Liberties Of The Savoy

The Savoy was a manor and liberty sandwiched between the Liberty of Westminster, on two sides, the Inner and Middle Temple corner of City of London and a steep bank of the Tideway. It was in the county of Middlesex. It was all held by the Duchy of Lancaster, and was also known as the Liberty of the Duchy of Lancaster. The duchy (monarch) has kept some reversionary (freehold (law), underlying freehold) interests and the Savoy Chapel outright. The manor, enjoying the status of a liberty, comprised the precinct of the Savoy, the southern half and detached south-west of the parish of St Clement Danes (parish), St Clement Danes and about three quarters of St Mary le Strand (parish), St Mary le Strand as it only, in a tiny part, extended north of Strand, London, the Strand whereas those parishes straddled this ancient road.

History

Toponymy

Savoy is derived from Peter II, Count of Savoy who was granted land by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1246.

Palace and hospital

The land for the palace was granted by Henry III to Peter II, Count of Savoy, Peter of Savoy, uncle of his queen, Eleanor of Provence, and was renamed Savoy Palace. Peter in turn gave the palace to the Congregation of Canons of the Bernard of Menthon, Great Saint Bernard, and it became the "Great Hospital of St Bernard de Monte Jovis in Savoy". The hospital was purchased by Queen Eleanor who gave the site to her second son, Edmund Crouchback, Edmund, Earl of Lancaster. When Edward I of England, Edward I became king, he confirmed the ownership of the Savoy area to Edmund with letters patent.

Duchy liberty

In 1351 Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster, Henry of Grosmont, a great-grandson of Henry III, was created the Duke of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Lancaster for services in the Hundred Years War. The Family seat, seat of Lancaster in Lancashire was raised to a county palatine.Palatine (which has primary syllable stress) is the relevant adjective; Palatinate (which has stress on the second syllable) is the noun, used alone. This meant the area was ruled by hereditary noblemen possessing special authority and autonomy from the rest of the Kingdom of England. Although the noblemen swore allegiance to the king, they had the power to rule the county and its contiguous land largely independently of the king. All other properties attached to the Duchy of Lancaster, including the Savoy became subject to the laws of the duke. As a consequence, someone being pursued for a debt in London could reside in the Savoy without fear of arrest by people acting under the authority of The Crown. Royal writs were not enforceable within the County of Lancashire until the 19th century. Lancaster had its own Court of Court of equity, Chancery until the 1970s. These circumstances have been used in historical fiction, such as the Aubrey-Maturin series, Aubrey-Maturin novels by Patrick O'Brian or John Pearce series by David Donachie.

Governance

The area was a parcel of the Duchy of Lancaster. It was divided into four wards, Church, Middle, Royal and Savoy. It was governed by a court leet.

The liberty of the Savoy was part of Middlesex, and those connected with it eligible to vote at parliamentary elections were electors for the seats of Westminster (UK Parliament constituency), Westminster.

The Liberty of the Savoy was a franchise coroner's district until 1930, when it became part of the Central district of the County of London.

The practice of beating the bounds was abandoned by the Duchy of Lancaster in 1969 and revived in 2010.

Geography

The Savoy had the Tideway, River Thames as its southern limit. It was, as to about 95%, south of the Strand, London, Strand. It was made up of parts of two parishes and one extra-parochial place. These were from west to east:

*A rectangular parcel of the parish of St Clement Danes (parish), St Clement Danes (south of the Strand, now hosts the Savoy Hotel and Shell Mex House)
*All of the slightly fatter Precinct of the Savoy (hosts the Savoy Chapel, Savoy Street and the Institution of Engineering and Technology, IET London)
*The projecting parcel of St Clement Danes & St Mary Le Strand (north of the Strand, approximates to Burleigh House/Lyceum Theatre)
*The southerly about of the parish of St Mary le Strand (parish), St Mary le Strand (now mostly taken up by Somerset House)
*About half of the non-exclave (non-detached parts) of the parish of St Clement Danes, namely south of the Strand

The limits are shown by a series of markers.

Notes

References

External links

Map of the Savoy Liberty, 1830'The Savoy', Old and New London: Volume 3 (1878)
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Savoy
History of the City of Westminster
Liberties of London
Duchy of Lancaster