Mecklenburgh Square and its garden were part of the Foundling Estate, a residential development of 1792-1825 on fields surrounding and owned by the Foundling Hospital.
Designed by Joseph Kay, with Samuel Pepys Cockerell – who was appointed as consultant to develop the Estate – work started on the Square in 1804, with the last houses being built between 1824-5.
The Square was named in honour of King George III’s wife, Queen Charlotte, who was the daughter of the Grand Duke of Mecklenburgh-Strelitz.
Charles Booth’s poverty map of London showed Mecklenburgh Square as ‘well to do’ in the 19th century. However, by 1900 the area had ceased to be fashionable and had acquired a more bohemian reputation. Many of the handsome houses were sub-divided into furnished lodgings and small flats that appealed to aspiring writers, intellectuals, radicals and newly educated single women wanting to pursue a career.
In 1943, during World War II, the Square sustained some bomb damage from a V1 flying bomb but many of its handsome Georgian houses (including those occupied by the Goodenough Hotel London) remain, making the Square especially popular with film makers looking for period settings.
Mecklenburgh Square has numerous ‘blue plaques’ celebrating its famous residents who included:
The history of what is now Goodenough College began in 1930 when Frederick Craufurd Goodenough, Chairman of Barclays Bank, established the first student residence in London for international postgraduate students, with the help of a number of wealthy benefactors. The Dominion Students’ Hall Trust (DSHT) was established on 25 March 1930 to provide a hall of residence to be known as London House. Building work on London House took place in three stages between 1935 and 1963, to the designs of architect Sir Herbert Baker, his partner Alexander T Scott and their successor Vernon Helbing.
After the Second World War, the Lord Mayor of London’s Thanksgiving Fund was launched to show appreciation to the people of the Commonwealth and the USA for their generous support during and after the War. The money raised was made available to build William Goodenough House, a residence for female postgraduates and students with families from those countries. It opened in 1957 and new wings were added almost every decade, the most recent in 2012.
In 1991 both London House and William Goodenough House started to offer mixed accommodation.
In 2001, DSHT became Goodenough College, a name chosen to reflect the institution’s collegiate setting and community ethos; a community open to students of any nationality which currently comprises 700 Members from around 95 different countries.
Goodenough College has had a long-standing history of royal patronage, beginning with Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, who was deeply interested in the College and its aims. Princess Alice became president of London House Ladies’ Group in 1939 and remained involved until she gave up royal engagements in 1999.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-serving monarch, began a long association with the College in 1950 when she spoke at the launch of the Lord Mayor’s Thanksgiving Fund appeal to raise funds for the expansion of the College. The Queen became London House’s Patron in 1953 and made regular visits (11 in all) throughout her reign.
