Russell Square

About Russell Square

Grade II listed garden square in Camden, London, England, UK

Russell Square is a large garden square in Bloomsbury in the London Borough of Camden, the largest square in London according to Wikivoyage, established in 1806 by the 5th Duke of Bedford and built predominantly by the firm of James Burton, a few steps from the University of London's main buildings and the British Museum. Almost exactly square, it is bounded to the north by Woburn Place and to the south-east by Southampton Row, with Russell Square tube station to the north-east. It is named after the Russell family, Earls and Dukes of Bedford, whose conservation trusts still hold the freehold and have agreed public access and management by Camden Council; the gardens are Grade II listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. At the centre of the garden today is a ground-level fountain around which children play in summer, flanked by paths beneath large plane trees, lawns and benches, with a statue of the 5th Duke of Bedford at the southern corner and a small cafe with outdoor seating. Academic buildings and hotels surround the square, most strikingly the grand Victorian red terracotta Kimpton Fitzroy (formerly Russell) Hotel on its east side and the University of London's Senate House to the west, and houses here were once home to writers and thinkers such as T. S. Eliot, who worked at the publisher Faber on the square. The square is a relaxing green oasis between the British Museum and the university, popular with students and visitors for a rest or an open-air lunch.

Where:

London, United Kingdom