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Mayfair
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mayfair is an area of central London in the City of Westminster, named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place there from 1686 until it was banned in that location in 1764. Prior to 1686, the May Fair was held in The Haymarket, and after 1764, it moved to Fair Field in Bow.
Mayfair is roughly bordered by Hyde Park to the west, Oxford Street to the north, Piccadilly and Green Park to the south and Regent Street to the east. Most of the area was first developed between the mid 17th century and the mid 18th century as a fashionable residential district, by a number of landlords, the most important of them the Grosvenor family. The freehold of a large section of Mayfair also belongs to Queen Elizabeth II.[citation needed] Queen Elizabeth II was born in Bruton Street and lived in Mayfair during her infant years.
The district is now mainly commercial, with many offices in converted houses and new buildings, including major corporate headquarters and a concentration of hedge funds. Rents are among the highest in London and the world. There is still a substantial amount of residential property, as well as some exclusive shopping, London's largest concentration of luxury hotels and many fine restaurants. Buildings in Mayfair include the United States embassy in Grosvenor Square, the Royal Academy of Arts, The Handel House Museum, the Grosvenor House Hotel and Claridge's.
Mayfair is the most expensive property on a British Monopoly set.
Famous past residents have included the present monarch Queen Elizabeth II, John Adams, 2nd American president (1735-1826), Dwight David Eisenhower, 34th American president (1890-1969), Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, surgeon and mayor (1836-1917), Elizabeth Barrett Browning, poet (1806-1861), Robert Clive, soldier & administrator (1725-1774), Earl Benjamin Disraeli, prime minister (1804-1881), Sir Robert Peel, prime minister (1788-1850), Sir Henry Pelham, prime minister (1695-1754), Charles James Fox, British statesman (1749-1806), Jimi Hendrix, guitarist & songwriter (1942-1970), William Somerset Maugham, novelist (1874-1965), Richard Brinsley Sheridan, dramatist (1751-1816), and Charles Frederick Henry Leslie, Middlesex & England cricketer (1861-1921).
Contents |
- Berkeley Square
- Bond Street
- Brook Street
- Grosvenor Square
- Hanover Square
- Hyde Park Corner - road junction at the south east corner
- Marble Arch - road junction/plaza at the north west corner
- Oxford Street - northern boundary
- Park Lane - western boundary
- Piccadilly - southern boundary
- Piccadilly Circus - road junction/plaza at the south east corner of Mayfair
- Regent Street - eastern boundary
- Savile Row
- Shepherd Market
- Curzon Street
Nearest districts
- Marylebone - north
- Soho - east
- St James's and Green Park - south
- Hyde Park - west
Nearest tube stations:
- Bond Street tube station
- Green Park tube station
- Hyde Park Corner tube station
- Marble Arch tube station
- Oxford Circus tube station
- Down Street tube station - no longer in use
Nearest railway station:
Museums:
- Mayfair London
- Map showing the original boundaries of the Grosvenor Estate in Mayfair
- BBC News story: Reviving the Mayfair May Fair
- The mayhem that marred May Day
