Building    From 28/4/1923 

Wembley Stadium

Categories: Sport / Games

The first Wembley Stadium, originally known as the Empire Stadium, was opened 28 March 1923 by King George V, in time for the British Empire Exhibition of 1924. The architects were Sir John Simpson and Maxwell Ayrton, and the head engineer Sir Owen Williams.

That stadium was demolished 2002-3. The new stadium, on the same site opened in 2007.

Prior to the Stadium arriving the Wembley Park area had been a sizeable amusement park with facilities for various sports: cricket, football, track running, golf, trotting; and leisure activities: tea pagodas, bandstands, a lake, a variety theatre. Served by the new Wembley Park station, it was officially opened in May 1894, by its instigator Edward Watkin (1819-1901).

Watkins wanted to build a huge tower to rival the Eiffel Tower. This was begun on the site now occupied by the Stadium.  The foundations and the first stage were complete when it was opened to the public in 1896. But it failed to draw the crowds; the marshy ground caused it to tilt; Watkins suffered a stroke. It was demolished in 1904 and the Empire Stadium was built on the site.

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Wembley Stadium

Commemorated ati

Sir Owen Williams

Sir Owen Williams, architect & engineer ,1890 - 1969, designed and built ...

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Wembley Lion

{Plaque on the front of the plinth, beneath a drawing of a lion:} The lion wa...

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Other Subjects

Steve Redgrave

Steve Redgrave

Rower.  Born Buckinghamshire.  Won Olympic gold: 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000 - this man can row!  But what his connection is to Southwark or the South Bank, we can not discover.

Person, Sport / Games

1 memorial
Lord Kinnaird

Lord Kinnaird

Footballer and philanthropist. Born Arthur Fitzgerald Kinnaird in London. Unusually he had double careers in banking and football. He played in nine F.A. cup finals and had the dubious honour of be...

Person, Philanthropy, Politics & Administration, Social Welfare, Sport / Games

1 memorial
Jules Rimet

Jules Rimet

Football administrator. Born in eastern France. Initially a lawyer, in 1897 he started a sports club called Red Star which did not discriminate against individuals on the basis of class. He was inv...

Person, Law, Sport / Games, France

1 memorial
Jonathan Rashleigh

Jonathan Rashleigh

Born Wiltshire into a wealthy family. First class cricketer. Married Mary Pole Stuart in 1843 and Jane Elizabeth Pugh in 1869. In 1873 he was listed as the largest landowner in Cornwall. Died Menab...

Person, Benefactor, Sport / Games

1 memorial
Stanley Hallam Rothwell

Stanley Hallam Rothwell

Body builder and artists' model who posed for a number of statues on display in London. Rothwell was brought to our attention by Broderick D.V. Chow in this Londonist article. This, together with ...

Person, Art, Artists' Model, Sport / Games

1 memorial