Above: The newly cleaned Eleanor Cross standing in the forecourt of Charing Cross Station.

Charing Cross Station was built in 1863 and was officially opened on 11 January 1864. Above the station concourse, the elegant Charing Cross Hotel was built 1864-64, designed by Edward Middleton Barry. When the new station was proposed on the site, the railway company had to decide on a name. During their enquiries, they were told that the nearby location had once been called Charing and that it had become known as Charing Cross because of the Eleanor Cross that stood at the northern end of Whitehall.

The name Charing Cross appealed to the railway company who enquired whether any drawings remained of the edifice. Having been torn down by the Puritans in 1641, few drawings had survived and none of them contained much detail. The company persisted in their enquiries and had a replica made, also designed by Edward Middleton Barry. The replica was built at the expense of the former London, Chatham and Dover Railway in 1863 and erected in the forecourt of the station where it remains today for all to see.

The replica is the best guess of what the original Eleanor Cross may have looked like. It stands a few hundred yards east of the original site and continues as a reminder of the magnificent cross that was the largest of the twelve Eleanor Crosses. In recent times, the stonework has been cleaned, taking five years to complete. The scaffolding was finally taken down in August 2010, revealing the fine detail of the structure and the stonework in different colours. In addition, metalwork at the top was re-gilded.

-ENDS-