The Thomas Cubitt is a Georgian pub in the heart of Belgravia, located at 44 Elizabeth Street, London SW1W 9PA (just a short walk from Victoria Station and Sloane Square). It’s the original flagship pub of the Cubitt House chain of London gastropubs, named after Thomas Cubitt (1788–1855), the master builder who transformed Belgravia and other London neighbourhoods with his signature classical Greek and Italianate architecture.
 
The cubitts are perhaps Londons most interesting brothers. Born into poverty in Buxton, Norfolk in 1788, Thomas Cubitt learned carpentry from his father and worked as a ship’s carpenter before travelling to India. He returned to England, saved enough money, and opened his own building business in 1810 with his brothers Lewis and William. Each brother had a role, one was the architect, one the builder and one the politician. Together they were powerful enough to shape London and they did.
 
Cubitt believed the pub should be at the heart of every community he built—he aimed for one pub per 160 houses in his developments. In Belgravia, pubs were mainly on mews sites; in Pimlico they appeared on main streets but not in exclusive squares. Pubs often served as site offices and workers’ canteens, allowing builders to recycle wages back to the landlord-developer, then could be sold afterward to raise capital.
 
Interesting facts....
Queen Camilla’s mother was named Cubitt, and the Queen is reportedly an ancestor of Thomas Cubitt.