Fitzroy Square

Fitzroy Square from the BT Tower seen from

Sculpture by Naomi Blake in Fitzroy Square Garden

Fitzroy Square is the only Georgian place in the London district Fitzrovia .

history

The square near Fitzroy Street and the Fitzroy Tavern on Charlotte Street is named after Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton , who became owner of the property through marriage. His successor, Charles FitzRoy, 1st Baron Southampton , developed the area during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Apartments for aristocratic families were to be built on Fitzroy Square. The square was built in four stages. Construction based on designs by Robert Adam began in 1794 and was completed in 1798 by Adam's brothers James and William. These buildings have facades made of Portland (natural stone) , which is native to Dorset .

The Napoleonic Wars and a slump in the London property market brought construction work to a temporary standstill. A contemporary account describes the unfinished square as follows:

"The houses are faced with stone, and have a greater proportion of architectural excellence and embellishment than most others in the metropolis. They were designed by the Adams's, but the progress of the late was prevented the completion of the design. It is much to be regretted, that it remains in its present unfinished state. "

The north and west sides of the square were finally built in 1827–1829 and 1832–1835 with stucco-decorated facades.

Today the square is designed for pedestrians according to plans by Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe .

The square is described in William Makepeace Thackeray's Vanity Fair as the "Anglo-Indian Quarter" where many retired British officials in India lived.

Important buildings

The embassies of Liberia (No. 23) and Mozambique (No. 21) are located in Fitzroy Square . The offices and library of the Georgian Group are located in house number 6 . The headquarters of the Arbitration Association is at number 28. St Luke's Hospital for the Clergy is at number 14.

The buildings with the numbers 1, 1A, 2-8 and 33-40 are under monument protection .

Known residents

29 Fitzroy Square, home of Virginia Stephen (Virginia Woolf) and Adrian Stephen from 1907 to 1911

The theater critic William Archer lived at number 27.
The painter Ford Madox Brown lived at number 37.
The epidemiologist William Farr (1807-1883) opened his first medical practice in Fitzroy Square.
Roger Fry's Omega Workshops for Avant-Garde Furniture was located at 33 from 1913 to 1919.
The Bloomsbury Group Artists Duncan Grant lived around 1909 in number. 21st
The pharmacist August Wilhelm von Hofmann (1818–1892) lived in No. 9.
Writer Ian McEwan was also a local resident and posted his 2005 novel Saturday at Fitzroy Sq. play.
The Scottish doctor William Nisbet (1759-1822) practiced after 1801 in Fitzroy Square.
The artist Sir William Quiller Orchardson lived in No. 37 from 1862, as did John Pettie .
The British prime minister Robert Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury , lived in No. 21,.
George Bernard Shaw lived in No. 29 from 1887 until his wedding in 1898.
Virginia Woolf lived at No. 29 from 1907-1911.
Guy Ritchie bought two adjoining houses there that were occupied by protesters in February 2011.