Kensington, a straggling parish in the west of London adjoining Westminster, within which, although noticed here, are Kensington Palace and Gardens. The former, given to the nation in 1899, and built of red brick, was the seat of Heneage Finch, Earl of Nottingham and Lord Chancellor, from whose successor William III. bought it in 1689: he and his wife Mary, Queen Anne and her consort Prince George of Denmark, and George II. all died within its walls, and it was also the birthplace of Queen Victoria. Kensington Gardens, which at first only consisted of the grounds of 26 acres attached to the palace, have been frequently enlarged, and are now miles in circuit; they are connected with the northern part of Hyde Park by a stone bridge over the Serpentine built by Rennie in 1826. At their southern extremity is the Albert Memorial (1872), designed by Sir Gilbert Scott, and consisting of a bronze-gilt statue (by Foley) of the prince seated, placed beneath a gorgeous canopy 180 feet high, and surrounded by works of sculpture illustrating the various arts and sciences. Opposite, in Kensington Gore, is the Albert Hall (1867-71), a huge circular building in the modern Italian style, of red brick with yellow dressings, used as a concert-room and capable of holding 10,000 persons; its cost was £200,000, and the interior measures 200 feet by 180 feet and is 140 feet high. Other buildings in the vicinity are the South Kensington Museum, Natural History Museum (see BRITISH MUSEUM), Royal School of Art Needlework, Royal College of Music (1883), City and Guilds of London Institute for the advancement of technical education (1884), and Imperial Institute, the opening of which by Queen Victoria took place in 1893. The parish church of St Mary Abbots—so called from the Abbots of Albingdon, to whom in 1107 a large part of the manor of Kensington was granted—is a fine building in the Gothic style, designed by Sir Gilbert Scott (1869), with a spire 295 feet high. Close by is the town-hall (1880) and the Roman Catholic Pro-cathedral (1869). Next to Kensington Palace, the most interesting building from a historical point of view is Holland House, a quaint mansion in the Elizabethan style, erected (1607) by Sir Walter Cope, and the great resort of the Whig politicians at the commencement of the 19th century. Amongst its occupants have been Fairfax, the Parliamentary general; Addison, who died in it; Shippen, the famous Jacobite; William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania; and Charles James Fox, the statesman. Campden House, rebuilt in 1862 on its destruction by fire, is noteworthy from the former house, erected in 1612, having been the residence before her accession, of Queen Anne. Of the residences occupied by Swift, Sir Isaac Newton, Jack Wilkes, Wilberforce, George Canning and his son, Dr Dibdin, Sir David Wilkie, William Cobbett, Mrs Inchbald, Count D'Orsay, Talleyrand, Lord Macaulay, Thackeray, and John Leech but few traces now remain. The borough returns two members to parliament. Population of the entire civil parish, which includes Brompton, (1871) 120,299; (1891) 166,308. See Leigh Hunt's An Old Court Suburb (1855), Loftie's Picturesque Kensington (1888), and Marie Lichtenstein's Holland House (1873).
SOUTH KENSINGTON MUSEUM was at first a temporary edifice of iron and wood (popularly known as 'the Brompton Boilers') which was erected by government (Science and Art Department) on part of the estate purchased out of the surplus funds of the Exhibition of 1851. It was opened in 1857, and to it were removed various collections which had since 1852 been exhibited in Marlborough House. This edifice has been superseded by permanent buildings—still incomplete. The institution comprises (1) the Art Museum, (2) the India Museum, (3) various science collections. The National Art Training School, the Normal School of Science, and the offices of the Department of Science and Art also form parts of the same group of buildings. The art collections comprise original works of decorative art of all periods and countries; paintings, chiefly of the English school, but including the cartoons of Raphael, the property of the crown; and reproductions in plaster, metal, &c. of sculpture, architectural decoration, and silversmiths' work. These have been acquired by purchase, gift, and loan. The cost to the nation has been about £400,000, while the value of the gifts and bequests is estimated at one million sterling. The India Museum, originally belonging to the East India Company, was handed over to the department in 1879. The science collections include machinery, naval models, &c., and apparatus for scientific teaching and research. The museum also contains art and science libraries. The visitors average 850,000 yearly. Monday, Tuesday, and Saturday are free days; on the other three days admission is sixpence. A system of circulation of examples on loan to provincial museums, science and art schools and classes, forms an important part of the operations of the museum. Numerous catalogues, handbooks on art subjects, and other publications have been issued. The original iron building was removed in 1865 and re-erected as the branch museum at Bethnal Green. The contents of this are chiefly loans, and are changed from time to time.
The gradual development of the Science and Art Department of the Committee of Council on Education has been sketched at ART, Vol. I. p. 457. The department grants aid in connection with a system of annual examinations, in which prizes and Queen's medals are awarded; payments to teachers on the results of examinations and, to a limited extent, on attendance; scholarships and exhibitions; grants for buildings and apparatus; and aid to teachers while attending the Normal School of Science and the Royal School of Mines, South Kensington. The science examinations, for which an annual Directory is published, fall under twenty-five heads; and the science division of the department, which in 1872 had under supervision only 948 schools and 36,783 pupils, passed under review, in 1889, 2026 schools, giving instruction to 98,900 pupils in 6856 classes.