The Rose & Crown was in existence as far back as 1659. The inn was first called the Sign of the Rose. It was possibly established in the 1640s by Sir Richard Betenson, the owner of Eagle House next door to the Rose & Crown, and called the Rose because crowns were out of favour during the Civil War. A 1763 lease of Eagle House describes the mansion as house and gardens, 15 acres of land, and the Rose & Crown public house, the Crown having by then been added to the name.

The Rose & Crown became a focal point during the 18 th and 19 th centuries and had to be expanded. Famous literary drinkers included Leigh Hunt and Swinburne. Swinburne was a regular at the Rose & Crown but after sketches of him drinking in there were published in the Pall Mall Gazette, he took to entering the pub by a side door and sitting in a private room.