Building    From 1237  To 1672

Norwich Place / York House

Categories: Property

Built as the town house of the bishops of Norwich. At the dissolution of the monasteries in 1536 King Henry VIII and Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk exchanged properties: Suffolk gave up Suffolk House (Southwark) in exchange for Norwich House.

it was granted to the Archbishop of York in 1556 and thus gained the name York House, which it retained for the rest of its existence.

1558 -1620s the house was given to holders of the title Lord Keeper of the Great Seal (LKGS) of England. 1624 it was acquired by George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, who added the nearby, still extant, York Watergate, in order to gain direct access to the river.

His successors lost the house during the Civil War but his son, the 2nd duke, regained it in 1657 when he married the new owner's daughter. He sold it in 1672 for development by Nicholas Barbon. The house was demolished shortly after the sale. (Do see the 'Of' plaque for how the new streets were named.)

Notable occupants include: Francis Bacon (the son of a LKGS, he was born here and lived here again when he was himselt the LKGS 1617-20), Thomas Egerton (under house arrest in the custody of an LKGS), Peter Paul Rubens.

Most images, including this one, show the river side of the house, including the Watergate, to the right of the image. Whereas this image shows its north front, on Strand.

This copy of a 1658 map shows York House. This 1685 map shows the area after the redevelopment, with all the new streets in place (though the one that is meant to have been named Of Alley is not so labelled).

Sources include: Report.

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Norwich Place / York House

Commemorated ati

Kipling House

The wording on the plaque could have been clearer. The first half is giving t...

Read More

Other Subjects

London House

London House

Destroyed by fire, 1766.

Building, Property

1 memorial
Southern Housing Group

Southern Housing Group

Initially the Samuel Lewis Housing Trust, set up after the death of the founder in 1901. Their first housing development was in Liverpool Road, Islington. From their website: "As one of southern E...

Group, Property, Social Welfare

3 memorials
Tudor Hall - Barnet

Tudor Hall - Barnet

Funded by the first Governors of the Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School and the Corporation of London.  Now part of Barnet and Southgate College and used as a banqueting hall and conference space, et...

Building, Education, Property

1 memorial
8 Grenville Street

8 Grenville Street

The Marchmont Association thoroughly research their plaques and they found some interesting information about Barrie’s home: “Barrie (1937) writes (in the third person) about his first residences ...

Building, Property

1 memorial
Thomas Peters

Thomas Peters

Building contractor active in 1877.

Person, Property

1 memorial