A Short Walk in the City (of London), London, England

Architecture has its political Use; publick Buildings being the Ornament of a Country; it establishes a Nation, draws People and Commerce; makes the People love their native Country …. Architecture aims at Eternity.Sir Christopher Wren

Today London is a huge metropolis, but it wasn’t always so, of course. It started as a small Roman settlement on the north bank of the River Thames, Londinium. In 200 AD a wall was built, surrounding and protecting the city. Over the centuries it grew and grew, but that Roman town remained at its heart, the original City of London.

Even in 1665, much of London was still held inside those ancient walls, making the spread of the Great Plague all the faster. A year later many of its buildings were destroyed in the Great Fire of London, including an earlier St Paul’s Cathedral. The architect Christopher Wren was responsible for rebuilding it, along with a large number of other churches, many of which still stand today.

As London expanded through the following centuries, way beyond those original walls, the original city they contained remained at its heart. When government and royalty migrated west to Westminster, commerce continued to be centred here. The ‘Square Mile’, as it is known, is even today home to the Bank of England, the London Stock Exchange and other great financial institutions. It is also home to 112 active craft guilds, the first of which, the Weavers’ Company, received its Royal Charter as long ago as 1155. These guilds have a proud history and, in many cases too, a rich one. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).