Old and New London, A Narrative of its History, its People and its Places. Illustrated with Numerous Engravings from the Most Authentic Sources. vol 3
Thornbury, Walter
1872-78
Chapter X: The Strand:--Southern Tributaries.
Chapter X: The Strand:--Southern Tributaries.
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Extending from as far as the present was formerly an Outer Temple, which, with the Inner and Middle Temples, constituted the residences of the Knights Templars. This space is now for the most part occupied by the houses in Thanet Place, Palsgrave Place (both ), and Devereux Court. | |
The of these-Thanet Place-stands as nearly as possible on the site of the old a place of rendezvous for lawyers and wits in the last century. The place consists of houses. It was named after the Earls of Thanet, to whom it belonged, and from whom the property passed, in , by purchase to John Cooke, a bookseller in . The is described by Strype as being in his day a and T. Fairchild, in his in , tells us that in this garden was It makes our mouths water as we come out of on a hot summer afternoon, with the thermometer at in the shade, to hear of grapes growing in the open air close to our left hand even a century and a half ago. The at this tavern is mentioned in Horace Walpole's but it has long since passed out of memory. | |
Palsgrave Place, a narrow paved court, about half-way between and , is named after the Palsgrave Frederick, King of Bohemia, who in married the Princess Elizabeth, daughter of James I. Close by was the tavern known as the where Prior and Montague make the bilk the hackney coachman :
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Some of the taverns of the century appear to have been established over the shops in this locality; for in , according to Mr. Diprose's
Another house of entertainment or tavern in this neighbourhood, much frequented | |
p.64 | by members of Parliament and City gallants of the century, was Here usually dined [extra_illustrations.3.64.1] , some time member for Hull, and famous in his day as a wit and satirist; and here, according to the above authority, he administered a severe castiga- Lion to certain members of the House, known to be in the pay of the Crown, for ensuring the subserviency of their votes.
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Another in which Andrew Marvell appears as the principal character, may possibly have taken place here. The anecdote has been often related, but will bear repetition:--
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The house No. , Strand, now a branch of the London and Joint-Stock Bank, but which till lately was occupied as a bank by Messrs. Strahan (originally Snow), Paul, and Bates, had a history approaching in venerable antiquity to that of its neighbour, the bank of Messrs. Child. The name of the firm was originally Snow and Walton, who carried on business here as pawnbrokers during the Commonwealth, their house bearing the sign of the Their ledgers went back as far as the year . There was a book in the possession of the late members of the firm, showing that they were established as bankers in the reign of Charles II., when their accounts were kept in decimals. The firm came to a disgraceful and disastrous end in , the leading partners of it being tried criminally and convicted of misappropriating the moneys of their customers, for which they were sentenced to various terms of imprisonment, a climax which offers a striking contrast to the reputation enjoyed by the original owner and founder of the house, a wealthy goldsmith named Snow, whose memory is thus immortalised by Gay:--
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Adjoining the above house, and opposite to, the spot where formerly stood Butcher's Row, are the banking-house and tea-warehouse of Messrs. Twining and Co. The latter was founded about the year by the great-great-grandfather of the present partners, Mr. Thomas Twining, whose portrait, painted by Hogarth, hangs in the back parlour of the establishment. The house, or houses--for they really are , though made practically by internal communicationstand between the Strand and the east side of Devereux Court. The original depot for the sale of the then scarce and fashionable beverage, tea, stood at the south-west angle of the present premises, on the site of what had been directly opposite the A peep into the old books of the firm shows that in the reign of Queen Anne tea was sold by the few houses then in the trade at various prices between and per pound, and that ladies of fashion used to flock to Messrs. Twining's house in Devereux Court, in order to sip the enlivening beverage in very small china cups, for which they paid their shillings, much as nowa-days they sit in their carriages eating ices at the door of Gunter's in on hot days. in June. The bank was gradually engrafted by Messrs. Twining on the old business, after it had been carried on for more than a century from sire | |
p.65 [extra_illustrations.3.65.1] |
to son, and may be said, as a separate institution, to date from the commercial panic of . It is, perhaps, worthy of note that a member of this family, which has been so long and so honourably connected with commerce, was that elegant and accomplished scholar, the Rev. Thomas Twining, the translator of Aristotle's in the days of our grandfathers. |
Separated from the above-mentioned establishment by the entrance to Devereux Court is which stands on the site of what was once -- which, though not equal in reputation to or the had associations of its own. It is mentioned by Foote in his as a place where the wits of the town in would assemble in the evening; and among its frequenters was the poet Shenstone-he of the who tells us that for a subscription of a shilling he could read all the lesser pamphlets of the day. It ceased to be known as a coffee-house about the year , and has since been used as an hotel. | |
When the new sewers were being constructed in the Strand, a little to the east of , in , the workmen found a stone bridge of a single arch, strongly built, and covered to some depth with rubbish and soil. A doubt arises as to whether this could have been an arch turned over a gully or ditch at a time when the fields along the north side of the Strand were furrowed with water-courses, or whether it was actually the passed by the lords and others who went from London to attend the Parliament at in the reign of Edward III., and the repair of which that monarch called upon the Templars to effect. In the absence of architectural details, or at least a sketch of the bridge, we shall not attempt to decide so knotty a point. | |
Devereux Court, into which we now pass, is famous as having been the of of the most celebrated coffee-houses- and the It takes its name from Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, the Parliamentary general, who was born in Essex House (part of which stood upon this spot), and of whom we shall have more to say presently. | |
Of coffee-house we know that Akenside was a frequenter in the winter evenings, and that Pope here addresses a letter to Fortescue, the Another of its frequenters was Dr. Birch, the antiquary. | |
The as we know, was frequented by a goodly company of wits and poets, including Addison, Steele, and Goldsmith, and derived its name from having been kept originally by a Greek from the Levant. As far back as -, says Mr. Diprose, And Steele, in the number of the supplies us with an idea of the character of this house, when he tells the public that he The existence of the rival coffeehouses gave a high literary character to Devereux Court in the and eighteenth centuries. The face of the himself was very well known at the
and the house was frequented by the Irish and Lancashire Templars, and also by Fellows of the Royal Society. It was Foote's morning lounge, and in a snug and cozy corner here Goldsmith occasionally
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In the (No. ) Addison describes his feelings at seeing the young Templars lounge at the early in the morning, either dressed for , and with the assumed air of men with heavy business engagements, or else in gay caps and slippers, as though wishing to display their indolence. | |
Dr. King relates how hot-blooded young gentlemen quarrelled evening at the upon the appropriate subject of the accent of a certain Greek word, and not being able to adjust the matter amicably, stepped out into the court and settled it with their swords, the falling by the other's hand. The topographer of Leeds, Ralph Thoresby, describes how on occasion, after a meeting of the Royal Society, he came back to the and spent the rest of the evening there in the company of [extra_illustrations.3.65.2] . | |
At the [extra_illustrations.3.66.1] spent such of his winter evenings as he could spare from as we learn from Sir John Hawkins's
The ceased to be a coffee-house or tavern about the year , and shortly afterwards it was converted into A part of the building, however, now known as is used as a refreshment-bar. High up, on the front of this house, is a bust of Lord Essex, and beneath it the inscription,
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Footnotes: [extra_illustrations.3.64.1] Andrew Marvell [extra_illustrations.3.65.1] Mr. Foote and Mr. Weston in characters [extra_illustrations.3.65.2] Sir Isaac Newton [extra_illustrations.3.66.1] Akenside |
