Saracen's Head, London

An 1868 illustration of the Saracen's Head, made during its demolition

The Saracen's Head was an inn on the north side of the street to the west of the church of St Sepulchre-without-Newgate in Snow Hill, London.[1] When Sarah Ann Mountain was in charge they made stagecoaches here and fifteen of them left each day for destinations including Birmingham and Leeds.

History

The inn dated from the Middle Ages, when it was a coaching inn.[2] The origins of the name, "Saracen's Head", are uncertain. It became a popular stop for mail coaches approaching the City of London as it provided a place for passengers to rest. It featured a large gateway that led into a courtyard with numerous galleries leading into individual bedrooms.[3] In 1522, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, stayed at the inn, by which time it had 30 beds and could stable four horses.[1][2]

The Site of the Saracen's Head in 2016

5 Snow Hill, London

Commemorative Plaque

Samuel Pepys and Jonathan Swift were reported to be regular patrons at the inn. In the 18th century, the Mohocks kidnapped several elderly women at the inn, trapped them in barrels, and rolled them downhill towards Newgate Street.[4]

During the 19th century, there were three signs on each side of the inn with a picture of a Saracen.[2] Butler William Mountain and his wife Sarah Ann Mountain would be noted innkeepers of the Saracen's Head, Snow Hill. Butler joined the innkeepers company in 1808. Sarah took over the inn in 1818 when her husband died. When Sarah Ann Mountain was is charge they made stagecoaches here and fifteen of them left each day for destinations including Birmingham and Leeds.[5]

The Saracen's Head was demolished in 1868 to construct the Holborn Viaduct.[6] The landlord was subsequently arrested for attempting to sell spirits in an adjoining property following the inn's closure, as his licence had been revoked.[7] There is a plaque noting the inn on the current premises.[8]

In fiction

The inn was mentioned in Charles Dickens' Nicholas Nickleby, referencing two of the signs that adorned the courtyard gateway, and is where Nickleby first meets the schoolmaster Wackford Squeers.[2][9]

A song about the inn appears in the 1914 novel, The Flying Inn by G. K. Chesterton[10][11] The inn is briefly mentioned in Hornblower and the Crisis (1967) by C. S. Forester.[12]

References

Henry A Harben, 'Sandy's Row – Savage's Rents', in A Dictionary of London (London, 1918), British History Online [accessed 21 September 2020].
Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 822.
Walter Thornbury, 'St. Sepulchre's and its neighbourhood', in Old and New London: Volume 2 (London, 1878), pp. 477–491. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/old-new-london/vol2/pp477-491 [accessed 18 September 2020].
Glinert 2004, p. 50.
Gerhold, Dorian (23 September 2004). "Mountain, Sarah Ann (1769/70–1842), coach and inn proprietor". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 1 (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/47563. ISBN 978-0-19-861412-8. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
Allibut, Robert (1977). Rambles in Dickens' Land. p. 56. ISBN 978-1-465-52023-4.; Wheatley, Henry Benjamin (2011) [1891]. London Past and Present: Its History, Associations, and Traditions. p. 210. ISBN 978-1-108-02808-0.
"Police". The Times. 21 March 1868. p. 11. Retrieved 22 September 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.
"Saracen's Head". London Remembers. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
Wolfreys, Julian (2012). "Life and death: Snow Hill, The Saracen's Head, Smithfield, Saint James's Parish, Saint Sepulchre's Church". Dickens's London. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 120–121. ISBN 978-0-7486-4040-9.
Chesterton, G. K. (2013). The Flying Inn. Courier Corporation. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-486-14706-2.
Peters, Thomas C. (1994). Battling for the Modern Mind: A Beginner's Chesterton. CPH. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-570-04664-6.
Forester, C. S. (1980). Hornblower and the crisis : an unfinished novel. London: Sphere. ISBN 0-7221-0506-1. OCLC 16499816. That was the first sign Hornblower observed of the storm of indignation roused by the news of the battle off Cape Finisterre. The landlord of the Saracen's Head when Hornblower went in to breakfast was eager with questions, and the two maids stood anxiously listening to the discussion until their mistress sent them about their business.

Sources

Glinert, Ed (2004). The London Compendium: A Street-by-street Exploration of the Hidden Metropolis. Penguin. ISBN 978-0-141-01213-1.
Weinreb, Ben; Hibbert, Christopher; Keay, John; Keay, Julia (2008). The London Encyclopaedia (3rd ed.). Pan Macmillan. ISBN 978-1-405-04924-5.

External links

The Saracen's Head – Jack's Open Range
View of the demolition of the Saracen's Head Inn, Snow Hill, City of London, 1868.

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[dol-1] Henry A Harben, 'Sandy's Row – Savage's Rents', in A Dictionary of London (London, 1918), British History Online [accessed 21 September 2020].

[FOOTNOTEWeinrebHibbertKeayKeay2008822-2] Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 822.

[3] Walter Thornbury, 'St. Sepulchre's and its neighbourhood', in Old and New London: Volume 2 (London, 1878), pp. 477–491. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/old-new-london/vol2/pp477-491 [accessed 18 September 2020].

[FOOTNOTEGlinert200450-4] Glinert 2004, p. 50.

[5] Gerhold, Dorian (23 September 2004). "Mountain, Sarah Ann (1769/70–1842), coach and inn proprietor". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 1 (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/47563. ISBN 978-0-19-861412-8. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

[6] Allibut, Robert (1977). Rambles in Dickens' Land. p. 56. ISBN 978-1-465-52023-4.; Wheatley, Henry Benjamin (2011) [1891]. London Past and Present: Its History, Associations, and Traditions. p. 210. ISBN 978-1-108-02808-0.

[7] "Police". The Times. 21 March 1868. p. 11. Retrieved 22 September 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.

[8] "Saracen's Head". London Remembers. Retrieved 22 September 2020.

[Wolfreys2012-9] Wolfreys, Julian (2012). "Life and death: Snow Hill, The Saracen's Head, Smithfield, Saint James's Parish, Saint Sepulchre's Church". Dickens's London. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 120–121. ISBN 978-0-7486-4040-9.

[Chesterton2013-10] Chesterton, G. K. (2013). The Flying Inn. Courier Corporation. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-486-14706-2.

[Peters1994-11] Peters, Thomas C. (1994). Battling for the Modern Mind: A Beginner's Chesterton. CPH. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-570-04664-6.

[12] Forester, C. S. (1980). Hornblower and the crisis : an unfinished novel. London: Sphere. ISBN 0-7221-0506-1. OCLC 16499816. That was the first sign Hornblower observed of the storm of indignation roused by the news of the battle off Cape Finisterre. The landlord of the Saracen's Head when Hornblower went in to breakfast was eager with questions, and the two maids stood anxiously listening to the discussion until their mistress sent them about their business.