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Soho Square of London

 

A symbol of Leisure and adult entertainment for more than two centuries, London’s Soho Square is situated in the center of the West End. With Oxford Street and Charring Cross Road to its north and east, it is situated at walking distance from the Theater District. The tube station nearest to the square is Tottenham Court Road and is served by the Central and Northern lines. The square is built around a beautiful garden commonly known by Soho Square Gardens managed by Westminster Park Service.

Known by the name of King’s Square in its earlier days, the square was founded in 1670 by King Charles the 2nd in the land formerly known as Kemp’s Field or Soho Fields that used to be the Royal Park in those days. The origin of the word ‘Soho’ is most probably the hunting call made by hunters when they had a glimpse of their prey. A stone statue of Charles the 2nd was fixed in the centre of the square on a pedestal in 1681, chiseled by the Danish sculptor Carlus Gabriel Cibber. It was replaced in 1875 by a timbered structure. In 1925, a new building was erected that is partially made of timber. The statue was returned to the square in 1938.



Up till the late eighteenth century many respectable families resided in the area. In the nineteenth century nearly all of them left the locale. To replace them, doctors, lawyers, dentists as well as men related to writing and publishing like Thomas Barnes of the Times and George Rutledge settled in the region. Also there began a raid of music halls, theaters, restaurants, and bars on the area. But perhaps the only secret of Soho’s becoming London’s number one spot for entertainment is music. During the 1940s and 50s, a number of Jazz clubs sprang up in the area. Soho had once been the core of sex industry having 57 sex shops in the mid 70s.

Having won its first Green Flag Award in 2011, the Soho Square Garden is one of the busiest gardens managed by the Westminster Park Service, used extensively from morning up till its closing time in the late evening. The garden was first opened for public in 1954. There are several fine ornamental lawns, bedding and shrub areas in the garden. In addition to them, it contains many donated benches also. The most remarkable among them is the one placed by the fans of the late singer Kristy Me Coll to commemorate her. She had composed the song ‘Soho Square’ for her album: Titanic Days. One of its lines reads:

Some day I will be there / No empty bench in Soho Square



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