The residential streets are lined with mews houses and Georgian and Victorian villas. Some nearby localities are Hampstead village to the north and west, Camden Town to the south-east and Primrose Hill to the south. There are restaurants, pubs, cafés, and independent boutiques in Belsize Village,[1] and on Haverstock Hill and England's Lane. Hampstead Heath is close by, and Primrose Hill park is a five-minute walk from England's Lane.
Finchley Road, Belsize Park, Frognal and "Swiss Inn" in Hampstead in Charles Booth's colour coded property map. Red = Middle-class. Well-to-do. Gold = Upper-middle and Upper class. Wealthy. As shown, the district dates to at least the 1890s when this map was made.A map showing the Belsize Ward of Hampstead MB in 1916
The name is derived from French bel assis meaning 'well situated'. The area has many thoroughfares bearing its name: Belsize Avenue, Belsize Court, Belsize Crescent, Belsize Gardens, Belsize Grove, Belsize Lane, Belsize Mews, Belsize Park (the road), Belsize Park Gardens, Belsize Place, Belsize Square, and Belsize Terrace.
The Manor of Belsize dates back to 1317, when as a subdivision to the Manor of Hampstead it was left to the Roman Catholic monks of Westminster Abbey.[2] The original manor consisted of a number of subdivided farms, which were rented out for income. Hence after the reformation, King Henry VIII returned the estate to the newly constituted Anglican Dean of Westminster Abbey. By 1600, including the manor houseBelsize House there were at least three other properties on the estate, with diplomat and courtier Sir Isaac Wake (1581 – 1632) having a substantial property built on the west side of the main London to Hampstead road. Inherited by his daughter and her husband, Charles West (1626–1687), the fifth Baron de la Warr, by 1714 it had passed through various hands into the ownership of William Paget, the 6th Baron Paget, who had a substantial formal garden constructed.
The name Belsize Park comes from the 17th-century manor house and parkland (built by Daniel O'Neill for his wife, the Countess of Chesterfield) which once stood on the site. Rebuilt in 1663, it was sublet by 1721, when the parklands opened as pleasure gardens for those looking to escape the dirt and grime of the City of London, with concerts, singing, dancing and country sports such as fishing and racing. In 1722 magistrates were instructed to act to stop riotous behaviour, although the parkland remained open until 1745. Belsize House was rebuilt in 1746, after which additional large country houses had been built on the surrounding farmlands for wealthy lawyers and merchants.
Between 1679 and 1714, the number of houses on the estate had increased from 8 to 14, and by 1808 there were still only 22 recorded. However, the formal division of the state in 1808 into eight separate lands - based on the structure of the underleases pertaining to the estates formal houses - allowed the church to maximise its income, and hence to allow additional substantial houses to be built on the lands. This income allowed the church to have Belsize House rebuilt in 1812 for additional letting income. The wealthy leaseholders soon enabled themselves to purchase the freehold from the church, allowing the accelerated development of Belsize as a Victorian country urban suburb of London. One of the new land owners George Todd redeveloped what was known as the White House in 1815 as a substantial Georgian stucco-villa with portico, and two lodges. Known as Belsize House, it was later sold to Matthew Forster (1786 – 1869) the Whig MP for Berwick-upon-Tweed as Belsize Lodge - it was demolished in 1937.
Victorian development started along the main London to Hampstead road from 1815 through the works of Edward Bliss, a self-made man who had leased and then bought the southeastern-located Newman's House lands, on the west side of Haverstock Hill north of England's Lane. Bliss not only built properties to lease out, but also allowed construction subleases. In 1829 Eton College advertised villa-sized plots on Haverstock Hill. The college then started developing an axis road to Finchley Road, naming it after Queen Adelaide. Development halted in the 1830s due to the proposal for the lines of the London and Birmingham Railway (L&BR) to be built through Belsize Park, but Eton College successfully argued via parliamentary lobbying for the railway to be tunnelled underground via Primrose Hill, which was then designed and engineered by Robert Stephenson. All the 38 houses on the Newman's House lands had been built by 1830.
The passing of the Ecclesiastical Leases Act 1842 allowed all church lands to be let on long term construction leases, which unlocked the accelerated urban development of Belsize Park. The opening in 1851 of Hampstead Road railway station on the L&BR prompted William Lund in 1852 to agree a 99-year construction sublease on the former Forsyth estate. He proposed developments to the west of Haverstock Hill, although his plans were curtailed by construction issues associated with building over both the Pond Street sewer and the L&BR tunnel. In 1852 Charles James Palmer, a Bloomsbury-based solicitor bought the lease of Belsize House. In 1853 he proposed demolition of the main house, with Daniel Tiley taking the lead role in constructing Belsize Square and associated properties. Palmer commissioned architect James Piers St Aubyn to design St Peter's Church. In 1864 the church bought-back the lease on the undeveloped backlot of the Bliss lands. Tiley gained agreement from Palmer and Eton College to buy the construction lease from the church, and hence extend development south of Belsize Square to connect with the college's estate. Mimicking the then fashionable styles of Kensington and Bayswater, between 1851 and the late 1860s he built over 250 8-10 bedroom semi-detached stucco houses with large porticos, aimed at the middle classes. The church undertook a similar agreement in 1857, reacquiring full control over the portion of Todd's lease north of Belsize Lane in 1865, and again selling it to Tiley. With construction almost complete, fashion changed and Tiley went bankrupt in 1870.
Of the original eight lands defined by the church in 1808, the three leased to Thomas Roberts remained substantially undeveloped throughout much of the Victoria era. South End Farm continued as a farmhouse, whilst although Rosslyn House was sold in 1816 to the undertenant, it remained in place with its formal gardens until the house was demolished between 1896 and 1909. In 1855 Henry Davidson exchanged his lease for life of the Rosslyn House lands for a 99-year building lease. Due to issues associated with construction over the L&BR tunnels, in 1859 he sold Rosslyn House and its extended formal gardens to Charles Henry Lardner Woodd. Woodd decided to sublease the house out for income, with its occupiers until 1893 including Sir Francis Freeling (1764 – 1836) who was Secretary of HM General Post Office, and General Sir Moore Disney. Davidson developed his part of the Rosslyn lands, undertaking a mixed development of large semi-detached properties similar to Belsize Park, slowed by a lack of labour through both the substantial development of the neighbouring Maryon Wilson land and the 1860s housing rush. Woodd endeavored to keep the ever-encroaching tide of housing from coming too close to Rosslyn House, permitting development only on the fringes of the formal garden, such as the housing by the local architect Horace Field on the south side of Wedderburn Road. It was only after Woodd's death in 1895, and the sale of the House to developers by his widow the following year, that development took place on the north side of Wedderburn Road and elsewhere on the garden and site of the House. At 19-21 Lyndhurst Road (1898) the development incorporated the gatehouse of Rosslyn House, designed for Woodd by Teulon, the architect of St Stephen's Church, Rosslyn Hill.[3]
Developing housing resulted in the need for facilities, including the Metropolitan Railway from 1860 (Hampstead Heath and Finchley Road), and the L&BR form 1868 (Swiss Cottage and Finchley Road). From 1873 William Willett - the father of William Willett the tireless promoter of British Summer Time, who helped his father from 1881 onwards - took over the church's leases after the bankruptcy of Daniel Tiley. Willett redeveloped much of the former Eton College estate with newer, smaller but still substantial properties inspired by Queen Anne style architecture. By 1900, most of the residual country mansions and their gardens had been demolished, now to make way for smaller terraced houses.
Belsize Park Mews
After World War I, the construction of blocks of flats began, and now a great many of the larger houses are also converted into flats. In World War II, a large underground air-raid shelter was built here and its entrance can still be seen near the tube station at Downside Crescent. The area on Haverstock Hill north of Belsize Park Underground station up to Hampstead Town Hall and including part of a primary school near the Royal Free Hospital was heavily bombed. When the area was rebuilt, the opportunity was taken to widen the pavement and build further back from the road.
Cultural references
The lyrics of the international chart hit "Kayleigh" by rock band Marillion in 1985 include the line "loving on the floor in Belsize Park". It is also in the short film Les Bicyclettes de Belsize (although mainly filmed in Hampstead Village), of which the title song was covered by Mireille Mathieu, Engelbert Humperdinck, and others. Belsize Park is also referenced on Sleeper's 1995 debut album Smart in the song "Lady Love Your Countryside" with the lyrics "And we could spend our lives puking in Belsize Park". Cozy Powell's 1974 single "Na Na Na" suggests that "You're a wizard of Wembley Central, You're the J. S. Bach of Belsize park". The Belsize Park London Underground station features in the song "Paradise" by Coldplay, where in the video, the elephant can be seen taking a train from the station.[4]
Kirsty MacColl's 2000 song "England 2 Colombia 0" features the line, "we went to a pub in Belsize Park and cheered on England as the skies grew dark..."
It is also the place of residence for the Jewish community targeted by Hitler during the Second World War in the novel The Morning Gift.
Novelist Peter Straub entitled his 1983 poetry collection "Leeson Square and Belsize Park" in part after his time in residence in the Belsize Park region of London. Belsize Park and the surrounding quarters were the setting for a long-running radio drama, Waggoner's Walk. This daily serial ran from April 1969 to May 1980 each weekday on Radio 2. Belsize Park is mentioned in the Hitchcock thriller, Dial M for Murder (1954) by the lead character Tony Wallace played by Ray Milland when coercing his accomplice, C.A. Swann into murdering his wife.
Sport
There are records of a Belsize Park Rugby Club in North-West London since the 1860s. In 1871, Belsize was one of the clubs at the inaugural meeting of the Rugby Football Union, and therefore pioneers of the game of Rugby Union. In 1878, Belsize moved to form Rosslyn Park RFC, becoming one of England's leading clubs. In 1971, Belsize Park RFC was re-established by a group of local players. The club is now one of the most central of all London Rugby Clubs, playing and training in Regent's Park. There are five regular teams playing every Saturday during the season as well as a touch rugby squad in the summer time.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Belsize Park.
Baker, T. F. T.; Bolton, Diane K.; Croot, Patricia E. C. (1989). "Hampstead: Belsize". In Elrington, C. R. (ed.). A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 9, Hampstead, Paddington. London: Victoria County History. pp.51–60 – via British History Online.
Chalk Farm is a small urban district of north west London, lying immediately north of Camden Town, in the London Borough of Camden.
Hampstead is an area in London, England, which lies four miles northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from the A5 road to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the London Borough of Camden, a borough in Inner London which for the purposes of the London Plan is designated as part of Central London.
Hampstead was a civil parish and metropolitan borough in London, England. It was an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, governed by an administrative vestry. The parish was included in the area of responsibility of the Metropolitan Board of Works in 1855 and became part of the County of London in 1889. The parish of Hampstead became a metropolitan borough in 1900, following the London Government Act 1899, with the parish vestry replaced by a borough council. In 1965 the borough was abolished and its former area became part of the London Borough of Camden in Greater London.
Primrose Hill is a Grade II listed public park located north of Regent's Park in London, England, first opened to the public in 1842. It was named after the 64 metres (210 ft) natural hill in the centre of the park, the second highest natural point in the London Borough of Camden. The hill summit has a clear view of central London, as well as Hampstead and Belsize Park to the north and is adorned by an engraved quotation from William Blake. Based on the popularity of the park, the surrounding district and electoral ward were named Primrose Hill. The Primrose Hill district is in the London Borough of Camden, England.
Gospel Oak is an inner urban area of north west London in the London Borough of Camden at the very south of Hampstead Heath. The neighbourhood is positioned between Hampstead to the north-west, Dartmouth Park to the north-east, Kentish Town to the south-east, and Belsize Park to the south-west. Gospel Oak lies across the NW5 and NW3 postcodes and is served by Gospel Oak station on the London Overground. The North London Suburb, Gospel Oak, has many schools around it.
Swiss Cottage is an area of Hampstead in the London Borough of Camden, England. It is centred on the junction of Avenue Road and Finchley Road and includes Swiss Cottage tube station. Swiss Cottage lies 3.25 miles (5.23 km) north-northwest of Charing Cross. The area was named after a public house in the centre of it, known as "Ye Olde Swiss Cottage".
Hillfield Court is a prominent art deco residential mansion block in Belsize Park, in the London Borough of Camden, built in 1934. It is located off Belsize Avenue and can also be accessed from Glenloch Road. It is one of the many purpose built mansion blocks on Haverstock Hill between Chalk Farm and Hampstead. It is close to the amenities near Belsize Park tube station, as well as the shops of Belsize Village, South End Green and Hampstead.
The London Borough of Camden is in percentage terms the second-greenest of the Inner London boroughs. It contains most of the swathe of land Hampstead Heath and many smaller green spaces. The Central London part of the borough, south of Euston Road, is characterised by its elegant garden squares with large instances: Tavistock Square and Bedford Square. In this part runs the Regent's Canal around the top edge of Regent's Park, a little of which is in Camden, including all of associated Primrose Hill. Highgate Cemetery is in Camden but Highgate Wood is in the neighbouring borough of Haringey.
Haverstock is an area of the London Borough of Camden: specifically the east of Belsize Park, north of Chalk Farm and west of Kentish Town. It is centred on Queens Crescent and Malden Road. Gospel Oak is to the north, Camden Town to the south.
The London Borough of Camden was created in 1965 from the former area of the metropolitan boroughs of Hampstead, Holborn, and St Pancras, which had formed part of the County of London. The borough was named after Camden Town, which had gained its name from Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden in 1795. Since the 17th century, many famous people have lived in its various districts and neighbourhoods.
The London Borough of Camden is a London borough in Inner London, England. Camden Town Hall, on Euston Road, lies 1.4 mi (2.3 km) north of Charing Cross. The borough was established on 1 April 1965 and includes the former Central London borough of Holborn, and St Pancras and Hampstead.
Fellows Road is a two-lane road in the London Borough of Camden, just north of Central London. It is on the Eton College estate, a series of roads and houses built to replace the area destroyed in World War II, on land owned by Eton College. The road was originally built in 1873 and finished between 1874 and 1894, and named after the college's fellows.
Primrose Hill is a district in the London Borough of Camden, England.
Primrose Hill Tunnel is a 1,164-yard (1,064 m) railway tunnel on the West Coast Main Line, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) from Euston station. It is located in South Hampstead in the London Borough of Camden, just north of Primrose Hill park and consists of two bores: the slow line to the northern side, driven through the London clay by the engineer Robert Stephenson for the London and Birmingham Railway in 1838, and the fast line to its south, added by the London and North Western Railway in 1879. The original tunnel's Italianate portals were designed by William Budden and later replicated for the fast line. The western portals have been listed at Grade II and the eastern at Grade II* since 1974.
Primrose Hill is a ward in the London Borough of Camden, in the United Kingdom. The ward represents the area of the same name, and the eastern part of the Swiss Cottage area. The ward was first used for the 2022 Camden London Borough Council election, and elects three councillors to Camden London Borough Council. Most of its area was previously in the Camden Town with Primrose Hill and Swiss Cottage wards, which were abolished at the same time, and a small part was transferred from the Belsize ward. In 2018, the ward had an electorate of 8,982. The Boundary Commission projects the electorate to rise to 9,049 in 2025.
Eton Avenue is a street in the Belsize Park area of Hampstead in North London. Located in the London Borough of Camden, it runs eastward from Swiss Cottage tube station to a junction with England's Lane, Primrose Hill Road and Belsize Park Gardens by The Washington pub. Fellows Road and Adelaide Road run parallel to the south of Eton Avenue.
Belsize House was a historic residence in Belsize Park in what is today the London Borough of Camden. It was a country estate located south of Hampstead, which was then some distance away from the outskirts of the capital.
Belsize Avenue is a street in the Belsize Park area of Hampstead. Located in the London Borough of Camden, it runs from Haverstock Hill westwards to a junction with Belsize Terrace and Belsize Park Gardens. It is the former carriageway approach to Belsize House, a country estate that occupied the area until it was demolished in 1853 to allow residential development. A number of houses in the street were built by William Willett around 1873.
Adelaide Road is a street in London running east to west between Chalk Farm and Swiss Cottage. Located in the London Borough of Camden it is part of the longer B509 route which continues as Belsize Road through South Hampstead. The Belsize Park area of Hampstead is to its north while Primrose Hill is to the south. It runs parallel to Fellows Road and Eton Avenue. Along its route it meets or is crossed by several streets including Primrose Hill Road and Avenue Road. At its eastern end is Chalk Farm tube station at the junction with Haverstock Hill, which opened in 1907. It takes its name from Queen Adelaide, wife of William IV.
Primrose Hill Road is a street located in the London Borough of Camden. Running off Regent's Park Road in the centre of the Primrose Hill area it heads west before curving northwards, following for some of its route alongside the edge of Primrose Hill. After crossing Adelaide Road it terminates next to the The Washington pub in Belsize Park, at a junction with Eton Avenue, England's Lane and Belsize Park Gardens. Primrose Hill Tunnel carrying the West Coast Main Line passes underneath the street.
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