Erection date: 1932
British History Online: "In 1932 the London County Council erected a memorial tablet on No. 26, Nelson Square."
Nice though the Historic Southwark plaques are, they do not date from the 1930s so the plaque referred to is not the one there in 2016; that LCC plaque was almost certainly an official blue plaque, which we believe now lost.
Site: Percy Bysshe Shelley - SE1 (2 memorials)
SE1, Nelson Square, 26, Applegarth House
British History Online gives: "Percy Bysshe Shelley {} took lodgings at No. 26 as a tenant of Thomas Lillo on 9th November, 1814. Shelley's fortunes were at a very low ebb at this time and his anxieties were increased by the ill-health of Mary Godwin and the difficult temperament of "Claire" (Mary Jane Clairmont), both of whom were living with him. In January, 1815, his grandfather died and Shelley was able to find relief from his financial worries by selling his reversionary interest in the Shelley estates to his father. He moved to Hans Place on 8th February, 1815."
Someone in Southwark clearly thinks historic plaques are just like any other sign: 'No cycling', ' No dogs', 'Percy Bysshe Shelley', all the same.
Nothing to do with Shelley: follow the road round to the right and you find a lovely little Monkey Puzzle tree with its own Twitter account: @SE1monkeypuzzle.
