Historic 1825 Riding School Tied to Queen Elizabeth II Gets a New Life

A historic building in London that was once visited by Queen Elizabeth II is getting a big makeover. The Riding School, built in 1825, used to be home to a famous military unit called The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery. Now, it is the centerpiece of a brand-new luxury neighborhood called St. John's Wood Square, and homes there just went on sale this month.

The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery was a special unit of the British Army that used horses in ceremonies. It was created by King George VI, who was Queen Elizabeth II's father. The unit carried Queen Elizabeth II's coffin from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall on a gun carriage after she died. The Riding School was where the unit's roughly 200 horses were trained every day.

Queen Elizabeth II visited the Riding School many times over the years. She was joined on different visits by King Charles, Princess Diana, and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. Major General Matthew Sykes, who served in The King's Troop, said the queen had a special connection to the unit because her father created it. 'Queen Elizabeth II visited The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery on several occasions, both formally and informally,' he told Newsweek.

Sykes was present for the queen's last official visit to the Riding School in 2011. He described it as both a happy and sad occasion, because the unit was about to leave the site after more than 60 years. 'I remember it as a poignant occasion because it marked the end of our time in St. John's Wood, but it was also very happy,' he said. He added that the queen 'cheered everyone up enormously' that day.

The new development is located in a well-known part of north London, near Regent's Park, Primrose Hill, and upscale neighborhoods like Marylebone and Fitzrovia. It is also close to the American School in London, started in the early 1950s by an American journalist from Princeton University. That location may attract American families to the new homes. St. John's Wood Square will have 120 homes in total, spread across 5.5 acres of land.

The old Riding School is being turned into a private club called the Riding Club, open only to residents of St. John's Wood Square. The club will cover 40,000 square feet and include a 20-meter underground pool, a spa, sports areas, a cinema, and a private dining room. New streets inside the development were named to honor the site's history, with names like King George VI Avenue and Riding School Place. Thousands of original bricks were carefully restored, and 97,000 new handmade bricks were added to match the building's original look.

The project is part of a growing trend of reusing old buildings instead of tearing them down. Experts say reusing buildings can cut carbon emissions by 50 to 75 percent compared to building new ones. Architect Gordon Gill has said the future of design is about refreshing the buildings we already have. The Riding School joins other famous renovation projects, like the Flatiron Building in New York City, which is also being turned into homes.

The first phase of St. John's Wood Square is expected to be finished in spring 2028. Prices for homes start at £5.25 million, which is more than $6.94 million. Sir George Iacobescu, the man leading the development, said the goal was to create homes that 'respect and complement their surroundings, while delivering an unrivalled level of craftsmanship, comfort and quality.' Sir George is famous for helping build London's Canary Wharf financial district and has worked on major projects in New York and Chicago.