London Mayfair And St. James’S

Trafalgar Square. London’s largest traffic roundabout commemorates the victory over Napoleon’s navy at Trafalgar, considered the British navy’s finest hour. From the Chartist rallies of 1848 to the anti-apartheid vigils held outside South Africa House to London’s largest protest over the war in Iraq in 2003, Trafalgar has traditionally been a site for public rallies and protest movements. The rest of the time, however, it functions as a favorite gathering place for Londoners. The masses congregate here on New Year’s Eve to ring in midnight with the chimes of Big Ben and to honor the tradition of breaking the ice in the frozen fountains before the clock strikes twelve. Every December since the end of WWII, the square has hosted a giant Christmas tree, provided by Norway as thanks for British assistance against the Nazis.

In 1820, John Nash laid out the first plans for Trafalgar, but it took almost 50 years for the square to assume its current appearance. 51m Nelson’s Column, a monument to naval hero Lord Nelson, arrived in 1843, while the larger-than-life lions were added in 1867. Four granite relief panels at the column’s base were cast from captured French and Spanish cannons and to commemorate Nelson’s victories at Cape St. Vincent, Copenhagen, the Nile, and Trafalgar. Meanwhile, to prove that the English can also be gracious losers, George Washington keeps watch in the east corner. Upon leaving England, Washington vowed never to set foot on English soil again, so the small plot of soil underneath his statue was brought over from the US. The statue of George IV in the northeastern corner was originally intended to top the Marble Arch but never made it. A sculpture of William IV was supposed to reign over the eastern corner, but was never built due to funding problems. Since 1999, modern pieces have occupied the corner, such as the Marc Quinn sculpture that has staked its claim since 2005. South of the square, a rare equestrian monument to Charles I stands on the site of the original Charing Cross. The statue escaped Cromwell’s wrath when John Rivett bought it “for scrap” and did a roaring trade in souvenirs supposedly made from the figure. It was, in fact, hidden and later sold for a tidy profit to Charles II, who re-erected it in 1633. (Charing Cross or Leicester Sq.)

CARLTON HOUSE TERRACE AND WATERLOO PLACE. Sweeping down from Piccadilly Circus, Regent St. comes to an abrupt halt at Waterloo Place, where steps lead to the Mall. Regent St. was built to be a triumphal route leading to the Prince Regent’s residence at Carlton House, but by the time it was finished, the then-prince King George IV had moved on to Buckingham Palace. The aging royal architect John Nash was recommissioned to build something quickly on the site, and the result was Carlton House Terrace, a pair of imposing classical buildings that currently house the Institute of Contemporary Arts. Between the two Carlton House Terrace buildings, a statue of King Edward VII is dwarfed by a vast column topped with George IV’s screw-up younger brother the “Grand Old” Duke of York, who docked his men’s salaries in order to pay for the monument. The column’s great height led many of the Duke’s contemporaries to joke that he should climb it in order to flee his equally imposing debts.

Meanwhile, Waterloo remains steeped in tradition: on the west corner, the Athenaeum Club, England’s most famous gentleman’s club (think cigars and brandy, not strippers), has a 60-year waiting list. Around the corner is the Carlton Club, the conservative party’s clubhouse; in 1979, the Club suffered a dilemma when two of its traditions—it males-only membership policy, and its admittance of all conservative leaders—collided with the nomination of Margaret Thatcher. The Club solved this problem by rather plausibly pretending that Margaret was a man. (Piccadilly Circus.)

SAINT JAMES’S PALACE. Built in 1536 over the remains of a leper hospital, St. James’s is London’s only remaining intentionally-built palace; even Buckingham Palace was a rough-and-ready conversion of a Duke’s house. Ever since Henry VIII chose it to be the site of the royal court, the palace has been London’s most aristocratic address; foreign ambassadors to Britain are still officially called “Ambassadors to the Court of St. James.” The official home of the Crown, St. James’s current occupants include Prince Charles; the late Queen Mum lived in neighboring Clarence House. Royal proclamations are issued every Friday from St. James’s balcony in the interior Friary Court, where the first announcement of the accession of a new monarch is made. The only part of the palace usually accessible to the public, however, is the Chapel Royal, open for Sunday services from October to Easter at 8:30 and 11:15am. From Easter to July, services are held in Queen’s Chapel, across Marlborough Rd. from the palace, which was built in the 17th century for the marriage of Charles I. (Best accessed from St. James’s St. Green Park.)

SAINT JAMES’S CHURCH, PICCADILLY. Poet William Blake was baptized in this church, the exterior of which is now darkened from the soot of London’s mills. The current structure is largely a post-WWII reconstruction of what Sir Christopher Wren considered his greatest parish church; the original wooden flowers, garlands, and cherubs by master carver Grinling Gibbons managed to escape the Blitz. The churchyard is home to a cafe and a touristy craft market that sells antiques on Tuesdays. (Enter at 197 Piccadilly or on Jermyn St. Piccadilly Circus or Green Park. ☎020 7734 4511; www.st-james-piccadilly.org. Church open M-Sa 9am-6:30pm, Su 1-4:30pm. Market open Tu 8am-6pm, W-Sa 10am-6pm. Cafe open M-F 7am-7:30pm, Sa 9am-7:30pm, Su 9am-6:30pm. Free. )

SHEPHERD MARKET. This pedestrian area on the southern border of St. James’s occupies the site of the May Fair that gave the neighborhood its name. In 1706, the infamously raucous fair was closed until native architect Edward Shepherd developed the area as a market later in the century. Today the tucked-away neighborhood is pleasantly abuzz at all hours, its 18th-century buildings housing pubs, restaurants, shops, and art galleries. (Hyde Park Corner or Green Park.)

GROSVENOR SQUARE. One of the largest squares in central London, Grosvenor has gradually evolved into a North American diplomatic enclave, alongside its more popular role as a warm-weather picnic spot. John Adams lived at No. 9 while serving as the first US ambassador to England in 1785; a century and a half later, Dwight Eisenhower established his wartime headquarters at No. 20; today, the American Embassy towers at No. 1. At the eastern end of the square stands a garden memorial to the victims of September 11, while a monument to FDR is at the center of the park, across from a memorial pillar to the Eagel Squadron of WWII. (Bond St. or Marble Arch.)

SPENCER HOUSE. At the end of a quiet, unassuming street near St. James’s Palace lies the entrance to one of the finest 18th-century townhouses left in London. The home was built by the first Earl Spencer, Princess Diana’s ancestor. The Spencer family kept the house as their London residence until 1926, after which it was used by the British intelligence service. Many of the finest rooms have been recently restored and are now rented out for private parties and receptions; they are open to the public only on Sundays. Though the required tour (1hr.) is overly detailed, the interiors are stunning and provide an excellent glimpse into the Spencer family’s early history as well as 18th-century society at large. (Enter at 27 St. James Place. Green Park. ☎020 7514 1958. Open Su 10:30am-5:30pm. £9, students £7.)