The Angel, Islington
Encyclopedia
Angel is a district of London
, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington
. The area is identified in the London Plan
as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
which was part of the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury
until it was merged with the Metropolitan Borough of Islington
to form the London Borough of Islington
in 1965.
Thomas Paine
may have stayed at the inn after he returned from France
in 1790 and it is believed that he wrote passages of the Rights of Man
whilst staying at the nearby Red Lion, now Old Red Lion, in St. John Street. The original building was rebuilt in 1819 and became a coaching inn
; the first staging post outside the City of London
. It became a local landmark and was mentioned in Oliver Twist
by Charles Dickens
"The coach rattled away and, turning when it reached the Angel at Islington, stopped at length before a neat house in Pentonville". A new building in pale terracotta stone with a corner cupola replaced the old building in 1899. From 1921 to 1959 the building was used as a Lyons Corner House (see below) and is now a Co-operative Bank
, with ORC International
, a market research agency, occupying the floors above the bank.
A pub operated by JD Wetherspoon situated near the junction of Pentonville Road and Islington High Street (just next door to the original building: it is visible in the image above) goes by the name The Angel.
In his book "The Inns and Taverns of Old London" published in 1909 Henry C. Shelley has the following to say of the inn:
a) A piece of land situate at the corner of High Street, Islington and Pentonville Road with the Inn and premises thereon known as 'The Angel' and;
b) The fixtures and fittings therein and the goodwill of the business of a licensed victualler therein and the benefit of the Magistrates and Excise Licenses for carrying on the said business.
The property appears to have been bought from: Truman, Hanbury, Buxton & Co Ltd, a company incorporated under the Companies Acts 1862 to 1886.
The Angel had, from Jacobean
times (1603), been a coaching inn and went though a number of rebuilds before Lyons acquired the property in 1921. The area in which it was situated used to be called Merry Islington because from time immemorial it had been a great entertainment centre of London. The Collins Music Hall, the Grand Theatre and the Philharmonic Hall were all situated here. Being outside London, Islington also became a refuge after the plagues and the Great Fire of London. It was also a refuge for those travellers entering London from the north. Here they would rest overnight as the open land between Islington and the City itself was dangerous to cross lest highwaymen vagrants, rogues or sham soldiers would relieve them of the valuables and possibly their lives. There were large fields for the farming community to rest their animals before the onward journey to Smithfield meat market. Charles Dickens also used the location for the meeting of the Artful Dodger and Oliver Twist in his famous novel of that name. In chapter VIII The Artful Dodger (John Dawkins) it reads: "John Dawkins objected to their entering London before nightfall, it was nearly eleven o'clock when they reached the turnpike at Islington. They crossed from the Angel into St John's Road. ..."
Although the Angel Cafe was one of the larger restaurants, ranked between a teashop and a Corner House, it has received little publicity within the J. Lyons house journals. In fact only two or three references are made to The Angel Cafe and these only to the memorial wreaths which were laid by the staff at the annual memorial services at Greenford. A brief reference appears in the Board Minutes of 1945 when a liquor licence was applied for. This paucity of information makes it difficult to document details about the restaurant. It is known to have been a popular meeting place for residents of Islington as its dome made it conspicuous. Furthermore, it was directly opposite the Angel underground station and adjacent to bus and tram routes which served many areas of London. Some people held their wedding breakfasts there in the upstairs restaurant which could be hired for such functions after the Second World War.
The Angel Restaurant, like the teashops, suffered from neglect during the war and went into decline thereafter. By 1959 it needed a considerable sum spent on it but the County of London Development Plan provided for the compulsory acquisition of the premises in a few year's time. This ruled out the heavy expenditure necessary to bring it up to acceptable standards. Lyons therefore approached the London County Council in 1959/60 and reached an agreement with them for its earlier acquisition. The precise date of transfer of ownership is not known but it is thought to have been in early 1960 as it was mentioned in Isidore M. Gluckstein's Statement to Shareholders dated 10 June 1960. In the event the plans which the London County Council had drawn up for the modernisation of the Angel did not affect this site and the building, with its dome, is still intact. Memorial wreaths continued to be laid by the staff, at the Lyons war memorials in Greenford, until its closure.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington
London Borough of Islington
The London Borough of Islington is a London borough in Inner London. It was formed in 1965 by merging the former metropolitan boroughs of Islington and Finsbury. The borough contains two Westminster parliamentary constituencies, Islington North and Islington South & Finsbury...
. The area is identified in the London Plan
London Plan
The London Plan is a planning document written by the Mayor of London, England in the United Kingdom and published by the Greater London Authority. The plan was first published in final form on 10 February 2004 and has since been amended. The current version was published in February 2008...
as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
History
The Angel was originally an inn near a toll gate on the Great North Road (at what is now the corner of Islington High Street and Pentonville Road). The corner itself was in the parish of ClerkenwellClerkenwell
Clerkenwell is an area of central London in the London Borough of Islington. From 1900 to 1965 it was part of the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury. The well after which it was named was rediscovered in 1924. The watchmaking and watch repairing trades were once of great importance...
which was part of the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury
Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury
The Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury was a Metropolitan borough within the County of London from 1900 to 1965, when it was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of Islington to form the London Borough of Islington.- Boundaries :...
until it was merged with the Metropolitan Borough of Islington
Metropolitan Borough of Islington
The Metropolitan Borough of Islington was a Metropolitan borough within the County of London from 1900 to 1965, when it was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury to form the London Borough of Islington.-Boundaries:...
to form the London Borough of Islington
London Borough of Islington
The London Borough of Islington is a London borough in Inner London. It was formed in 1965 by merging the former metropolitan boroughs of Islington and Finsbury. The borough contains two Westminster parliamentary constituencies, Islington North and Islington South & Finsbury...
in 1965.
Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine
Thomas "Tom" Paine was an English author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States...
may have stayed at the inn after he returned from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1790 and it is believed that he wrote passages of the Rights of Man
Rights of Man
Rights of Man , a book by Thomas Paine, posits that popular political revolution is permissible when a government does not safeguard its people, their natural rights, and their national interests. Using these points as a base it defends the French Revolution against Edmund Burke's attack in...
whilst staying at the nearby Red Lion, now Old Red Lion, in St. John Street. The original building was rebuilt in 1819 and became a coaching inn
Coaching inn
In Europe, from approximately the mid-17th century for a period of about 200 years, the coaching inn, sometimes called a coaching house or staging inn, was a vital part of the inland transport infrastructure, as an inn serving coach travelers...
; the first staging post outside the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. It became a local landmark and was mentioned in Oliver Twist
Oliver Twist
Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens, published by Richard Bentley in 1838. The story is about an orphan Oliver Twist, who endures a miserable existence in a workhouse and then is placed with an undertaker. He escapes and travels to...
by Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
"The coach rattled away and, turning when it reached the Angel at Islington, stopped at length before a neat house in Pentonville". A new building in pale terracotta stone with a corner cupola replaced the old building in 1899. From 1921 to 1959 the building was used as a Lyons Corner House (see below) and is now a Co-operative Bank
Co-operative Bank
The Co-operative Bank plc is a commercial bank in the United Kingdom and Guernsey, with its headquarters in Manchester.The bank markets itself as an ethical bank, and refuses to invest in companies involved in the arms trade, global climate change, genetic engineering, animal testing and use of...
, with ORC International
ORC International
ORC International is a leading market research agency and the global research operating unit of Opinion Research Corporation. The company's UK headquarters are located at 186 City Road, Londonadjacent to Silicon Roundabout, with another office in Manchester....
, a market research agency, occupying the floors above the bank.
A pub operated by JD Wetherspoon situated near the junction of Pentonville Road and Islington High Street (just next door to the original building: it is visible in the image above) goes by the name The Angel.
In his book "The Inns and Taverns of Old London" published in 1909 Henry C. Shelley has the following to say of the inn:
Angel Cafe Restaurant
The Angel Hotel, situated at the junction of Pentonville Road, City Road, Upper Street (High Street, Islington) and St John Street, was purchased by Lyons in 1921 and opened as the Angel Cafe Restaurant on 21 February 1922. Some contemporary records wrongly attribute it as having opened in 1899 as a Corner House. It did not open at this time nor was it a Corner House. Nevertheless it was a fairly grand restaurant on two floors with a rather conspicuous external dome which became a local landmark. The earliest reference to this property's acquisition by Lyons is dated 21 May 1921 when the firm registered a Mortgage to the value of £24,000 for what was described as:a) A piece of land situate at the corner of High Street, Islington and Pentonville Road with the Inn and premises thereon known as 'The Angel' and;
b) The fixtures and fittings therein and the goodwill of the business of a licensed victualler therein and the benefit of the Magistrates and Excise Licenses for carrying on the said business.
The property appears to have been bought from: Truman, Hanbury, Buxton & Co Ltd, a company incorporated under the Companies Acts 1862 to 1886.
The Angel had, from Jacobean
Jacobean
Jacobean indicates the period of English history that coincides with the reign of James I of England :*Jacobean era*Jacobean architecture*Jacobean literature*Jacobean English...
times (1603), been a coaching inn and went though a number of rebuilds before Lyons acquired the property in 1921. The area in which it was situated used to be called Merry Islington because from time immemorial it had been a great entertainment centre of London. The Collins Music Hall, the Grand Theatre and the Philharmonic Hall were all situated here. Being outside London, Islington also became a refuge after the plagues and the Great Fire of London. It was also a refuge for those travellers entering London from the north. Here they would rest overnight as the open land between Islington and the City itself was dangerous to cross lest highwaymen vagrants, rogues or sham soldiers would relieve them of the valuables and possibly their lives. There were large fields for the farming community to rest their animals before the onward journey to Smithfield meat market. Charles Dickens also used the location for the meeting of the Artful Dodger and Oliver Twist in his famous novel of that name. In chapter VIII The Artful Dodger (John Dawkins) it reads: "John Dawkins objected to their entering London before nightfall, it was nearly eleven o'clock when they reached the turnpike at Islington. They crossed from the Angel into St John's Road. ..."
Although the Angel Cafe was one of the larger restaurants, ranked between a teashop and a Corner House, it has received little publicity within the J. Lyons house journals. In fact only two or three references are made to The Angel Cafe and these only to the memorial wreaths which were laid by the staff at the annual memorial services at Greenford. A brief reference appears in the Board Minutes of 1945 when a liquor licence was applied for. This paucity of information makes it difficult to document details about the restaurant. It is known to have been a popular meeting place for residents of Islington as its dome made it conspicuous. Furthermore, it was directly opposite the Angel underground station and adjacent to bus and tram routes which served many areas of London. Some people held their wedding breakfasts there in the upstairs restaurant which could be hired for such functions after the Second World War.
The Angel Restaurant, like the teashops, suffered from neglect during the war and went into decline thereafter. By 1959 it needed a considerable sum spent on it but the County of London Development Plan provided for the compulsory acquisition of the premises in a few year's time. This ruled out the heavy expenditure necessary to bring it up to acceptable standards. Lyons therefore approached the London County Council in 1959/60 and reached an agreement with them for its earlier acquisition. The precise date of transfer of ownership is not known but it is thought to have been in early 1960 as it was mentioned in Isidore M. Gluckstein's Statement to Shareholders dated 10 June 1960. In the event the plans which the London County Council had drawn up for the modernisation of the Angel did not affect this site and the building, with its dome, is still intact. Memorial wreaths continued to be laid by the staff, at the Lyons war memorials in Greenford, until its closure.