Norfolk House remained in the ownership of the
Dukes of Norfolk until 1938, when it was pulled down and replaced by an office building. During the
Second World War this building served as offices for senior officers from a variety of
Allied armed forces, including the
First Canadian Army and the
Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force under General
Dwight D. Eisenhower. Two plaques on the exterior of the building commemorate the role of the building in the War. The 1930s building was fully refitted in the years before 2019. The office space became obsolete for modern requirements and in 2019 plans were submitted to demolish it and rebuild at a cost of £60 million in line with modern requirements. The building was demolished in 2023 and replaced with a modern 9-story office building called 31 St. James's Square. The historic 1938 facade was dismantled during demolition and was reinstalled on the new building, completed in 2024.
Music Room Parts of the interior of the 18th-century house survive, having been removed before demolition, including the Music Room, designed by
Giovanni Battista Borra for the ninth Duke's wife
Mary Blount, now displayed in the
Victoria and Albert Museum, restored and redecorated to its original scheme of brilliant white paintwork with gilt, carved woodwork. ==Gallery==