The George, or
George Inn, is a
public houseA public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises in countries and regions of British influence. Although the terms often have different connotations, there is little definitive difference between pubs, bars,...
established in the medieval period on
Borough High StreetBorough High Street is the last section of the road from Dover to London as it approaches London Bridge. It is also the northern section of the A3 road from London to Portsmouth....
in
SouthwarkSouthwark, or the Borough, is an area of south-east London in the London Borough of Southwark, situated 1.5 miles east of Charing Cross.-Naming:Southwark is the area of London immediately south of London Bridge...
,
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
. Currently owned and leased by the
National TrustThe National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
, it is located on the south side of the
River ThamesThe River Thames is a major river flowing through southern England. While best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows through several other towns and cities, including Oxford, Reading and Windsor....
near
London BridgeLondon Bridge is a bridge between the City of London and Southwark in London, England, over the River Thames. Situated between Cannon Street Railway Bridge and Tower Bridge, it forms the western end of the Pool of London...
. It is the only surviving galleried London
coaching innIn 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 map of Southwark (Duchy of Lancaster ca1543) clearly shows it marked as 'Gorge'. It was formerly known as the
George and Dragon, named for the legend of
Saint George and the DragonThe episode of Saint George and the Dragon appended to the hagiography of Saint George was Eastern in origin, brought back with the Crusaders and retold with the courtly appurtenances belonging to the genre of Romance...
.
In 1676, the George was rebuilt after a serious fire that destroyed most of medieval Southwark.
The George, or
George Inn, is a
public houseA public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises in countries and regions of British influence. Although the terms often have different connotations, there is little definitive difference between pubs, bars,...
established in the medieval period on
Borough High StreetBorough High Street is the last section of the road from Dover to London as it approaches London Bridge. It is also the northern section of the A3 road from London to Portsmouth....
in
SouthwarkSouthwark, or the Borough, is an area of south-east London in the London Borough of Southwark, situated 1.5 miles east of Charing Cross.-Naming:Southwark is the area of London immediately south of London Bridge...
,
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
. Currently owned and leased by the
National TrustThe National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
, it is located on the south side of the
River ThamesThe River Thames is a major river flowing through southern England. While best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows through several other towns and cities, including Oxford, Reading and Windsor....
near
London BridgeLondon Bridge is a bridge between the City of London and Southwark in London, England, over the River Thames. Situated between Cannon Street Railway Bridge and Tower Bridge, it forms the western end of the Pool of London...
. It is the only surviving galleried London
coaching innIn 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 map of Southwark (Duchy of Lancaster ca1543) clearly shows it marked as 'Gorge'. It was formerly known as the
George and Dragon, named for the legend of
Saint George and the DragonThe episode of Saint George and the Dragon appended to the hagiography of Saint George was Eastern in origin, brought back with the Crusaders and retold with the courtly appurtenances belonging to the genre of Romance...
.
History
In 1676, the George was rebuilt after a serious fire that destroyed most of medieval Southwark. There had been many such inns in this part of London. Probably the most famous was the
The TabardThe Tabard, an inn that stood on the east side of Borough High Street in Southwark, was established in 1307, when the abbot of Hyde purchased the land to construct a hostel for himself and his brethren, when business took them to London, as well as an inn to accommodate the numerous pilgrims headed...
where, in 1388, Chaucer began
The Canterbury Tales The Canterbury Tales is a collection of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century . The tales are contained inside a frame tale and told by a collection of pilgrims on a pilgrimage from Southwark to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral...
. The Tabard was also rebuilt after the same fire, but was demolished in the late 19th century.
Later, the
Great Northern RailwayThe Great Northern Railway was a British railway company established by the London & York Railway Act of 1846.The main line ran from London via Hitchin, Peterborough, and Grantham, to York, with a loop line from Peterborough to Bawtry via Boston and Lincoln, and branch lines to Sheffield and...
used the George as a depot and pulled down two of its fronts to build warehousing. Now just the south face remains.
The George was one of the many famous
coaching innIn 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...
s in the days of
Charles DickensCharles John Huffam Dickens FRSA , pen-name "Boz", was the most popular English novelist of the Victorian era and one of the most popular of all time. He created some of literature's most memorable characters. His novels and short stories have never gone out of print...
. Dickens in fact visited the George and referred to it in
Little DorritLittle Dorrit is a serial novel by Charles Dickens published originally between 1855 and 1857. It is a work of satire on the shortcomings of the government and society of the period....
.
William ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's preeminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
was another visitor; the
Globe TheatreThe Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, and was destroyed by fire on 29 June 1613. A second Globe Theatre was built on the same site by June 1614 and closed in 1642.A modern...
was a short distance away.
Description
The ground floor of the inn is divided into a number of connected bars. The Old Bar used to be a waiting room for passengers on coaches. The Middle Bar was the Coffee Room, which was frequented by
Charles DickensCharles John Huffam Dickens FRSA , pen-name "Boz", was the most popular English novelist of the Victorian era and one of the most popular of all time. He created some of literature's most memorable characters. His novels and short stories have never gone out of print...
. The bedrooms, now a restaurant, were upstairs in the galleried part of the building.
It is one of only two coaching inns to survive in
Greater LondonGreater London is the top-level administrative subdivision covering London, England. The administrative area was officially created in 1965 and covers the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and thirty two London boroughs...
, and is the only galleried example. It is next door to the
White HartThe White Hart was the personal emblem and livery of Richard II, who derived it from the arms of his mother, Joan "The Fair Maid of Kent", heiress of Edmund of Woodstock...
and the site of The Tabard. The building is
Grade I listed.
External links