Petty France, London

The back of No. 19, York Street (1848). In 1651 John Milton moved into a "pretty garden-house" in Petty France. He lived there until the Restoration. Later it became No. 19 York Street, belonged to Jeremy Bentham, was occupied successively by James Mill and William Hazlitt, and finally demolished in 1877.

Petty France is a short street in the City of Westminster in central London, linking Buckingham Gate with Broadway and Queen Anne's Gate.

Among the buildings that line the street is 102 Petty France, which currently houses the Ministry of Justice.

History

File:Commemorative Plaque to Jeremy Bentham - geograph.org.uk - 1179188 (2).jpg

Bentham lived in a house next to 19 York street. The commemorative plaque was unveiled on 12th October 2004.

In the 18th century Petty France was described by John Stow as "a considerable street between Tathill Street, E., and James Street, W". The name is generally thought to refer to the settlement of Huguenot refugees in the area.

The name is also used to refer to the area in the vicinity of the street, the 7th Ward of Westminster. There are similar street names elsewhere in London: e.g. a short street in Billingsgate in the City of London called Petty Wales.

In the second half of the 18th century "the name was changed to York Street from Frederick, Duke of York, son of George II., who had made a temporary residence amongst them". A name it retained up until around 1925, when its previous name was restored.

The street was the original location in 1720 of the Westminster Public Infirmary. It was the first street in London to paved for pedestrians, and it was the location of the first custom built artificial ice-rink in London, called Niagara, it opened in the late 1800s. The street was also the home for 50 years until 2002 of the London passport office at Clive House; it is now located at Globe House in Eccleston Square, Victoria.

In Fred Zinnermann's 1973 film "Day of The Jackal" the Jackal, portrayed by actor Edward Fox, addresses an envelope to "The Passport Office, Petty France, London, S.W.1"

See also

• John Cleland (1709–1789), journalist and the author of Fanny Hill lived and died in a house on Petty France.

References

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