59-542: Whitehall Court in the City of Westminster , England , is one contiguous building but consists of two separate constructions. The south end was designed by Thomas Archer and A. Green and constructed as a block of luxury residential apartments in 1884 while the north end, occupied by the National Liberal Club , was designed by Alfred Waterhouse and completed in 1887. The building was developed speculatively by
118-717: A portcullis as the main charge, which now forms the crest . The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the City of Westminster. Westminster Westminster is a cathedral city and the main settlement of the London Borough of the City of Westminster in Central London , England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including
177-662: A borough in 1897. In 1900 the lower tier of local government within the County of London was reorganised into metropolitan boroughs . The parish of Paddington became the Metropolitan Borough of Paddington , and the parish of the St Marylebone became the Metropolitan Borough of St Marylebone . The various territories within the old City and Liberty of Westminster became the Metropolitan Borough of Westminster . The new boroughs came into being on 1 November 1900;
236-597: A car he was in. 51°30′21″N 0°07′27″W / 51.5057°N 0.1241°W / 51.5057; -0.1241 City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a London borough with city status in Greater London , England. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government . It contains a large part of central London , including most of
295-628: A car or van, 6.0%; work mainly at or from home, 5.5%; bicycle, 3.1%; train, 3.0%. Westminster Children's Services administers many primary and secondary schools. In addition, there are several state-funded faith schools, primarily Church of England (CE), and Roman Catholic (RC), but Christian non-denominational (ND) schools are also in the borough, and there are several non-profit-making junior and senior independent schools . The city operates two reference libraries; Westminster Reference Library and Marylebone Information Service. Westminster Reference Library holds several special collections: of which
354-532: A city. Westminster is often used as a metonym to refer to the Parliament of the United Kingdom , which sits in the Palace of Westminster . The City and Liberty of Westminster and other historical Westminster administrative units (except the broader modern City of Westminster , a London Borough created in 1965) extended from the River Thames to the old Roman road from the City to western England, which
413-573: A community of Benedictine monks on the site. Between 1042 and 1052, King Edward the Confessor began rebuilding St Peter's Abbey to provide himself with a royal burial church. It was the first church in England built in the Romanesque style. The building was completed around 1060 and was consecrated on 28 December 1065, only a week before Edward's death on 5 January 1066. A week later, he
472-525: A few days ahead of that a royal charter was issued conferring city status on the new borough of Westminster from its creation. The Court of Burgesses, which had ceded most practical powers to the newer authorities, was finally abolished in 1901. The modern borough was created in 1965 under the London Government Act 1963 . It was a merger of the old Paddington, St Marylebone and Westminster metropolitan boroughs, and Westminster's city status
531-515: A fisherman himself, coming to the island to consecrate the newly built church, which later developed into Westminster Abbey . He rewarded Edric with a bountiful catch when he next dropped his nets. Edric was instructed to present the king and St. Mellitus, Bishop of London , with a salmon and various proofs that the consecration had already occurred. Every year on 29 June, St Peter's Day, the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers presents
590-520: Is a typical Central London property distinction within the area which is very acute, epitomised by grandiose 21st-century developments, architectural high-point listed buildings and nearby social housing (mostly non- council housing ) buildings of the Peabody Trust founded by philanthropist George Peabody . Given the focus on Westminster in English and British public life over centuries,
649-514: Is at 14 St James's Square . Many countries' embassies or High Commissions are in Westminster. The current Westminster coat of arms was given by an official grant on 2 September 1964. Westminster had other arms before, which had a chief identical to the chief in the present arms. The symbols in the lower two thirds of the shield stand for former municipalities now merged with the city, Paddington and St Marylebone. The original arms had
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#1732776025841708-668: Is currently split into apartments: in February 2018, Transparency International reported that lawyer and activist Alexei Navalny has claimed that Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov owns two apartments in Whitehall Court worth £11.4 million. On 10 November 1969 David Rose , the Governor-General of Guyana was killed after luncheoning at the West Indian Club when some scaffolding fell on
767-550: Is now locally called Oxford Street . {{{annotations}}} Thorney Island lay between the arms of the former River Tyburn at its confluence with the Thames, while the western boundary with Chelsea was formed by the similarly lost River Westbourne . The line of the river still forms (with very slight revisions) the boundaries of the modern borough with the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea . Further north, away from
826-401: The City and Liberty of Westminster , Middlesex . The exceptions to this were St Clement Danes , St Mary le Strand and possibly some other small areas. The ancient parish was St Margaret ; after 1727 this became the civil parish of 'St Margaret and St John', the latter a new church required for the increasing population. The area around Westminster Abbey formed the extra-parochial Close of
885-658: The English Reformation there was also an Eastminster , near the Tower of London , in the East End of London ). The abbey's origins date from between the 7th and 10th centuries, but it rose to national prominence when rebuilt by Edward the Confessor in the 11th century. Westminster has been the home of England's government since about 1200, and from 1707 the Government of the United Kingdom . In 1539, it became
944-569: The Georgian period became connected through urban ribbon development with the City along the Strand. Henry VIII 's Reformation in the early 16th century abolished the abbey and established a cathedral – thus the parish ranked as a "City", although it was only a fraction of the size of the City of London and the Borough of Southwark at that time. Indeed, the cathedral and diocesan status of
1003-467: The Mayor of London . The cities of London and Westminster retain their separate city statuses despite having long been part of the same urban area. The modern borough was created in 1965 as part of the same reforms which created Greater London, covering the area of the three former metropolitan boroughs of Westminster , Paddington and St Marylebone . The local authority is Westminster City Council . To
1062-507: The Palace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament) and Big Ben . Charing Cross is the notional centre of London and the location where distances from London are measured. This custom appears to have begun with the set distances of the 12 Eleanor crosses to Lincoln, England in the north, and expanded even after destruction of most of the crosses. These include Green Park , Hyde Park , Kensington Gardens , Regent's Park and St James's Park . In addition to parks and open spaces within
1121-472: The Palace of Westminster , Buckingham Palace , Westminster Abbey , Westminster Cathedral , Trafalgar Square and much of the West End cultural centre including the entertainment precinct of West End Theatre . The name ( Old English : Westmynstre ) originated from the informal description of the abbey church and royal peculiar of St Peter's (Westminster Abbey), west of the City of London (until
1180-471: The Royal Courts of Justice in the late-19th century. The settlement grew up around the palace and abbey, as a service area for them. The parish church, St Margaret's Westminster served the wider community of the parish; the servants of the palace and abbey as well as the rural population and those associated with the high status homes developing on the road from the city. The area became larger and in
1239-489: The West End , such as the major shopping areas around Oxford Street , Regent Street , Piccadilly and Bond Street , and the entertainment district of Soho . Many London landmarks are within the borough, including Buckingham Palace , Westminster Abbey , Whitehall , Westminster Cathedral , 10 Downing Street , and Trafalgar Square . The borough also has a number of major parks and open spaces , including Hyde Park , and most of Regent's Park . Away from central London
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#17327760258411298-598: The Westminster District and the parishes and territories adjoining the border with the City of London formed the Strand District . Beyond the liberty to the north, the two parishes of Paddington and St Marylebone were also governed by their vestries. The Westminster District was renamed the St Margaret and St John Combined Vestry in 1887, and unsuccessfully petitioned to be incorporated as
1357-463: The natural ford which is thought to have carried Watling Street over the Thames in the vicinity. The wider district became known as Westminster in reference to the church. The legendary origin is that in the early 7th century, a local fisherman named Edric (or Aldrich) ferried a stranger in tattered foreign clothing over the Thames to Thorney Island . It was a miraculous appearance of St Peter ,
1416-563: The Abbey with a salmon in memory of this event. A charter of 785, possibly a forgery, grants land to the needy people of God in Thorney, in the dreadful spot which is called Westminster . The text suggests a pre-existing monastic community who chose to live in a very challenging location. The recorded origins of the Abbey (rather than a less important religious site) date to the 960s or early 970s, when Saint Dunstan and King Edgar installed
1475-589: The City of Westminster also have a large concentration of hedge fund and private equity funds. The West End is known as the Theatre District and is home to many of the leading performing arts businesses. Soho and its adjoining areas house a concentration of media and creative companies. Oxford Street is a busy shopping destination. The City of Westminster contains some of the most famous sites in London, including Buckingham Palace , Westminster Abbey ,
1534-562: The Collegiate Church of St Peter . Like many large parishes, Westminster was divided into smaller units called Hamlets (meaning a territorial sub-division, rather than a small village). These would later become independent daughter parishes. Until 1900 the local authority was the combined vestry of St Margaret and St John (also known as the Westminster District Board of Works from 1855 to 1887), which
1593-708: The Liberal MP and property developer Jabez Balfour , through the Liberator Building Society which he controlled. In 1892 the Society collapsed, leaving thousands of investors penniless. Instead of advancing money to home buyers, the Society had advanced money to property companies to buy properties owned by Balfour, at a high price. Well-known residents have included William Gladstone , Lord Kitchener , Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia , George Bernard Shaw and Hall Caine . The building
1652-590: The Palace of Westminster and in Government ministries. The area has a substantial residential population. By the 20th century Westminster saw rising numbers of residential apartments with wealthy inhabitants. Hotels, large Victorian homes and barracks exist near to Buckingham Palace . Westminster hosts the High Commissions of many Commonwealth countries: Within the area is Westminster School ,
1711-912: The Sherlock Holmes, Arts and Business collections are the most comprehensive. In addition to the collections in Westminster Reference Library the city has two specialist libraries: the Westminster Music Library , the largest music library in the UK and the Westminster Chinese Library in the Charing Cross Library. Free City of Westminster operated public lending libraries in Westminster include: The London Library , an independent lending library funded by subscription,
1770-531: The South Coast including Clapham Junction , Sutton , Brighton , Eastbourne , Gatwick Airport ( [REDACTED] ), Guildford , Portsmouth , and Southampton . Services operated by Southern . Gatwick Airport [REDACTED] Services operated by Gatwick Express . The City of Westminster is served by 27 London Underground stations and 10 of the 11 lines. By 2009 Westminster City Council had electric vehicle charging points in 15 locations through
1829-568: The United Kingdom and for those other nations, particularly in the Commonwealth of Nations and for other parts of the former British Empire that adopted it. The term "Westminster Village", sometimes used in the context of British politics, does not refer to a geographical area at all; employed especially in the phrase "Westminster Village gossip", it denotes a supposedly close social circle of members of parliament, political journalists, so-called spin-doctors and others connected to events in
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1888-546: The abbey at Westminster, although the former abbey church is still called Westminster Abbey . The church was briefly the cathedral of the Diocese of Westminster created from part of the Diocese of London in 1540, by letters patent which also granted city status to Westminster, a status retained after the diocese was abolished in 1550. The area was historically part of the county of Middlesex . Whilst an important centre of royal authority from Saxon times, Westminster
1947-433: The borough also includes various inner suburbs, including St John's Wood , Maida Vale , Bayswater , Belgravia and Pimlico . The borough had a population of 204,300 at the 2021 census. The original settlement of Westminster was historically a separate urban area to the west of London, growing up around the minster church of Westminster Abbey. Westminster was an important centre of royal authority from Saxon times, and
2006-660: The borough, the City owns and maintains East Finchley Cemetery and crematorium in the London Borough of Barnet . Four National Rail stations serve the City of Westminster: [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Heathrow Airport [REDACTED] Services operated by Heathrow Express and Elizabeth line ( [REDACTED] ) . [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] South London, Sussex and
2065-513: The church lasted only from 1539 to 1556, but the "city" status remained for a mere parish within Middlesex. As such it is first known to have had two Members of Parliament in 1545 as a new Parliamentary Borough , centuries after the City of London and Southwark were enfranchised. The growing Elizabethan city had a High Constable, Bailiff, Town Clerk, and a keeper of the ponds. Charles Booth 's poverty map showing Westminster in 1889 recorded
2124-410: The city (13 car parks and two on-street points). Users pay an annual fee to cover administration costs to register and use the points. By 2018 there were 60 electric vehicle charging locations. In March 2011, the main forms of transport that residents used to travel to work were: underground, metro, light rail, tram, 21.0% of all residents aged 16–74; on foot, 9.3%; bus, minibus or coach, 9.3%; driving
2183-511: The depopulation of Roman London in the 5th century, an Anglo Saxon agricultural and trade settlement likely developed to its west, associated with the Middle Saxons , sometimes called Lundenwic ('London village' or London port'). Over time, Lundenburh ('London fort'), the former Roman city with its still-existing Roman walls, was repopulated and Lundenwic declined, becoming pastoral and partly known as Aldwych (Aldwic—'old village'),
2242-440: The east, Westminster borders the City of London , with the boundary marked by Temple Bar . Other neighbouring boroughs (anti-clockwise from north-east) are Camden , Brent , Kensington and Chelsea , Wandsworth and Lambeth , the latter two being separated from Westminster by the River Thames . Charing Cross in Westminster is the notional centre of London, being the point from which distances from London are measured. After
2301-432: The ethnic group of respondents in the 1991 to 2021 censuses in Westminster. The borough ranks highest on one standard criteria in analysing housing supply and demand, the proportion of private rented accommodation relative to other types of housing in England. A study in 2017 by Trust for London and The New Policy Institute found that Westminster has the third-highest pay inequality of the 32 London boroughs. It also has
2360-565: The full range of income- and capital-brackets living in adjacent streets within the area; its central western area had become (by 1850) (the) Devil's Acre in the southern flood-channel ravine of the River Tyburn , yet Victoria Street and other small streets and squares had the highest colouring of social class in London: yellow/gold. Westminster has shed the abject poverty with the clearance of this slum and with drainage improvement, but there
2419-469: The local government of Westminster was further reformed in 1900, when the court of burgesses and the parish vestries were abolished and replaced by the Metropolitan Borough of Westminster . The borough was given city status at the same time, allowing it to be known as the City of Westminster and its council as Westminster City Council . The City and Liberty of Westminster and the Metropolitan Borough of Westminster were very similar in extent, covering
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2478-611: The monastic dormitory, an extension of the south transept, survive in the Norman Undercroft of the Great School, including a door said to come from the previous Saxon abbey. Increased endowments supported a community that increased from a dozen monks in Dunstan's original foundation, up to a maximum of about eighty monks. Most of the parishes of Westminster originated as daughter parishes of St Margaret's parish , in
2537-544: The name "Westminster" is casually used as a metonym for the UK Parliament and for the political community of the United Kingdom generally. (The civil service is similarly referred to using the name of the northern sub-neighbourhood which it inhabits, " Whitehall ".) "Westminster" is consequently also used in reference to the Westminster system , the parliamentary model of democratic government that has evolved in
2596-537: The name of which lives on for a section of Westminster. The origins of the City of Westminster pre-date the Norman Conquest of England. In the mid-11th century, King Edward the Confessor began the construction of an abbey at Westminster, only the foundations of which survive today. Between the abbey and the river he built a palace, thereby guaranteeing that the seat of Government would be fixed at Westminster, and inevitably drawing power and wealth west out of
2655-472: The neighbouring boroughs of Paddington and Marylebone in 1965 to form a larger modern borough. These neighbouring areas (except for a small area of Paddington in part of Kensington Gardens), lie north of Oxford Street and its westward continuation, Bayswater Road. The district's open spaces include: The development of the area began with the establishment of Westminster Abbey on a site then called Thorney Island . The site may have been chosen because of
2714-409: The old City of London. For centuries Westminster and the City of London were geographically quite distinct. It was not until the sixteenth century that houses began to be built over the adjoining fields, eventually absorbing nearby villages such as Marylebone and Kensington , and gradually creating the vast Greater London that exists today. Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries abolished
2773-423: The palace housed the developing Parliament and England's law courts . Thus, London developed two focal points: the City of London (financial/economic) and Westminster (political and cultural). The monarchs moved their principal residence to the Palace of Whitehall (1530–1698), then to St James's Palace in 1698, and eventually to Buckingham Palace and other palaces after 1762. The main law courts moved to
2832-543: The parts of the wider modern City of Westminster south of the Oxford Street , and its continuations Hyde Park Place. The exception is that part of Kensington Gardens , south of that road, are part of Paddington . Westminster merged with St Marylebone and Paddington in 1965, but the combined area was allowed to keep the title City of Westminster . For a list of street name etymologies for Westminster see Street names of Westminster The former Thorney Island ,
2891-587: The river mouth, Westminster included land on both sides of the Westbourne, notably Knightsbridge (including the parts of Hyde Park west of the Serpentine lake (originally formed by damming the river) and most of Kensington Gardens). Westminster includes the sub-districts of Soho , St James , Mayfair , Covent Garden , Pimlico , Victoria , Belgravia and Knightsbridge (shared with neighbouring Kensington ). The former City of Westminster merged with
2950-634: The seat of a diocese, Westminster continued to be described as a city. In 1585 the Westminster Court of Burgesses was established to administer certain judicial powers in an area known as the City and Liberty of Westminster . From 1856 the area was also governed by the Metropolitan Board of Works , which was established to provide services across the metropolis of London. In 1889 the Metropolitan Board of Works' area
3009-406: The second-least affordable private rent for low earners in London, behind only Kensington and Chelsea . In education, 82% of adults and 69% of 19-year-olds having Level 3 qualifications. The City of Westminster covers all or part of the following areas of London : Many global corporations have their global or European headquarters in the City of Westminster. Mayfair and St James's within
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#17327760258413068-435: The site of Westminster Abbey , formed the historic core of Westminster. The abbey became the traditional venue of the coronations of the kings and queens of England from that of Harold Godwinson (1066) onwards. From about 1200 the Palace of Westminster , near the abbey, became the principal royal residence, a transition marked by the transfer of royal treasury and financial records to Westminster from Winchester . Later
3127-542: Was based at Westminster Town Hall in Caxton Street from 1883. The Liberty of Westminster, governed by the Westminster Court of Burgesses , also included St Martin in the Fields and several other parishes and places . Westminster had its own quarter sessions , but the Middlesex sessions also had jurisdiction. Under local government reforms in 1889, the area fell within the newly created County of London , and
3186-529: Was buried in the church; and, nine years later, his wife Edith was buried alongside him. His successor, Harold II , was probably crowned in the abbey, although the first documented coronation is that of William the Conqueror later the same year. The only extant depiction of Edward's abbey, together with the adjacent Palace of Westminster , is in the Bayeux Tapestry . Some of the lower parts of
3245-479: Was declared a city in 1540. It was gradually absorbed into the urban area of London, but London's official city boundaries remained unchanged, covering just the area called the City of London , broadly corresponding to the medieval walled city. From the 19th century some metropolis -wide administrative bodies were introduced. The County of London was created in 1889, replaced in 1965 by the larger administrative area of Greater London , which since 2000 has been led by
3304-468: Was made the County of London . From 1856 until 1900 the lower tier of local government within the metropolis comprised various parish vestries and district boards . Within the City and Liberty of Westminster, the three parishes of St George Hanover Square , St James Piccadilly and St Martin-in-the-Fields were governed by their vestries , whilst the parishes covering the central part of Westminster formed
3363-453: Was not formally incorporated as a borough for local government purposes until 1900. However, it was declared a city in 1540 on the elevation of Westminster Abbey to being a cathedral . From at least 1545 there was also a Westminster parliamentary borough (constituency). The Anglican Diocese of Westminster was short-lived, being absorbed back into the Diocese of London in 1550. Despite having no borough corporation and having ceased to be
3422-577: Was transferred to the enlarged borough. In 1966 the city was granted the right to appoint a lord mayor . The local authority is Westminster City Council, which meets at Westminster Council House (also known as Marylebone Town Hall ) and has its main offices at Westminster City Hall on Victoria Street. Since 2000, for elections to the London Assembly , the borough forms part of the West Central constituency. The following table shows
3481-825: Was used as Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) headquarters until the end of the First World War . A blue plaque in Mansfield Smith-Cumming 's name at the SIS headquarters at 2 Whitehall Court was unveiled on 30 March 2015. 1 & 2 Whitehall Court are occupied by the Royal Horseguards Hotel . 3 Whitehall Court is occupied by the Farmers Club . 4 Whitehall Court was occupied by the West Indian Club from 1912 until 1971. It
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