
The Huskisson statue in Pimlico
Gardens, described by Osbert Sitwell as "boredom rising from the
bath"
St
George's Square is a long narrow garden square in Pimlico
, London
, SW1.
Pimlico's development was started in 1835 by the landowner, the
Marquess
of Westminster, and the building was supervised by
Thomas Cubitt who also designed the gardens.
St George's Square was originally laid out in 1839 as two parallel
streets running north-south but by 1843 had been developed into a
formal square, London's only residential square open to the
River Thames. The first residents moved
in in 1854. Until 1874 the square had its own
pier for
steamers.
St George's Square is in the parish of Hanover Square and was named
after the
patron saint of Britain. In
the gardens, now known as Pimlico Gardens, stands a stone statue by
John Gibson of
William Huskisson M.P. - the first person ever to be run
over and killed by a railway engine - wearing a
Roman senatorial
toga.
The statue was originally designed for the
London Royal
Exchange
; it was placed in the gardens in 1915. The
statue was described by Sir
Osbert
Sitwell as "boredom rising from the bath".
The Church of St
Saviour
(1864) stands at the north end of the square; it
was designed by Thomas Cundy the
Younger who was the surveyor for the Grovesnor
Estate.
The square has had many notable residents. Author
Bram Stoker died at number 26 in April 1912,
author and
gamesman Stephen Potter lived at number 56 in 1924
whilst teaching at a
crammer in number
68 and
William Makepeace
Thackeray's eldest daughter
Anne Ritchie made her home
at number 109 from 1901 to 1912.
Much of Cubitt's original square remains and is predominantly four
and five storey white
stucco townhouses although they have now been divided
into
flat. A 2007 survey showed that the
majority of residents (34%) are aged between 30 and 45 years old
and the dominant ethnic group self-identifies as
White British (75%).
References