Belgrave Square
It is the centrepiece of Belgravia, and its architecture resembles the original scheme of property contractor Thomas Cubitt who engaged George Basevi for all of the terraces for the 2nd Earl Grosvenor, later the 1st Marquess of Westminster, in the 1820s.
The village and former manor house of Belgrave, Cheshire, were among the rural landholdings associated with the main home and gardens of the senior branch of the family, Eaton Hall.
The slightly later north corner mansion No.49 was drawn up by Cubitt (not to be confused with his son George, another architect, ennobled as Lord Ashcombe) for Sidney Herbert in 1851.
The square features statues of Christopher Columbus, Simón Bolívar, José de San Martín, Prince Henry the Navigator and the 1st Marquess of Westminster, a bust of George Basevi, and a sculpture entitled Homage to Leonardo by Italian sculptor Enzo Plazzotta.
[1] From its construction until the Second World War the square saw building rentals and longer leases by the upper echelons of capitalists seeking further influence, status or socialising in the capital.
During the Second World War the square was used as a tank park; most of the houses were afterwards converted into offices for charities and institutes.
On 12 May 1953, it was reopened by the Duke of Gloucester as the base of the Hispanic and Luso-Brazilian Council, which remained until it moved to 14-15 Belgrave Square in 2013.
[17] 5 Belgrave Square was the home of Sir George Murray, Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, until he died there in 1846; Chips Channon from 1935 to 1958; and later housed the Institute of Directors, followed by the British Plastics Federation.
She is said to have held parties for soldiers during the Second World War, while part of the property was used as a Red Cross supply depot.
In the early part of the 20th century, it was known as Downshire House and was the London residence of Lord and Lady Pirrie.
Lord Pirrie was the chairman of Harland & Wolff, a leading shipbuilding firm located in Belfast, Ireland.
Cunard's newest vessel, the Lusitania, the largest ship in the world, was just two months before entering service.
Their discussions led to the original propositions behind the construction of the newest and the then largest class of ocean liner in the world.
31 Belgrave Square was the home of the Royal Automobile Club Motor Sports Association and the Speedway Control Board.
33 Belgrave Square was home to the banker Maurice Ruffer, and later to the Spiritualist Association of Great Britain.
36 Belgrave Square, known as Ingestre House, was leased by Queen Victoria as a home for her mother, the widowed Duchess of Kent.
[28] 45 Belgrave Square was the home of Caroline Beresford, Duchess of Montrose[29] (1818–1894), who used the pseudonym "Mr Manton", also of Sefton Lodge, Newmarket, a notable racehorse owner, a "wildly extravagant woman" who "strode across the racing scene".
The private communal garden is 2 hectares (4.9 acres) in size and contains mature plane, chestnut and lime trees, and various shrubs.
