US Embassy To Leave Grosvenor Square

After a long running will-they-won’t-they saga, it has finally been announced that the US Embassy is leaving Grosvenor Square. They have agreed a dea, pending approval from the US Congress, which will see them sell the leasehold for the current building and move to a new purpose built, ultra secure facility in the Nine Elms area, between Battersea and Vauxhall.

The move, which is expected to take five years to complete, will free up the Eero Saarinen designed building which is expected to achieve a £500 million price tag.

The US diplomatic service has long had a strong association with Grosvenor Square. Former President John Adam lived in Grosvenor Square for a time, and the US Embassy was based at number one Grosvenor Square before moving to its current building which occupies the whole Western side.

The presence of the embassy has meant that the square has played to many protests and demonstrations over the years including the famous anti-Vietnam war march of 1968.