother of the Duke of Wellington
. Comprising three curved terraces grouped in a crescent form around communal gardens, the north side of the crescent (numbers 37-46) was constructed first, dating from the 1820s or earlier. With 36 spacious houses suitable for professional people, the crescent was originally surrounded by green fields, enjoying views across open country to the front and rear, yet was conveniently close to town.
However, the building of the railway line into the Euston
terminus, and encroachment from the nearby working class districts of Kings Cross and Camden Town
led to a change in the demographics of the area during the Victorian era
. More and more, the houses were subdivided into houses of multiple occupancy with flats housing artists and artisans.
The communal gardens of the crescent are occupied by a large Art Deco
building, known as the Carreras Building
. Originally built as a tobacco
factory
in 1926-28 by the Carreras Tobacco Company
, it is a striking example of early 20th Century Egyptian Revival architecture
and a distinctive local landmark, not least because of the large bronze statues of the Egyptian cat god Bastet which adorn the front. In the 1990s the building was restored and converted into an office building and renamed Greater London House.
The crescent
has a number of literary and artistic associations. The artist Frank Auerbach
has a studio nearby and has often painted the crescent and surrounding area.. The crescent was a popular subject of the Camden Town Group
; the painter Walter Sickert
lived there from 1905, at number 6, and Spencer Gore
lived at number 31 from 1909-1912. Clarkson Stanfield (a painter friend of Charles Dickens
) lived at number 36 from 1834-41. Dickens went to a school, Wellington House Academy, on Granby Terrace adjoining Mornington Crescent, after his spell working in a blacking warehouse.
More recently, Mornington Crescent was used as a filming location for the films An Education
and Brighton Rock.
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...
, 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...
. It was built in the 1820s, on a greenfield site just to the north of central London. The crescent was named after the Earl of Mornington
Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley
Richard Colley Wesley, later Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley, KG, PC, PC , styled Viscount Wellesley from birth until 1781, was an Anglo-Irish politician and colonial administrator....
, brother of the Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
. Comprising three curved terraces grouped in a crescent form around communal gardens, the north side of the crescent (numbers 37-46) was constructed first, dating from the 1820s or earlier. With 36 spacious houses suitable for professional people, the crescent was originally surrounded by green fields, enjoying views across open country to the front and rear, yet was conveniently close to town.
However, the building of the railway line into the Euston
Euston railway station
Euston railway station, also known as London Euston, is a central London railway terminus in the London Borough of Camden. It is the sixth busiest rail terminal in London . It is one of 18 railway stations managed by Network Rail, and is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line...
terminus, and encroachment from the nearby working class districts of Kings Cross and Camden Town
Camden Town
-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
led to a change in the demographics of the area during the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
. More and more, the houses were subdivided into houses of multiple occupancy with flats housing artists and artisans.
The communal gardens of the crescent are occupied by a large Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
building, known as the Carreras Building
Carreras Cigarette Factory
The Carreras Cigarette Factory is a large Art Deco building in Camden, London in the United Kingdom. It is noted as a striking example of early 20th Century Egyptian Revival architecture...
. Originally built as a tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
factory
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
in 1926-28 by the Carreras Tobacco Company
Carreras Tobacco Company
The House of Carreras was a tobacco business that was established in London in the nineteenth century by a nobleman from Spain, Don José Carreras Ferrer. It continued as an independent company until November 1958, when it merged with Rothmans of Pall Mall...
, it is a striking example of early 20th Century Egyptian Revival architecture
Egyptian Revival architecture
Egyptian Revival is an architectural style that uses the motifs and imagery of ancient Egypt. It is attributed generally to the public awareness of ancient Egyptian monuments generated by Napoleon's conquest of Egypt and Admiral Nelson's defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of the Nile during 1798....
and a distinctive local landmark, not least because of the large bronze statues of the Egyptian cat god Bastet which adorn the front. In the 1990s the building was restored and converted into an office building and renamed Greater London House.
The crescent
Crescent (architecture)
A crescent is an architectural structure where a number of houses, normally terraced houses, are laid out in an arc to form of a crescent shape. A famous historic crescent is the Royal Crescent in Bath, England.-See also:* Lansdown Crescent, Bath...
has a number of literary and artistic associations. The artist Frank Auerbach
Frank Auerbach
Frank Helmut Auerbach is a painter born in Germany although he has been a naturalised British citizen since 1947.-Biography:Auerbach was born in Berlin, the son of Max Auerbach, a patent lawyer, and Charlotte Nora Burchardt, who had trained as an artist...
has a studio nearby and has often painted the crescent and surrounding area.. The crescent was a popular subject of the Camden Town Group
Camden Town Group
The Camden Town Group was a group of English Post-Impressionist artists active 1911-1913. They gathered frequently at the studio of painter Walter Sickert in the Camden Town area of London.-History:...
; the painter Walter Sickert
Walter Sickert
Walter Richard Sickert , born in Munich, Germany, was a painter who was a member of the Camden Town Group in London. He was an important influence on distinctively British styles of avant-garde art in the 20th century....
lived there from 1905, at number 6, and Spencer Gore
Spencer Gore (artist)
Spencer Frederick Gore was a British painter of landscapes, music-hall scenes and interiors, usually with single figures...
lived at number 31 from 1909-1912. Clarkson Stanfield (a painter friend of Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
) lived at number 36 from 1834-41. Dickens went to a school, Wellington House Academy, on Granby Terrace adjoining Mornington Crescent, after his spell working in a blacking warehouse.
Cultural references
- Spencer GoreSpencer Gore (artist)Spencer Frederick Gore was a British painter of landscapes, music-hall scenes and interiors, usually with single figures...
Fireside scene at Mornington Crescent, Leeds city art gallery collection. Oil on canvas - William HargreavesWilliam HargreavesWilliam Hargreaves was an English composer, mainly of songs for the music hall. His most famous composition was Burlington Bertie From Bow in 1916 but he also wrote Delaney's Donkey, I Know Where the Flies Go , PC 49, We All Went Marching Home Again, They Built Piccadilly For Me and Give My...
' song "The Night I Appeared as Macbeth" (1922) includes the lines "They made me a present/Of Mornington Crescent/They threw it a brick at a time". - The band Belle and Sebastian have a song titled "Mornington Crescent".
- Iain PearsIain PearsIain Pears is an English art historian, novelist and journalist. He was educated at Warwick School, Warwick, Wadham College and Wolfson College, Oxford. Before writing, he worked as a reporter for the BBC, Channel 4 and ZDF and correspondent for Reuters from 1982 to 1990 in Italy, France, UK and...
's novel Stone's FallStone's Fall-Synopsis:An aging BBC reporter approaching retirement in 1953, Matthew Braddock is on a farewell tour, visiting the old Paris bureau. Chancing upon a familiar name in the obituary notices, he decides to attend the funeral of an acquaintance he has not seen for many years. After the service, he is...
references an apparently fictional murder case called the "Mornington Crescent trial." The murderer is a man named William Goulding, who kept the head of his victim in a box under his bed. - Painter Walter SickertWalter SickertWalter Richard Sickert , born in Munich, Germany, was a painter who was a member of the Camden Town Group in London. He was an important influence on distinctively British styles of avant-garde art in the 20th century....
lived on the street in 1907, at the time of "the Camden Town MurderCamden Town MurderThe Camden Town Murder was a murder which took place in Camden Town, London in 1907. Robert Wood, an artist, was tried for the murder of Emily Dimmock, a prostitute and acquitted after a brilliant defence by Edward Marshall Hall....
", and later renamed a group of his paintings The Camden Town MurderThe Camden Town MurderThe Camden Town Murder is a title given to a group of four paintings by Walter Sickert painted in 1908. The paintings have specific titles, such as the problem picture What Shall We Do for the Rent or What Shall We Do to Pay the Rent....
.
More recently, Mornington Crescent was used as a filming location for the films An Education
An Education
An Education is a 2009 British coming-of-age drama film, based on an autobiographical article in Granta by British journalist Lynn Barber. The film was directed by Lone Scherfig from a screenplay by Nick Hornby, and stars Carey Mulligan as Jenny, a bright schoolgirl, and Peter Sarsgaard as David,...
and Brighton Rock.
See also
- Mornington Crescent (game)Mornington Crescent (game)Mornington Crescent is a spoof game, featured in the BBC Radio 4 comedy panel show I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, which satirises complicated strategy games....
— the game - Mornington Crescent tube stationMornington Crescent tube stationMornington Crescent is a London Underground station in Camden Town in north west London, named after the nearby street. The station is on the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line, between and...