Greenwich

This page is about Greenwich in England. For other uses see Greenwich (disambiguation)

Greenwich (pronounced 'grenn-itch' [ˈgrɛnɪtʃ], or [ˈgrɪnɪtʃ] by the locals) is a town, now part of the south eastern urban sprawl of London, on the south bank of the River Thames in the London Borough of Greenwich.

Contents

1 Geography
2 Sites of interest
3 Famous residents
4 Transport
5 See also
6 External links

Geography

Greenwich is located at a latitude and longitude of 51° 28' 38" N and 0º 0' 0" E/W (by definition).

Sites of interest

Old Royal Naval College and University of Greenwich buildings on the bank of the River Thames

Arms of the former Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich Council

The Spanish Galleon Tavern in Central Greenwich, near the Market

The Royal Greenwich Observatory is located in Greenwich and the Prime Meridian passes through the building. Greenwich Mean Time was at one time based on the time observations made at the Royal Greenwich Observatory, before being superseded by Coordinated Universal Time. While Greenwich no longer hosts a working astronomical observatory, a ball still drops daily to mark the exact moment of 1 pm (13:00), and there is a good museum of astronomical and navigational tools, particularly John Harrison's chronometers.

The observatory is situated in Greenwich Park, which used to be the grounds of the Royal Palace of Placentia. At the bottom of the park is the National Maritime Museum which also includes the Queen's House, designed by Inigo Jones. It is free to visit all these buildings. Greenwich also features the world's only museum dedicated to fans, the Fan Museum, in a Georgian townhouse at 10–12 Croom's Hill (fee payable). Also on Croom's Hill, on the corner of the junction with Nevada Street is Greenwich Theatre, formerly Crowder's Music Hall.

The Cutty Sark (a clipper ship) is in a dry dock by the river. Nearby for many years was also displayed Gipsy Moth IV, the 54ft yacht sailed by Sir Francis Chichester in his single-handed, 226-day circumnavigation of the globe during 1966–67. In 2004, Gypsy Moth IV was removed from Greenwich for extensive restoration work to be followed by a return to the sea and a second sailing career.

By the Cutty Sark, there is a pedestrian tunnel, the Greenwich foot tunnel, to the Isle of Dogs. This exits at Island Gardens, from where the famous view of Greenwich Hospital painted by Canaletto can be seen. On the riverside in front of the north-east corner of the Hospital is an obelisk erected in memory of Arctic explorer Joseph René Bellot.

The Millennium Dome was built on a disused British Gas site here. It is next to North Greenwich tube station, about three miles from Greenwich town centre, north of Charlton. The Greenwich Millennium Village is a new development nearby.

The University of Greenwich and the Trinity College of Music are now based in the Greenwich Hospital (formerly the Royal Naval College) buildings between Greenwich Park and the river. These buildings were designed by Sir Christopher Wren and include the Painted Hall, painted by James Thornhill, and St Paul's Chapel. These are also open to the public without charge.

The church dominating the western side of the town centre is St Alfege's Church, designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor in 1714, and marks the place where Archbishop of Canterbury Alfege (also spelt 'Alphege') was murdered in 1012.

The town centre features Greenwich Market, a covered market popular with tourists at the weekends.

In 1997, maritime Greenwich was added to the list of World Heritage Sites.

In recognition of the suburb's astronomical links, Asteroid 2830 has been named 'Greenwich'.

Famous residents

(In alphabetical order)

Astronomer Royal Sir George Airy lived in the White House, Croom's Hill.
Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield, statesman and man of letters, lived in the Ranger's House, Chesterfield Walk, SE10.
Dr Samuel Johnson, compiler of the first English dictionary, lived in Greenwich Church Street when he first came to London in 1736.
Comedian Dan Leno rented accommodation at the Spreadeagle Tavern, Stockwell Street in 1902.
Poet Cecil Day-Lewis lived at 6 Croom's Hill.
Jazz and blues guitarist Billy Jenkins ran the Wood Wharf rehearsal studios by the Cutty Sark during the 1980s.
Architect Samuel Sanders Teulon was born in Greenwich.
Artist Sir James Thornhill was said to have lived in Park Hall on Croom's Hill (originally designed for architect John James who never actually occupied the house).
Interior designer and television presenter Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen lives in the Borough and often appears in support of local activities.
Architect Sir John Vanbrugh lived at 121 Maze Hill in a house of his own design overlooking Greenwich Park.
Benjamin Waugh, founder of the UK charity the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, lived in Croom's Hill.
General James Wolfe lived in McCartney House in Croom's Hill, and was buried in St Alfege's Church.
King Henry VIII was born at Greenwich on 28 June 1491.

Transport

Nearby tube stations:

North Greenwich tube station can be reached directly by 129 or 188 bus from the town centre.

Nearby Docklands Light Railway (DLR) stations:

Cutty Sark for Maritime Greenwich
Island Gardens
Greenwich (The same as the railway station)

Nearby railway stations:

Nearby River service piers:

Greenwich Pier, close to Cutty Sark for Maritime Greenwich

External links

Main districts of the London boroughs | List of places in London

[ v]·[ d]·[ e]
World Heritage Sites in the United Kingdom (list)

England: Avebury · Blenheim Palace · Canterbury Cathedral · Bath · Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape · Derwent Valley Mills · Durham Castle · Durham Cathedral · Hadrian's Wall · Ironbridge Gorge · Jurassic Coast · Kew Gardens · Liverpool · Maritime Greenwich · Westminster Palace, Westminster Abbey & St. Margaret's · Saltaire · Stonehenge · Studley Royal Park · Tower of London
Scotland: New Lanark · Edinburgh Old Town & New Town · St Kilda · Skara Brae
Wales: Beaumaris Castle · Blaenavon · Caernarfon Castle · Conwy Castle · Harlech Castle
Northern Ireland: Giant's Causeway
Overseas territories: Henderson Island · Gough Island and Inaccessible Island · St. George's