Greenwich ( (listen) GREN-itch, GRIN-ij, GRIN-itch, or GREN-ij) is an area of South East London, England, centred 5.5 miles (8.9 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross. It is within the Royal Borough of Greenwich, to which it lends its name. Historically it was in the county of Kent for hundreds of years, then the County of London from 1889 to 1965.