Kings Road
The Kings Road is essentially the high street for Chelsea, part of the London Metropolitan borough for Chelsea and Westminster. It is, however, quite unlike the majority of standard town high streets in that its legend has spread far beyond the residents of the affluent district that surrounds it.
Chelsea itself is on the western side of London itself, and while being more residential than tourist based, it is nevertheless a popular visit for any tourist visiting England’s capital city. The area is famous – or some would say infamous – for its wealthy residents, predominantly including stay-at-home mothers who drive 4×4 vehicles. Green activists, and those who dislike these obscenely large vehicles being used in town centers, have nicknamed any 4×4 a ‘Chelsea Tractor’ due to this phenomenon. The term is not just used in Chelsea, but more as a general metronym for any 4×4 that serves no purpose other than the school run and occasional shopping trip. Unfortunately for some, the Kings Road is a hive of Chelsea tractors on any given day.
This, however, should not discourage even the most fervent of ecological supporters; the Chelsea tractors are a status symbol, and thus far residents of the borough have refused to cave to environmental concerns. This does not, thankfully, stop the Kings Road and Chelsea in general being a wonderful place to visit for a fun day out – but considering the poor street level visibility in many 4×4, it is worth being extra careful when walking along roads or pavements while in the area!
The usual fare of any high street can be found on the Kings Road, but there is are also a number of pretty, individual boutiques which hark back to the street’s popularity during the punk and hippie eras. The Kings Road was once the center of the counterculture, a protest and free love movement that formed the backbone of the Swinging Sixties. However, while a few specialist boutiques carrying non-conformist clothes remain, the road has been subject to much criticism by those who remember the glory days. The insult most frequently leveled at the Kings Road is that it now looks like any other highlight; a damning insult for a street once at the forefront of a minor cultural revolution
Kings Road has undergone many changes of usage in its long life, so perhaps it should not be surprising that it has again moved and updated with the times in its styles and usage. The road was originally built by the Stuart monarch, Charles II, who used it to travel to Kew Gardens and Palace from his more central London residences. It remained a Royal private road for some 200 years, though in 1830 it was opened as a public highway and shops and boutiques began to open on either side of the road.
The Kings Road also has an usual place in history, which is neither fitting with its use as a royal road or a place for the rebels of the day to gather and celebrate. It is thought that composer Thomas Arne lived at number 215 Kings Road at some point in the 18th century, and it was there that the famous British song “Rule Britannia” was composed. With a history like this and shopping possibilities to entice even the most selective of shoppers, the Kings Road history is probably still in its very infancy.