London Neighbourhoods

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Greenwich, UK

Greenwich is a borough in London on the banks of the River Thames. Known for its maritime history, Greenwich is home to the Cutty Sark, a restored 19th-century ship, the huge National Maritime Museum, and the classical buildings of the Old Royal Naval College. The modern O2 arena sits on a peninsula to the north. Overlooking peaceful Greenwich Park, the Royal Observatory is the site of the Greenwich meridian line from which the world's times and distances are measured.

Greenwich is bordered by Deptford Creek and Deptford to the west; the former industrial centre of the Greenwich Peninsula and the residential area of Westcombe Park to the east; the River Thames to the north; and the A2 and Blackheath to the south.

Greenwich is served by two rail stations, Greenwich station and Maze Hill station with services to London Cannon Street, Barnehurst, Crayford, Dartford, Gravesend and Gillingham. Greenwich is also served by the Docklands Light Railway, with services from Greenwich station and Cutty Sark to Lewisham, Canary Wharf, Stratford and Bank. Greenwich is also served by North Greenwich tube station which is on the northern tip of the district as well as the whole surrounding borough. The station is on the Jubilee line and has services to Stanmore, Stratford and Wembley.

There are a number of river boat services running from Greenwich Pier, managed by London River Services. The main services include the Thames commuter catamaran service run by Thames Clipper from Embankment, via Tower Millennium Pier, Canary Wharf and on to the O2 and Woolwich Arsenal Pier; the Westminster-Greenwich cruise service by Thames River Services; and the City Cruises tourist cruise via Westminster, Waterloo and Tower piers.

The Thames Path National Trail runs along the riverside. The Greenwich foot tunnel provides pedestrian access to the southern end of the Isle of Dogs, across the river Thames. The National Cycle Network Route 1 includes the foot tunnel, though cycling is not permitted in the tunnel itself.

Plan and Book:

Greenwich: See and Do

Greenwich is a charming suburb of London that had a real marine village feel to it. There is plenty there for visitors, including the restored tall ship, The Cutty Sark, the National Maritme Museum, the old Royal Naval College, and of course the Royal Greenwich Observatory, the location from which both the world's time is calculated and distances to every place on Earth is measured, it being point zero. If that is not enough to fill your day and empty your wallet, take a 30-minute session in an Airbus A380 or Boeing B777 fixed-base flight simulator at the Emirates Aviation Experience; take a tour of the Universee at The Planetarium; visit the Greenwich Market, The Fan Museum. The Greenwich Cable Car flies across the river to the Royal Victoria Docks and Back.

In 1997, Maritime Greenwich was added to the list of World Heritage Sites, for the concentration and quality of buildings of historic and architectural interest. These can be divided into the group of buildings along the riverfront, Greenwich Park and the Georgian and Victorian town centre.

The Discover Greenwich Visitor Centre provides an introduction to the history and attractions in the Greenwich World Heritage Site. It is located in the Pepys Buildings near to the Cutty Sark within the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College, (formerly Greenwich Hospital); the building began life as an engineering laboratory for the College. The centre opened in March 2010, and admission is free.

Greenwich Heritage Centre is a museum and local history resource run by the Royal Borough of Greenwich, and is based in Artillery Square, in the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, south-east London.

Cutty Sark

The Cutty Sark is a famous British clipper ship. Built on the Clyde in 1869 for the Jock Willis Shipping Line, she was one of the last tea clippers to be built and one of the fastest, coming at the end of a long period of design development which halted as sailing ships gave way to steam propulsion. Cutty Sark is listed by National Historic Ships as part of Britain's National Historic Fleet. She is one of only three remaining original composite construction (wooden hull on an iron frame) clipper ships from the nineteenth century in part or whole. Cutty Sark is open for inspection.

Near the Cutty Sark site, a circular building contains the entrance to the Greenwich foot tunnel, opened on 4 August 1902. This connects Greenwich to the Isle of Dogs on the northern side of the River Thames. The north exit of the tunnel is at Island Gardens, from where the famous view of Greenwich Hospital painted by Canaletto can be seen.

Rowing has been part of life on the river at Greenwich for hundreds of years and the first Greenwich Regatta was held in 1785. The annual Great River Race along the Thames Tideway finishes at the Cutty Sark. The nearby Trafalgar Rowing Centre in Crane Street is home to Curlew Rowing Club and Globe Rowing Club.

Old Royal Naval College

The Old Royal Naval College is Sir Christopher Wren's domed masterpiece at the centre of the heritage site. The site is administered by the Greenwich Foundation and several of the buildings are let to the University of Greenwich and one, the King Charles block, to Trinity College of Music. Within the complex is the former college dining room, the Painted Hall, this was painted by James Thornhill, and the Chapel of St Peter and St Paul, with an interior designed by James 'Athenian' Stuart. The Naval College had a training reactor, the Jason reactor, within the King William building that was operational between 1962 and 1996. The reactor was decommissioned and removed in 1999.


The Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College is one of the most spectacular and important baroque interiors in Europe. Its ceiling and wall decorations were conceived and executed by the British artist Sir James Thornhill between 1707 and 1726 at the pivotal moment when the United Kingdom was created and became a dominant power in Europe.

The accessions to the throne of William III and Mary II in 1688 and George I in 1714 form the central narrative of a scheme which also triumphalises Britain’s maritime and trading successes. The artist drew on a cast of around 200 figures to tell a story of political change, scientific and cultural achievements, naval endeavours, and commercial enterprise against a series of magnificent backdrops. The characters he included are allegorical, mythological, historical and contemporary.

To the east of the Naval College is the Trinity Hospital almshouse, founded in 1613, the oldest surviving building in the town centre. This is next to the massive brick walls and the landing stage of Greenwich Power Station. Built between 1902 and 1910 as a coal-fired station to supply power to London's tram system, and later the London underground, it is now oil- and gas-powered and serves as a backup station for London Underground. East Greenwich also has a small park, East Greenwich Pleasaunce, which was formerly the burial ground of Greenwich Hospital.

National Maritime Museum

Part of the Royal Museums Greenwich, the National Maritime Museum is a great place to witness a rotation of awesome exhibitions dedicated in some way to the maritime history of the world and its relationship with people and the stars. It is the leading maritime museum of the United Kingdom and may be the largest museum of its kind in the world. The Museum houses over 2 million objects related to seafaring; this Greenwich museum has both permanent and changing exhibitions over three floors and possesses the most important holdings in the world on the history of Britain at sea including both British and Dutch maritime art, cartography, manuscripts, and ship models.

Admission to the National Maritime Museum and Queen's House and Astronomy Centre at the Royal Observatory Greenwich are free. Charges apply to planetarium shows, some special events and exhibitions. Charges apply for adult admission to Flamsteed House and the Meridien Courtyard at the Royal Observatory Greenwich. The Museum is in close proximity to the Cutty Sark, the Queen's House and the Observatory, and between them there is a whole day's worth of things to do. Open daily 10am - 5pm.

Perhaps one of the biggest and definitely most impressive spectacles at the museum is the gigantic ship in a bottle that stands outside the front entrance. Created by Yinka Shonibare the boat is a scale replica of Nelson's HMS Victory on which the British hero died during the infamous battle of Trafalgar and comes complete with 80 detailed cannons and 37 patterned sails. Originally placed on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar square it has come to be one of the most photographed art pieces in London.

The Queen's House

The Palace of Placentia was an English Royal Palace built by Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, in 1443, in Greenwich, on the banks of the River Thames, downstream from London. It was demolished by Charles II in 1660, to make way for a new palace. Today the 17th century Queen’s House is the only part of the old Palace of Placentia that remains. Queen's House is a former royal residence built between 1616 and 1635.

Queen's House is one of the most important buildings in British architectural history, being the first consciously classical building to have been constructed in the country. It was architect Indigo Jones's first major commission after returning from his 1613 grand tour of Roman, Renaissance, and Palladian architecture in Italy. It was used by members of the royal family until 1805, when George III granted the Queen's House to a charity for the orphans of seamen, called the Royal Naval Asylum. The Queen's House is famous today for its extraordinary art collection including works by Great Masters such as Gainsborough, Reynolds, Turner and Hogarth. Its connection with artists goes all the way back to 1673, when two Dutch maritime painters the van de Veldes were given studio space by Charles II.

The 183 acres (0.7 km2) of Royal Greenwich Park were laid out in the 17th century and formed from the hunting grounds of the Royal Palace of Placentia. The park rises towards Blackheath and at the top of this hill is a statue of James Wolfe, commander of the British expedition to capture Quebec.

Royal Observatory

Nearby a major group of buildings within the park includes the former Royal Observatory, Greenwich; the Prime Meridian passes through this building. Here you can stand on the Meridian Line, where east meets west. Greenwich Mean Time was at one time based on the time observations made at the Royal Greenwich Observatory, before being superseded by Coordinated Universal Time. While there is no longer a working astronomical observatory at Greenwich, a ball still drops daily to mark the exact moment of 1 pm, and there is a museum of astronomical and navigational tools, particularly John Harrison's marine chronometers.

The Ranger's House lies at the Blackheath end of the park and houses the Wernher Collection of art, and many fine houses, including Vanbrugh's house lie on Maze Hill, on the western edge of the park.

The O2 (formerly the Millennium Dome) was built on part of the site of East Greenwich Gas Works, a disused British Gas site on the Greenwich Peninsula. It is next to North Greenwich tube station, about 3 miles (4.8 km) east from the Greenwich town centre, North West of Charlton. The Greenwich Millennium Village is a new urban regeneration development to the south of the Dome. Enderby's Wharf is a site associated with submarine cable manufacture for over 150 years.

Town centre

Georgian and Victorian architecture dominates in the town centre which spreads to the west of the park and Royal Naval College. Much of this forms a one-way system around a covered market, Greenwich Market and the arthouse Greenwich Cinema. Up the hill from the centre, there are many streets of Georgian houses, including the Fan Museum, on Croom's Hill. Nearby at the junction of Croom's Hill with Nevada Street, is Greenwich Theatre.

Greenwich Market

There has been a market at Greenwich since the 14th century, but the history of the present market dates from 1700 when a charter to run two markets, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, was assigned by Lord Romney (Henry, Earl of Romney) to the Commissioners of Greenwich Hospital for 1000 years. The market is part of "the Island site", bounded by College Approach, Greenwich Church Street, King William Walk and Nelson Road, near the National Maritime Museum and the Royal Observatory. The buildings surrounding the market are Grade 2 listed and were established in 1827-1833 under the direction of Joseph Kay.

Greenwich In History

Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian (0 degrees longitude) and Greenwich Mean Time. The town became the site of a royal palace, the Palace of Placentia from the 15th century, and was the birthplace of many Tudors, including Henry VIII and Elizabeth I. The palace fell into disrepair during the English Civil War and was rebuilt as the Royal Naval Hospital for Sailors by Sir Christopher Wren and his assistant Nicholas Hawksmoor. These buildings became the Royal Naval College in 1873, and they remained an establishment for military education until 1998 when they passed into the hands of the Greenwich Foundation. The historic rooms within these buildings remain open to the public; other buildings are used by University of Greenwich and Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.

The town became a popular resort in the 18th century and many grand houses were built there, such as Vanbrugh Castle (1717) established on Maze Hill, next to the park. From the Georgian period estates of houses were constructed above the town centre. The maritime connections of Greenwich were celebrated in the 20th century, with the siting of the Cutty Sark and Gipsy Moth IV next to the river front, and the National Maritime Museum in the former buildings of the Royal Hospital School in 1934. Greenwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created.