The Green Man is a

public house A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...

Putney Putney () is an affluent district in southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ...

in the

London Borough of Wandsworth Wandsworth () is a London boroughs, London borough in South West (London sub region), South West London, England. It forms part of Inner London and has an estimated population of 329,677 inhabitants. Its main communities are Battersea, Balham, P ...

, on the edge of

Putney Heath Wimbledon Common is a large open space in Wimbledon, southwest London. There are three named areas: Wimbledon Common, Putney Heath, and Putney Lower Common, which together are managed under the name Wimbledon and Putney Commons totalling 46 ...

, parts of which date back to around 1700. The pub was once frequented by

highwaymen A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to foo ...

and was a popular place for participants to fortify themselves before or after a duel on nearby Putney Heath.

Location

The pub is on the north side of Wildcroft road, between Putney Hill and Putney Heath roads.

History

A pub has stood on the spot since around 1700. It is located opposite the

grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

village pound.''Putney Heath Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Strategy''.
London Borough of Wandsworth, London, 2010. Notable regulars have included the poet, playwright, novelist, and critic

Algernon Charles Swinburne Algernon Charles Swinburne (5 April 1837 – 10 April 1909) was an English poet, playwright, novelist and critic. He wrote many plays – all tragedies – and collections of poetry such as '' Poems and Ballads'', and contributed to the Eleve ...

, who lived at

The Pines, Putney The Pines is a Grade II listed house in Putney in the London Borough of Wandsworth, it was home to the poets Algernon Charles Swinburne and Theodore Watts-Dunton. Location The building is at 9 - 11 Putney Hill, south of the Upper Richmond R ...

, and is said to have always stopped in for a drink en route to the Rose and Crown in Wimbledon.

Duels

The pub is close to what was a location for

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...

s, and according to legend, participants would visit the pub before or afterwards giving rise to the local saying "pistols for two and breakfast for one". In 1667, the Earl of Shrewsbury was killed by the Duke of Buckingham with a single blow from his sword, leaving him free to pursue Lady Shrewsbury. In May 1798, the then Prime Minister, William Pitt fought a duel with

George Tierney George Tierney PC (20 March 1761 – 25 January 1830) was an Irish Whig politician. For much of his career he was in opposition to the governments of William Pitt and Lord Liverpool. From 1818 to 1821 he was Leader of the Opposition in the ...

, the MP for Southwark, on Putney Heath. Each fired twice and all the shots missed but the event was the talk of the pub. In 1809, future Prime Minister,

George Canning George Canning (; 11 April 17708 August 1827) was a British Tory statesman. He held various senior cabinet positions under numerous prime ministers, including two important terms as foreign secretary, finally becoming Prime Minister of the U ...

fought a duel with fellow Cabinet member

Lord Castlereagh Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, (18 June 1769 – 12 August 1822), usually known as Lord Castlereagh, derived from the courtesy title Viscount Castlereagh ( ) by which he was styled from 1796 to 1821, was an Irish-born British st ...

, and was shot in the thigh, and Castlereagh helped him limp from the scene.

Highwaymen

Putney Heath was also known for the activity of highwaymen. Joseph Witlock and William Brown preyed on the intoxicated as they went home from the Green Man. Both were hanged at

Tyburn Tyburn was a Manorialism, manor (estate) in London, Middlesex, England, one of two which were served by the parish of Marylebone. Tyburn took its name from the Tyburn Brook, a tributary of the River Westbourne. The name Tyburn, from Teo Bourne ...

in 1773.

Dick Turpin Richard Turpin (bapt. 21 September 1705 – 7 April 1739) was an English highwayman whose exploits were romanticised following his execution in York for horse theft. Turpin may have followed his father's trade as a butcher ear ...

is said to have hidden his guns in a room upstairs, but this may only be a legend. Fellow highwayman

Jerry Abershawe Louis Jeremiah Abershawe (c. 1773 – 3 August 1795), better known as Jerry Abershawe, or Abershaw, was an English highwayman who terrorised travellers, mostly along the road between Kingston upon Thames and London, in the late eighteenth centur ...

was based there, and after he was hanged on 3 August 1795 on

Kennington Common Kennington Common was a swathe of common land mainly within the London Borough of Lambeth. It was one of the earliest venues for cricket around London, with matches played between 1724 and 1785. G B Buckley, ''Fresh Light on 18th Century Cric ...

, his corpse was gibbeted (displayed on a gallows) outside the pub, the last hanged highwayman's body to be so exhibited. Nearby Tibbet's Corner is thought to be a corruption of the word gibbet.

Present day

The pub is managed by Young & Co. The once common pub game, ringing the bull, was still played at the pub in 1998. The pub is inside the Putney Heath Conservation Area.In recent years it has undergone considerable modifications and enlargement of the interior and garden.

Transport

The pub is served by

Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...

buses 14, 37, 39, 85, 170, 493, 639 and 670 which stop at the Putney Heath Green Man stop just outside. East Putney tube station (District line) is a 22-minute walk, and

Putney railway station Putney railway station serves Putney in the London Borough of Wandsworth, in southwest London straddling Travelcard zone 2 and zone 3. It is down the line from . The station and all trains serving it are operated by South Western Railway. I ...

(Southwestern Railway) is a 16-minute walk down Putney Hill. The

Santander Cycles Santander Cycles (formerly Barclays Cycle Hire) is a public bicycle hire scheme in London in the United Kingdom. The scheme's bicycles have been popularly known as Boris Bikes, after Boris Johnson who was Mayor of London when the scheme began o ...

Putney station docking station is a 16-minute walk.

References

External links

Green Man pub website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Green Man, Putney 1700s establishments in England Buildings and structures completed in the 1700s Putney Pubs in the London Borough of Wandsworth George Canning