The Saracen's Head was an

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...

on the north side of the street to the west of the church of

St Sepulchre-without-Newgate Holy Sepulchre London, formerly and in some official uses Saint Sepulchre-without-Newgate, is the largest Anglican parish church in the City of London. It stands on the north side of Holborn Viaduct across a crossroads from the Old Bailey, and ...

Snow Hill, London Snow Hill is a location in the City of London. Historically it was the site of one of the City of London Aqueduct (water supply), water conduits, which on days of great celebration was made to run with red and white wine, the last occasion being ...

. When Sarah Ann Mountain was in charge they made stagecoaches here and fifteen of them left each day for destinations including Birmingham and Leeds.

History

The inn dated from the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, when it was a

coaching inn The coaching inn (also coaching house or staging inn) was a vital part of Europe's inland transport infrastructure until the development of the railway, providing a resting point ( layover) for people and horses. The inn served the needs of tra ...

. The origins of the name, "

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia Pe ...

's Head", are uncertain. It became a popular stop for mail coaches approaching the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

as it provided a place for passengers to rest. It featured a large gateway that led into a courtyard with numerous galleries leading into individual bedrooms. In 1522,

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (Crown of Castile, Castil ...

, stayed at the inn, by which time it had 30 beds and could stable four horses.Henry A Harben
'Sandy's Row – Savage's Rents'
in A Dictionary of London (London, 1918), British History Online ccessed 21 September 2020

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys (; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English diarist and naval administrator. He served as administrator of the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament and is most famous for the diary he kept for a decade. Pepys had no mariti ...

and

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish Satire, satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whig (British political party), Whigs, then for the Tories (British political party), Tories), poe ...

were reported to be regular patrons at the inn. In the 18th century, the

Mohocks The Mohocks were allegedly a gang of violent, well-born criminals that terrorized London in the early 18th century, attacking men and women alike. Taking their name from the Mohawks, they were said to kill or disfigure their male victims and sexual ...

kidnapped several elderly women at the inn, trapped them in barrels, and rolled them downhill towards Newgate Street. During the 19th century, there were three signs on each side of the inn with a picture of a Saracen. Butler William Mountain and his wife Sarah Ann Mountain would be noted innkeepers of the Saracen's Head, Snow Hill. Butler joined the innkeepers company in 1808. Sarah took over the inn in 1818 when her husband died. When Sarah Ann Mountain was is charge they made stagecoaches here and fifteen of them left each day for destinations including Birmingham and Leeds. The Saracen's Head was demolished in 1868 to construct the

Holborn Viaduct Holborn Viaduct is a road bridge in London and the name of the street which crosses it (which forms part of the A40 route). It links Holborn, via Holborn Circus, with Newgate Street, in the City of London financial district, passing over ...

. The landlord was subsequently arrested for attempting to sell spirits in an adjoining property following the inn's closure, as his licence had been revoked. There is a plaque noting the inn on the current premises.

In fiction

The inn was mentioned in

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

' ''

Nicholas Nickleby ''Nicholas Nickleby'' or ''The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby'' (or also ''The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, Containing a Faithful Account of the Fortunes, Misfortunes, Uprisings, Downfallings, and Complete Career of the ...

'', referencing two of the signs that adorned the courtyard gateway, and is where Nickleby first meets the schoolmaster Wackford Squeers. A song about the inn appears in the 1914 novel, '' The Flying Inn'' by G. K. Chesterton The inn is briefly mentioned in ''

Hornblower and the Crisis ''Hornblower and the Crisis'' is a 1967 historical novel by C. S. Forester. It forms part of the Horatio Hornblower series, and as a result of Forester's death in 1966, it was left unfinished. There is a one-page summary of the last several ch ...

'' (1967) by

C. S. Forester Cecil Louis Troughton Smith (27 August 1899 – 2 April 1966), known by his pen name Cecil Scott "C. S." Forester, was an English novelist known for writing tales of naval warfare, such as the 12-book Horatio Hornblower series depicting a Roya ...

References

Sources

* * {{refend

External links

The Saracen's Head
– Jack's Open Range
View of the demolition of the Saracen's Head Inn, Snow Hill, City of London, 1868.
Pubs in the City of London Buildings and structures demolished in 1868 Coaching inns Nicholas Nickleby Former pubs in London Demolished buildings and structures in London