Now dilapidated these late Georgian buildings are all that remain of a grand scheme initially designed for the Corporation of London by George Dance Jr in the 1770s. The Circus and its arterial roads were laid out on lands given to the City for the upkeep of London Bridge and were developed following the completion of Blackfriars Bridge in 1769.
Although Dance was responsible for the planning, the surviving buildings were actually deigned by his successor as the City Surveyor, William Montague. The buildings, including the Duke of Clarence pub on the Circus, were erected from c.1820-1828 and though undeniably modest they are believed to be largely as built above the ground floor. There have been a number of attempts to get them listed, but so far without success - they have been deemed to be of insufficient group interest despite there history and to be insufficiently complete. We, and many others, would beg to differ.
Though some have been virtually derelict for many years, the houses have only recently come under direct threat of demolition. They are now owned by the South Bank University, which has been drawing up plans with architects BDP to demolish them and replace them with new lecture, library and sporting facilities. These proposals have greatly alarmed both SAVE and the Georgian Group and we have sought an urgent meeting with Southwark Borough Council. Clearly these are not buildings of outstanding quality but they are honest, basically intact and the only survivors of an important bit of Georgian town planning which still defines the layout of Southwark today. Moreover, they clearly have a market value, even despite their current condition, because of their excellent central location.
Southwark has recently put back the original 1771 obelisk at the centre of the Circus, yet it seems prepared to let the remaining Georgian buildings around it be pulled down. Meanwhile it is attracting great praise for its ambitious redevelopment plans for the Elephant and Castle just down the road. We are determined to persuade it that regeneration must mean not only such massive redevelopment but also, and hand in hand, the more modest reuse of honest historic buildings such as these.
