![Wellington Square, Chelsea, London - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Wellington_Square%2C_Chelsea%2C_London_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3722.jpg)
Wellington Square is a
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. ...
in
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
, London, off the south side of 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, London, Chelsea ...
. It was built in the first decades of the nineteenth century on the former site of a nursery owned by the florist and "well-known tulip-fancier"
[ Thomas Davey and named after the Duke of Wellington. The square consists of 35 five-storey terraced stucco houses around a central garden with a fountain. The whole square is grade II listed with Historic England.
In 1870 it was the location of a double-murder. A. A. Milne, creator of Winnie-the-Pooh, lived there in the early 1900s as well as the notorious occultist Aleister Crowley in the 1920s. It was the home of fictional spy ]James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
. Other notable former residents include the geologist Samuel Joseph Mackie at number 11 and the miniaturist Alice Rischgitz at number 12.
Origins
The square is named after Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister o ...
, and is a cul-de-sac
A dead end, also known as a cul-de-sac (, from French for 'bag-bottom'), no through road or no exit road, is a street with only one inlet or outlet.
The term "dead end" is understood in all varieties of English, but the official terminology ...
consisting of 35 five-storey terraced stucco
Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...
houses built in the early to mid-nineteenth century.[ It was built on the site of a nursery owned by the florist and "well-known tulip-fancier"][ Pavord, Anna. (2001) ''The Tulip.'' Abridged edition. London: Bloomsbury. p. 193. ISBN 1582341303] Thomas Davey (c.1758–1833). The whole square is 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 ...
with Historic England
Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked wit ...
.
The Chelsea murders
In 1870, the reverend Elias Huelin (born 1786) and his housekeeper Ann Boss were murdered at number 24 by odd-job man
A handyman, also known as a fixer, handyperson or handyworker, is a person skilled at a wide range of repairs, typically around the home. These tasks include trade skills, repair work, maintenance work, are both interior and exterior, and are so ...
Walter Millar, who was undertaking work on the house which was owned by Huelin. Huelin was assistant chaplain at Brompton Cemetery
Brompton Cemetery (originally the West of London and Westminster Cemetery) is a London cemetery, managed by The Royal Parks, in West Brompton in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries. Estab ...
and a prominent local property owner and landlord, who lived nearby at 15 Paultons Square
Paultons Square is a Georgian terraced garden square in Chelsea, London, SW3. It was built in 1836–40 on the site of a former market garden, land previously owned by Sir Thomas More and Sir John Danvers. The square features a central lawn e ...
. Millar was later hanged for his crimes.
James Bond
In Ian Fleming
Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer who is best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., a ...
's books featuring the secret agent James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
, Bond is described as living in a ground floor flat in a square lined with plane trees
''Platanus'' is a genus consisting of a small number of tree species native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae.
All mature members of ''Platanus'' are tall, reaching in height. All except f ...
in Chelsea off the King's Road. According to Fleming's biographer and friend John Pearson, Bond probably lived in Wellington Square, possibly at number 30. This view of a Wellington Square residence is shared by the author William Boyd William, Willie, Will or Bill Boyd may refer to:
Academics
* William Alexander Jenyns Boyd (1842–1928), Australian journalist and schoolmaster
* William Boyd (educator) (1874–1962), Scottish educator
* William Boyd (pathologist) (1885–1979), ...
, who wrote an article on the subject for ''The Times Literary Supplement
''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp.
History
The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication i ...
'' in 2020, "The spies who lived here: How I found James Bond’s precise address", but after extensive research concluded that Bond lived at number 25, not number 30. Fleming lived nearby at 24 Cheyne Walk
Cheyne Walk is an historic road in Chelsea, London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It runs parallel with the River Thames. Before the construction of Chelsea Embankment reduced the width of the Thames here, it fronted ...
when he put the finishing touches to the first Bond novel, '' Casino Royale'' (1953). John Le Carre
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
's fictional spy George Smiley
George Smiley OBE is a fictional character created by John le Carré. Smiley is a career intelligence officer with "The Circus", the British overseas intelligence agency. He is a central character in the novels ''Call for the Dead'', ''A Mur ...
lived nearby at 9 Bywater Street
Bywater may refer to:
People
* Bywater (surname), an uncommon British surname
Places
* Bywater, New Orleans, a neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
;In Fiction
* In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world of Middle-earth:
** Bywate ...
.
Former residents
* A. A. Milne
Alan Alexander Milne (; 18 January 1882 – 31 January 1956) was an English writer best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh, as well as for children's poetry. Milne was primarily a playwright before the huge success of Winni ...
, creator of Winnie-the-Pooh
Winnie-the-Pooh, also called Pooh Bear and Pooh, is a fictional Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic teddy bear created by English author A. A. Milne and English illustrator E. H. Shepard.
The first collection of stories about the character w ...
, lived at number 8 from 1904 where he wrote '' Lovers of London''.
* Geologist Samuel Joseph Mackie lived at number 11.
* Miniaturist
A portrait miniature is a miniature portrait painting, usually executed in gouache, watercolor, or enamel. Portrait miniatures developed out of the techniques of the miniatures in illuminated manuscripts, and were popular among 16th-century eli ...
Alice Rischgitz lived at number 12.
* Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley (; born Edward Alexander Crowley; 12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, painter, novelist, and mountaineer. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the pro ...
, described in the British press as the "wickedest man in the world", lived at number 31 in 1922 where he wrote '' The Diary of a Drug Fiend''.
* Number 32 was the home of the fictional characters Lucy Carlesi (Joan Collins
Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. Collins is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primetime ...
) and Gino Carlesi (Ralph Bates
Ralph Bates (12 February 1940 – 27 March 1991) was an English film and television actor, known for his role in the British sitcom '' Dear John'' and the original ''Poldark''.
Biography
Bates was born in Bristol, England. His parents were bo ...
) in the horror film ''I Don't Want to Be Born
''I Don't Want to Be Born'' is a 1975 British horror film directed by Peter Sasdy and starring Joan Collins, Ralph Bates, Eileen Atkins, and Donald Pleasence. Its plot follows a woman who gives birth to a child that appears to be demonically p ...
'' (1975).[Pykett, Derek. (2008) ]
British Horror Film Locations
'. Jefferson: McFarland & Co. p. 73. ISBN 9780786433292
References
External links
{{coord, 51.4893, -0.1628, format=dms, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title
Chelsea, London
Streets in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
Garden squares in London
Squares in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
King's Road, Chelsea, London