One half of a matched pair of terraces that face each other across Sydney Street, the road that joined King’s Road to Fulham Road as Chelsea filled up in the first half of the nineteenth century. Two of its houses are now the hotel Sydney House Chelsea.
At a glance
Sydney Street runs north–south through Chelsea, from Fulham Road down past St Luke’s Church to King’s Road. On its west side, Nos. 7–67 form a single long terrace of three-storey houses in brick, with stuccoed ground floors and a balcony at every first-floor window. Historic England lists the terrace at Grade II and describes it as one half of a symmetrical pair, answered by the terrace at Nos. 18–68 on the opposite side. Nos. 9–11, towards the Fulham Road end, are occupied by Sydney House Chelsea, a small townhouse hotel.
Key facts
- Where: 7–67 Sydney Street, Chelsea, London SW3, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea; Sydney House Chelsea is at Nos. 9–11
- Built: dated by the listing to the early 19th century; the Victoria County History records Sydney Street as continued north to Fulham Road by 1851
- Type: balanced terrace of houses, three storeys, two windows wide each
- Protection: listed Grade II, National Heritage List for England entry 1226872, first listed 7 November 1984
- Current use: private houses and flats; Nos. 9–11 are a hotel
- Coordinates: 51.491257, -0.172030 · open in Google Maps
History
Sydney Street stands on what was, until the early nineteenth century, open land around Chelsea Common; the Victoria County History dates widespread building on the open field there to around 1808. Robert Street, the southern part of what is now Sydney Street, was laid out in the 1810s, and the new parish church of St Luke went up at its corner in 1824. The Victoria County History of Middlesex records that by 1851 Robert Street had been continued northwards to Fulham Road under the name of Sydney Street.
The same history describes the street in 1851 as a line of “Spartan 2- and 3-storeyed terraces” housing a mix of professionals and tradesmen, from schoolmasters and artists to a cowkeeper. The county history’s account of the later nineteenth century places Sydney Street on the boundary between the artisans’ streets to the east and the comfortable middle-class houses towards Church Street. The terrace at Nos. 7–67 was listed in 1984, together with the matching terrace across the road.
What you see
The photograph runs down the west side of the street. The upper floors are in yellow London stock brick; the ground floor is rendered and painted white, with channelled joints, and a white cornice runs along the top of the terrace. Every first-floor window opens onto its own small balcony with a black iron railing. Flat white pilaster strips rise between some of the houses, marking out the centre and the ends of the composition, as the listing describes.
The houses are all two windows wide, but the roofline is uneven. Some houses carry an extra storey and a few have been painted white all over; the listing notes that some end houses were later raised to five storeys. At pavement level each house is set back behind black area railings.
Practical information
- The terrace is in private use; the fronts can be seen from the street at any time.
- Nos. 9–11 are Sydney House Chelsea, a townhouse hotel.
- The best view of the pairing of the two terraces is from the middle of the street, looking along both sides.
Getting there
South Kensington Underground station (Piccadilly, District and Circle lines) is about ten minutes’ walk: follow Pelham Street and Fulham Road south-west, then turn into Sydney Street. Buses run along both Fulham Road and King’s Road, at the two ends of the street.
Nearby
- St Luke’s Church, Chelsea, further down Sydney Street.
- Michelin House, on Fulham Road, a few minutes north-east.
- King’s Road, at the southern end of the street.
Sources
- Historic England, National Heritage List for England, entry 1226872, 7-67, Sydney Street SW3: Grade II, listed 7 November 1984; balanced terrace, early 19th century, brick with stucco ground floor, individual first-floor balconies, pilaster strips, end houses raised, pair with Nos. 18–68.
- Victoria County History, Middlesex vol. 12, Settlement and building: from 1680 to 1865, Chelsea Park to Blacklands: Robert Street laid out in the 1810s, St Luke’s of 1824, Sydney Street continued to Fulham Road by 1851, residents in 1851.
- Victoria County History, Middlesex vol. 12, Settlement and building: from 1865 to 1900: the social character of the streets around Sydney Street later in the century.
- Sydney House Chelsea, official site: current use of Nos. 9–11 as a townhouse hotel.
- OpenStreetMap / Nominatim: position, returned as Sydney House Chelsea, 9-11, Sydney Street, Chelsea, SW3 6PU.
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