St James's Square

St James’s Square is a quiet garden square in the St James’s district of Westminster. It is surrounded by buildings in Georgian and Neo-Georgian styles, most of them now offices or clubs. The square began in 1665 when Charles II granted the freehold to trustees for Henry Jermyn, Earl of St Albans. The first houses faced Whitehall and St James’s Palace, making it convenient for royalty. By the 1720s seven dukes and seven earls lived here, and the best addresses were on the east, north and west sides. The southern side was narrower and less grand, with small houses facing Pall Mall. The square once had a basin and fountain in its centre, though water stopped flowing by the 1730s. A tall stone statue of William III on horseback was raised in 1808. Over time clubs moved in, and by the 1850s banks and government offices appeared. The Libyan embassy here was the scene of the 1984 siege that killed police officer Yvonne Fletcher. Today the square holds the headquarters of BP and Rio Tinto, four private members’ clubs, the London Library and Chatham House. Visitors walk past the modern BP building at Number 1 and the Naval and Military Club at Number 4, a Georgian house with its original garden and mews. Number 5, Wentworth House, was the Libyan embassy during the siege. Number 10, Chatham House, bears a plaque naming three prime ministers who lived there. The London Library occupies Number 14, rebuilt in the 19th century. The square remains a calm oasis of broad windows, high ceilings and wide-spaced facades among the busy streets of Westminster.