Where the Streets Have New Names

View from Woodborough Road towards three streets that feature in this post

Britain entered the First World War on 4 August 1914 when it declared war on Germany.

At that time, for reasons now lost in the archives, several of Nottingham's streets bore distinctively Germanic names, the offending places being Coburg Road, Hamburg Road, Mecklenburg Road, Coburg Square, Berlin Terrace and Bismarck Square.

Needless to say, some local residents were decidedly unhappy at this state of affairs.

In the Nottingham Evening Post of 11 December 1914, we find a letter from one 'C.W.P.,' who writes that 'When all things German are under the ban (and rightly so after their dastardly tricks) one is rather surprised to see German names still blazoning forth on our streets'.

'C.W.P.' was of the opinion that the names should be 'obliterated at once, and English names substituted.'

Several days later, the Post printed a response from 'F.C.,' who took an opposing view, trusting that 'our Corporation will not be led to adopt any such childish policy as he ['C.W.P.'] advocates. Such puerilities as this, and the banning of German music are unworthy of any intelligent community. We shall not further our cause by waxing hysterical at the mere mention of the enemy's name.'

Take that, 'C.W.P.' !

The debate over street names connected to Germany was not, of course, unique to Nottingham.

In the same month, for instance, we find a contributor to the letters page of the South London Observer urging those in charge to 'promptly do away with all names identified with a country the government of which has committed the most atrocious crimes'.

The matter was still bubbling away in November 1915 when a Leicester Mail correspondent cited 'an extract from an old boy's letter from the front,' which read: 'When I return to Leicester and resume my ordinary work I hope I shall not have the ordeal of passing Hanover Street every day. I am so fed up with the Huns here that I don't want more of him when at peace.'

In May 1916, a disaffected resident of Saxe Coburg Street in Leicester wrote that 'One feels ashamed to receive one's letters with these offensive names on the envelope.'

German street names in some places were destined to remain unchanged. In April 1919, several months after the end of the war, the Yorkshire Evening Post reported on the situation in Leeds, noting that 'Beyond...occasional demonstrations by ultra-patriotic schoolboys which have had results no more serious than the splashing of the name-plates with mud, there has been no public movement in the city to have these streets rechristened.'

Changes did occur in other places, though - including Nottingham.

On Saturday 13 January 1917, the West Bridgford Advertiser reported 'the receipt, yesterday, by residents in the streets concerned of printed notices announcing the [street name] changes, and the display of similar notices (with a warning as to the penalty for removing or damaging the new name-plates or the putting up of a different name) at the end of the streets.'

The newspaper listed the changes decided upon at that time as follows:

'Coburg-road, Mapperley, becomes Corby-road.

Hamburg-road, Mapperley, becomes Hampstead-road.

Mecklenburg-road, Mapperley, becomes Malvern-road.

Coburg-square, Walker-street, Sneinton, becomes Colton-square.

Berlin-terrace, Bunbury-street, Meadows, becomes Rushcliffe-terrace.

Bismarck-square, Denman-street, Radford, becomes Baldwin-terrace.'

The first three of these roads still exist, side-by-side, off Woodborough Road, near St Jude's Church, the majority of their residents presumably blissfully unaware of the dark past of the quiet streets on which they live.

How times change. We're currently placing our faith in a German manager for something to add to our two world wars and one world cup.

Tuchel Street. It has a nice ring to it.

Detail from an OS 25 inch map, 1892-1914, showing the location of Coburg/Corby Road, Hamburg/Hampstead Road and Mecklenburg/Malvern Road; note the (presumably) original spellings of the German street names

Coburg/Corby Road in 2025

Hamburg/Hampstead Road in 2025

Mecklenburg/Malvern Road in 2025