Strand, The (London, England); Streets -- England -- London
"On the left hand from Charing Cross are also divers tenements lately
built till ye come to a large plot of ground inclosed with brick, and is
called Scotland, where great buildings have been for receipt of the
Kings of Scotland and other estates of that country, for Margaret Queen
of Scots and sister to King Henry VIII. had her abiding here when she
came to England after the death of her husband, as the Kings of Scotland
had in former times when they came to the Parliament of England."
Here for some time was the official residence of the Surveyor of Works
to the Crown, and Inigo Jones and Sir Christopher Wren were both
occupants. Sir J. Vanbrugh also resided at Scotland Yard, and as
Secretary to the Council Milton had an official residence here before he
went to Petty France, as described in the book on Westminster in the
same series.
Craig's or Cragg's Court, in which is the Royal Almonry office, is shown
in old maps. Strype speaks of it as a "very handsome large Court, with
new buildings fit for gentry of Repute." It was built in 1702, and is
supposed to have been called after the father of Secretary Craggs, who
was a friend of Pope and Addison. Woodfall, the publisher, had a West
End office in the court, and Romney the painter lived there. There is a
fine old Queen Anne house still standing at the back of the court.
Opposite Scotland Yard is the Admiralty, built round a courtyard, and
hidden by a stone screen surmounted by sea-horses. The screen was the
work of the brothers Adam, and was put up to hide a building which even
the taste of George III.'s reign declared to be insufferable. This had
been built for the Admiralty in 1726, and replaced old Wallingford
House, so called from its first owner, Viscount Wallingford, who built
it in the reign of James I. George Villiers, the well-known Duke of
Buckingham, bought the house, and used it until his death. Archbishop
Usher saw the execution of Charles I. from the roof, and swooned with
horror at the sight. The house was occupied by Cromwell's son-in-law,
General Fleetwood, and in 1680 became Government property. In one of the
large rooms the body of Nelson lay in state before his national funeral.
St. Catherine's Hermitage, Charing Cross, stood somewhere near Charing
Cross. It is believed to have been about the position of the
post-office. It belonged to the See of Llandaff, and was occasionally
used as a lodging by such Bishops of that See as came to attend the
Court and had no town-house.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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