In 1771, builder Henry Holland and his architect son, also Henry, forward an ambitious scheme for 89 acres of fields which then belonged to the heirs of Sir Hans Sloane and was later part of the Cadogan estate.
The agreement covered the area from Knightsbridge in the north to Turk’s Row and White Lion Street in the south. Building was delayed and in 1776 Holland proposed a building lease for 34 acres.
Sloane Street was laid out and leases for houses on the west side of Sloane Street date from 1777. Some leases for houses in the mews behind Sloane Street (now Pavilion Road) date from 1788.
An unusual feature of the building scheme was Hans Place. It was laid out by Holland on part of the 47 acres he held in reserve. He took three acres to the south of it to build a house for himself , framed by the southern opening of Hans Place and which he occupied by 1789. It was initially called Sloane Place but later ’The Pavilion’, a reference to Holland’s work for the Prince of Wales at Brighton.
Occupants of the Pavilion Road mews were a social mix. An independent chapel was built in Pavilion Road during 1811.
Holland died there in The Pavilion in 1806, after which it was sold on to Peter Denys who himself died there in 1816. It was later subdivided, before being demolished in 1874. The site of the house is now occupied by Shafto Mews.
During the Second World War, a high explosive bomb fell onto Sloane Street nearby.
After a 2015 consultation with the local community, Cadogan pledged to create a destination for independent, artisan traders behind the then-new George House development on Sloane Street. Pavilion Road is an important part of the Estate’s ongoing stewardship.
As a result, Pavilion Road has recently seen a complete transformation. The former Victorian stable blocks now host independent artisans and a number of restaurants and provides a ‘village hub’ for Chelsea.
Pavilion Road is pedestrianised at the southern end.
