Leinster Square () and Prince's Square are mirroring

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. ...

s in

Bayswater Bayswater is an area within the City of Westminster in West London. It is a built-up district with a population density of 17,500 per square kilometre, and is located between Kensington Gardens to the south, Paddington to the north-east, and ...

on the cusp of Westbourne and

Notting Hill Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a cosmopolitan and multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting Hill Carnival and Portobello Road M ...

. One street overlaps (is shared by) the two squares. It is within the large additions of 1965 to the

City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and London boroughs, borough in Inner London. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It occupies a large area of cent ...

London London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, W2. The square is in a broad cluster of Victorian estates of private housing with aesthetic landscaping and architecture. These include Prince's Square of symmetrical design, which the square fronts, Hereford Road and Garway Road. It close to

Westbourne Grove Westbourne Grove is a retail road running across Notting Hill, an area of west London. Its western end is in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and its eastern end is in the City of Westminster; it runs from Kensington Park Road in the ...

, the major retail road running across

and

Tube Tube or tubes may refer to: * ''Tube'' (2003 film), a 2003 Korean film * ''The Tube'' (TV series), a music related TV series by Channel 4 in the United Kingdom * "Tubes" (Peter Dale), performer on the Soccer AM television show * Tube (band), a ...

stations:

, Queensway and

Notting Hill Gate Notting Hill Gate is one of the main thoroughfares of Notting Hill, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically the street was a location for toll gates, from which it derives its modern name. Location At Ossington Street/Ke ...

. Much of the area's war damage in the

London Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

was rapidly repaired with houses rebuilt to match the original tall terraces.

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

tall

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...

terraced houses encompass the square, which, on the Hereford Road side, features a proportion of restaurants and cafés. The buildings have basements with black railings, slate mansard roofs, sash windows and yellow bricks with white stucco projections, pediments and dressings. As of 2015, a string of high-end developments is taking place in the square, with new flats and townhouses built behind the façade of two former hotels. The buildings surrounding the square are listed

Grade II In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

on the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, an ...

. The buildings are grouped into individual listings as 1–6, 7–16, 17–20, 23–26, 21 and 22, 27–34, and 38–57 Leinster Square. 35–37 and 58–64 and Leinster Square are listed in two groups with buildings in adjacent Prince's Square.

History

Leinster Square was begun along with adjacent Prince's Square in 1856 and finished in 1864, largely the work of the obscure builder and speculator George Wyatt. The plane trees which still today dominate the gardens date from this time, including the one planted in the middle of the garden on 26 February 1887 in Queen Victoria's Jubilee Year. In 1977, after a period of decline, the garden underwent refurbishment, with extensive planting that largely survives today and the restoration of its

iron railings An iron railing is a fence made of iron. This may either be wrought iron, which is ductile and durable and may be hammered into elaborate shapes when hot, or the cheaper cast iron, which is of low ductility and quite brittle. Cast iron can also ...

, the originals removed during the

Second World War 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 opposin ...

. As of today the garden is accessible to key-holding residents only and managed by the Leinster Square Gardens Association (LSGA), set up in 1976 to rebuild the gardens after the above-mentioned period of neglect.

Notable residents

Georgina Fanny Cheffins Georgina Fanny Cheffins (1863 – 29 July 1932) was an English militant suffragette who on her imprisonment in 1912 went on hunger strike for which action she received the Hunger Strike Medal from the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). ...

(1863–1932), militant

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

, died at 25 Leinster Square. *

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-eart ...

(born 1951), popular musician, lived at 28A Leinster Square in the late 1970s during the formative years of

The Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For most of their history the line-up consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion). The Police ...

.Interview: Trudie Style
''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'' * Sir

Charles Locke Eastlake Charles Locke Eastlake (11 March 1836 – 20 November 1906) was a British architect and furniture designer. His uncle, Sir Charles Lock Eastlake PRA (born in 1793), was a Keeper of the National Gallery, from 1843 to 1847, and from 1855 its fi ...

(1836–1906), director of the National Gallery and author, lived at 41 Leinster Square, dying there in 1906.

References

{{reflist

External links

Leinster Square Gardens Association
Notting Hill Bayswater Garden squares in London Squares in the City of Westminster Streets in the City of Westminster Grade II listed houses in London Grade II listed buildings in the City of Westminster Communal gardens