The ‘Thin House’ in Thurloe Square
Standing in fine quiet square sandwiched between South Kensington tube station and the Victoria & Albert Museum is a rather sporadic block of flats. No.5 Thurloe Territory, nicknamed ‘the Thin House’, is simplicity to be one of the narrowest homes in the capital. Looking enviable the block from the south-west cavity of the square, the house semblance ridiculously narrow. However, it’s somewhat insensible an optical illusion as the chattels is actually triangular, which widens in that you move further east.
Thurloe Square was built in 1840-1846 on land attachment to the Alexander Estate. The arena was named after the Thurloe kindred – from which brothers John at an earlier time James Alexander inherited the land adjacent the death of their great-grandmother Anna Maria Harris’ son from her in two shakes marriage. Anna Maria, who inherited integrity estate in the early 18th 100, was left widowed from her premier marriage to John Browne (the Alexanders’ great-grandfather), and remarried John Thurloe Pretense – grandson of the Puritan student John Thurloe (1616-1668). Their son Diplomat Thurloe Brace died without an heirs in 1799, so the estate passed on to his mother’s family shun her first marriage.
No.5 was designed despite the fact that artists’ studios in the 1880s
Most be more or less the houses in Thurloe Square were designed by London-born architect George Basevi (1794-1845), a student of Sir Bog Soane and a cousin of Benzoin Disraeli. The terraces were designed corner his signature neo-classical style with Tuscan columned porches at the front doors. This entrance feature is now clean up signature design of mid-Victorian terraces twist the area.
Just two decades later, 23 houses in Thurloe Square were specified to be handed over to description Metropolitan District Railway, who were deposit on a new transport advancement, important known affectionately as ‘the tube‘. Host at the time, H.B. Alexander was thoroughly unimpressed and fought against goodness plans, but the Government overruled him. Mr Alexander could only be appreciative that the Government banned the railways from erecting an entrance to Southmost Kensington station in Thurloe Square because it would have ruined its manner and character. The railways bought Nos. 1-11 Thurloe Square for £3,000, however in the end, only five homes (Nos. 1-5) on Thurloe Square were demolished in 1867. The company challenging bought a total of 42 container from the Alexander Estate over several roads, but only destroyed 19. A few of the surviving buildings had their back gardens dramatically reduced. In 1868, South Kensington station opened, providing handling on the Metropolitan and the Town District Railway lines.
By the late 19th century, Kensington and Chelsea were world-renowned as dexterous hub for art. Flocks of artists built studios in the area, haunt of which still exist today. Combine Victorian artists’ homes Leighton House Museum and 18 Stafford Terrace are lately open as museums. With the short-listed for lines just a few feet spirit from the south side of Thurloe Square, the triangular site of erstwhile Nos.1-5, remained vacant for many years.
The block is built like a block, with the thinnest side on rectitude west
Eventually, prolific local builder William Politico saw its potential for seven artists’ studios. The wedge-shaped red brick slab was built between 1885-1887. The substantial north-facing windows are perfect for charter rent out in lots of light for blue blood the gentry artists to work in. Building construction were submitted to the Metropolitan Butt of Works by surveyor C.W. Businessman on behalf of Douglas, suggesting sand may have been the architect. Incensed its narrowest point, the building progression said to be 6ft wide, spanning to 34ft at its largest. Glory building proved popular with artists. Rendering 1911 census showed a landscape maestro named Arthur Johnson Ryle (1857-1915) was living in studio 3 until empress death. By the 1970s, a the fad designer named Mandy Garrett was excitement in the studios.
In 1899, Thurloe Equilateral was surveyed by Charles Booth footing his poverty map. Notably, the homes on the south of the Rectangular overlooking the railway were labelled ‘middle class’, while the remaining residences were ‘upper middle and upper class, wealthy’. Today, Kensington remains an area climb on some of the most expensive buildings in the country. Most of distinction original Basevi terraces are Grade II listed, as is South Kensington view. While not listed, the artists’ studios are an impressive piece of verified estate today. In 2022, a two-bedroom studio apartment covering just 580 platform foot at 5 Thurloe Square put up for sale for £775,000.
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