Cadogan Sq London SW1X 0JU north side August 2008

Cadogan Square () is a residential square in

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End. Toponymy Knightsbridge is an ancien ...

, London, that was named after Earl Cadogan. Whilst it is mainly a residential area, some of the properties are used for diplomatic and educational purposes (notably

Hill House School Hill House International Junior School is an independent preparatory day school primarily in the Knightsbridge district of London. It was founded in September 1949 by athlete and Liberal Party politician Lt-Col Stuart Townend with his wife, Be ...

). The square is known for being one of the most expensive residential streets in the United Kingdom, with an average house price of around £5.75 million in 2013.

Milner Street Milner Street is a street in Chelsea, London, England. It runs roughly west from Cadogan Square, crossing Ovington Street, Lennox Gardens, and Clabon Mews. St Simon Zelotes is a grade II listed church in Milner Street, built in 1858–59, de ...

runs from the middle of the west side of the square.

History

The square was built between 1877 and 1888, largely on the grounds of the

Prince's Club The Prince's Club was a socially exclusive gentlemen's multisports club in London, England. The original 'Prince's Club' was founded in 1853 in Chelsea by George and James Prince and its main sports were rackets and real tennis. Cricket, croque ...

. The west side has the greatest variety of houses, all variations on the same Flemish-influenced theme. Numbers 54-58 were designed by William Young in 1877 for Lord Cadogan, and the architect

J. J. Stevenson John James Stevenson FRSE FSA FRIBA (24 August 1831 – 5 May 1908), usually referred to as J. J. Stevenson, was a British architect of the late-Victorian era. Born in Glasgow, he worked in Glasgow, Edinburgh and London. He is particularly assoc ...

was largely responsible for the south side, built in 1879–85. The east side was built in 1879 by G. T. Robinson. Number 61 is an early example of high-class mansion flats, and number 61A was once a studio-house for a Mr F. W. Lawson. Film stars

Christopher Lee Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee (27 May 1922 – 7 June 2015) was an English actor and singer. In a long career spanning more than 60 years, Lee often portrayed villains, and appeared as Count Dracula in seven Hammer Horror films, ultim ...

and

Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff (), was an English actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstein'' (1931) (his 82nd film) established ...

lived in Cadogan Square, as well as stop motion animator

Ray Harryhausen Raymond Frederick Harryhausen (June 29, 1920 – May 7, 2013) was an American-British animator and special effects creator who created a form of stop motion model animation known as "Dynamation". His works include the animation for '' Mi ...

. The Anglo-Irish fantasy writer

Lord Dunsany Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany (; 24 July 1878 – 25 October 1957, usually Lord Dunsany) was an Anglo-Irish writer and dramatist. Over 90 volumes of fiction, essays, poems and plays appeared in his lifetime.Lanham, M ...

lived in the square in the 1920s and English writer

Arnold Bennett Enoch Arnold Bennett (27 May 1867 – 27 March 1931) was an English author, best known as a novelist. He wrote prolifically: between the 1890s and the 1930s he completed 34 novels, seven volumes of short stories, 13 plays (some in collaboratio ...

lived at number 75 during the same decade. 81 Cadogan Square was where the American socialite

Barbara Daly Baekeland Barbara Daly Baekeland (September 28, 1921 – November 17, 1972) was a wealthy American socialite who was murdered by her son, Antony "Tony" Baekeland. She was the ex-wife of Brooks Baekeland, who was the grandson of Leo Baekeland, inventor of B ...

was murdered by her son Antony in November, 1972. American war correspondent and author Martha Gellhorn lived in Cadogan Square until her death in 1998.

Today

Cadogan Square is one of the most desirable residential addresses in London and is one of the most expensive in the United Kingdom. It is formed of a garden (restricted to residents) surrounded by red-brick houses, the majority of which have been converted into flats or apartments. The square is south of Pont Street, east of Lennox Gardens, and west of

Sloane Street Sloane Street is a major London street in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea which runs north to south, from Knightsbridge to Sloane Square, crossing Pont Street about halfway along. History Sloane Street takes its name from Sir H ...

. Hill House's lower, middle, and upper schools (boys and girls aged five to ten) are educated here, at what they, as a school, call 'Cadogan Gardens'. Another independent preparatory school,

Sussex House School Sussex House School (commonly known as Sussex House), is a boys’ preparatory school located in Chelsea, London. Founded in 1952, the school occupies a house designed by Norman Shaw at 68 Cadogan Square, and since 1994 has operated as an indep ...

, located at number 68, was founded here in 1952: the school is sited in a house by architect

Norman Shaw Richard Norman Shaw RA (7 May 1831 – 17 November 1912), also known as Norman Shaw, was a British architect who worked from the 1870s to the 1900s, known for his country houses and for commercial buildings. He is considered to be among the g ...

. Apartments or flats tend to be available on short leases and are sold for several million pounds. There are three or so houses on the square that have not been converted into flats, and these may be valued at over £25 million each. In 2013, the average property price on Cadogan Square was about £5.75 million, making it the third most expensive street in the country. The freeholder of most of the properties is the 8th Earl Cadogan, a multi-billionaire whose family has owned the land for several hundred years. As with many properties in prime central London areas, many of the apartments in Cadogan Square are unoccupied for a large part of the year. Numbers 4 (by G.E. Street), 52, 62 and 62b, 68 and 72 are all Grade II*

listed building 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 I ...

References

External links

* {{LB Kensington and Chelsea Squares in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Knightsbridge Cadogan Estate Communal gardens