London’s Alleys: Van Gogh Walk, SW9

This verdant walkway near Kennington was until a few years ago a rather non-descript residential road, but in 2013 it was pedestrianised and renamed.Van Gogh Walk was originally Isabel Street, which was laid out when a row of larger houses and a former nursery ground was developed into terraced housing. It was likely named after Countess Isabella de Fortibus one of the richest women in 13th-century England, who owned the Manor of Stockwell and South Lambeth, which was later seized by King Edward