The Strand (commonly referred to with a leading "The", but formally without) is a major street in the City of Westminster, Central London. The street, which is part of London's West End theatreland, runs just over from Trafalgar Square eastwards to Temple Bar, where it becomes Fleet Street in the City of London, and is part of the A4, a main road running west from central London.
The road's name comes from the Old English strond, meaning the beach or edge of a river, as it historically ran alongside the north bank of the River Thames. The river side of the street was home to grand houses, interspersed with slum alleys, between the 12th and 17th centuries. Mansions of historical importance built between the Strand and the river included Essex House, Arundel House, Old Somerset House, Savoy Palace, Durham House, York House and Cecil House, none of which survive. The aristocracy moved to the West End during the 17th century, and the Strand became known for its coffee shops, restaurants and taverns. The street was a centre point for theatre and music hall during the 19th century, and several venues have survived to the current day.
At the east end of the street are two English Baroque churches: St Mary le Strand by James Gibbs and St Clement Danes by Christopher Wren. This easternmost stretch of the Strand is also home to King's College, one of the two founding colleges of the University of London. Other notable structures include the Royal Courts of Justice and Australia House.
Several authors, poets and philosophers have lived on or near the Strand, including Charles Dickens, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Virginia Woolf.
Geography The street is the main link between the two cities of Westminster and London. It runs eastward from Trafalgar Square, parallel to the River Thames, to Temple Bar which is the boundary between the two cities at this point; the road ahead being Fleet Street. Traffic travelling eastbound follows a short crescent around Aldwych, connected at both ends to the Strand. The road marks the southern boundary of the Covent Garden district and forms part of the Northbank business improvement district.
The name was first recorded in 1002 as strondway, then in 1185 as Stronde and in 1220 as la Stranda. It is formed from the Old English word "strond", meaning the edge of a river. Initially it referred to the shallow bank of the once much wider Thames, before the construction of the Victoria Embankment. The name was later applied to the road itself. In the 13th century it was known as "Densemanestret" or "street of the Danes", referring to the community of Danes in the area.
Two London Underground stations were once named Strand: a Piccadilly line station (which was renamed Aldwych station) that operated between 1907 and 1994 and a former Northern line station which today forms part of Charing Cross station. "Strand Bridge" was the name given to Waterloo Bridge during its construction; it was renamed for its official opening on the second anniversary of the coalition victory in the Battle of Waterloo. London buses routes 23, 139 and 176 all run along the Strand, as do numerous night bus services.
History
During Roman Britain, what is now the Strand was part of the route to Silchester, known as "Iter VIII" on the Antonine Itinerary, and which later became known by the name Akeman Street.Thomas Codrington, It was briefly part of a trading town called Lundenwic that developed around 600 AD, and stretched from Trafalgar Square to Aldwych. Alfred the Great gradually moved the settlement into the old Roman town of Londinium from around 886 AD onwards, leaving no mark of the old town, and the area returned to fields.
In the Middle Ages, the Strand became the principal route between the separate settlements of the City of London (the civil and commercial centre) and the royal Palace of Westminster (the national political centre). In the archaeological record, there is considerable evidence of occupation to the north of Aldwych, but much along the former foreshore has been covered by rubble from the demolition of the Tudor Somerset Place, a former royal residence, to create a large platform for the building of the first Somerset House, in the 17th century. The landmark Eleanor's Cross was built in the 13th century at the western end of the Strand at Charing Cross by Edward I commemorating his wife Eleanor of Castile. It was demolished in 1647 by the request of Parliament during the First English Civil War, but reconstructed in 1865.
The west part of the Strand was in the parish of St Martin in the Fields and in the east it extended into the parishes of St Clement Danes and St Mary le Strand. Most of its length was in the Liberty of Westminster, although part of the eastern section in St Clement Danes was in the Ossulstone hundred of Middlesex. The Strand was the northern boundary of the precinct of the Savoy, which was approximately where the approach to Waterloo Bridge is now. All of these parishes and places became part of the Strand District in 1855, except St Martin in the Fields which was governed separately. The Strand District Board of Works was based at No. 22, Tavistock Street. Strand District was abolished in October 1900 and became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Westminster.
Palaces From the 12th century onwards, large mansions lined the Strand including several palaces and townhouses inhabited by bishops and royal courtiers, mainly on the south side, with their own river gates and landings directly on the Thames. The road was poorly maintained, with many pits and sloughs, and a paving order was issued in 1532 to improve traffic.
What later became Essex House on the Strand was originally an Outer Temple of the Knights Templar in the 11th century. In 1313, ownership passed to the Knights of St John. King Henry VIII gave the house to William, Baron Paget, in the early 16th century. Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, rebuilt the house in 1563, originally calling it Leicester House. It was renamed Essex House after being inherited by Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, in 1588. It was demolished around 1674 and Essex Street, leading up to the Strand, was built on the location by property speculator Nicholas Barbon.
Arundel House was originally the town house of the Bishops of Bath and Wells. It was owned by William FitzWilliam, 1st Earl of Southampton, between 1539 and his death in 1542, with ownership passing to Thomas Seymour in 1545. After Seymour was executed in 1549, the property was sold to Henry FitzAlan, Earl of Arundel, and was owned by the Earldom for much of the 16th and 17th century. In 1666, it became the meeting place of the Royal Society after the Great Fire of London destroyed their previous venue. The house was demolished in 1678 and Arundel Street, adjoining the Strand, was built on the site.
Somerset House was built by Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, regent of England from 1547 to 1549, demolishing three inns and the church of the Nativity of Our Lady and the Innocents in the process. After Somerset was executed in 1552, it became an occasional residence for Princess Elizabeth. When she became Queen in 1558, she returned part of the house to Seymour's family (with ownership passing to his son, Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford); the remainder was an occasional meeting place for the Royal Society. After Elizabeth's death in 1603, it was owned by Anne of Denmark, wife of James VI and I. The building was renamed Denmark House in commemoration of Anne's brother, Christian IV of Denmark. After James died in 1625, his body lay there in state for a month. The building was taken over by Parliament in 1645 following the Civil War, renaming it back to Somerset House. It had an irregular series of owners and residents for much of the 18th century until it was demolished in 1775. The house was rebuilt as a series of government buildings. The Stamp Office, later to become the Inland Revenue was established in Somerset House in 1789. In the late 20th century, a number of art galleries were set up on vacant parts, including the Courtauld Institute of Art and the King's College London School of Law.
Savoy Palace was the London residence of John of Gaunt (uncle of King Richard II), the nation's power broker. In the 14th century the Savoy was the most magnificent nobleman's mansion in England. During the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, rebels, led by Wat Tyler, inflamed by opposition to the poll tax promoted by John of Gaunt, systematically demolished the Savoy and everything in it. In 1512 it was rebuilt as the Savoy Hospital for the poor. It gradually fell into dereliction and was divided into multiple tenancies. It was demolished in 1816–1820 to build the approach road to Waterloo Bridge. The Savoy Hotel now occupies this site.
Durham House, the historic London residence of the Bishop of Durham, was built circa 1345 and demolished in the mid-17th century. It was the home of Anne Boleyn. It had become derelict by the mid-17th century and was demolished in 1660. Durham Street and the Adelphi Buildings were built on its site.
York House was built as the London residence for the Bishop of Norwich not later than 1237. At the time of the Reformation it was acquired by King Henry VIII, and came to be known as York House when he granted it to the Archbishop of York in 1536. In the 1620s it was acquired by the royal favourite George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, and after an interlude during the Civil War it was returned to George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, who sold it to developers in 1672. It was then demolished and new streets and buildings built on the site, including George Street, Villiers Street, Duke Street, Of Alley, and Buckingham Street.
Cecil House, also called Exeter House or Burghley House, was built in the 16th century by Lord Burghley as an expansion of an existing Tudor house. Exeter House was demolished in 1676 and Exeter Exchange built on the site. A menagerie was built on the upper floors in 1773, which was later run by Edward Cross, who housed lions, tigers, monkeys and hippopotami. In 1826, an elephant, Chunee, nearly broke free from its cage and had to be destroyed; the skeleton was later put on display. The exchange was demolished in 1829, with the menagerie moving to the Surrey Zoological Gardens, and replaced by Exeter Hall, noted for its Evangelical meetings. This was demolished in 1907, and the site is now occupied by the Strand Palace Hotel.
Other significant palaces along the Strand include Worcester House, formerly the Inn, or residence, of the Bishop of Carlisle, Salisbury House, used for royal lodgings in the 15th and 16th centuries, Bedford House demolished in 1704, Hungerford House, which was demolished and replaced, in turn, by Hungerford Market and Charing Cross station and Northumberland House, a large Jacobean mansion, the historic London residence of the Dukes of Northumberland; built in 1605 and demolished in 1874. Northumberland Avenue now occupies the site. The official residence of the Secretary of State, next door at No. 1 the Strand, became the first numbered address in London.
Apart from the rebuilt Somerset House, all of these buildings have been demolished and replaced from the 17th century onwards. A New Exchange was built on part of the gardens of Durham House, in 1608–1609, facing the Strand. This high-class shopping centre enjoyed considerable popularity but was eventually destroyed in 1737.
Modern era