The Constitutional Club is a Grade II listed building in the Westminster local planning authority area, England. First listed on 5 February 1970. Club. 13 related planning applications.

The Constitutional Club

WRENN ID
buried-basalt-torch
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Westminster
Constituency
Cities of London and Westminster MP: Rachel Blake (Lab)
Country
England
Date first listed
5 February 1970
Type
Club
Address
The Constitutional Club, 86, St James's Street Sw1, City of Westminster, SW1A 1PL
OS grid reference
TQ 292 801
Coordinates
51.50524, -0.13841
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: related consents · flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The Constitutional Club is a gentlemen's club built in 1862 by James Knowles, junior, originally for the Thatched House Club, later known as the Civil Service Club and Union Club. The building features brown stone and a slate roof, showcasing a very ornate High Victorian style with Italianate and Renaissance details. It has four storeys, a basement, and a dormered mansard roof.

The ground floor consists of four bays, including a doorway on the right set within a semicircular arched opening, complete with hood moulds and carved imposts. The spandrels and wall surface between these openings are richly carved with spreading foliage, which also climbs up the large corbel supporting the central two-storey oriel. This is flanked by round-headed windows on the first floor and square-headed windows on the second floor, while the top floor features enriched arcaded windows. The building is topped with a bold crowning cornice and round arched dormers.

Inside, the club boasts equally bold stuccowork and mouldings. Notably, the Dining Room contains a reset early 19th-century chimney piece from Carlton House Terrace.

Local climate

The Constitutional Club sits in one of the driest parts of the UK, with an average of 690 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 95% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 98% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 35 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 57% of listed buildings. Of these, 16 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

More on this building

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  • No EPC on record for this property
  • No sale records on file
  • Related listed building consents — 13 applications
  • Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
  • Flood risk assessment
  • Radon risk assessment
  • Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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Nearby listed buildings

  1. 87 and 88, St James's Street SW1 Grade II* 15 m
  2. 74, St James Street SW1 Grade II* 34 m
  3. 1 and 2 St James's Street, including 64 Pall Mall Grade II* 40 m
  4. 3, St James's Street SW1 Grade II* 43 m
  5. 4, St James's Street SW1 Grade II 48 m
  6. Lock's of St James's Grade II* 57 m
  7. 7 Lampstandards Along North Front of Palace Grade II 61 m
  8. 5, Pickering Place SW1 Grade II* 66 m
  9. Red Lion Public House Grade II 69 m
  10. Marlborough Gate Grade II 73 m