St Giles's Pound was a

cattle pound Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

St Giles Circus St Giles Circus is a road junction in the St Giles district of the West End of London at the eastern end of Oxford Street, where it connects with New Oxford Street, Charing Cross Road and Tottenham Court Road, which it is more often referred t ...

in central London in the 17th and 18th centuries, at the intersection of the roads from Hampstead and from

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the Un ...

. It became a point from which distances to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

were measured. The pound was located in the parish of

St Giles-in-the-Fields St Giles in the Fields is the Anglican parish church of the St Giles district of London. It stands within the London Borough of Camden and belongs to the Diocese of London. The church, named for St Giles the Hermit, began as a monastery an ...

, close to the boundary with St Anne, Westminster. It was originally located in the middle of St Giles High Street, but was moved in 1656 to the corner of Tottenham Court Road, Oxford Street and St Giles High Street. It was removed in 1765. It is mentioned in the old song ''Jack Chance'': "On

Newgate Newgate was one of the historic seven gates of the London Wall around the City of London and one of the six which date back to Roman times. Newgate lay on the west side of the wall and the road issuing from it headed over the River Fleet to M ...

steps Jack Chance was found, and bred up near St Giles's Pound."

References

External links

A London Inheritance: Saint Giles Pound
{{coords, 51.5165, -0.1305, display=title Former buildings and structures in the London Borough of Camden