St George's Barracks was a military installation in Orange Street, behind the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director o ...

, in

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 ...

History

The barracks, which were designed by John Nash and built as the main recruiting depot for the London area, were completed in 1826. Recruiting sergeants for the regiments based at the barracks tended to operate within a tight area defined by St. George's Barracks,

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson commemo ...

and

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

. The barracks, which were also used as facilities to accommodate regiments of foot guards, were retained into the 20th century because of the need for troops to be at hand to quell disturbances in Trafalgar Square. They were ultimately demolished in 1911 and the site is now occupied by the National Portrait Gallery.

References

Sources

*{{cite book , last= Conlin , first= Jonathan, year= 2006, title= The Nation's Mantelpiece: A History of the National Gallery, url= https://archive.org/details/nationsmantelpie00conl , url-access= registration , place= London, publisher= Pallas Athene, isbn=978-1843680208 Barracks in London Installations of the British Army Demolished buildings and structures in London Buildings and structures demolished in 1911