Mayfair
Mayfair is an affluent area of Westminster, London, England, in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. It is between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane and one of the most expensive districts in the world.
File:Mount Street and Carlos Place, Mayfair.jpg|thumb|Central Mayfair showing Mount Street, Carlos Place, the Connaught hotel and the Tadao Ando fountain 'Silence'
The area was originally part of the manor of Eia and remained largely rural until the early 18th century. It became well known for the annual May Fair that took place from 1686 to 1764 in what is now Shepherd Market. Over the years, the fair grew increasingly downmarket and unpleasant, and it became a public nuisance. The Grosvenor family acquired the land through marriage and began to develop it under the direction of Thomas Barlow. The work included Hanover Square, Berkeley Square and Grosvenor Square, which were surrounded by high-quality houses, and St George's Hanover Square Church.
By the end of the 18th century, most of Mayfair had been rebuilt with high-value housing for the upper class; unlike some nearby areas of London, it has never lost its affluent status. The decline of the British aristocracy in the early 20th century led to the area becoming more commercial, with many houses converted into offices for corporate headquarters and various embassies. Mayfair retains a substantial quantity of high-end residential property, upmarket shops and restaurants, and luxury hotels along Piccadilly and Park Lane. Its prestigious status has been commemorated by being the most expensive property square on the London Monopoly board.
Geography
Mayfair is in the City of Westminster, and mainly consists of the historical Grosvenor estate and the Albemarle, Berkeley, Burlington, and Curzon estates. It is bordered on the west by Park Lane, north by Oxford Street, east by Regent Street, and the south by Piccadilly. Beyond the bounding roads, to the north is Marylebone, to the east Soho, and to the southwest Knightsbridge and Belgravia.Mayfair is surrounded by parkland; Hyde Park and Green Park run along its boundary. The Grosvenor Square is roughly in the centre of Mayfair, and its centrepiece, containing numerous expensive and desirable properties.
History
Early history
Following analysis of the alignment of Roman roads, it has been speculated that the Romans settled in the area before establishing Londinium. Whitaker's Almanack suggested that Aulus Plautius built a fort here during the Roman conquest of Britain in AD 43 while waiting for Claudius. The theory was developed in 1993, with a proposal that a town grew outside the fort but was later abandoned as it was too far from the River Thames. The proposal has been disputed because of lack of archaeological evidence. If there was a fort, it is believed the perimeter would have been where the modern Green Street, North Audley Street, Upper Grosvenor Street and Park Lane now are, and that Park Street would have been the main road through the centre. This area was the manor of Eia in the Domesday Book, and owned by Geoffrey de Mandeville after the Norman Conquest. It was subsequently given to the Abbey of Westminster, who owned it until 1536 when it was taken over by King Henry VIII during the dissolution of the monasteries.Mayfair consisted mainly of open fields until development began in the Shepherd Market area around 1686–88 to accommodate the May Fair, which had moved from Haymarket in St James's because of overcrowding. There were some buildings before 1686. A cottage in Stanhope Row, dating from 1618, was destroyed in the Blitz in late 1940. A 17th-century English Civil War fortification established in what is now Mount Street was known as Oliver's Mount by the 18th century.
The May Fair
The May Fair was held every year at Great Brookfield from 1 to 14 May. It was established during the reign of Edward I in open fields beyond St. James. The fair was recorded as "Saint James's fayer by Westminster" in 1560. It was postponed in 1603 because of plague, but otherwise continued throughout the 17th century. In 1686, the fair moved to what is now Mayfair. By the 18th century, it had attracted showmen, jugglers and fencers and numerous fairground attractions. Popular attractions included bare-knuckle fighting, semolina-eating contests and women's foot racing.By the reign of George I, the May Fair had fallen into disrepute and was regarded as a public scandal. The 6th Earl of Coventry, who lived on Piccadilly, considered the fair to be a nuisance and, with local residents, led a public campaign against it. It was abolished in 1764. One reason for Mayfair's subsequent boom in property development was that it was able to keep out lower-class activities.
Grosvenor family and estates
Building on Mayfair began in the 1660s on the corner of Piccadilly, and progressed along the north side of that street. Burlington House was started between 1664 and 1665 by John Denham and sold two years later to Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Burlington, who asked Hugh May to complete it. The house was extensively modified through the 18th century, and is the only one of this era to survive into the 21st century.The origins of major development began when Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 3rd Baronet, married Mary Davies, heiress to part of the Manor of Ebury, in 1677. The Grosvenor family gained of land, of which around lay south of Oxford Street and east of Park Lane. The land was referred to as "The Hundred Acres" in early deeds.
In 1721, the London Journal reported "the ground upon which the May Fair formerly was held is marked out for a large square, and several fine streets and houses are to be built upon it". Sir Richard Grosvenor, 4th Baronet, asked the surveyor Thomas Barlow to design the street layout, which has survived mostly intact to the present day despite most of the properties being rebuilt. Barlow proposed a grid of wide, straight streets, with a large park as a centrepiece.
Buildings were constructed in quick succession, and by the mid-18th century the area was covered in houses. Much of the land was owned by seven estates: Burlington, Millfield, Conduit Mead, Albemarle Ground, the Berkeley, the Curzon and, most importantly, the Grosvenor. Of the original properties constructed in Mayfair, only the Grosvenor estate survives intact and owned by the same family, who became the Dukes of Westminster in 1874. Chesterfield Street is one of the few streets that has 18th-century properties on both sides, with a single exception, and is probably the least altered road in the area.
File:Statue of Pitt the Younger, Hanover Square W1.JPG|thumb|upright|Statue of William Pitt the Younger in Hanover Square|alt=Statue of William Pitt, The Younger in Hanover Square, Mayfair
Hanover Square was the first of three great squares to be constructed. It was named after King George I, the Elector of Hanover, soon after his ascension to the throne in 1714. The original houses were inhabited by "persons of distinction" such as retired generals. Although most have been demolished, a small number have survived to the present day. The Hanover Square Rooms became a popular place for classical music concerts, including Johann Christian Bach, Joseph Haydn, Niccolò Paganini and Franz Liszt. A large statue of William Pitt the Younger is sited at the southern end of the square.
In 1725, Mayfair became part of the new parish of St George Hanover Square, which stretched as far east as Bond Street and to Regent Street north of Conduit Street. It ran as far north as Oxford Street and south near to Piccadilly. The parish continued into Hyde Park to the west and extended southwest to St George's Hospital. Most of the area belonged to the Grosvenor family, though the freehold of some parts belongs to the Crown Estate.
A water supply to the area was built by the Chelsea Water Works, and a royal warrant was issued in 1725 for a reservoir in Hyde Park that could supply water at what is now Grosvenor Gate. In 1835, the reservoir was decorated with an ornamental basin and a fountain in its centre. In 1963, following the widening of Park Lane, it was rebuilt as the Joy of Life Fountain.
Grosvenor Square was planned as the centrepiece of the Mayfair estate. It was laid out from 1725–31 with 51 individual plots for development. It is the second-largest square in London and housed numerous members of the aristocracy until the mid-20th century. By the end of the 19th century, the Grosvenor family were described as "the wealthiest family in Europe" and annual rents for their Mayfair properties reached around £135,000. The square has never declined in popularity and continues to be a prestigious London address into the 21st century. Only two original houses have survived; No. 9, once the home of John Adams, and No. 38 which is now the Indonesian Embassy.
Berkeley House on Piccadilly was named after John Berkeley, 1st Baron Berkeley of Stratton, who had purchased its land, and that surrounding it, shortly after the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660. In 1696, the Berkeley family sold the house and grounds to William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Devonshire, on condition that the view from the rear of the house should not be spoiled. Berkeley Square was laid out to the rear of the house in the 1730s; because of the conditions of sale, houses were only built on the east and west sides. The west side still has various mid-18th-century buildings, and the east side now contains offices including Berkeley Square House.
The expansion of Mayfair moved upper-class Londoners away from areas such as Covent Garden and Soho, which were already in decline by the 18th century. Part of its success was its proximity to the Court of St James and the parks, and the well-designed layout. This led to it sustaining its popularity into the 21st century. The requirements of the aristocracy led to stables, coach houses and servants' accommodation being established along the mews running parallel to the streets. Some of the stables have since been converted into garages and offices.
The Rothschild family owned several Mayfair properties in the 19th century. Alfred de Rothschild lived at No. 1 Seamore Place and held numerous "adoration dinners" where the only guest was a female companion. The marriage of his brother Leopold to Marie Perugia took place here in 1881. The house was demolished after the First World War when Curzon Street was extended through the site to meet Park Lane. The future Prime Minister Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, was born in Charles Street in 1847, and grew up in the area.
Mayfair has had a long association with the United States. Pocahontas is believed to have visited in the early 17th century. In 1786, John Adams established the US Embassy on Grosvenor Square. Theodore Roosevelt was married in Hanover Square, and Franklin D. Roosevelt honeymooned in Berkeley Square. A small memorial park in Mount Street Gardens has benches engraved with the names of former American residents in and visitors to Mayfair.