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Michael StrachanA CHELSEAWalk

Copyright © heritagewalks.london 2014 75 West Street, Harrow on the Hill, London HA1 3EL info@walkingthepast.co.uk First published in the UK in 2016 Updated and republished in the UK in 2018 Text and images copyright © Michael Strachan Michael Strachan has asserted his rights to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, by photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. (The cover illustration shows the Royal Avenue and Chelsea Hospital).

A CHELSEAWalkMichael Strachan

INTRODUCTION Walk through this fascinating village area and journey back in time, first to the Swinging 60s, when pop music and Op-Art fashion filled the streets, then to the 19th century bohemian era, when many authors, dramatists and artists lived here, and finally to the reign of Henry VIII, who had an estate here. This slender triangle of land sandwiched between the Thames and Kensington first appears in an 8th-century charter but Kensington and Chelsea both show up in the Domesday Book (1086). Henry VIII acquired the manor of Chelsea in 1536 and the future Queen Elizabeth I lived here. James I founded a theological college on a site later to be occupied by The Royal Hospital which Charles II founded in 1682 for the care of per-manently disabled soldiers. Sir Christopher Wren was commis-sioned to design the building, based on the Hôpital des Inval-ides in Paris. The Hospital is still here and its uniformed resid-ents are known worldwide as the Chelsea Pensioners. Heavy traffic now thunders along the Embankment, created where there were quiet gardens and orchards, as shown in the top illustration on this page. The Chelsea Potter public house, shown above, was part of the great 19th-century building boom which transformed the market gardens and orchards of Chelsea into a highly desirable residential district. By the time the department store Peter Jones was built (1890), Chelsea had become one of London’s premier living areas with shops and restaurants to match. It was the centre for much of the fashion and design of the ‘60s and has never lost its sense 1Peter Jones StoreThe Chelsea PotterRiverside from old print

of style. Many famous stars lived here, including the Rolling Stones and George Best. Today that style is also represented by a major soccer club noted for its wealth and the glamorous lifestyle of the players, and the Saatchi Gallery of Contemporary Art. It used to be the place for ‘Sloane Rangers’ and ‘Chelsea Tractors’ and you can still see some around! It is also a fascinating and historic area to wander around, with the mews and little streets containing interesting houses and architectural details from previous centuries juxtaposed with modern residential and business premises. To hear this Introduction please click the icon To find out more about ‘What3Words’ please click this information icon 2If you would like to donate an amount which will help us cover our costs and continue to work on new publications please scan or tap the QR link below:

Planning Your Walk 1. If possible, walk with a friend. 2. Tell someone where you are going. 3. Take care when walking at night. 4. Wear sensible clothes and footwear. 5. Always take a bottle of water to avoid de-hydration. 6. Don't try to do too much in one visit. 7. Check the opening times of all Museums and Galleries online. 8. Take your camera or camera phone with batteries fully charged. 9. If you are printing out this do staple these!pages!together!. 10. Don’t forget to download your free Quiz and Plaque scoresheets by using the URL links on the next page… Start at Sloane Square Underground station. (Piccadilly, Circle and District lines) and… …end it at the same station Use the Transport for London (TFL) planner to plan your journey. 35.6 km 1-2 hrs

To make your walk more interesting… …we have created an on-line, interactive map which you can find by clicking the link below, or by scanning the green QR code opposite. This will only work if you are reading this guide on a smart device like an iPad: Plot-a-Route map We have also added some fun challenges - the first is a picture quiz. So you need to look out for interesting ob-jects such as ‘street furniture’, statues and architectural features shown in the I-Spy Challenge scoresheet. Click the link below, or scan the pink QR code opposite, to access a download for this scoresheet. It can then be printed or saved: I-Spy Challenge The second challenge is to ‘bag’ all the plaques along this walk. These are listed on a ‘Pastwalkers’ scoresheet along with their ‘what3words’ loca-tions. (Click the information icon op-posite for more about how ‘What3-Words’ works). The plaque scores are based on age and quality rather than the importance of the person or event commemorated. Download by clicking on the link below, or by scanning the blue QR code opposite: Plaque Challenge 4Tick them off when you find them

Starting at Sloane Square station Go through the electronic gates at Sloane Square station and take the main exit leading into Sloane Square… The square is part of the Hans Town area and was designed in 1771 by Henry Holland Senior and Juni-or. It is situated at the southern end of Sloane Street, which links it to Knights-bridge, and is at the eastern end of the King’s Road. Both Hans Town and Sloane Square are named after Sir Hans Sloane (1660-1753) who is famous for leaving his collection of books, flora, fauna and curiosit-ies to the nation forming the basis of the British Museum. Turn sharp right across the front of one of London’s famous theatres - The Royal Court... The first theatre on Lower George Street, off Sloane Square, was the converted Nonconformist Ranelagh Chapel, (see the engraving below), which opened in 1870 under the name The New Chelsea Theatre. Marie Litton became its manager in 1871, hiring Walter Emden to remodel the interior, and it was re-named the Court Theatre. Continue to the junction between Sloane Square and Cliveden Place… 5Sir Hans Sloane

As you walk along this pleasant terraced street you come across the first blue plaque at number 23, where the Labour politicians and gov-ernment ministers, Aneurin and Jennie Bevan, lived. Aneurin was the Minister for Health in the UK government from 1945 to 1951. Son of a coal miner, he was a lifelong cham-pion of social justice, the rights of working people and democratic socialism. He was a Member of Parliament (MP), representing Ebbw Vale in South Wales for 31 years, and a spokesmen for the Labour Party's left wing. He was the architect and founder of the National Health Service. Continue along Cliveden Place until you reach the next road junction before turning right and crossing over the road to enter Eaton Terrace… 6Ranelagh ChapelAneurin & Jennie Bevan

This street is part of an exclusive area known as Bel-gravia, and the quality and style of the houses reflect that wealth and status. Belgravia takes its name from one of the Duke of Westminster's subsidiary titles, Viscount Belgrave, which is in turn derived from Belgrave, Cheshire, a village on land belonging to the Duke’s family. At the Duke of Wellington pub cross over the road and walk back to enter Caroline Terrace… Affectionately known to its reg-ulars as the ‘Duke of Boots’, the Duke of Wellington is a 19th century pub displaying some memorabilia of the ‘Iron Duke’. However, the building was ori-ginally used as a reading room – 19th century residents came here just to read the morning newspapers. Walk down Caroline Ter-race to the junction with Bourne Street and turn left… Bourne Street is lined with terraced houses built by a local builder, Samuel Arbutt, in 1824, these are only one bay wide, with simple brick arches above first floor windows and plain unadorned parapets. 7

Originally designed for working class families they are now highly desirable cottages. Continue across Chester Row… On your left, tucked away in a small passage, is the entrance to St Mary’s Anglican Church. During the 19th cen-tury, as Belgravia and Pimlico were rap-idly developed, new churches were needed for the poorer residents. In ad-dition, the construction of the! London Underground! resulted in many houses being demolished by the 'cut and cover' works. In 1874, St Mary's was built directly over the path of the! District line! in the Early English style using cheap machine-made red brick. Designed by RJ Withers, it was described at the time of building as having "A spacious nave …terminated in an apsidal chancel and there are two aisles. The nave is very lofty and the interior of the roof is elab-orately decorated with colour. Bold figures of Our Lady and St John on either side of a crucifix appear on the reredos, in front of which stands one of the most effective altars we have seen of late. It is formed of sweet cedar, and is richly ornamental with gold and colour. The chapel as a whole is remarkably ef-fective, and has a solid and substantial 8

look which is highly satisfactory. It is, in a word, an excellent specimen of an inexpensive church, the cost of the whole, not counting special gifts such as the reredos, altar, font etc., being about £4,500.” Today St Mary’s Bourne Street serves the wealthy neighbourhood and provides services in the high catholic tradition of the Church of England with ex-cellent music and a traditional liturgy. Continue down Bourne Street to Graham Ter-race… The Francis Holland Trust was established in 1881 by the Canon Reverend Francis James Holland, an Anglican clergyman, who was keen to advance and extend the provision of single-sex education for girls. He set up two schools, the first at Clarence Gate, NW1 in 1878 which is a senior school for 11-18 year olds, now known as Francis Holland School, Regent's Park, and the second here at Graham Terrace, which is a junior and senior school for 4-18 year olds known as Francis Holland School, Sloane Square. Continue to the end of Bourne Street and then turn left into Ebury Street… Here you’ll find some of the same style of Georgian cottages but two are particularly important and are marked with plaques. 9

Harold Nicholson and Vita Sackville-West lived here at Numbers 180 and 182, (in 1914 these houses were combined by the architect Edward Lutyens.) Both these writers led separate and unusual private lives but managed to remain on good terms until they reached old age. 180 Ebury Street was the temporary home in 1764 of the Mozart family, Wolfgang, sis-ter Maria Anna and Leopold their father. Leopold Mozart was recovering from an ill-ness and convalescing here in what was then the countryside. Loud music was not permit-ted so young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ‘composed his first symphony for all the in-struments of the orchestra’ according to his sister. 10Harold Nicholson and Vita Sackville-WestMaria Anna Mozart

This work has been lost, but he also com-posed what is now known as his First Sym-phony (K.16 in E flat major) here before the family returned to Frith Street in Soho. (See video link below…) Walk back down Ebury Street and cross over into the open space called Orange Square containing a useful public toilet and the charming statue of the little boy composer… Turn right along Pimlico Road…and fol-low this road across Passmore Street and Holbein Place, before turning right into Lower Sloane Street… Cross Lower Sloane Street into Turk's Row… 11Wolfgang Amadeus MozartLeopold Mozart

During World War 2 this was a popular area with the American Forces. You’ll find two plaques, (one on the pavement) recording a terrible Nazi V1 rocket attack during World War 2 that killed many American servicemen and women. Glenn Miller, the U.S. Army band leader, had been stationed at Sloane Court until they moved on July 2, 1944 – one day before the bombing.! The photo shown above shows some of the horrific damage caused by this terror attack. Continue along Turk’s Row passing Sloane Court East and West on your left until you reach Franklin’s Row… 12

Turn left and walk past the open area of Burton’s Court… This private park area is owned by the Royal Hospit-al, which strictly controls its use by local residents and organisations. You can usually see games of football, tennis and cricket being played, but access is only by an expensive annual pass. Cross over Royal Hospital Road to see the buildings of the Royal Hospital Chelsea on both sides… Walk through the London Gate into the Royal Hospit-al Chelsea grounds passing the Grade 1 listed Lodge… The Royal Hospital Chelsea was founded by Charles II in 1682 for veteran and invalid soldiers. It was de-signed by Christopher Wren and completed in 1692, although by the time Charles died in 1685, only the main hall and chapel had been finished. The Post Office and Museum in the hospital precinct carries out most of the normal postal functions and the Gift Shop is worth looking at for souvenirs. All! profits from Royal Hospital Chelsea Shop and Online Shop go to the Chelsea Pensioners' Appeal which is a registered charity. 13The Hospital Museum, Post Office and Shop are open most days but you should first check: www.chelsea-pensioner-s.co.uk/about/visits 020 7881 5298

Walk past the Gift Shop and Post Office and through the Garden Gate at the end of this short road… Don’t miss the plaque describing how the East wing of the Hospital was severely damaged by a 500lb bomb dropped in 1918 and then destroyed in January 1945 by a V2 rocket. (See photo of damaged area op-posite.) On the left you will see Ranelagh Gardens park and a magnificent aven-ue of Plane trees lies directly ahead of you... Ranelagh Gardens was a public pleasure garden oc-cupying the site of Ranelagh House, built in 1688-89 by the first Earl of Ranelagh, Treasurer of the Royal Hos-pital. In the 18th and 19th centuries it became a popu-lar venue for concerts and entertainments held in the Rotunda (see opposite.) It was also hugely popular as a ‘romantic’ rendezvous and was the place to be seen by the envious. 14

In 1765 it was the setting for a performance by the nine year old Mozart, then on tour in London with his father and sister. To your right is the facade of the Royal Hospital looking down to the Thames. The large open space you can see is used as playing fields, but really this-comes into its own once a year with the famous-Chelsea Flower Show. The whole area is then filled with garden displays and plants from all over Britain and around the world. Turn right and head across the grassy open area, past the Chillinawalla memorial, towards the river and the large ornamental gates. Walk through the gates and bear right to follow the Chelsea Embankment... 15Old print showing Hospital, gardens and Chillinwalla memorial - it commemorates those who died in the first Anglo-Sikh war

Completed in 1874 by the English civil engineer Joseph Bazalgette, the Embankment was part of the Metropolitan Board of Works scheme to provide London with a modern sewage system. You can see what it used to look like in the print shown below… Cross over the road and walk along between Chelsea Bridge and Albert Bridge, overlooking the River Thames with views across the river to Batter-sea… In 1951 Battersea Park was transformed into the Festival Gardens as part of the Festival of Britain to celebrate a new age of technical innovation and design in a bomb-scarred Britain. The Festiv-al promoted the best of British design in Science and Technology and set an example for better-quality design in the rebuilding of British towns and cities following the war. It also celebrated the centenary of the 1851 Great Exhibition held in the Crystal Palace building in Kensington Gardens. Looking back along the river past Chelsea Bridge, you will see the iconic, Grade 2 lis-ted Battersea Power Station, (shown oppos-ite). Until its closure in 1983, it had been 16

generating electricity from coal for a large part of London since the 1930s. The power station was the largest brick building in Europe and is notable for its original, lavish Art Deco interior fittings and decor. The site has now been developed to include residential units, bars, restaur-ants, office space, shops and enter-tainment spaces. It contains the new American Embassy complex and is served by a new underground station. As well as being one of London’s most distinctive landmarks the power station appears on the cover art of Pink Floyd's 1977 album Animals and its appearance in the 1965 Beatles' film Help! The area beyond the power station, known as Nine Elms, is now in the process of being developed as a new housing and business area. It includes the new United States Embassy which has been transferred here from Berkeley Square. On the far bank you can see the Buddhist Peace Pa-goda, which was erected in 1985. The Embankment borders the southern end of the Royal Hospital Gar-dens and has many fine Queen Anne-style houses and mansion blocks, either facing the river with en-viable views or in crescents set back from the road. 17

Walk back, crossing over the Chelsea Embank-ment, to the entrance to Tite Street, but before entering it walk a little further to the left to view the block of flats marked with a blue plaque… This plaque marks where George Frederick Samuel Robinson, Marquess of Ripon, lived. Known as the Earl of Ripon he a British politician and Viceroy and Governor General of India who served in every Liberal cabinet between 1861 and 1908. Return to Tite Street and enter… Tite Street was created in 1877 and named after William Tite who, as an architect and member of the Metropolitan Board of Works, was responsible for the construction of the Chelsea Em-bankment. John Singer Sargent (see photo below), lived at number 31 where he developed the building as his home and studio. He was an American artist, considered the "leading portrait painter of his generation" for his portrayals of Edwardian era luxury. During his career, he created roughly 900 oil paintings and more than 2,000 watercolours, as well as countless sketches and charcoal drawings. 18Marquess of RiponWilliam Tite

His most famous and provocative painting was that of ‘Madame X’, shown here. It is now considered one of his best works, and was the artist's per-sonal favourite. How-ever, when unveiled in Paris at the 1884 Salon, it aroused such a negative reaction th a t S a rg e n t wa s forced to move to London. The first blue plaque in this street belongs to Philip Arnold Heseltine, better known as the composer Peter Warlock, lived here at number 30 Tite Street. The Warlock name, which reflects Heseltine's interest in occult practices, was used for all his published musical works. He is best known as a composer of songs and other vocal music. He was a great admirer of Frederick Delius, but died early after leading an unconventional and often scandalous life. (See video link on the next page…) 19John Singer Sargent

The next blue plaque honours Leslie - Lord Haden-Guest - who lived at number 32. He was an author, journalist, doctor and a member of the London County Council for Woolwich (East) from 1919-1922, he became the first Jew to stand for Parliament as a La-bour candidate, representing S o u t h w a r k N o r t h , (1923-1927) and Islington North, (1937-1950). The final blue plaque in Tite Street belongs to Oscar Wilde, who lived here at number 34, having just mar- 20Lord Haden-Guest

ried Constance Lloyd. He became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890‘s and is remembered for his witty epigrams. His plays are still revived and shown in their TV and film versions. A legal battle with the Marquess of Queens-berry over his relationship with the peer's son led to his harsh imprisonment in 1895 - ironically the judge at his trial lived a few doors away. He died five years later penni-less in Paris and to this day, remains a popu-lar playwright and gay icon. Turn right briefly as you rejoin Royal Hospital Road and on the same side of the road you will find the National Army Museum, which is well worth a visit. The Chelsea Gate to the Royal Hospital is next to it… This military museum exists ‘to explain the history of the Army so that everyone can see how it has pro-tected society over time… and the impact that it has had on Britain, Europe and the world.’ Go back to the junction with Tite Street and head down Royal Hospital Road until it be-comes Cheyne Place. Once you pass Swan Walk the Chelsea Physic Garden is on your left… The Chelsea Physic Garden was established in 1673 by the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of Lon-don. It was bought by Hans Sloane in 1713 and 21Oscar Wilde

leased back to the Society of Apothecaries, provid-ing herbal and plant medicines since then. It has played a major educational role based on the grow-ing interest in natural medicine. It contains Britain's first garden of ethnobotany and the Tangerine Dream Cafe that ‘provides one of the finest afternoon teas in London’. There is a Royal Kensington and Chelsea blue plaque here. At the bottom of the road bear right and cross over into Cheyne Walk… Cheyne Walk extends from the World's End Estate to Royal Hospital Road and this section of it con-tains many fine 17th and 18th century houses. It has always been a favourite residential area with the rich 22From a photograph by Elisa.rolle - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://com-mons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=57326210

and famous and there are several plaques to be found here. It was also the site (until its destruction in 1866) of ‘Don Saltero’s Coffee House’ shown be-low. This enterprise was set up by John Salter, an ex-servant of Sir Hans Sloane, and adorned with ‘curi-ousities’ given to him by his master. 23Cheyne Walk - Henry and Walter GreavesDon Saltiero’s Coffee House

Former residents of Cheyne Walk include John Bar-rymore, Rolling Stones members Mick Jagger and Keith Richards and the famous footballer George Best. (Most of these celebrities are eligible for a plaque except Barrymore, the American film actor, and no-one has proposed him yet). Continue along Cheyne Walk… However, this short section of road does have several interesting plaques. The first one at 4 Cheyne Walk commemorates a famous novelist, whose pen name was George Eliot. Her real name was Mary Ann Evans - an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrote seven novels, including Adam Bede (1859), The Mill on the Floss (1860), Silas Marner (1861), Romola (1862–63), Middlemarch (1871–72), and Daniel Deronda (1876). Continue along Cheyne Walk to Cheyne Gar-dens and turn briefly into this road… If you look across the road under the first floor bal-cony you will see a private blue plaque. According to the inscription King Henry VIII had a manor house here and part of its boundary wall adjoins Cheyne Studio. Return to Cheyne Walk and turn right… 24George Eliot

A little further on and you will see the next blue plaque erected in memory of two fam-ous young Victorian artists, Dante Gabriel Rosetti and Algernon Charles Swinburne. Dante Gabrielle was a British poet, illustrat-or, painter and translator, and a member of the!talented Rossetti!family. In 1848 he founded the! Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood! with! W i l l i a m H o l m a n Hunt!and!John Everett Millais.! Charles Swinburne was an English poet, playwright, novelist, and critic. He wrote several novels and collections of poetry such as! Poems and Ballads, and contributed to the famous! Eleventh Edition! of the! Encyc-lopædia Britannica. Continue along Cheyne Walk to Cheyne Mews… Here, just to your right, is another Kensington and Chelsea plaque referring to the Manor House of King Henry VIII which stood here until 1753. From Cheyne Walk turn right into Oakley Street… As you make this turn look across to the Albert Bridge which is a Grade II listed road bridge over the River Thames connecting Chelsea and Battersea. Named after Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s 25Dante Gabriel RosettiAlgernon Charles Swinburne

husband, it was designed by Rowland Mason Ordish and built in 1873 as a toll bridge (the toll booths can still be seen and one is included in the I-Spy Chal-lenge for this walk). It is one of London’s most at-tractive bridges – especially at night. At the junction between Oakley Street and the west side of Cheyne Walk, take a look at the beautiful 1974 sculpture ‘Boy with a Dolphin’ by the British sculptor David Wynne (1926 - 2014). This stands in front of the site of the once famous and now demolished Pier Hotel. His son Roland was the model, but Roland died in 1999 and the statue is now his memorial. Oakley Street was opened in 1857 and named after Baron Oakley, one of the titles of the third Earl of Cadogan, whose family owned the land. Look out for the next plaque on number 56 Oakley Street - it 26Chelsea Embankment and Albert Bridge under construction, 1873

commemorates one of Britain’s most famous explorers Captain Robert Falcon Scott. He and his naval colleagues and companions died on the last stage of their epic attempt to become the first to reach the South Pole. The plaque itself is an original LCC design worth 3 points. Oakley Street was one of the first in London to be planted with trees thanks to Dr John Samuel Phene, (shown in the photograph opposite), a late 19th century barrister and architect, who believed that trees in towns helped to purify the air and prevent epidemics. He planted trees along both sides of Oakley Street in 1851 and his example was said to have inspired the Prince Consort to do the same outside the new South Kensington Museum. Unfortu-nately the Oakley Street trees did not sur-vive! Continue up Oakley Street… On your right you will see Phene Street. Turn in here and you come to Oakley Gardens… The pub at number 9 is the Phene Arms - famous for being the ‘second home’ of the footballer George Best who lived nearby at 89 Oakley Street. A world class player, Best led a high profile private life until 27Captain Robert Falcon ScottDr. John Samuel Phene

he was destroyed by his drink problem. He once said of his career: "I spent a lot of money on booze, birds [wo-men] and fast cars – the rest I just squandered”. He is still regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. At number 33 Oakley Gar-dens there is a blue plaque in memory of George Gissing, a not-able Victorian novelist, whose life was marked by personal and professional tragedy. Return to Oakley Street and, after turning right, continue past Upper Cheyne Row on your left… On the east side of the street there is a terrace of stuccoed residential houses (numbers 14 - 25) that were built between 1850 and 1860 under instruction from Dr. Phene. These retain beautiful wrought iron railings and balcony guards. The houses are adorned with sculptured heads in roundels. It is not known whose heads they represent. At number 87 there is another blue plaque celebrat-ing Lady Jane Francesca -“Speranza”, an Irish poet 28By Andy Welsh - https://www.flickr.com/photos/wallre-volution/68020004/in/photo-stream/, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15732371George Gissing

and supporter of the Irish nationalist move-ment. Lady Wilde had a special interest in Irish folktales, which she helped to gather and was the mother of Oscar Wilde and Wil-lie Wilde. At the junction with the King’s Road cross over the road… From here you can look back across the King’s Road to a row of fine houses formed out of a much older building - Argyll House. It was designed in 1723 by an Italian architect for the Duke of Argyll after whom it was named. In the early 20th century it was owned by society hostess Lady Sybil Colefax, renowned for her parties with guests like Fred Astaire, George Gershwin, Hil-aire Belloc, Virginia Woolf, Winston Churchill, Wallis Simpson and Edward, Prince of Wales who later ab-dicated as King Edward VII in order to marry Mrs Simpson. There are two plaques here for you to collect, (also shar-ing a ‘What3Words’ location). One celebrates a famous act-ress - Ellen Terry. Dame Alice Ellen Terry, GBE became the leading Shakespearean act-ress in Britain by the turn of the nineteenth century. 29Lady Jane Francesca WildeEllen Terry

The other relates to Carol Reed. an English film director best known for Odd Man Out (1947), The Fallen Idol (1948), The Third Man (1949), and Oliver! (1968). For Oliver!, he received the Academy Award for Best Director. Continue along the King’s Road, in the direction of Sloane Square, over Dove-house Street to Dovehouse Green… Near where you are standing is the old burial ground given to the Parish by Sir Hans Sloane. It was re-named Dovehouse Green and laid out to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II and the Golden Jubilee of the Chelsea Society in 1977. There are two World War 2 plaques here for you to bag… On the corner of Chelsea Manor Street and the King’s Road stands the old Odeon Cinema build ing, with some interesting plaster roundels high up on the facade. Continue along the Kings Road until you see Radnor Walk on the other side of the road… One of Chelsea’s most famous pubs stands here - ‘The Chelsea Potter’ - 119 King's Road. Originally built in 1842 as the “Commercial Tavern’, it was re-named in 1958 in honour of the nearby Chelsea Arts Pottery founded by William de Morgan in 1872 and which lasted until about 1888. 30

De Morgan was particularly drawn to Eastern designs and made a striking breakthrough by rediscovering the technique of lustreware (marked by a reflective, metallic surface) found in Hispano-Moresque pottery and Itali-an maiolica. The pub became famous in the 1960s and 70s when regular customers included Jimi Hendrix and The Rolling Stones. Cross over and divert briefly into Radnor Walk… The first single-storey building on your right was, in Victorian times, a Welsh Methodist chapel and school. The terraced houses on either side date from around 1850 to 1880, when the thoroughfare was known as Radnor Street and was a desirable residential area. Today it lies within a con-servation area and many of the houses are being restored with their original features. Here you’ll find a blue plaque on number 29 where Sir John Betjeman, (see photo opposite), the poet, writer, and broadcaster lived. He described himself in!Who's Who!as a "poet and!hack”, but was!Poet Laureate!from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of the! Victorian Society!and a passionate defender of!Victorian archi-tecture. He began his career as a journalist and 31William de MorganSir John Betjeman

ended it as one of the most popular British Poets Laureate and a much-loved figure on British televi-sion. Return to the Kings Road and take the public crossing over to the north side to walk past Ju-bilee Place… Just ahead of you is an imposing building, jutting out into the pavement, which used to house ‘The Pheasantry’ restaurant. There is a blue plaque here dedicated to Princess Seraphine Astieva who had been a pupil at several famous Russian ballet schools. After retiring from performing she opened the Russian Dancing Academy in the build-ing now The Pheasantry. Her pupils included Anton Dolin, Margot Fonteyn, Alicia Markova and Hermione Darnborough. Continue along this side of the Kings Road until you reach further side of Markham Square gardens… …where, at number 47, you will see anoth-er blue plaque commemorating Army Mat-ron Maud McCarthy. During World War 1 a senior general said: "... she's a soldier! ... If she was made Quartermaster-General, she'd work it, she'd run the whole Army, and she'd never get flustered, never make a mistake. The woman's a genius." 32Seraphine Astafieva

Return to the Kings Road and take the nearby crossing to enter Smith Street… Look up to see if there are any nannies flying in on their umbrellas, because just to your right is number 50 where P. L. Travers lived. Pamela Lyndon Travers was an Australian-English writer who spent most of her career in England. She is best known and loved for the Mary Poppins series of children's books, which feature the magical nanny Mary Poppins. Walk down Smith Street… …noting the beautiful Georgian town houses on each side. At the junction with St Leonard’s Terrace turn right and walk down this street to the junction with Tedworth Square and turn into it… 33P. L Travers

Walk around Tedworth Square to number 23… The great American writer Samuel L Clemens (1835–1910), known to his readers as Mark Twain, is hon-oured here with a blue plaque. Between 1891 and 1900 Twain was in London as part of an extended lecture tour of Europe. Deeply distressed at the death of his daugh-ter Susy in August 1896, Twain lived in strict seclusion here with his wife Olivia from until June 1897. He continued working, however, and his daughter Clara Clemens described how he ‘used to rise sometimes as early as four or o’clock in the morning. Never did he write more continuously’. When the plaque was erected in 1960 Clara recalled how her family had ‘loved that little house and all the surrounding region.’ Retrace your steps back to St Leonard’s Terrace and head back in the direction of The magnificent town houses on your left have some amazing front gardens with sprawling Wisterias. Number 18 also possesses a blue plaque dedicated to Bram Stoker, the celebrated writer, best known today for his 1897!Gothic!novel!Dracula. This unset-tling vampire story has been staged and screened many times - especially in the British Hammer Film Productions series. Starring actors such as Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee these films became popular all over the world. (See video link below…) 34Mark Twain

During his lifetime, Stoker was better known as the personal assistant of actor Sir! Henry Irving! and business manager of the! Lyceum Theatre!in London, which Irving owned. These town houses are fine examples of the Georgian style of architecture – narrow frontage, 3 or 4 storeys with an additional basement and attic, tall chimney stacks, large sash windows and imposing entrances. Further along this terrace turn left into Royal Av-enue… In 1682, Christopher Wren laid out Royal Avenue as part of a major thoroughfare linking Kensington Palace and The Royal Hospital. However, when the 35Bram Stoker

main sponsor, Charles II, died in 1685, only about 100 yards of the route had been built. The avenue was originally filled with gravel and lined with grass verges and horse chestnut trees. The terraces of large houses you can see were built between 1817 and 1848. Look out for the Kensington and Chelsea plaque on your immediate left as you enter this avenue. Cross over the central area and look for number 30 – the home of Joseph Losey… Joseph Losey was an American theatre and!film dir-e c t o r. B o r n i n W i s c o n s i n , h e s t u d i e d in!Germany!with!Bertolt Brecht!and then returned to the! United States.! Blacklisted by Hollywood for his left-wing views and associations in the 1950s, he moved to Europe where he made the remainder of his films. He also made three critically-acclaimed ad-aptations of plays by!Harold Pinter,!The Ser-vant! (1963),! Accident! (1967) and! The Go-Between! (1971). It was here at number 30 that he filmed scenes from ‘The Servant’ starring Dirk Bogarde and James Fox. (See the video link to an excerpt from the trailer below). Walk up Royal Avenue to the Kings Road… 36Joseph Losey High School portrait

King Charles II (1630–1685) liked to escape quickly and easily to his weekend retreats at Hampton Court and Windsor Castle, both farther west along the River Thames. Part of his private escape route is still known as the King’s Road, although he would un-doubtedly be surprised at the number of restaurants, fashion stores and coffee bars along its length. The King’s Road achieved world-wide fame as one of the centres of ‘Swinging London’ in the 1960s. As you reach the King’s Road turn right in the direction of Sloane Square... On your right you will pass the Duke of York Square which has a lovely restaurant and cafe area in which to sit. Look out here for the pavement map of the King’s ’escape’ route. 37

Developed in the early part of this century (2003 –2005), this area comprises a public square, up-mar-ket housing and retail outlets. It was originally the site of the Duke of York’s Headquarters (completed in 1801) and the main building has been known as the Royal Military Asylum, the Duke of York’s Royal Military School and finally, the Duke of York’s Bar-racks. Now it is the home of the Saatchi Gallery which aims to provide an innovative forum for con-temporary art, presenting work by unknown young artists or by international artists whose. work has been rarely or never exhibited in the UK.’ To see the last plaque you’ll need to cross over the Kings Road and look back over the road to find it above a shop… Percy Grainger was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who lived in the United States Martin Jones' recording of Grainger piano favourites can be purchased, with free UK P&P, here: http://bit.ly/1fq-Wy5j Edited and pro-duced at Wya-stone Leys, the home of Nimbus Records. © 2014 Wyastone Estate Ltd. 38

from 1914 onwards and became a citizen in 1918. He played a prominent role in the re-vival of interest in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century and was a great friend of Frederick Delius. Although much of his work was experimental and unusual, the piece with which he is most generally associated is his piano arrange-ment of the folk-dance tune "Country Gar-dens". (See video link on previous page…) Sloane Square is renowned for its high-class shops and restaurants and the Royal Court Theatre, men-tioned at the beginning of this walk, as well as the famous department store Peter Jones - part of the John Lewis Group. The shop is named after Peter Rees Jones who established a shop here in 1877 the site of the present store. The store was purchased by John Lewis who handed it over to his son John Spedan Lewis in 1914. Soon after it became part of the John Lewis profit sharing partnership. This walk is complete once you have come back to Sloane Square station. 39Percy GraingerJohn Sedan Lewis in 1904

The station itself is worth looking at because it has an interesting history and a very unusual feature crossing the tracks. The River Westbourne, one of London's many subterranean rivers, flows above the station in a large iron conduit. 40

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