The George Inn, Southwark

Infobox UKproperty
property_name = The George Inn
imgage_name = thegeorgesouthwark.jpg
image_size = 200px
caption = The George Inn, Southwark
type = Public house
NT/EH/RHS = NT
Managed = Tenanted by brewery
area =
main = Historic building
other = Restaurant
public_access = Yes
museum = No
exhibition = No
country =
region = Greater London
gridSquare =
address = 77 Borough High Street, Southwark
postcode = London SE1
refreshments = Yes
parking = None
shop = No
webAddress = [http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-georgeinn/ NT George Inn]
co_ord =coord|51.505043|-0.089951|display=inline,title|region:GB_type:landmark

The George, or George Inn, is a public house established in the mediæval period on Borough High Street in Southwark, London. Currently owned and leased by the National Trust, it is located on the south side of the River Thames near London Bridge. It is the only surviving London coaching inn [ [http://www.pubs.com/georse1.htm George Inn SE1 ] ] It was formerly known as the George and Dragon, named for the legend of Saint George and the Dragon.

History

In 1676, the George was rebuilt after a serious fire that destroyed most of medieval Southwark. There had been many such inns in this part of London. Probably the most famous was the The Tabard where, in 1388, Chaucer began "The Canterbury Tales". The Tabard was also rebuilt after the same fire, but was demolished in the late 19th century.

Later, the Great Northern Railway used the George as a depot and pulled down two of its fronts to build warehousing. Now just the south face remains.

The George was one of the many famous coaching inns in the days of Charles Dickens. Dickens in fact visited the George and referred to it in "Little Dorrit". William Shakespeare was another visitor; the Globe Theatre was a short distance away.

Description

The ground floor of the inn is divided into a number of connected bars. The Old Bar used to be a waiting room for passengers on coaches. The Middle Bar was the Coffee Room, which was frequented by Charles Dickens. The bedrooms, now a restaurant, were upstairs in the galleried part of the building.

It is one of the few coaching inns to survive in Central London, and is the last surviving galleried inn in London. It is next door to the White Hart and the site of The Tabard. The building is Grade I listed.

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References

External links

* [http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-georgeinn/ George Inn information at the National Trust]