Important thoroughfares radiate in all directions from Charing Cross. To the east runs the Strand (Walk 19), leading to Fleet St. and the City. To the south-east, descending to the Thames Embankment, is the wide modern Northumberland Avenue, taking its name from Northumberland House (pulled down in 1874), the magnificent abode of the Dukes of Northumberland, which stood approximately where the Grand Hotel now stands, at the north-east corner. Adjoining the Grand Hotel in this street is the Constitutional Club, and across the way are the Victoria Hotel and the Hotel Metropole. Beyond the Constitutional Club is the Royal Colonial Institute, and at the end of the street, on the left, is the Playhouse. The Royal Colonial Institute, a society founded in 1868 to promote the close and permanent unity of the Empire, has a library of over 164,000 volumes and publishes the 'United Empire,' a monthly magazine. The number of fellows and associates is about 15,200. Due south from Charing Cross, Whitehall (Walk 2), flanked by government offices, leads to Westminster (Walk 3). To the west, beyond King Charles's statue, the Admiralty Arch gives access to the Mall and St. James's Park (Walk 6). To the north-east Cockspur Street, abounding in steamship offices, leads to Pall Mall and the Haymarket and so to the fashionable quarter of the West End (Walk 8).
