Lambeth Road
Encyclopedia
Lambeth
Lambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
(to the west) and Southwark
Southwark
Southwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
(to the east), London running between Lambeth Bridge
Lambeth Bridge
Lambeth Bridge is a road traffic and footbridge crossing the River Thames in an east-west direction in central London, England; the river flows north at the crossing point...
over the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
at the western end and St George's Circus
St George's Circus
St George's Circus is a road junction in Southwark, London, England. At its centre, which is now a traffic roundabout, is a historic obelisk, designed by Robert Mylne , in his role as surveyor and architect of Blackfriars Bridge.-History:...
at the eastern end. The road is designated the A3203.
Lambeth Palace
Lambeth Palace is the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury in England. It is located in Lambeth, on the south bank of the River Thames a short distance upstream of the Palace of Westminster on the opposite shore. It was acquired by the archbishopric around 1200...
, the London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
base of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
and the Museum of Garden History
Museum of Garden History
The Garden Museum, formerly known as the Museum of Garden History, is based in the deconsecrated parish church of St Mary-at-Lambeth adjacent to Lambeth Palace on the south bank of the River Thames in London, located on Lambeth Road...
are to the north towards the west by the river. St George's Cathedral Southwark is on the north side. Opposite on the south side is the Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
, originally the site of the Bethlem Royal Hospital
Bethlem Royal Hospital
The Bethlem Royal Hospital is a psychiatric hospital located in London, United Kingdom and part of the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. Although no longer based at its original location, it is recognised as the world's first and oldest institution to specialise in mental illnesses....
, the world's oldest psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
.
Lambeth Walk
Lambeth Walk
Lambeth Walk is a street in Lambeth, London, England, off Lambeth Road. It was an old street market and housing area.After some bomb damage during the Blitz in World War II on September 18, 1940, the area became rather run down and was subsequently rebuilt....
adjoins to the south in the middle. Other adjoining roads include the Albert Embankment
Albert Embankment
The Albert Embankment is a stretch of the river bank on the south side of the River Thames in Central London. It stretches approximately one mile northward from Vauxhall Bridge to Westminster Bridge, and is located in the London Borough of Lambeth.Albert Embankment is also the name given to the...
and Lambeth Palace Road
Lambeth Palace Road
Lambeth Palace Road runs between Westminster Bridge and Lambeth Bridge, in Lambeth, London, on the south bank of the River Thames. St Thomas' Hospital lies between it and the river. At the southern end is Lambeth Palace, the London base of the Archbishop of Canterbury.The road forms part of the A3036...
by the river, Kennington Road
Kennington Road
Kennington Road is a long straight road, approximately a mile in length, in the London Borough of Lambeth in London, England, running south from Westminster Bridge Road to Kennington Park Road....
and St George's Road
St George's Road
St George's Road is a road in Southwark, London running between Westminster Bridge Road to the northwest and Elephant and Castle to the southeast. Its name derives from its crossing of St George's Fields, being an open rural area of the parish of St George the Martyr, Southwark...
.
The remains of Saint John Jones
Saint John Jones
Saint John Jones, O.F.M.,, also known as John Buckley, John Griffith, or Godfrey Maurice, was a Franciscan friar, Catholic priest and martyr. He was born at Clynnog Fawr, Caernarfonshire , Wales and executed 12 July 1598...
were displayed on what is now Lambeth Road after his execution in 1598.
Famous residents
- Archbishops of Canterbury, latterly at Lambeth Palace.
- Elias AshmoleElias AshmoleElias Ashmole was a celebrated English antiquary, politician, officer of arms, astrologer and student of alchemy. Ashmole supported the royalist side during the English Civil War, and at the restoration of Charles II he was rewarded with several lucrative offices.Ashmole was an antiquary with a...
, founder of the Ashmolean MuseumAshmolean MuseumThe Ashmolean Museum on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is the world's first university museum...
in OxfordOxfordThe city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. - Philip AstleyPhilip AstleyPhilip Astley was an English equestrian, circus owner, and inventor, regarded as being the "father of the modern circus"...
(1742–1814), built and lived at Hercules Hall, after which Hercules RoadHercules RoadHercules Road runs north from Lambeth Road near Lambeth Palace, on the site of Penlington Place, in the London Borough of Lambeth, south London, England....
is named. He is acknowledged as the 'father of the modern circus'. - William BlakeWilliam BlakeWilliam Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
(1757–1827), the poet and visionary artist, lived in Hercules RoadHercules RoadHercules Road runs north from Lambeth Road near Lambeth Palace, on the site of Penlington Place, in the London Borough of Lambeth, south London, England....
, north off Lambeth Road. The location is marked with a plaque at 23 Hercules Road. - William BlighWilliam BlighVice Admiral William Bligh FRS RN was an officer of the British Royal Navy and a colonial administrator. A notorious mutiny occurred during his command of HMAV Bounty in 1789; Bligh and his loyal men made a remarkable voyage to Timor, after being set adrift in the Bounty's launch by the mutineers...
(1754–1817), captain of The BountyThe BountyThe Bounty is a 1984 British historical film directed by Roger Donaldson, starring Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins, and produced by Bernard Williams with Dino De Laurentiis as executive producer. It is the fifth film version of the story of the mutiny on the Bounty. The screenplay was by Robert Bolt...
and later an admiralAdmiralAdmiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
, lived at 100 Lambeth Road. - Emma ConsEmma ConsEmma Cons was a British social reformer, educationalist and theatre manager.-Early life:Born in St. Pancras London, she trained as an artist and joined the Ladies' Co-operative Art Guild, London, run by Caroline Hill, mother of the future housing reformer and founder of the National Trust, Octavia...
, socialist, educationalist and founder of the Old Vic Theatre, and her niece, Lilian BaylisLilian BaylisLilian Mary BaylisCH was an English theatrical producer and manager. She managed the Old Vic and Sadler's Wells theatres in London, and ran an opera company, which became the English National Opera , a theatre company, which evolved into the English National Theatre, and a ballet company, which...
, who re-established the Old Vic and Sadler's Wells, lived at 5–7 Morton Place, off Lambeth Road. - Sir Philip Ben Greet, the actor-manager, lived at 160 Lambeth Road (1920–36).
- Kevin SpaceyKevin SpaceyKevin Spacey, CBE is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and crooner. He grew up in California, and began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, before being cast in supporting roles in film and television...
(born 1959), artistic director at the Old Vic Theatre nearby, lives in the vicinity. - John Tradescant the elderJohn Tradescant the elderJohn Tradescant the elder , father of John Tradescant the younger, was an English naturalist, gardener, collector and traveller, probably born in Suffolk, England...
and his son of the same nameJohn Tradescant the youngerJohn Tradescant the Younger , son of John Tradescant the elder, was a botanist and gardener, born in Meopham, Kent and educated at The King's School, Canterbury...
, plant collectors.
See also notable patients of Bethlem hospital, including the artist Richard Dadd
Richard Dadd
Richard Dadd was an English painter of the Victorian era, noted for his depictions of fairies and other supernatural subjects, Orientalist scenes, and enigmatic genre scenes, rendered with obsessively minuscule detail...
.
External links
- Lambeth Road and Hercules Road historical information from the Vauxhall Society
- North Lamberth history
- Survey of London entry (1951)