1920 FASHION MODELS

According to Wikipedia:

"Regent Street is one of the major shopping streets in London's West End, well known to tourists and Londoners alike, and famous for its Christmas illuminations. It is named after the Prince Regent (later George IV), and is commonly associated with the architect John Nash, although all his original buildings except All Souls Church have since been replaced.

The street was completed in 1825 and was an early example of town planning in England, cutting through the 17th and 18th century street pattern through which it passes. It runs from the Regent's residence at Carlton House in St James's at the southern end, through Piccadilly Circus and Oxford Circus, to All Souls Church. From there Langham Place and Portland Place continue the route to Regent's Park.

Every building in Regent Street is protected as a Listed Building, at least Grade II status, and together they form the Regent Street Conservation Area.

Beginnings 1811 to 1825

Regent Street is one of the first planned developments of London. The desire to impose order on the medieval street pattern of London dates back to the Great Fire of London (1666) when Sir Christopher Wren drew up plans for rebuilding the city on the classical formal model, but that initiative was lost. It was not until 1811 that John Nash drew up plans for broad, architecturally distinguished thoroughfares and public spaces: Carlton House Terrace on The Mall, Piccadilly Circus, Regent Street and Regent's Park with its grand terraces. The plans were prepared under the authority of the Office of Woods, Forests and Land Revenues, who since 1793 invited designs for Regent's Park, and came to the conclusion that the Park must have a proper road connecting it with the fashionable area around Charing Cross. Nash's plans were submitted to Parliament for approval.

While the park terraces are residential, Regent Street was intended for commercial purposes and consequently did not need gardens or public spaces. The scale of the development was unprecedented in London. The street followed the line of existing roads, and detoured to make efficient use of land belonging to the government. None the less, much demolition was necessary, and many freehold and leasehold interests had to be bought out at current property values. It is thought that the Treasure supported the proposal because, in the aftermath of the lengthy Napoleonic Wars, there was an urgent need to the government to create jobs. Government expenditure was low because the design relied heavily upon private developers, including Nash himself. The buildings were to be let on 99 year leases, and income could be recouped in the form of ground rent.

The design was adopted by Act of Parliament in 1813, and built between 1814 and 1825. The individual buildings were designed by Cockerell, Soane and Nash himself, among others. At first called New Street, it became a dividing line between Soho, which was considered less than respectable, and the fashionable squares and streets of Mayfair.


Rebuilding 1895 to 1927

By the end of the 19th century, fashions in shopping had changed and the original buildings were unsuitable for their purpose. They were small and old fashioned, and consequently they were restricting trade. In the Edwardian era, department stores were principal commercial aspiration. Dickins & Jones, Garrard & Co., Swan and Edgar, Hamleys and Liberty & Co. date from this period although only the last two are still there.

Further, Nash’s buildings were not of the highest quality, using stucco render and composition to imitate stonework; and many of the buildings had been considerably extended and were now structurally suspect. As the 99 year leases came to an end, Regent Street was redeveloped between 1895 and 1927 under the control of the Office of Woods, Forests and Land Revenues (now the Crown Estate).

Regent Street as we see it today is the result of this redevelopment. South of Oxford Circus, none of the original buildings survive.

Regent Street is an example of the Beaux Arts approach to urban design: an assembly ofseparate buildings on a grand scale, designed to harmonise and produce an impressive overall effect. Strict rules were put in place to govern the reconstruction. Each block was required to be designed with a continuous unifying facade to the street, had to be finished in Portland stone, and with a uniform cornice level 66 feet above pavement level, excluding dormers, turrets and mansard roofs. The first redevelopment was Regent House, just south of Oxford Circus. However, the stylistic tone for the rebuilding was set by Reginald Blomfield's Quadrant.

The Quadrant was the subject of considerable debate. The unity of Piccadilly Circus had been upset by the construcion of Shaftesbury Avenue, and the first proposals were unsatisfactory. At the age of 73, the eminent architect Norman Shaw was brought in to resolve the design, and drew up proposals for the Circus and the Q

Fashion St. Street signs in this area are bilingual - English and Bengali