Roman London in the second century AD would have been an impressive place to visit. Spanning both sides of the Thames, it was by then the largest city in Britain – a cosmopolitan settlement that was full of hustle and bustle. The skyline was dominated by the forum-basilica, […]
To understand the changing face of Hackney Wick, you need only need to take a short walk from the Overground station to a derelict site surrounded by graffiti-covered hoardings. Running along the top of boards is a phrase that not only sums up the area’s past, but also […]
“Last Thursday they were turned out of their lodgings into the streets because they were in arrears with their rent,” reported the Illustrated Police News in 1900. “She had seven children….“ London has, in years gone by, been a trying place for many to live as a result […]
The ‘Square Mile’ has seen its fair share of fires since a settlement was first founded here by the Romans 2,000 years ago. But two big events dominate in the history books – the Great Fire of 1666, which left four-fifths of the City in ruins, and incendiary […]
With the likes of St Paul’s Cathedral and Westminster Abbey on the “Places worth seeing” list, a modern day visitor to London would find much of the 1862 edition of Bradshaw’s Illustrated Hand Book To London And Its Environs very familiar. Written with the railway traveller in mind, the publication […]
Thomas Coram had travelled around the world as a sea captain and shipbuilder but, returning to London in 1720, he was shocked to see so many children lying dying on the capital’s streets. At a time when overseas trade was expanding fast, it was estimated that over one […]
“Save Norton Folgate,” shouts the large black print on a white banner flapping in the wind above a fine Georgian terrace a few minutes walk from Liverpool Street station. Four decades on from when Dan Cruickshank, Sir John Betjeman and many dedicated others fought a long hard battle […]
Taking stock of the surroundings after getting off the bus at Croydon Airport, there are the familiar signs that suggest you have arrived at a passenger terminal. Look one way and there’s a Premier Inn, while the other a Hilton – the places that people often stay the […]
For the staff and pupils of a historic Croydon school there has been plenty to celebrate this year. Over the course of 2014, Archbishop Tenison – named after founder the Archbishop of Canterbury – has been marking the tricentenary of its establishment for the teaching “ten poor boys […]
You don’t need to look far to find vivid accounts of the poor living conditions that many experienced in London’s East End in the 19th century. So-called social explorers flocked from the more salubrious areas of the capital – and even overseas – to witness and report on […]
Past In The Present 