Dovehouse Green
Address: Dovehouse Street SW3
The old King’s Road burial ground is now an
attractive garden with an excellent display of daffodils in the
spring. This open area provides a quiet spot to sit among the trees
and shrubs.
History
Dovehouse Green was laid out as a garden in
1977. It was originally a gift from Sir Hans Sloane to the borough
in 1733, for use as a burial ground and closed in 1824.
There is a plaque on the green as a memorial
to 457 civilians killed in WWII.
The gardens were refurbished in 1977 to
commemorate the Queen’s Silver Jubilee and again in 2003, in
celebration of her Golden Jubilee.
After war damage a scheme of 1947-50 to
develop the garden, with a small part opened to the public, removed
most of the stones and demolished the mortuary. In order to improve
its condition and make the whole area publicly accessible the
Chelsea Society and the Royal Borough of Kensington
and Chelsea re-modelled the garden in 1977, retaining
mature trees and the remaining monuments; it was named Dovehouse
Green.