Place Name
Named for Edward VI (October 12, 1537 – July 6, 1553), although this particular honour came long after his death. It was a recognition of the boy king’s decision to turn the adjacent Greyfriars monastery into an orphanage, Christ’s Hospital, rather than take the assets for himself to fill the royal coffers. The site had started life as a 12thCentury Franciscan monastery called the Franciscan Church of Greyfriars, before an impressive new church was built in the early 14thCentury, which was partly funded by Queen Margaret, second wife of Edward I. Christ’s Hospital remained in situ until 1897 when it was moved to Horsham, in Surrey. And so the former Butcher Hall Lane, previously known as Stinking Lane, was renamed in recognition of the royal benefactor.
