Welcome to Brown Hart Gardens in London's Mayfair
Brown Hart Gardens began life as Duke Street Gardens, a western offshoot of Duke Street, which by the end of the eighteenth century was already well-established as a trading street, lined with shops and small houses. When the houses were pulled down to make way for Chesham and Balderton Buildings in 1886-88, a communal garden was laid down the centre for the benefit of the residents of the flats.
Summer Events Programme for Brown Hart Gardens
- Festival of Architecture
- Free Lunchtime Music
- Open Air Theatre
- Free Children's Fun Day
- Mayfair Walking Tour
About Brown Hart Gardens
In 1902 the site was leased by the second Duke of Westminster to the Westminster Electricity Supply Co. to build a sub-station which was originally supplied from a power station in Davies Street, this meant that the street level garden had to be removed . The old garden was closed in 1903 and a two-year programme of works began. The substation was completed in 1905 to the design of C. Stanley Peach.
The substation was constructed in a Baroque style from Portland stone and featured a pavilion and steps at either end, a balustrade and Diocletian windows along the sides to light the galleries of the engine rooms and deep basements. In order to compensate local residents for the loss of the old communal garden, the Duke of Westminster insisted that a paved Italian Garden featuring trees in tubs be placed on the top of the substation, and the new Duke Street Gardens were opened in 1906.
Brown Hart Gardens Today
Today the private raised terrace is open to the general public and is a pleasant spot in which to while away an hour with a sandwich and a good book or enjoy events such as free classical music concerts, open air theatre and the free children's fun day provided by Grosvenor, the areas major landowner.