On this occasion it was a simple case of looking up in the High Street, and the intricate wrought iron work that creates the compact Juliet balcony effect would have been spotted above The Pepper Grinder.
There are many features of bygone architecture that still remain in Tonbridge. Another visual world exists above eye level, and above the modern shop frontages, giving us an idea of how our town would have looked in the past.
So look up when you're next in the High Street, and you may very well be surprised as to how interesting some of the buildings are.
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| Juliet Balcony at 135 High Street |
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| The Pepper Grinder |
In 1941 the flat above the Pepper Grinder was the home of Prince Serge Constantinovitch
ReplyDeleteBelosselsky Belozersky.
Birth 13 Jul 1867 in St Petersburg, Russia
Death 20 Apr 1951 in Tonbridge, Kent, England.
He lived in Hadlow Road, with his American wife Princess Susan (nee Tucker Whittier)...Belosselsky-Belozersky (a favourite of the Tzar)from 1924 until her death in 1934. His youngest son Andre went to Tonbridge School. Serge became a Major General in the Russian Cavalry and Russian Ambassador to Great Britain. He was also one of the first International Polo Players and a Member of the Olympic Committee, I think 1920's/30's?. Between 1934 and his death in 1951 he lived in Lyons Crescent, The Red Lion Hotel and finally Dry Hill Road. He also spent time with his eldest son Serge in New York and an apartment in Kensington.
Serge, Susan and Andre are buried in Tonbridge Cemetery.