Great Scotland Yard (street)
Encyclopedia
Great Scotland Yard is a street in the St. James's
district of Westminster
, London, connecting Northumberland Avenue
and Whitehall
. It is best known as the location of the rear entrance to the original headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service
of London.
and occasionally Scottish kings when they visited English royalty. By the 17th century the street had become a site of government buildings and residences for civil servants. The architects Inigo Jones
and Christopher Wren
once lived there. From 1649–1651, the poet John Milton
lived there during the Commonwealth of England
under Oliver Cromwell
's rule.
According to the London Metropolitan Police Service
(MPS), the original Metropolitan Police Commissioner's office was located at 4 Whitehall Place, with a rear entrance on Great Scotland Yard. An 1862 map of Westminster shows this location. Over time, the name Scotland Yard
came to be used generally as a metonym for the police headquarters.
A 1799 map of Westminster shows two other streets (no longer existing) named Scotland Yard. Middle Scotland Yard was located to the south of, and parallel to Whitehall Place. Lower Scotland Yard was the next street to the south.
The Clarence pub dates from 1896 and was named after the Duke of Clarence
. At that time it was attached to the opposite corner across Great Scotland Yard by an archway. In 1908 the archway was removed in the redevelopment of Great Scotland Yard, the end of the building was refaced with newer and slightly different coloured bricks.
St. James's
St James's is an area of central London in the City of Westminster. It is bounded to the north by Piccadilly, to the west by Green Park, to the south by The Mall and St. James's Park and to the east by The Haymarket.-History:...
district of Westminster
Westminster
Westminster is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
, London, connecting Northumberland Avenue
Northumberland Avenue
Northumberland Avenue is a London street, running from Trafalgar Square in the west to The Embankment in the east. The avenue was built on the site of Northumberland House, the London home of the Percy family, the Dukes of Northumberland....
and Whitehall
Whitehall
Whitehall is a road in Westminster, in London, England. It is the main artery running north from Parliament Square, towards Charing Cross at the southern end of Trafalgar Square...
. It is best known as the location of the rear entrance to the original headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service
Metropolitan Police Service
The Metropolitan Police Service is the territorial police force responsible for Greater London, excluding the "square mile" of the City of London which is the responsibility of the City of London Police...
of London.
History
Although the origin of the name is not known for sure, according to a 1964 article in The New York Times, the name derives from buildings in the area being used to accommodate the diplomatic representatives of the then Kingdom of ScotlandKingdom of Scotland
The Kingdom of Scotland was a Sovereign state in North-West Europe that existed from 843 until 1707. It occupied the northern third of the island of Great Britain and shared a land border to the south with the Kingdom of England...
and occasionally Scottish kings when they visited English royalty. By the 17th century the street had become a site of government buildings and residences for civil servants. The architects Inigo Jones
Inigo Jones
Inigo Jones is the first significant British architect of the modern period, and the first to bring Italianate Renaissance architecture to England...
and Christopher Wren
Christopher Wren
Sir Christopher Wren FRS is one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history.He used to be accorded responsibility for rebuilding 51 churches in the City of London after the Great Fire in 1666, including his masterpiece, St. Paul's Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, completed in 1710...
once lived there. From 1649–1651, the poet John Milton
John Milton
John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, a scholarly man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell...
lived there during the Commonwealth of England
Commonwealth of England
The Commonwealth of England was the republic which ruled first England, and then Ireland and Scotland from 1649 to 1660. Between 1653–1659 it was known as the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland...
under Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
's rule.
According to the London Metropolitan Police Service
Metropolitan Police Service
The Metropolitan Police Service is the territorial police force responsible for Greater London, excluding the "square mile" of the City of London which is the responsibility of the City of London Police...
(MPS), the original Metropolitan Police Commissioner's office was located at 4 Whitehall Place, with a rear entrance on Great Scotland Yard. An 1862 map of Westminster shows this location. Over time, the name Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
came to be used generally as a metonym for the police headquarters.
A 1799 map of Westminster shows two other streets (no longer existing) named Scotland Yard. Middle Scotland Yard was located to the south of, and parallel to Whitehall Place. Lower Scotland Yard was the next street to the south.
The Clarence pub dates from 1896 and was named after the Duke of Clarence
Duke of Clarence
Duke of Clarence is a title which has been traditionally awarded to junior members of the English and British Royal families. The first three creations were in the Peerage of England, the fourth in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the fifth in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.The title was first...
. At that time it was attached to the opposite corner across Great Scotland Yard by an archway. In 1908 the archway was removed in the redevelopment of Great Scotland Yard, the end of the building was refaced with newer and slightly different coloured bricks.