Gordon’s Wine Bar
47 Villiers St, London WC2N 6NE
A palace for Uncle Peter.
Strand evolved from the Saxon period as the main ecclesiastical highway between the king (living at the Tower of London) and his church (at Westminster Abbey). It was therefore a desirable place for Bishops and the aristocracy to establish a London residence and prove allegiance to the crown. Savoy Place was one of the most magnificent, being the residence of Peter II of Savoy uncle to Queen Eleanor of Provence wife of King Henry III. It later became a residence of the Dukes of Lancaster before being destroyed in the Peasants Revolt of 1381 – all that remains is the Savoy Chapel, a church still belonging to the current Duke of Lancaster, i.e., King Charles III. After iterations of different buildings throughout the early modern period the site became the home of the Savoy Theatre and Savoy Hotel.
Strand was also home to the Bishops of Durham and York, the Dukes of Somerset (Lord Protector during the minority of the future King Edward VI in 1547) and Norfolk (the Howards, whose seat is Arundel Castle), the Earl of Essex (Robert Deveraux, stepson of Queen Elizabeth I’s ardent suitor Robert Dudley). These names are all evident today in the streets and building names on Strand.
Somerset House has an illustrious past. Once the home of queens of the realm before becoming the first home of the Royal Academy of Arts and then a government tax office. Today it is an exhibition, retail and restaurant complex occupying a grand neoclassical building that you may recognise from films – such as The Duchess and Tomorrow Never Dies.
The Savoy Theatre was established in 1889 by the impresario Richard D’Oyly Carte as a place to perform works in partnership with writer W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan. The men produced many operas, the most successful being The Mikado and The Pirates of Penzance and Patience. It was the first public building in the world to be lit entirely by electricity – enabling, for the first time, audiences to properly see the faces of the actors’ and admire the scenery. Such was the success of the theatre that the Savoy Hotel was built – still one of London’s most luxurious hotels and home to the American Bar, the original and best place for a cocktail. It is where Cesar Ritz started his career, before establishing his own chain of hotels.
At the bottom of Villers Street, York Watergate is all that remains of York House. Originally built by Bishop of Norwich in the middle ages, York House came into the possession of Queen Mary I who presented it to the Archbishop of York in 1556, when it acquired its name. (Donated as compensation for losing York Place in Whitehall to her father King Henry VIII during the Reformation). In the 1620s, it was purchased by George Villiers, the 1st Duke of Buckingham and favourite of King James I and his son King Charles I. Villers prominence eventually resulted in his assassination by jealous officials. His son, the 2nd Duke, married General Fairfax (Commander-in-Chief of the New Model Army). Having no heir, he sold York House to developers in 1672 with the proviso that all the surrounding streets should remember his name and full title – look out for George Street, Villiers Street, Duke Street, Buckingham Street and even ‘Of’ Alley!
Established in 1890, Gordon’s Wine Bar is one of London’s oldest wine bars and it’s most atmospheric – being based in underground cellars used as air raid shelters in WWII on the former site of York House. A candle light experience that will sear itself into your memory over some beer, wine and traditional British dishes.
