Located right on the southern bank of the River Thames, the area of Greenwich is world famous both for its deep maritime history and its beautiful architecture. Christopher Wren’s Royal Hospital, which is part of Greenwich University and draws throngs of tourists year after year, is a notable highlight which appeared in Marvel’s Thor: The Dark world. As a tourist hotspot, the area is well connected with Cutty Sark and Greenwich DLR stations, Maze Hill rail station, and a multitude of bus routes all over London. Despite the number of magnificent attractions, and the tourists who flock to them, the area also possesses a surprisingly high number of quaint Georgian and Victorian terrace-lined residential streets, which house a population of around 8,500. To cater for both the locals and the tourists, there are a great number of boutique cafes and restaurants, as well as local and gastropubs. There is also no shortage of beautiful green space with Greenwich Park just to the south, and the grounds of the University of Greenwich in the north of the area.

Given its location on the banks of the River Thames, the area of north Greenwich has an incredibly vibrant history and seems to have been a popular area to settle since around the 5th century, with archaeologists having uncovered coins dating back to the reign of Roman Emperor Claudius! The Viking fleet of Ethelred the Unready anchored on the shores of Greenwich, using the area as a base from which to attack Kent and capture Canterbury in 1012. The Palace of Placentia, built in 1443, was principal residence to many Plantagenet, Tudor and Stuart monarchs including Henry V, Henry VII, and James I, and was the favourite summer residence of Elizabeth I, in fact it was even the location from which she planned the Spanish Armada campaign in 1588! With the construction of the first ever steam railway, the London and Greenwich Railway, built specifically for passengers, tourism and further residential development were encouraged, as the train terminated in Greenwich. This allowed the area to develop into the north Greenwich we know today.

Given the area’s royal history it seems only apt that arguably the most famous King of England, Henry VIII, was born here in the Palace of Placentia in 1491 before moving to Hampton Court. Apart from his break with Rome and subsequent dissolution of the monasteries, he is best known for his rather unsavoury treatment of his six wives, only two of whom survived his turbulent reign!

80s music fans will be interested to know that Spandau Ballet guitarist and actor known for playing Ronnie Kray in the 1990 film The Krays, lived at 30 Caradoc Street. The house was also used as the set of the Krays’ home during filming.

A notable site within this neighbourhood is The Trafalgar Tavern, a huge late Regency pub opened in 1837, which sits right on the banks of the River Thames within the boundaries of the Greenwich Maritime World Heritage Site. The riverside views attracted the likes of Charles Dickens and William Gladstone, who, at high tide, would have been able to see the river lapping at the windows. Another building of significance is the grand, Georgian-style entrance to Greenwich Station.

This is one of the oldest station buildings in the world, designed by George Smith, and opened in 1840. The station was the termination point for the London and Greenwich Railway, the world’s first suburban railway network. Turning to other transportation, built on the River Clyde in 1869, the Cutty Sark, one of the last tea clippers to be built, and certainly one of the fastest and most beautiful, is now a popular tourist site, housed in a dry dock on the banks of the river. In 2007 the ship was partly destroyed in a huge fire and much of the original timber lost, but timeless work by the Cutty Sark Trust has allowed the ship to be restored to its original splendour. To this day nobody knows how the fire was started. Near the site of the Cutty Sark sits the entrance to the impressive Greenwich foot tunnel, a 1,215 foot long and 50 foot deep tunnel that takes visitors by foot under the Thames to the Isle of Dogs on the north bank of the river. Opened in 1902 and designed by Sir Alexander Binnie, and with pressure from the trade unionist and politician Will Crooks, the tunnel replaced the unreliable ferry service and helped workers reach the dock yards north of the river.

It’s impossible to forget that almost all of the area of Greenwich, and particularly this northern part, is a tourist hotspot, which gets particularly crowded at peak times. However, it still remains highly residential.

As the area is located within a UNESCO World Heritage Site, there have been very few large-scale developments in recent years, other than routine conservation work. Despite this, work was recently completed on a low-rise residential development on Vanbrugh Hill, outside of the heritage site. The first phase, completed in 2016, provided 325 new units, and the latest phase of development provided another 361. All of which are located around a central courtyard. A smaller scheme at 10 Norway Street is set to complete later in 2022 and comprises six two-bedroom and two-bathroom apartments with two private balconies.