The George Inn, Southwark
The George Inn, or The George, is a public house established in the medieval period on Borough High Street in Southwark, London, owned and leased by the National Trust. It is located about 250 metres (820 ft) from the south side of the River Thames near London Bridge and is the only surviving galleried London coaching inn.[1]
| The George Inn | |
|---|---|
| Former names |
|
| Alternative names | The George |
| General information | |
| Type | Public house |
| Address | Borough High Street London, SE1 United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51°30′15″N 0°05′24″W / 51.504182°N 0.090021°WCoordinates: 51°30′15″N 0°05′24″W / 51.504182°N 0.090021°W |
| Current tenants | Tenanted by brewery |
| Owner | National Trust |
| Technical details | |
| Structural system | partly timber framed |
| Website | |
| www | |
History
The pub was formerly known as the George and Dragon, named after the legend of Saint George and the Dragon. It is possible that it was used for Elizabethan theatrical productions (Inn-yard theatre), as other galleried inns were.[citation needed]
A pub has existed on the site since medieval times. But in 1677, it was rebuilt after a serious fire destroyed most of Southwark. The medieval pub was situated next door to an inn where Chaucer set The Canterbury Tales.[2]
Later, the Great Northern Railway used the George as a depot and pulled down two of its fronts to build warehousing. Now just the south face remains.[citation needed]
Charles Dickens visited The George, and referred to it in both Little Dorrit and Our Mutual Friend.[citation needed]
Description
The building is partly timber framed.[3] The ground floor is divided into a number of connected bars. The Parliament Bar used to be a waiting room for passengers on coaches. The Middle Bar was the Coffee Room, which was frequented by Charles Dickens. The bedrooms, now a restaurant, were upstairs in the galleried part of the building.[citation needed]
It is the only surviving galleried coaching inn in London. The White Hart was immediately to the north but was demolished in the nineteenth century. Immediately to the south was The Tabard (which was described in Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales); it too was demolished in the nineteenth century.
The building is listed Grade I on the National Heritage List for England, and is listed in the Campaign for Real Ale's National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors.[4]
Gallery
The sign depicts Saint George slaying a dragon.
Secondary sign, with another depiction of Saint George slaying the dragon.
Inn, 1858
Inn, 1889
rear of Inn and coach yard, 1889
tap room
coffee-room
first floor gallery
bar parlour
dining room
References
- ^ . Archived from the original on 24 September 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
- ^ "Tales from a London Barstool: A Review of Pete Brown's".
- ^ Historic England, "The George Inn (1378357)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 2 March 2020
- ^ Brandwood & Jephcote, Geoff & Jane (July 2008). London Heritage Pubs – An Inside Story. CAMRA (Campaign For Real Ale) Books. ISBN 978-1-85249-247-2.
Further reading
- Matz, Bertram Waldrom (1918). . London: Chapman and Hall.
- Brown, Pete (2012). Shakespeare's Local. London: Pan Books.
External links
- George Inn information at the National Trust