Holborn: Difference between revisions
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The Prudential insurance company relocated in 2002. The [[Daily Mirror]] offices used to be directly opposite it, but the site is now occupied by the [[Sainsbury|J Sainsbury]] head office. |
The Prudential insurance company relocated in 2002. The [[Daily Mirror]] offices used to be directly opposite it, but the site is now occupied by the [[Sainsbury|J Sainsbury]] head office. |
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Further east in the gated avenue of [[Ely Place]] is |
Further east in the gated avenue of [[Ely Place]] is [[St Etheldreda's Church]] originally the chapel of the [[Bishop of Ely]]’s London palace. This ecclesiastic connection allowed the street to remain part of the county of [[Cambridgeshire]] until the mid-1930s. This meant that the Mitre Tavern, located in a court hidden behind the buildings of the Place and the Garden was subject to the Cambridgeshire Magistrates to grant its licence. <ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/726471/Things-that-go-bump-on-the-map.html|title=Things that go bump on the map|last=Vitaliev|first=Vitali |authorlink=Vitali Vitaliev|date=[[2003-01-03]]|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|accessdate=2008-08-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.timeout.com/london/bars/features/1614.html|title=Secret London: Ye Olde Mitre Tavern|last=Hammond|first=Derek|date=[[2006-06-28]]|work=[[Time Out]]|accessdate=2008-08-12}}</ref> St Eheldreda's is the oldest church building used for Roman Catholic worship in London, but this was so only after it ceased to be an Anglican chapel in the nineteenth century. |
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[[Hatton Garden]], the centre of the Diamond trade was leased to a favourite of Queen Elizabeth, Sir Christopher Hatton at the insistence of the Queen to provide him with an income. Behind the Prudential Building lies the Anglo Catholic church of St Alban the Martyr<ref>[http://www.stalbans-holborn.com/ St Alban the Martyr] accessed 17 May 2007</ref>. Originally built in 1863 by architect William Butterfield it was destroyed in 1941 and a new church was built in the Victorian Gothic style. On the southern side lie [[Chancery Lane]] and [[Fetter Lane]]. |
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On [[Holborn Circus]] lies the Church of [[St Andrew, Holborn|St Andrew]], an ancient Guild Church, that survived the [[Great Fire of London]]. However, the parochial authority decided, nevertheless, to commission Sir Christopher Wren to rebuild it. Although the nave was destroyed in the Blitz, the reconstruction was faithful to Wren's original. In the middle of the circus there is a large equestrian statue of [[Prince Albert]] by Charles Bacon (1874) the City's official monument to him. It was presented by Charles Oppenheim, of the Diamond Trading Company [[De Beers]], whose headquarters building is on nearby Charterhouse Street. |
On [[Holborn Circus]] lies the Church of [[St Andrew, Holborn|St Andrew]], an ancient Guild Church, that survived the [[Great Fire of London]]. However, the parochial authority decided, nevertheless, to commission Sir Christopher Wren to rebuild it. Although the nave was destroyed in the Blitz, the reconstruction was faithful to Wren's original. In the middle of the circus there is a large equestrian statue of [[Prince Albert]] by Charles Bacon (1874) the City's official monument to him. It was presented by Charles Oppenheim, of the Diamond Trading Company [[De Beers]], whose headquarters building is on nearby Charterhouse Street. |
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In the early twenty-first century, Holborn has been the site of new offices and hotels, |
In the early twenty-first century, Holborn has been the site of new offices and hotels, eg the old Pearl Assurance company's HQ near the junction with Kingsway has been converted to a leading hotel. These have exploited the excellent public transport links (Holborn underground station is the junction of the Central and Piccadilly lines), and its strategic location between the [[City of London]] and the [[West End of London|West End]]. |
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The [[Metropolitan Borough of Holborn]] was created in 1899. It was abolished in 1965 and its area |
The [[Metropolitan Borough of Holborn]] was created in 1899. It was abolished in 1965 and its area now forms part of the [[London Borough of Camden]]. |
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==Education== |
==Education== |
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Revision as of 19:55, 1 November 2008
Holborn (Template:PronEng or /ˈhoʊbɝːn/ "ho burn") is an area of Central London, England. Holborn is also the name of the area's principal east-west street, running from St Giles's High Street as High Holborn to Gray's Inn Road to Holborn Viaduct, crossing the borders of the City of Westminster, London Borough of Camden and the City of London.
History
The name Holborn is derived from the Old Bourne ("old brook"), a reference to the watercourse which rises at Hampstead Heath and flows to the Thames along the route now followed by the King's Cross Road and Farringdon Road/ Street. At the estuary it is called the Fleet, Fleet Street takes its name because it leads to the river and the Ludgate of the City. [1] However at this point the Fleet itself ran in a small valley and the Middle English "hol" for hollow, with bourne as before, has been considered as the origin.[2]
Charles Dickens took up residence in Furnivall's Inn, now covered by the old Prudential building now named as 'Holborn Bars' designed by Alfred Waterhouse. The Bars were the boundary of the City of London until 1994 but only the area of the south-side of Holborn was under its jurisdiction. Dickens also put his character 'Pip', in Great Expectations, in residence at Barnard's Inn opposite, the current home of Gresham College, and Staple Inn notable for being used as the promotional image for "Old Holborn" tobacco. The three of these were Inns of Chancery. The most northerly of the Inns of Court, Gray's Inn, is in Holborn as is Lincoln's Inn. This demonstrates the area's connection with the legal professions since mediaeval times.
Over the coming years the area began to diversify and become recognisable as the modern street. A plaque stands at number 120 commemorating Thomas Earnshaw's invention of the Marine chronometer, one of the catalysts which facilitated long-distance travel.
In the modern era High Holborn has become a centre for entertainment venues. Twenty two inns or taverns are recorded in the 1860s. Originally Weston's Music Hall, the Holborn Empire stood between 1857 and 1960 when it was pulled down after structural damage sustained in the Blitz. The theatre premièred the first full-length feature film in 1914, The World, the Flesh and the Devil, a 50-minute melodrama filmed in Kinemacolour[3]. At the corner of Hatton Garden was the old family department store of Gamages. Until 1992, the London Weather Centre was located in the street.
In the eighteenth century, Holborn was the location of the infamous Mother Clap's molly house.
The Prudential insurance company relocated in 2002. The Daily Mirror offices used to be directly opposite it, but the site is now occupied by the J Sainsbury head office. Further east in the gated avenue of Ely Place is St Etheldreda's Church originally the chapel of the Bishop of Ely’s London palace. This ecclesiastic connection allowed the street to remain part of the county of Cambridgeshire until the mid-1930s. This meant that the Mitre Tavern, located in a court hidden behind the buildings of the Place and the Garden was subject to the Cambridgeshire Magistrates to grant its licence. [4][5] St Eheldreda's is the oldest church building used for Roman Catholic worship in London, but this was so only after it ceased to be an Anglican chapel in the nineteenth century.
Hatton Garden, the centre of the Diamond trade was leased to a favourite of Queen Elizabeth, Sir Christopher Hatton at the insistence of the Queen to provide him with an income. Behind the Prudential Building lies the Anglo Catholic church of St Alban the Martyr[6]. Originally built in 1863 by architect William Butterfield it was destroyed in 1941 and a new church was built in the Victorian Gothic style. On the southern side lie Chancery Lane and Fetter Lane.
On Holborn Circus lies the Church of St Andrew, an ancient Guild Church, that survived the Great Fire of London. However, the parochial authority decided, nevertheless, to commission Sir Christopher Wren to rebuild it. Although the nave was destroyed in the Blitz, the reconstruction was faithful to Wren's original. In the middle of the circus there is a large equestrian statue of Prince Albert by Charles Bacon (1874) the City's official monument to him. It was presented by Charles Oppenheim, of the Diamond Trading Company De Beers, whose headquarters building is on nearby Charterhouse Street.
In the early twenty-first century, Holborn has been the site of new offices and hotels, eg the old Pearl Assurance company's HQ near the junction with Kingsway has been converted to a leading hotel. These have exploited the excellent public transport links (Holborn underground station is the junction of the Central and Piccadilly lines), and its strategic location between the City of London and the West End.
The Metropolitan Borough of Holborn was created in 1899. It was abolished in 1965 and its area now forms part of the London Borough of Camden.
Education
- For education within the Westminster portion of Holborn see the main City of Westminster article.
Transport and locale
Nearest places
- Bloomsbury
- Clerkenwell
- St Pancras
- Charing Cross
- Soho
- Covent Garden
- St. Giles - the area around St. Giles High Street (to the west of Holborn)
Nearest underground stations
Notable people
The following is a list of notable people who were born in Holborn or are significantly connected with Holborn.
- Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875-1912), composer, born at 15 Theobalds Road. Won international acclaim for his works especially the Song of Hiawatha Trilogy.
- Charles Dickens lived in Doughty Street where there is a museum
- Sir John Barbirolli conductor, was born in Southampton Row (Blue Plaque above pub)
- Sheila Gallagher MBE - born October 20, 1924 in Holborn, Gallagher is a long serving lollipop lady who now monitors the crossing on Queen Victoria Street.
- John Shaw Jr - (1803–1870); born in Holborn, Shaw was an English architect of the 19th century who was complimented as a designer in the "Manner of Wren".
- Barry Sheene MBE - (11 September 1950 – 10 March 2003); spent his early years in Holborn, Sheene was a British former World Champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer.
- Thomas Chatterton (1752-1770), English poet born in Bristol died in a garret in Holborn at the age of 17. A posthumous darling of the Romantics, he is now remembered as 'the marvellous Boy' (Wordsworth). The Victorian Henry Wallis returned to Chatterton's Brooke Street room to paint George Meredith, the novelist, in a now frequently copied pose of the dead poet (Tate Britain).
- Eric Morley, founder of Miss World was born in Holborn.
- Former European boxing champion Errol Christie trains City executives to engage in White Collar Boxing at Gymbox on High Holborn including TV entertainer Dermot O'Leary
References
- ^ The Farringdon Wards of the City London by Tony Sharp London 2000
- ^ Besant, Walter (1903). Holborn and Bloomsbury. The Fascination of London (Project Gutenberg, 2007 ed.). London: Adam and Charles Black. Retrieved 2008-08-13.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ The World, the Flesh and the Devil at IMDb
- ^ Vitaliev, Vitali (2003-01-03). "Things that go bump on the map". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2008-08-12.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Hammond, Derek (2006-06-28). "Secret London: Ye Olde Mitre Tavern". Time Out. Retrieved 2008-08-12.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ St Alban the Martyr accessed 17 May 2007
Photos
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Holborn Bars, built as the headquarters of the Prudential Assurance Company -
The headquarters of J Sainsbury plc at Holborn Circus -
Staple Inn building near Chancery Lane tube station -
Grange Holborn Hotel in Holborn -
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Entrance to Gray's Inn
External links
- Holborn and Bloomsbury, by Sir Walter Besant and Geraldine Edith Mitton, 1903, from Project Gutenberg
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