Addison Road

While Joseph Addison may not be as highly regarded today as he was a hundred years or so ago, there can be no denying that he is one of the foremost poets and dramatists that England has ever produced. His skills as an essayist were particularly great and he will always be regarded as a true forerunner of modern journalism.

Born in Milston, Wiltshire, in 1672 he met his celebrated contemporary Richard Steele at Charterhouse School. Steele it was who later started the Tatler (1709), the Spectator (1711) and, the then short lived newspaper, the Guardian (March 1712 - October 1713).

Addison’s contributions to all three periodicals were substantial. However his literary reputation had been achieved some years earlier, when his 500 line poem, commissioned by Lord Halifax and celebrating the Battle of Blenheim in 1704, became the talk of London. Appointed under secretary for state in 1705 he served the government in a number of positions, notably in Ireland where he served twice as chief secretary to the Lord Lieutenant.

The naming of this road is undoubtedly tied up with Blenheim Road, Marlborough Road and Queen Anne Terrace, although quite where the inspiration came from in the first place is less than clear.