Villiers Street was named after George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
Villiers Street connects the Strand with the Embankment.
George Villiers was a 17th century courtier who acquired York House which formerly stood on this site. A water gate in nearby Embankment Gardens is the only remnant of the mansion and shows the original position of the north bank of the Thames. George Villiers’s son sold the area to developers on the condition that both his father and his noble titles were commemorated by the new streets.
Hence laid out by Nicholas Barbon in the 1670s, were George Street, Villers Street, Duke Street, Of Alley and Buckingham Street - George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham.
Before 1865, Villiers Street ran down the hill directly to a wharf by the river called Villiers Wharf. This disappeared with the construction of the Victoria Embankment, with its sewers, and the District railway. The river bank was moved back some 50 metres from the foot of Villiers Street.
Housing on the west side of the street was demolished in the 1860s to make way for Charing Cross station.
Irish writer Richard Steele, who founded both The Spectator and The Tatler magazines, lodged here from 1712. John Evelyn lived here in the street during the 17th century. The Charing Cross Hospital Medical School was founded here in 1834. From 1889 to 1891, Rudyard Kipling lived in small rooms with windows facing the street at number 43.
