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Consultation by WCC on Future Growth/Building Height

May 2017

Click here for details of the Consultation.

Although the 8 week Consultation period is officially over, you may share the views expressed in this open letter to WCC. If you would like to add your name, complete a short form at the end and click the SUBMIT button.

AN OPEN LETTER TO COUNCILLOR DANIEL ASTAIRE & WESTMINSTER CITY COUNCIL

Thorney Tales (12) The Jerusalem Chamber

Westminster Abbey and its monastic surrounds have seen more great scenes of history than practically anywhere else but seldom more poignantly than the last visit of Henry IV. In 1413 Henry was on his way to the Holy Land in order to do penance for his misdeeds when he took ill, probably as a result of a stroke, while praying at the shrine of Saint Edward the Confessor in the Abbey.

He was carried unconscious to the Jerusalem Chamber in the Abbot's house and was seated by the fire. Much of the original stonework is still there as is the ceiling above and the walls behind the Victorian panelling. When he recovered his consciousness he asked where he was and was told the "Jerusalem Chamber". He realised then that he was about to end his life because of a prophecy mentioned in the Holinshed Chronicles that he would die in Jerusalem.

Shakespeare took the story further. In Henry IV Part 1, he allows Prince Henry, the future Henry V, to slip into the chamber and, believing his father to be dead, to try on the crown only for Henry lV to wake up in anger. Father and son, however, were soon reconciled and Henry IV realised that dying in this room fulfilled his destiny:

"It hath been prophesied to me many years,
I should not die but in Jerusalem,
Which vainly I suppos’d the Holy Land.
But bear me to that chamber, there I’ll lie,
In that Jerusalem shall Harry die."

The Jerusalem Chamber was also the place where the committee overlooking the writing of the beautifully written King James Bible met and where many celebrated people such as Isaac Newton were laid to rest before being buried in the Abbey. Today it is one of the private rooms of the Deanery - but it can be glimpsed from outside as it is the room above the Abbey bookshop adjacent to the main entrance. It is not open to the public except on certain open days but sometimes events and lectures are held there which are free to attend.

61-71 Victoria Street

MARCH 2017

We object to the proposed remodelling and extension of this building on the grounds that it will detract from the only remaining block on Victoria Street that contains a significant late-Victorian building, Artillery Mansions. The existing building compliments Artillery Mansions well, with the robust articulation of the façade, the bold corner turret feature, and a similar height. All these will be lost with the new scheme.

Follow this link to Westminster City Council to view details, documents and drawings. Click here - Ref. 17/02123/FULL

Thorney Tales (11) - The Abbey Garden

It is a little known fact to most people that the oldest garden in the country is located at the back of Westminster Abbey and is open to the public several days a week. It is an oasis of tranquility at the heart of one of the busiest cities in the world.

The "Infirmarer's Garden" - as it is officially called - has been in continuous cultivation for 900 years. It was mainly used for growing medicinal herbs, food, fruit and even grape vines for the well-being of the monks. It is still enclosed on two sides by the original medieval wall and its contours are more or less as they were apart from a parcel of land at the north-east end (opposite the Houses of Parliament) that was expropriated by Edward III for his Jewel Tower.

Dig here and you are digging into the very earth which was Thorney Island, the eyot formed by the convergence of the Thames and the Tyburn on which the Abbey was originally built.

Among the delights of the garden are two mulberry trees and four fading sculptures by Arnold Quellin who was from the studio of the great Grinling Gibbons (1648 – 1721). They were part of an altarpiece made by Gibbons and Quellin for James II as a Catholic chapel for his wife in Whitehall Palace in 1685. The altar piece later became part of the high altar in the Abbey. The statues became surplus to requirements and were moved to the garden where they command an almost metaphysical presence. Two of them guard the back door to Westminster School and the other two the rear entrance to the garden in Great College Street.

The garden is open to the public for free several days a week (entrance from Dean's Yard). Here you can experience a rural solitude bang in the centre of London with the Houses of Parliament and the roof of the Abbey in sight. On your way out have a coffee in the Cellarium, an original medieval building, where the monks kept their wine in olden days.

WCC say "No" (AGAIN!) to proposed sculpture outside Westminster Central Hall

UPDATE - January 2017

We regret to report that the Appeal has been dismissed by WCC. Many of the arguments used by the Council to prevent this small sculpture from being placed at Central Hall (eg. within its Monuments Saturation Zone) would apply to the Holocaust Memorial but will they take the same view ? We suspect not.

Appeal Decision Document - 9th January 2017

UPDATE - April 2016

Westminster City Council have disappointly turned down this application. Read more here in a Guardian article.

To sign the on-line petition to overturn the decision, click here.

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We support this application for the installation of the sculpture 'Homeless Jesus' in front of the Methodist Hall on Storey's Gate.

The sculpture is very moving and is appropriate in this location, near where there is so much wealth and yet so many rough sleepers.

Westminster Fire Station

UPDATE: December 2016

The Society is sorry to have to report that planning permission has been granted for the redevelopment of this important heritage building.

Following a public exhibition in May, please see our response here or on the Planning page.

Vauxhall Bridge Road/Tachbrook St Draft Development Opportunity

November 2016

Out of our area, but important enough to comment on. The block that contains the Queen Mother Sports Centre is being considered as a 'Development Opportunity' by Westminster City Council. They produced a draft document which can be viewed at: https://openforum.westminster.gov.uk/development-op-framework-UVBR.

Our response can be viewed here and on the Planning page.

June Stubbs 1927 - 2016

It is with great sadness to the Society that June Stubbs passed away on Friday 14th October, suddenly after collapsing at her nursing home.

June was a co-founder of the Society and for over 25 years was its Chairman and driving force. From her flat in Westminster Mansions, Great Smith Street, she was in an excellent position to keep a close eye on Thorney Island, and never missed an opportunity to represent the Society in public. She presided over many meetings, Christmas bazaars, parties and dinners. She was honoured with the award of an MBE in 2011 for services to conservation in the City of Westminster. June moved several years ago to an excellent nursing home in the New Forest, close to her family and enjoyed her final years in comfort and rest.

To send condolences to June's family, please write to info@thethorneyislandsociety.org.uk, or by post to 10 Old Pye Street, SW1P 2DG and we will pass it on. The funeral was held on Thursday 17th November in Reigate, Surrey.

Visit to Tate Britain's Archives & Library, November 2016

With huge thanks to Derek Rice, Library & Archives Co-Ordinator for a fascinating visit behind the scenes.

We were shown around the archives and store room. Temperature controlled with tight security arrangements and flood protection in place. Large moveable storage shelves and cupboards house the many treasures. We were shown prints and documents relating to the Millbank Penitentiary on the present gallery site. Next we entered the library to see documents, books and computer displays about the Thames and its history, part of a special project that changes monthly called Show and Tell. Finally Derek took us to view the Nash exhibition. A fascinating visit.

One of the many in the collection, here is a photograph of the gallery at the time of the 1928 Thames Flood.

AGM 2016 & the Panorama of The Thames Project

Our AGM was held on 9th November 2016 at the Grange Rochester Hotel, Vincent Square. For further details and documents, please select the "Us" tab at the top of this page.

Following the business of the meeting, we were treated to a presentation and film of the project to restore Leigh's beautiful 1829 Panorama of the Thames and to create a current photographic panorama.

Highly recommended, please read further about this project.

http://www.panoramaofthethames.com

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