Description
King's College London was founded in 1829, becoming one of the two founding colleges of the University of London in 1836. It now occupies 5 campuses, the original one being its Strand Campus. The Maughan Library & Information Services Centre opened here in 2001 on the site of the former Rolls Chapel founded in 1232, associated with the Master of the Rolls from 1377 and the location of the Public Record Office from the C19th until 1997. In 1912 the PRO acquired part of the garden of Clifford's Inn. After King's College moved here the PRO garden was re-landscaped as a Contemplative Garden of 'green rooms' designed by George Carter and includes a sculpture and water feature.
Practical Information
| Previously known as | Clifford's Inn/Public Record Office Garden |
|---|---|
| Site location | Fetter Lane/Chancery Lane |
| Postcode | WC2A 1LR |
| What3Words | ///weep.square.visits |
| Type of Site | Institutional Grounds |
| Borough | City of London |
| Open to Public | By appointment only |
| Opening Times | Private. Has opened for London Open Gardens |
| Public Transport | Tube: Chancery Lane (Central), Temple (District, Circle). Bus: 4, 11, 15, 23, 26, 76, 172, 341 |
| Research Updated | 1 June 2010 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
King's College London was founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829. Along with University College London (q.v.), it became one of the two founding colleges of the University of London in 1836. King's College London now occupies five campuses across London, that at The Strand being the original one, with others at Guy's Hospital, Waterloo, St Thomas's and Denmark Hill. Other college property includes the Hampstead Residence (q.v.). The Maughan Library is on the site of the former Rolls Chapel, which was founded in 1232 by Henry III for converted Jews, and became associated with the Master of the Rolls from 1377. The Rolls Estate was responsible for holding the government records and Rolls House, built in 1717-24, was replaced by the Public Record Office, built gradually from 1851-96 largely to the 1850 design of Sir James Pennethorne. In 1912 the PRO acquired land owned by Clifford's Inn, which abuts the site to the south. Clifford's Inn, the last Inn of Chancery, was dissolved in 1902 although the gatehouse remains on Clifford's Inn Passage off Fleet Street. After the PRO relocated to Kew in 1997, the former PRO garden re-opened in 2001 as part of King's College London Strand Campus, providing the Maughan Library & Information Services Centre.
New landscaping of the garden was undertaken in agreement with residents of Clifford's Inn, which is now private housing, to create a Contemplative Garden of 'green rooms' designed by George Carter. The design was designed to complement the main features of the adjacent building, and the planting of hornbeam, lime and yew provide historic continuity. The garden includes a sculpture by Dorothy Brook and a water feature. It was opened by HRH the Queen in 2002 and in 2003 won the London Spade awarded by the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association. A series of relief plaques by Walter Crane are installed on a small brick building showing the Continents of Canada, Australia etc. These were formerly on St Dunstan's House of 1886/7 in Fetter Lane, which was demolished in 1976.
New landscaping of the garden was undertaken in agreement with residents of Clifford's Inn, which is now private housing, to create a Contemplative Garden of 'green rooms' designed by George Carter. The design was designed to complement the main features of the adjacent building, and the planting of hornbeam, lime and yew provide historic continuity. The garden includes a sculpture by Dorothy Brook and a water feature. It was opened by HRH the Queen in 2002 and in 2003 won the London Spade awarded by the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association. A series of relief plaques by Walter Crane are installed on a small brick building showing the Continents of Canada, Australia etc. These were formerly on St Dunstan's House of 1886/7 in Fetter Lane, which was demolished in 1976.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ311812 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 0.2923 |
| Site Ownership | King's College London |
| Site Management | King's College London. Garden contractor: All Seasons Landscape Specialists |
| Dates | 1851-96; 1912; 2001/2 |
| Designers | 2001: George Carter |
| Listed Structures | LBII*: Public Record Office. LBII: Walls, railings and lamps fronting PRO; Gatehouse, gateway and screen wall in Clifford's Inn Passage |
| On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens | No |
| Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965 | No |
| Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931 | No |
| Local Authority | City of London |
| In Conservation Area | Yes |
| Conservation Area Name | Chancery Lane |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | Yes |
| Special Policy Area | No |
| Other LA Designation | Strategic Viewing Corridor |
Gallery
Please note the Inventory and its content are provided for your general information only and are subject to change. It is your responsibility to check the accuracy.
Nearby parks and gardens
The garden is a fragment of the former burial ground of St Dunstan in the West, the church located further south facing onto Fleet Street. Bream's Buildings was an C18th close off Chancery Lane that was extended to Fetter Lane in 1882. St Dunstan's was the last medieval City church to be rebuilt. First mentioned in c.1185, it was later known as St Dunstan in the West to distinguish it from St Dunstan in the East. The old church escaped the Great Fire in 1666, but by the early C19th was dilapidated and a new church was built by 1833 further to the north on the part of the burial ground. What remains of the burial ground is now overlooked by 1960s offices, a small public garden entered through a modest gate, from where steps lead to a raised area of grass, trees and shrubs, re-landscaped by 2009. A few tombstones remain inside the boundary railings and in shrubbery on the west perimeter.
St Mary's Church was built in the late C12th by the Knights Templar who moved here from Holborn. The round church was first consecrated in 1185; a larger chancel was added and its consecration in 1240 was attended by Henry III. The Knights Templar were dissolved in 1312 and in 1324 their Temple property was given to the Knights of the Order of St John, who subsequently leased it to a society of students of the common laws of England. This later formed into two societies, those of the Inner and the Middle Temple, who in 1608 were granted the freehold in perpetuity for use as a place of study and residence. The Temple Church escaped the Great Fire of 1666 but was badly damaged in 1941 and restored in 1954. North of the church a paved churchyard has a number of tombs, beyond this is a raised area laid out as a small garden containing the C18th memorial to Iohannes Hiccocks, the tomb of Oliver Goldsmith, and gravestones set into the paving.
This is the former site of one of the Serjeants' Inns used by the Serjeants-at-Law, a superior order of barristers dating back to at least the C12th. The Inn here appears to have been occupied from 1424-42 and then from c.1498-1730 after which it ceased to be used by the Serjeants, the building subsequently demolished. The Fleet Street site retained the name although following destruction by WWII bombing post-war buildings of 1951-58 were for commercial rather than legal use. A Neo-Georgian central block with 2 wings enclosed the cobbled Serjeants' Inn Courtyard, which had a fountain and some planting of small trees and shrubs but was otherwise largely used for parking. An archway leads to Inner Temple precincts. Nos.1-2 Serjeants' Inn are being developed as a 4-star hotel, due to open 2012, which will retain the central courtyard. No. 3 Sergeants' Inn has been barristers' chambers since 1986.
