The mission originally rented premises in the area of Bang Kho Laem District, but was soon gifted a piece land on the bank of the Chao Phraya, next to the Portuguese Consulate, by King Mongkut.Made of steel and ordered from Hong Kong, its cost of £500 earned the vice-consul responsible a reprimand from the Foreign Office and Ministry of Works for unnecessary extravagance.[3][4] When Minister Ralph Paget arrived in 1902, the area, by then known as Bang Rak, had become very busy and the legation was exposed to much pollution and noise from nearby rice mills, river and road traffic, as well as noisy neighbours which included a temple whose bells sounded every morning and a bar situated opposite run by an Italian lady named Madame Staro.[2] Several additional buildings have since been built, but the compound remained an oasis of greenery amidst its surroundings, which by the late 20th century had developed into part of the commercial city centre, containing luxury hotels, offices, apartments and shopping malls.Queen Victoria's statue and the war memorial were relocated to accommodate the sale, which subsequently developed the land into the high-end Central Embassy shopping centre.
The British Consulate General in 1875
The British Legation, c. 1908
The Central Embassy shopping mall now stands on what used to be the front third of the embassy grounds.