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A Brief History of London
read a poem about here, here. The Romans eventually regained control and rebuilt London, this time adding a Forum (market) and Basilica (a business centre), and slowly building a wall around the city to protect it from further invasion. The Square Mile Anglo-Saxons The Romans left at the beginning of the 5th Century as the Roman Empire crumbled, leaving London largely deserted. Britain was invaded by the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes (who came from Holland, Germany and Denmark). These “Anglo-Saxons” were farmers and tended to live outside big towns. We know very little about what happened to London in this period.
By the beginning of the 7th Century the city had become important enough to justify the building of a cathedral, St Paul’s. There is still a cathedral (but not the same one!) on the same spot. You can learn all about it here Once again we know very little about London for a few hundred years, although during the 9th and 10th Centuries there were many attacks by the Vikings. "London Bridge is
falling down, It is thought that this nursery rhyme probably records an attack against London by the Viking, Olaf, at the beginning of the 11th Century. Read the whole nursery rhyme in rebus form here Medieval London (1066 – 1485) Soon afterwards, the Normans invaded from France and William I (William the Conqueror) took control. He quickly began to build a stronghold to guard London, the Tower of London. The Tower has been used as a castle and a palace, a zoo and a weapons store, a mint (where coins are made) and a prison. You can learn more about the Tower here. We have a colouring page here. You can learn more about the Tower on our Virtual Tour of London page. A crowded and smelly city! Lord Mayor of London If you go to the Square Mile today, you will find lots of evidence of Medieval London in the street names, which tell of the trades and shops which were established in those times. Pudding Lane, Bread Street and Milk Street are obvious examples! The tailor shops were based in Threadneedle Street, and you can find Ropemakers Square, Silk Street, and Poultry too. Explore! Tudor London (1485 – 1603) London was the centre of trade and government under the Tudor monarchs. We know that there were about 200,000 people living in London by 1600. There were three main areas of population: within the old City walls, in the nearby town of Westminster, and on the south side of the river, in Southwark. Most of London as we know it today was still fields. The Tudors established a number of palaces in London and the area around, and also made deer parks so that they could indulge in their favourite occupation of hunting. You can still see deer in Richmond Park, in south London. Shipbuilding and Exploration Shakespeare and The Globe 17th Century The 17th Century was an unsettled time for Britain,
and particularly London. The Gunpowder Plot, 1605 Remember, remember the fifth of November, See our pages on The Gunpowder Plot here. Civil War The Great Plague, 1665 If someone in your household was infected, a red cross was painted on your door and it was boarded up so that everyone inside was isolated for 40 days. Over the year that the plague rampaged, 100,000 people died. The wealthy fled the city, while the bodies piled up in the streets and empty houses were looted. Did you know that a popular children’s nursery rhyme commemorates the plague? Ring a ring-o-roses, The first line refers to the red, ring-like rash
which sufferers developed. The “pocket full of posies” is the little
bunches of herbs and flowers which Londoners carried to protect themselves
against bad smells and germs, called a “nosegay”. One of the first
symptoms of the plague was sneezing, hence “ah-tishoo, ah-tishoo”. And
while children now enjoy bumping down quickly to the ground as they sing
“we all fall down”, this of course refers to the plague victims dying! The Great Fire of London, 1666
If you visit the City of London now you can see a tall monument – called The Monument – to the Great Fire. It is positioned so that if it fell over in the right direction it would point to the exact place where the fire started. We know a very great deal about the Great Fire of London because it was documented by a Mr Samuel Pepys, who kept an extensive diary. You can read some extracts from the diary about the fire here. 18th Century London Britain was a very powerful nation in the 18th Century and London, with its trading capabilities, was the centre of its power. Goods were brought into London from all over the world. During this century, London also became an important financial centre. Much of the business of the day was done in coffee houses in the Square Mile – especially in Exchange Alley, the site of London’s stock exchange. 19th Century London Queen Victoria
Many of the buildings in London today were built in Victorian times. The most famous is probably the Houses of Parliament, built in 1834 after a fire destroyed the original buildings. Many many people live in houses built during Queen Victoria’s reign. The population of London exploded and the boundaries of the City spread outward. The Tube The Poor 20th Century London London continued to grow both in population and spread during the 20th Century. Between 1919 and 1939, built-up London doubled in size as the suburbs were extended. Shopping had always been good in London, but big department stores were built in the early part of the Century (Harrods and Selfridges): these were the first of their kind! The Blitz You can learn a lot about what it was like for children in the Second World War at this interactive website. Many children were evacuated from London with just a small suitcase and a name-tag around their necks, to go and stay with strangers in the country. Many did not see their families for the duration of the war, and found it very strange to go back to the city. The New Century
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