Eaton Square is a rectangular, residential

garden square A garden square is a type of communal garden in an urban area wholly or substantially surrounded by buildings; commonly, it continues to be applied to public and private parks formed after such a garden becomes accessible to the public at large. T ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Belgravia Belgravia () is a district in Central London, covering parts of the areas of both the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Belgravia was known as the 'Five Fields' during the Tudor Period, and became a dang ...

district. It is the largest square in London. It is one of the three squares built by the landowning

Grosvenor family Duke of Westminster is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created by Queen Victoria in 1874 and bestowed upon Hugh Grosvenor, 3rd Marquess of Westminster. It is the most recent dukedom conferred on someone not related to the ...

when they developed the main part of Belgravia in the 19th century that are named after places in Cheshire — in this case Eaton Hall, the Grosvenor country house. It is larger but less grand than the central feature of the district,

Belgrave Square Belgrave Square is a large 19th-century garden square in London. It is the centrepiece of Belgravia, and its architecture resembles the original scheme of property contractor Thomas Cubitt who engaged George Basevi for all of the terraces fo ...

, and both larger and grander than

Chester Square Chester Square is an elongated residential garden square in London's Belgravia district. It was developed by the Grosvenor family, as were the nearby Belgrave and Eaton Square. The square is named after the city of Chester, the city nearest ...

. The first block was laid out by

Thomas Cubitt Thomas Cubitt (25 February 1788 – 20 December 1855) was a British master builder, notable for his employment in developing many of the historic streets and squares of London, especially in Belgravia, Pimlico and Bloomsbury. His great-great-g ...

from 1827. In 2016 it was named as the "Most Expensive Place to Buy Property in Britain", with a full terraced house costing on average £17 million — many of such town houses have been converted, within the same, protected structures, into upmarket apartments. The six adjoining, tree-planted, central gardens of Eaton Square are Grade II listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. All of the buildings (№s 1–7, 8-12A, 14–23, 24 and 24a to 48, 51–62, 63–66, Eaton House (№ 66a), 67–71, 72, 73–82, 83–102 and 103–118) are statutorily

listed Listed may refer to: * Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm * Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic * Endangered species in biology * Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...

, specifically at Grade II* save as to 1 to 7 and 63 to 66a which are in the mainstream, initial category of grade II. №s 103 to 105 are leased and internally converted into the Belgian Embassy, as is № 106 for the Bolivian Embassy. The red telephone booth, of the "K6" edition outside № 103, is Grade II listed.

Overview

The houses in Eaton Square are large, predominantly three-bay-wide buildings, joined in regular terraces in a classical style, with four or five main storeys, plus attic and basement and a

mews house A mews is a row or courtyard of stables and carriage houses with living quarters above them, built behind large city houses before motor vehicles replaced horses in the early twentieth century. Mews are usually located in desirable residential ...

behind. Most of the houses are faced with white stucco, but some are faced with underlying high-quality brickwork. Sides are set apart apart. As to roads: the whole rectangle is divided into six compartments or zones as it is bisected lengthways by the Victoria or Buckingham Palace approach way to the

King's Road King's Road or Kings Road (or sometimes the King's Road, especially when it was the king's private road until 1830, or as a colloquialism by middle/upper class London residents), is a major street stretching through Chelsea and Fulham, both ...

which is very diversely and briefly successively named northeast of

Sloane Square Sloane Square is a small hard-landscaped square on the boundaries of the central London districts of Belgravia and Chelsea, located southwest of Charing Cross, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The area forms a boundary betw ...

). Crossways it is spanned by four less important roads, all of which change name before during and after their transit across the square. All of the roads while in transit across the square assume the name Eaton Square and most of them are one-way, with no full outer circuit in any one direction permitted or possible. In 1900, the Welsh Industrial Association held an exhibition at 83 Eaton Square, rented by the Winifred, Countess of Dundonald, the event was visited by Alexandra, Princess of Wales. The person presiding over the refreshment room exhibition was Kathleen, Duchess of Wellington, assisted by Mrs. A.J. Warden, with a party of attractive ladies wearing the national costume of Wales accompanied by Ivor and Albertina Herbert of Llanover's Harpist playing for the occasion. Between 1916 and 1917, building 87 briefly became the 'Countess of Dundonald hospital', treating many of the wounded in the Great War,

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

& Queen Consort

Mary of Teck Mary of Teck (Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes; 26 May 186724 March 1953) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 6 May 1910 until 20 January 1936 as the wife of King-Empe ...

visited the patients at the Hospital, they were greeted by the Staff and Countess of Dundonald herself. Before

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

homes on the street ranked as those of the

upper class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status, usually are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper class is gen ...

but was outranked by comparators in

, Grosvenor Square,

St James's Square St James's Square is the only square in the St James's district of the City of Westminster and is a garden square. It has predominantly Georgian and Neo-Georgian architecture. For its first two hundred or so years it was one of the three or f ...

Park Lane Park Lane is a dual carriageway road in the City of Westminster in Central London. It is part of the London Inner Ring Road and runs from Hyde Park Corner in the south to Marble Arch in the north. It separates Hyde Park to the west from ...

. The aftermath of that war saw most of those converted to commercial and institutional uses, leaving the square almost wholly residential, raising its prominence. Some of the houses remain undivided but many have been internally converted into flats or multi-storey instances (

maisonettes An apartment (American English), or flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) that occupies part of a building, generally on a single story. There are ...

) by permission or instruction of the

Grosvenor Estate Grosvenor Group Limited is an internationally diversified property group, which traces its origins to 1677 and has its headquarters in London, England. It has a global reach, now in 62 international cities, with offices in 14 of them, operated on ...

. These are often lateral conversions – that is, they cut across more than one of the original houses – let under typical long leases across the uppermost price bracket, their exact price depending on size, lease duration and amenity. The façades of the square remain as imagined and built. Most but not all of the freeholds still belong to the Grosvenor Group.

Hugh Grosvenor, 7th Duke of Westminster Hugh Richard Louis Grosvenor, 7th Duke of Westminster (born 29 January 1991), styled as Earl Grosvenor until August 2016, is a British aristocrat, billionaire, businessman, and owner of Grosvenor Group. He became Duke of Westminster on 9 August ...

, who inherited the

Duke of Westminster Duke of Westminster is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created by Queen Victoria in 1874 and bestowed upon Hugh Grosvenor, 3rd Marquess of Westminster. It is the most recent dukedom conferred on someone not related to the ...

title from his father Gerald Grosvenor in 2016, uses one as his London home. Until the 1920s his predecessors lived in

Grosvenor House Grosvenor House was one of the largest townhouses in London, home of the Grosvenor family (better known as the Dukes of Westminster) for more than a century. Their original London residence was on Millbank, but after the family had developed ...

the mansion forerunner to the

Grosvenor House Hotel ] JW Marriott Grosvenor House London, originally named the Grosvenor House Hotel, is a luxury hotel that opened in 1929 in the Mayfair area of London, England. The hotel is managed by JW Marriott Hotels, which is a brand of Marriott Internat ...

facing Hyde Park. St Peter's Eaton Square, Belgravia

Co-fronting the north-east end is St Peter's, a 200-feet-long, tree-lined

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

church, in a classical style, fronted by a six-columned Ionic portico behind which is a slender clock tower. It was designed by

Henry Hakewill Henry Hakewill (4 October 1771 – 13 March 1830) was an English architect. Biography Early life Henry Hakewell was a pupil of John Yenn, RA, and also studied at the Royal Academy, where in 1790 he was awarded a silver medal for a drawing of a ...

and built between 1824 and 1827 (during the square's building). Between 1940 and 1944 the

Belgian government in exile The Belgian Government in London (french: Gouvernement belge à Londres, nl, Belgische regering in Londen), also known as the Pierlot IV Government, was the government in exile of Belgium between October 1940 and September 1944 during World W ...

occupied its three numbers which have been long used as that country's embassy in Britain and further premises in central London as their lesser homes and offices.

Fictional references

;Eaton Square *Adam Verver and his wife, the former Charlotte Stant live at the square in the last complete major novel by

Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...

, ''

The Golden Bowl ''The Golden Bowl'' is a 1904 novel by Henry James. Set in England, this complex, intense study of marriage and adultery completes what some critics have called the "major phase" of James's career. ''The Golden Bowl'' explores the tangle of int ...

''. *In the original newspaper piece that was expanded into Gilbert and Sullivan's ''

Trial by Jury A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significan ...

'', the judge invites the rest of the cast to his house in "Five hundred and eleven, Eaton Square" for the

wedding breakfast A wedding breakfast is a feast given to the newlyweds and guests after the wedding, making it equivalent to a wedding reception that serves a meal. The phrase is still used in British English. Nowadays the wedding breakfast is not normally a m ...

. *In Angela Carter's last novel, ''

Wise Children ::''This article refers to the novel by Angela Carter. For the album by Tom Harrell see Wise Children (album)'' ''Wise Children'' (1991) was the last novel written by Angela Carter. The novel follows the fortunes of twin chorus girls, Dora and ...

'', Eaton Square is visited by Peregrine Hazard after returning by cab from the beach. *In Anthony Trollope's novel ''The Bertrams'' Sir Henry Harcourt and his unhappy bride Lady Harcourt (Caroline Waddington) take a house in the square after their marriage. *In

Jeffrey Archer Jeffrey Howard Archer, Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare (born 15 April 1940) is an English novelist, life peer, convicted criminal, and former politician. Before becoming an author, Archer was a Member of Parliament (1969–1974), but did not ...

's ''

First Among Equals ''Primus inter pares'' is a Latin phrase meaning first among equals. It is typically used as an honorary title for someone who is formally equal to other members of their group but is accorded unofficial respect, traditionally owing to their se ...

'',

Charles Gurney Seymour ''First Among Equals'' is a 1984 novel by British author Jeffrey Archer, which follows the careers and personal lives of four fictional British politicians (Simon Kerslake, MP for Coventry Central and later Pucklebridge; Charles Seymour, MP for ...

, future cabinet minister and son of the Earl of Bridgwater, and his wife Lady Fiona, daughter of the Duke of Falkirk, live in Eaton Square. *BBC 1938 radio series Send for Paul Temple bases him in the street; readers find him at flat "№26A" in novelization ''Paul Temple and the Tyler Mystery'' *Lady Rosamund Painswick lives at the square in ''

Downton Abbey ''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. The series first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United States o ...

''. ;

Eaton Place Eaton Place is a street in London's Belgravia district. It runs off the top left hand corner of Eaton Square and then parallel to it until a junction with Upper Belgrave Street. The Embassy of Hungary, London is at no 35. The 1971 TV series '' ...

The Bellamy family of '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' lived in "165" ''Eaton Place'', one of the grand approach ways.

Notable residents

*№ 1:

Lewis Pelly Lieutenant General Sir Lewis Pelly, (14 November 1825 – 22 April 1892) was a British East India Company officer, and then an imperial army and political officer. At the end of his life, he was a Conservative Member of Parliament for Hackney ...

- British East India Company officer, imperial army and political officer, Conservative MP, Lord Boothby – parliamentarian, political commentator and friend of Ronnie Kray *№ 2: Diana Mitford, Lady Mosley *№ 36: Ruth Roche, Baroness Fermoy – long-time confidante of

Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was the l ...

*№ 37: Neville Chamberlain – British Prime Minister *№ 37: Joachim von Ribbentrop – German Ambassador to London *№ 39: Lady Aline Caroline Cholmondeley, daughter of

George Cholmondeley, 5th Marquess of Cholmondeley George Horatio Charles Cholmondeley, 5th Marquess of Cholmondeley (; 19 May 1883 – 16 September 1968), styled Earl of Rocksavage from birth until 1923, was a British peer. He was the Lord Great Chamberlain of England in 1936 and also between ...

and Sybil Cholmondeley, Marchioness of Cholmondeley. She died on 30 June 2015 at age 98. *№ 42:

Peter Thorneycroft George Edward Peter Thorneycroft, Baron Thorneycroft, (26 July 1909 – 4 June 1994) was a British Conservative Party politician. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer between 1957 and 1958. Early life Born in Dunston, Staffordshire, Thorn ...

– British Chancellor of the Exchequer *№ 44:

Prince Metternich Klemens Wenzel Nepomuk Lothar, Prince of Metternich-Winneburg zu Beilstein ; german: Klemens Wenzel Nepomuk Lothar Fürst von Metternich-Winneburg zu Beilstein (15 May 1773 – 11 June 1859), known as Klemens von Metternich or Prince Metternic ...

– Austrian statesman *№ 45:

George Tryon Vice-Admiral Sir George Tryon (4 January 1832 – 22 June 1893) was a British admiral who died when his flagship HMS ''Victoria'' collided with HMS ''Camperdown'' during manoeuvres off Tripoli, Lebanon. Early life Tryon was born at Bu ...

– British Admiral who died in the sinking of HMS ''Victoria'' in 1893 *№ 54: Vivien Leigh –

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology) ...

-winning actress;

Luise Rainer Luise Rainer ( , ; 12 January 1910 – 30 December 2014) was a German-American-British film actress. She was the first thespian to win multiple Academy Awards and the first to win back-to-back; at the time of her death, thirteen days shy of her ...

– Oscar-winning actress *№ 68:

Thomas Campbell Robertson Thomas Campbell Robertson (9 November 1789 – 6 July 1863) was a British civil servant of Bengal Civil Service in India. Personal life Thomas Campbell Robertson was born in Kenilworth on 9 November 1789, the youngest son of Captain George Rob ...

, British colonial administrator in India, died here in 1863;

Barry Gibb Sir Barry Alan Crompton Gibb (born 1 September 1946) is a British musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. He rose to worldwide fame as a member of the Bee Gees, one of the most commercially successful groups in the history of popula ...

of the pop group the Bee Gees, 1970. *№ 72: Sir

Robert Helpmann Sir Robert Murray Helpmann CBE ( Helpman, 9 April 1909 – 28 September 1986) was an Australian ballet dancer, actor, director, and choreographer. After early work in Australia he moved to Britain in 1932, where he joined the Vic-Wells Ballet ( ...

– actor, dancer and choreographer, mostly remembered for his role in the film '' Chitty Chitty Bang Bang''. *№ 75: Rex Harrison – Oscar-winning actor *№ 80:

George Peabody George Peabody ( ; February 18, 1795 – November 4, 1869) was an American financier and philanthropist. He is widely regarded as the father of modern philanthropy. Born into a poor family in Massachusetts, Peabody went into business in dry g ...

– American banker and philanthropist *№ 82: Queen

Wilhelmina of the Netherlands Wilhelmina (; Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Maria; 31 August 1880 – 28 November 1962) was Queen of the Netherlands from 1890 until her abdication in 1948. She reigned for nearly 58 years, longer than any other Dutch monarch. Her reign saw World Wa ...

in 1940. * № 84:

Stafford Harry Northcote, Viscount Saint Cyres Stafford Harry Northcote, Viscount Saint Cyres KStJ (29 August 1869 – 2 February 1926) was an English diplomat and historian. The only son of Walter Stafford Northcote, 2nd Earl of Iddesleigh and Elizabeth Lucy Meysey-Thompson, he was styled a ...

– diplomat and historian *№ 86:

Lord Halifax Edward Frederick Lindley Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax, (16 April 1881 – 23 December 1959), known as The Lord Irwin from 1925 until 1934 and The Viscount Halifax from 1934 until 1944, was a senior British Conservative politician of the 19 ...

– British Foreign Secretary *№ 93: Stanley Baldwin – British Prime Minister *№ 97: Sir Francis Scott Bt and Lady Scott of Great Barr (d. 1863 and 1909 respectively) *№ 99: Admiral of the Fleet Sir John West *№ 100:

- freeholder of most of the square and most of the surrounding district * № 102:

Instituto Cervantes Instituto Cervantes (the Cervantes Institute) is a worldwide nonprofit organization created by the Spanish government in 1991. It is named after Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616), the author of ''Don Quixote'' and perhaps the most important figur ...

*№ 112: Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry Codrington;

Leo Amery Leopold Charles Maurice Stennett Amery, (22 November 1873 – 16 September 1955), also known as L. S. Amery, was a British Conservative Party politician and journalist. During his career, he was known for his interest in military preparedness, ...

- politician and minister in Churchill's wartime cabinet; and his son

Julian Amery Harold Julian Amery, Baron Amery of Lustleigh, (27 March 1919 – 3 September 1996) was a British Conservative Party politician, who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for 39 of the 42 years between 1950 and 1992. He was appointed to the Pr ...

, Baron Amery of Lustleigh, Conservative MP. *№ 114: Harry Stuart Goodhart-Rendell – architect *№ 106: The embassy of Bolivia *№ 115: Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Seymour *№ 118: Sir William Corry, Bt., of Dunraven, Co. Antrim (d. 1926) *№ 57 Lower Belgrave St (corner of Eaton Sq.)

Roman Abramovich Roman Arkadyevich Abramovich (, ; he, רומן ארקדיביץ' אברמוביץ'; born 24 October 1966) is a Russian oligarch and politician. He is the former owner of Chelsea, a Premier League football club in London, England, and is the ...

- Russian billionaire and the main owner of

Chelsea Football Club Chelsea Football Club is an English professional football club based in Fulham, West London. Founded in 1905, they play their home games at Stamford Bridge. The club competes in the Premier League, the top division of English football. ...

George Soros George Soros ( name written in eastern order), (born György Schwartz, August 12, 1930) is a Hungarian-American businessman and philanthropist. , he had a net worth of US$8.6 billion, Note that this site is updated daily. having donated mo ...

– Hungarian-born hedge fund manager. *

John King, Baron King of Wartnaby John Leonard King, Baron King of Wartnaby (29 August 1917 – 12 July 2005) was a British businessman, who was noted for leading British Airways from an inefficient, nationalised company to one of the most successful airlines of recent times. ...

Princess Katherine of Greece and Denmark Princess Katherine of Greece and DenmarkMarlene A. Eilers, ''Queen Victoria's Descendants'' (Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1987), page 165. ( el, Αικατερίνη; 4 May 1913 – 2 October 2007), styled in the United King ...

Alfred Robens, Baron Robens of Woldingham Alfred Robens, Baron Robens of Woldingham, PC (18 December 1910 – 27 June 1999) was an English trade unionist, Labour politician and industrialist. His political ambitions, including an aspiration to become Prime Minister, were frustrat ...

– politician and chairman of the

National Coal Board The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "ve ...

* Mr and Mrs Ernest Aldrich Simpson from 1958 *

Sarah, Duchess of York Sarah, Duchess of York (born Sarah Margaret Ferguson; 15 October 1959), also known by the nickname Fergie, is a member of the British royal family. She is the former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, the younger brother of King Charles III ...

, from 2014

Footnotes and citations

Footnotes

Citations

External links

{{commons category
St Peter's Eaton Square

Eaton Square Concerts
– a classical concert series based at St Peter's 1827 in London Belgravia Grade II listed parks and gardens in London Houses completed in 1853 Squares in the City of Westminster Thomas Cubitt buildings Communal gardens