Kensington is a district of west London, England, within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Its commercial heart is Kensington High Street. This affluent and densely populated area contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington. To the north, Kensington is bordered by Notting Hill; to the east, by Brompton, Kensington and Knightsbridge; to the south, by Chelsea, London and Earl's Court; and to the west, by Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush.

Name

The area is first mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it was written in Latin as "Chenesitone",[http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/details-result.asp?Edoc_Id=7576097 The National Archives catalogue reference E31/2/1] which has been interpreted to have originally been "Kenesignetun" (Kenesigne's land or meadows) in Old English language. Kensington is a district of west London, England, within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Its commercial heart is Kensington High Street. This affluent and densely populated area contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington. To the north, Kensington is bordered by Notting Hill; to the east, by Brompton, Kensington and Knightsbridge; to the south, by Chelsea, London and Earl's Court; and to the west, by Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush.

History

The manor of Kensington, Middlesex, was granted by William I of England to Geoffrey de Montbray or Mowbray, bishop of Coutances, one of his inner circle of advisors and one of the wealthiest men in post-Conquest England. He in turn granted the tenancy of Kensington to his vassal Aubrey de Vere I, who was holding the manor in 1086, according to Domesday Book. The bishop's heir, Robert de Mowbray, rebelled against William Rufus and his vast barony was declared forfeit. Aubrey de Vere I had his tenure converted to a tenancy in-chief, holding Kensington after 1095 directly of the crown.''Victoria County History of England'', Middlesex, vol. 1, pp. 116–7 He granted land and church there to Abingdon Abbey at the deathbed request of his young eldest son, Geoffrey.''Chronicon Monasterii de Abingdon'', vol 2, pp. 55–6 As the Veres became the earls of Oxford, their estate at Kensington came to be known as Earls Court, while the Abingdon lands were called Abbots Kensington and the church St Mary Abbots. Kensington is a district of west London, England, within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Its commercial heart is Kensington High Street. This affluent and densely populated area contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington. To the north, Kensington is bordered by Notting Hill; to the east, by Brompton, Kensington and Knightsbridge; to the south, by Chelsea, London and Earl's Court; and to the west, by Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush.

Geography

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The focus of the area is Kensington High Street, a busy commercial centre with many shops, typically upmarket. The street was declared London's second best shopping street in February 2005 thanks to its range and number of shops. However since October 2008 the street has faced competition from the Westfield London shopping centre at White City. The heritage bus service on London Buses route 9 (Heritage), using Routemasters, was extended to Kensington High Street in November 2010 at the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea's urging, partly to boost the number of visitors to the High Street.

Kensington's second activity centre is South Kensington, where a variety of small shops are clustered close to South Kensington tube station. This is also the southern end of Exhibition Road, the thoroughfare that serves the area's museums and educational institutions.

The edges of Kensington are not well-defined; in particular, the southern part of Kensington blurs into Chelsea, which has a similar architectural style. To the west, a transition is made across the West London Line and Earl's Court Road further south into other districts, whilst to the north, the only obvious dividing line is Holland Park Avenue, to the north of which is the similar district of Notting Hill.

In the north east, the large Royal Parks of London of Kensington Gardens (contiguous with its eastern neighbour, Hyde Park, London) is an obvious buffer between Kensington and areas to the north east. The other main green area in Kensington is Holland Park, just north of Kensington High Street, whilst Kensington has numerous small residential Parks and open spaces in London#Garden squares.

While South Kensington can be regarded as a part of Kensington, the districts of North Kensington and West Kensington, London are regarded as distinct from Kensington. North Kensington is separated from Kensington by Notting Hill. West Kensington is separated from Kensington by the West London railway line.

Kensington is, in general, an extremely affluent area, a trait that it now shares with its neighbour to the south, Chelsea. The area has some of London's most expensive streets and garden squares, including Edwardes Square, Earls Terrace – an exclusive redevelopment of Georgian Houses, The Phillimores, and Wycombe Square – a new build development done to a very high standard. In early 2007, houses sold in Upper Phillimore Gardens for in excess of £20 million. Additionally, most neighbouring districts are regarded as exclusive residential areas, including Knightsbridge and Brompton, Kensington to the east and the nearest parts of Notting Hill to the north. To the west is the less affluent but up-and-coming area of Earl's Court.

Kensington is also very densely populated; it forms part of the most densely populated local government district (the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea) in the United Kingdom. This high density is not formed from high-rise buildings; instead, it has come about through the subdivision of large mid-rise Victorian and Georgian terraced houses (generally of some four to six floors) into flats. Unlike other parts of the Borough, Kensington itself has almost no high-rise buildings – the exception being Holiday Inn's London Kensington Forum Hotel in Cromwell Road, a 27-storey building.

Notable attractions and institutions in Kensington (or South Kensington) include: Kensington Palace in Kensington Gardens, the Royal Albert Hall opposite the Albert Memorial in Hyde Park, the Royal College of Music, the Natural History Museum, London, the Science Museum (London), the Victoria and Albert Museum, Heythrop College, Imperial College, London, the Royal College of Art and Kensington and Chelsea College. The Olympia, England exhibition hall is just over the western border in West Kensington, London. Kensington is a district of west London, England, within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Its commercial heart is Kensington High Street. This affluent and densely populated area contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington. To the north, Kensington is bordered by Notting Hill; to the east, by Brompton, Kensington and Knightsbridge; to the south, by Chelsea, London and Earl's Court; and to the west, by Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush.

Administration

[[Image:Kensington Gardens Of London Summer.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Kensington Gardens in the summer]]
Kensington is part of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and lies within the Kensington (UK Parliament constituency). Kensington is a district of west London, England, within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Its commercial heart is Kensington High Street. This affluent and densely populated area contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington. To the north, Kensington is bordered by Notting Hill; to the east, by Brompton, Kensington and Knightsbridge; to the south, by Chelsea, London and Earl's Court; and to the west, by Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush.

Economy

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The head office of Daily Mail and General Trust is located in the Northcliffe House in Kensington."[http://www.dmgt.co.uk/contact Contacts]." Daily Mail and General Trust. Retrieved 6 September 2011. "Northcliffe House 2 Derry Street London W8 5TT Great Britain"Ponsford, Dominic. "[http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=42559&c=1 Sharing with Mail 'will safeguard future of Independent']." ''Press Gazette''. 28 November 2008. Retrieved 6 September 2011. "Under a deal signed today, the Independent titles will share back office functions with the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, Metro and Evening Standard at Northcliffe House in Kensington." In addition to housing the DMGT head office, the building also houses the offices of ''The Independent'' series, ''Daily Mail'', ''Mail on Sunday'', ''Evening Standard'', and ''Metro (British newspaper)''.

Sonangol Limited, a subsidiary of the Sonangol Group, has its head office in the Merevale House in Kensington."[http://www.sonangol.co.uk/contacts_en.shtml Contact]." Sonangol Limited. Retrieved 6 August 2011. "Sonangol Limited Merevale House Brompton Place London SW3 1QE United Kingdom." Kensington is a district of west London, England, within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Its commercial heart is Kensington High Street. This affluent and densely populated area contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington. To the north, Kensington is bordered by Notting Hill; to the east, by Brompton, Kensington and Knightsbridge; to the south, by Chelsea, London and Earl's Court; and to the west, by Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush.

Transport

Kensington is crossed east-west by three main roads, the most important of which is the A4 road (Great Britain) or Cromwell Road which connects it to both Central London and London Heathrow Airport. To the north is the mostly parallel Kensington Road (of which Kensington High Street forms a large part), linking central London and Hammersmith to the area. To the south is Fulham Road, which connects South Kensington with Fulham to the southwest. North-south connections are not as well-developed and there is no obvious single north-south route through the area.

Kensington is well served by public transport. Most of Kensington is served by three stations located in the Travelcard Zone 1: High Street Kensington tube station, Gloucester Road tube station and South Kensington tube station. All three are served by the Circle line (London Underground) which connects them to London's railway terminals. The District Line also serves all three stations, albeit on different branches; it links the latter two to City of Westminster and the City of London. The Piccadilly Line also links South Kensington and Gloucester Road to the West End of London in about 10 minutes, and in the other direction to Heathrow Airport in about 40 minutes. In addition Kensington (Olympia) in Travelcard Zone 2 serves the western part of Kensington, with District Line trains to Earl's Court and High Street Kensington. (West Kensington station is not in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.)

A number of local bus services link Kensington into the surrounding districts, and key bus hubs are Kensington High Street and South Kensington station. These bus services were improved in frequency and spread in 2007 to complement the western extension of the London congestion charge area, which required vehicles driving into or around Kensington in charging hours Monday-Friday to pay a daily fee of £8. The extension of the congestion charging area was withdrawn at the end of 2010. Kensington is a district of west London, England, within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Its commercial heart is Kensington High Street. This affluent and densely populated area contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington. To the north, Kensington is bordered by Notting Hill; to the east, by Brompton, Kensington and Knightsbridge; to the south, by Chelsea, London and Earl's Court; and to the west, by Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush.

See also

*Earls Court
*South Kensington
*Kensington Roof Gardens
*Knightsbridge
*West Kensington Kensington is a district of west London, England, within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Its commercial heart is Kensington High Street. This affluent and densely populated area contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington. To the north, Kensington is bordered by Notting Hill; to the east, by Brompton, Kensington and Knightsbridge; to the south, by Chelsea, London and Earl's Court; and to the west, by Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush.

References

*[http://80.1911encyclopedia.org/K/KE/KENSINGTON.htm Kensington] – 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article
*[http://web.archive.org/web/20080211193805/http://www.geocities.com/londondestruction/kensington.html London Kensington Market (Destroyed)]
*[http://www.ashbournecollege.co.uk Ashbourne College] Kensington is a district of west London, England, within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Its commercial heart is Kensington High Street. This affluent and densely populated area contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington. To the north, Kensington is bordered by Notting Hill; to the east, by Brompton, Kensington and Knightsbridge; to the south, by Chelsea, London and Earl's Court; and to the west, by Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush.

External links

*[http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/21643 The Kensington District], by Geraldine Edith Mitton, 1903, from Project Gutenberg




Category:Kensington
Category:Areas of London
Category:Districts of Kensington and Chelsea
Category:Districts of London listed in the Domesday Book