Hans Place, a square, is named after Sir Hans Sloane, physician and collector, whose bequest became the foundation of the British Museum.
In the 1770s, the architect Henry Holland leased 89 acres from Earl Cadogan and funded the building of his house by laying out a square which he sublet in building plots. The octagonal shape of the square is reputed to be modelled on the Place Vendôme in Paris.
Most of the 18th-century houses in Hans Place were rebuilt by Cadogan Estates when new leases were arranged in the late 19th century. The style of the rebuilds were called by Osbert Lancaster, ’Pont Street Dutch’.
During World War II, Hans Place received bomb damage and afterwards new development took place, particularly on the Pavilion Road side.
