Cavendish Square

Cavendish Square is a public garden square in Marylebone, in London’s West End. It sits between four streets: Wigmore Street, Harley Street, Chandos Street and Cavendish Place. The square’s south side is modern, with a department store and office block behind it. Shops like Comptoir Libanais, Royal Bank of Scotland and Pret a Manger face the square. Oxford Circus lies 150 metres to the south-east where Oxford Street and Regent Street meet. The square was first planned in 1717 for the 2nd Earl of Oxford by architect John Prince. It was named after his wife, Henrietta Cavendish-Holles, but work slowed after the South Sea Bubble. Early residents included the 1st Duke of Chandos and Princess Amelia. A blue plaque marks the home of H. H. Asquith, Prime Minister from 1908 to 1916. The square also appears in Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel *Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde* as Dr Lanyon’s home. A bronze statue of Lord George Bentinck stands on the south side, erected in 1851. Nearby is a Grade II* listed bridge with Jacob Epstein’s Virgin and Child sculpture above an arch. The square’s northern range once housed a convent with a tunnel, later converted into Heythrop College. Harcourt House, a listed building, backs onto the former home of Quintin Hogg, founder of the University of Westminster.