Belsize Square, NW3
Belsize Park (1917)
Credit: Robert Polhill Bevan (1865-1925)
Belsize Square was part of the grounds of Belsize House.

In the middle of the nineteenth century Belsize House and its parkland had become run-down. In 1853 the leaseholder decided to demolish the house and develop a secluded elongated square within the park walls - Belsize Square.

Daniel Tidey became the main builder of the area. In 1864 he signed an agreement to build on the land south of Belsize Square to link it to the Eton College estate.

He built classically-styled 8 to 10 bedroomed semi-detached houses with large porticos and lavish stucco. During the 1860s he completed about 250 houses in Belsize Square, Buckland Crescent, Belsize Park Gardens, Belsize Crescent and Belsize Terrace. With tastes changing, an 1870 Tidey went bankrupt.

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