Earl's Court | |
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Earl's Court shown within Greater London | |
Population | 9,104 (2011 Census.Ward) |
OS grid reference | TQ254784 |
• Charing Cross | 3.1 mi (5.0 km) ENE |
London borough | |
Ceremonial county | Greater London |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | LONDON |
Postcode district | SW5 |
Dialling code | 020 |
Police | Metropolitan |
Fire | London |
Ambulance | London |
EU Parliament | London |
UK Parliament | |
London Assembly | |
Earl's Court is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in central London, bordering the sub-districts of South Kensington to the east, West Kensington to the west, Chelsea to the south and Kensington to the north. The Earl's Court Exhibition Centre was one of the country's largest indoor arenas and a popular concert venue until its closure in 2014.
Earl's Court was once a rural area, covered with green fields and market gardens. The Saxon Thegn Edwin held the lordship of the area prior to the Norman conquest. For over 500 years the land, part of the ancient manor of Kensington, was under the lordship of the Vere family, the Earls of Oxford and descendants of Aubrey de Vere I, who held the manor of Geoffrey de Montbray, bishop of Coutances, in the Domesday Book in 1086. By circa 1095, his tenure had been converted, and he held Kensington directly of the crown. A church had been constructed there by 1104. The earls held their manorial court where Old Manor Yard is now, just by the London Underground station. Earl's Court Farm is visible on Greenwood's map of London dated 1827.
The construction of the Metropolitan District Railway station in 1865–69 was a catalyst for development. In the quarter century after 1867, Earl's Court was transformed into a densely populated suburb with 1,200 houses and two churches. Eardley Crescent and Kempsford Gardens were built between 1867 and 1873, building began in Earl's Court Square and Longridge Road in 1873, in Nevern Place in 1874, in Trebovir Road and Philbeach Gardens in 1876 and Nevern Square in 1880.
The Earl's Court ward had a population of 9,659 according to the 2001 census.