Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese - Acrylic on Canvas - 20”x 24”
Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese is one of London's most iconic pubs. The site was originally occupied by a pub called the Horn in the 16th century, but it was destroyed during the Great Fire of 1666 and rebuilt the following year. The pub has welcomed many famous patrons over the years, including Charles Dickens, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Mark Twain, PG Wodehouse, and Winston Churchill.
The pub sprawls across four levels, including its lower-level vaults that are believed to date back to the 13th-century Carmelite monastery that once stood in the area. The vaulted cellars add to the pub's historical charm and are a must-see for any visitor.
In his 1859 novel "A Tale of Two Cities", Charles Dickens references Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese when his character, Sydney Carton, takes Charles Darnay "down Ludgate Hill to Fleet Street and so up a covered way into a tavern." The origin of the pub's name is not entirely clear, with some suggesting it was named after a pudding or land that once belonged to the Abbey of Vale Royal, Cheshire, while others believe it was named after a tavern keeper who owned it in 1543.