Front elevation of Somerset House, Strand, City of Westminster. A major thoroughfare, the Strand runs east to west from Trafalgar Square to Temple Bar. Named from the Old English 'strond', meaning the edge of a river, as before modern embankments and land reclamation it ran alongside the north bank of the River Thames. Between The Strand and the river, many historically important mansions were built from the twelfth to the seventeenth century. The first palace on this site was built by Edward Seymour, the Duke of Somerset in 1547, but after his execution in 1552 the property passed to the crown. In 1609 Inigo Jones was invited by James I's queen, Anne of Denmark, to redesign and renovate the palace and it was renamed Denmark House. This was used in the eighteenth century as grace and favour apartments and was eventually demolished in 1775. The new building was constructed between 1776-96 by Sir William Chambers. The Strand block has a nine-window wide front, with three central bays open as carriage arches leading into the quadrangle. In the distance is the block originally opening directly on to the Thames with water-gates. Three main storeys throughout and two and a half storeys of basements, and with a dome. The Royal Academy of Arts became the first resident in 1779, and other occupants have included the Admiralty and the Inland Revenue where it was based for 150 years. The building suffered bomb damage during World War II and in 1950, Sir Alfred Richardson undertook renovation work. The Courtauld Institute of Art moved into the North Wing in 1989 and remains there still. Somerset House is Grade I listed, number 1237041. To the left at number 152, is a late-seventeenth or early-eighteenth century terraced building of four storeys with a mid-twentieth century ground-floor shop occupied by 'Glenny' men's outfitters, previously Thresher and Glenny. Grade II listed with number 153, number 1264442. To the right at number 151, is a boarded-up shop with a ‘to let’ sign, now known as Franklin House. Posters on the upper floors advertise West End shows including ‘Fun and Games’ at the Princes Theatre and ‘Up and Doing’ at the Saville Theatre’, both by Firth Shepard. This theatre was damaged by bombing during the run of this revue in 1941. A van is parked in the street.
