Bloomsbury is an area of central London, in the Borough of Camden, named after early landowner William de Blemund who acquired the land in 1201.

The area contains some of London's finest parks and buildings, including the large and orderly garden at Russell Square, the smaller one at Bedford Square (built between 1775-1783), the main buildings of the University of London, University College London and SOAS, the British Museum, St Georges Bloomsbury and The UCL Bloomsbury. The British Library is located on the edge of Bloomsbury, on the north side of Euston Road. It is known for its squares, others of which include Bloomsbury Square, Gordon Square and Tavistock Square.

Nearby areas include Camden Town and King's Cross to the north, Fitzrovia to the west, Clerkenwell to the east and Holborn and Soho to the south.

Bloomsbury is served by numerous tube stations: Euston, Euston Square, Goodge Street, Warren Street, Tottenham Court Road, Russell Square and King's Cross St. Pancras. The mainline rail stations Euston, King's Cross and St. Pancras are all located on the northern edge of Bloomsbury. It is also home to the disused British Museum tube station.

The area gives its name to the Bloomsbury Group (also Bloomsbury Set) of artists of the early 1900s, and to the lesser-known Bloomsbury Gang of Whigs formed in 1765 by John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford.

External links

The main community reference group in the area is:

• the Bloomsbury Association http://www.thebloomsburyassociation.org