20Th century London

The terrific population growth of the late Victorian period continued into the 20th century. In 1904 the first motor bus service in London began, followed by the first underground electric train in 1906, but perhaps more notable was the spate of new luxury hotels, department stores, and theatres which sprang up in the Edwardian years, particularly in the West End. The Ritz opened in 1906, Harrod's new Knightsbridge store in 1905, and Selfridges in 1907.

New entertainment venues sprouted like mushrooms; with the London Palladium the largest of some 60 major halls for music-hall and variety shows.

Several major building projects marked Edward VII's reign. The long, broad sweep of the Mall was designed by Aston Webb. Webb was also responsible for Admiralty Arch, the Queen Victoria memorial, and the east front of Buckingham Palace.

Although the hardship of London during the Second World War is well known, it is easy to forget that WWI brought hardship as well to the city. In the Fall of 1915 the first Zeppelin bombs fell in London near the Guildhall, killing 39 people. In all, 650 fatalities resulted from bombings during the "War to End All Wars".

Population surged after the war, to about 7.5 million in 1921. The London County Council began building new housing estates, which pushed further and further out into the countryside. Unemployment was high, and labour unrest erupted in the 1926 General Strike. So many workers joined the strike that the army was called in to keep the Underground and buses running, and to maintain order.

In the 1930's large numbers of Jews emigrated to London, fleeing persecution in Europe, and most of them settled in the West End. The year 1938 saw movement out of the city; the threat from Germany was great enough that large numbers of children were moved out of London to the surrounding countryside.

St. Paul's during the Blitz The outbreak of WWII precipitated the defining moment of the century for Londoners - the Blitz. During the dark days of 1940 over a third of the City was destroyed by German bombs, and the London Docks largely demolished.

Some 17 of Christopher Wren's London churches were badly damaged. The area worst hit was the City itself, but strangely, St. Paul's Cathedral suffered only minor damage.

Some 16 acres around the area that now houses the Barbican development and the Museum of London were totally flattened, and numerous historic buildings were destroyed. The death toll was heavy; 32,000 dead and over 50,000 badly injured.

In the post-war period heavy immigration from countries of the old British Empire changed the character of the city. Notting Hill acquired a large Caribbean population, Honk Kong immigrants settled in Soho, Sikhs in Southall, and Cypriots in Finsbury.

The Festival of Britain took place in 1951 on the centenary of the Great Exhibition of 1851. Whereas that first exhibition had left the legacy of the extraordinary Crystal Palace, the Festival left behind it the universally reviled concrete mass of the South Bank Arts complex.

Heathrow airport opened to commercial flights in 1946, and the first double-decker red buses (dubbed the Routemaster) appeared on London roads in 1956.

The London Docks declined after the war, and the formerly bustling area around the Isle of Dogs fell into disuse until rescued by modern development in the last decade.

Thames Barrier

Between 1972-82 the Thames Barrier was built to control flooding along the river. This amazing engineering feat consists of 10 moveable underwater gates supported by 7 shining steel half-domes strung across the river.

The last great building project of the century was the controversial Millennium Dome, an exhibition centre beside the Thames in North Greenwich. The Dome, which opened on January 1, 2000, is a massive complex, built at a cost of over 750 million GBP. It houses, among other things, sponsored exhibits on the human experience of life, including Faith, Science, and biology.

Sightseeing London

The Tower of London

The Tower of London has a very interesting story behind it. It was begun by a man who was not even English, William of Normandy. At the time he was the cousin of England's Kind Edward. It all started because William became outraged when Edward backed down on his promise to give the throne to William and ended up giving the throne to his English brother-in-law, Harold. William sailed his army across the English Channel to conquer England. On October 14, 1066, he met Harold at Hastings and conquered him. On Christmas Day later that year, William - now called William the conqueror - was crowned King of England.

Immediately after William took over as king, he built forts everywhere. One stood in the southeastern corner of London, near an old Roman wall on the north bank of the Thames River. William ordered that this fort be removed in 1078 to be replaced by a huge stone stronghold. This would be the "symbol of his power, a fortress for his defense, and a prison for his enemies". (Fisher, 1987) He named it the Tower of London.

The Tower was finished twenty years later, rising nearly one hundred feet high, with its walls fifteen feet thick in certain places. Inside was a chapel, apartments, guardrooms, and crypts. The Tower was protected by a wide ditch, a new stone wall, the old Roman wall, and the river. This was done to secure the fact that this tower was a prison that no prisoner would escape from.

The Bishop of Durham was probably the Tower's first distinguished prisoner. He was very fat, greedy, and unpopular. He was dragged to the prison by his brother with his servants and bags of money. But the Bishop lived very well inside the Tower because he could bribe the guards with gold. One night in February,1101, he gave a huge banquet with a lot of food and liquor. When he had gotten the guards very drunk, he pushed his bags through a window and slid down a rope to freedom.

Around the year 1240, King Henry III made this tower his home. He whitewashed the tower, widened the grounds to include a church, a great hall, and other buildings. He renamed the entire new area the Tower of London, and renamed the Tower the White Tower. Although the tower was still a prison, Henry had turned the White Tower into a breathtaking palace. He entertained many important visitors, many of which came with animals as gifts. Near the drawbridge of the tower, Henry built the Lion Tower, a zoo where visitors would be greeted with roaring beasts.

In 1377, when Richard II was king, the Tower continued to be a stronghold. But four years later, on June 14, a group of overtaxed farmers stormed the Tower. Richard and his brothers safely hid themselves inside. But the farmers found the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Royal Treasurer, a tax official, and a doctor. These men were taken to Tower Hill where their heads where chopped off. Richard later made peace with these farmers. The leader of the farmers, Wat Tyler, was beheaded. Richard was eventually thrown into a Tower dungeon, where he was forced to give up the throne to Henry IV.

Several monarchs died in the Tower of London. One was thirteen-year-old King Edward V. When his father, King Edward IV died, his uncle Richard, the Duke of Gloucester, plotted to take the throne for himself. Richard had the thirteen-year-old king and his younger brother, the Duke of York, taken to the tower. Lord Hastings, a royal officer, tried to protect Edward, but was unsuccessful. Hastings' head was chopped off on the Tower Green, and Edward and his brother were murdered. These murders most likely took place in the Garden Tower, which was later renamed the Bloody Tower.

The Tower of London viewed from Tower Bridge. Photograph by Benjamin Stone, 1898

Since the Tower of London was so dangerous, King Henry VII formed a personal bodyguard. Henry moved into the Tower in 1485 after killing Richard III in a battle. His protectors were called the Yeoman Warders, who to this day still guard the tower. King Henry was a very frugal man. He seldom gave parties and tried very hard to avoid war, which both cost a lot of money.

After the death of Henry VII, the Tower of London was never again used to house an English queen or king. The dungeon was still used to hold England's enemies, and the Tower was still used for many celebrations. The marriage of King Henry VIII to his second wife, Anne Boleyn, took place at the Tower on May 19, 1533. A huge party was thrown for the next 11 days at the Tower, topped off with an enormous feast.

But the Tower of London was not always a place of celebration. On May 19, 1536, Anne Boleyn was executed under Henry's orders at the Tower Green. Anne had been accused of misconduct, but the plain truth was that she had born a daughter rather than a son, who would The White Tower, The Tower of London

become a future king of England. This daughter was Elizabeth I, who would later become the Queen of England. Elizabeth was held prisoner in the Tower for two months by the order of her half sister, Queen Mary. Mary felt that her throne was being threatened by Elizabeth, so she imprisoned her in the Tower. If you look really carefully, you can see Anne Boleyn's Ghost about the tower. She will tell you about the royalty.

Elizabeth was innocent, and people knew it, leading to a public outcry. Elizabeth was released on May 19, 1554 (ironically, May 19 was the day on which Anne Boleyn was married and killed, and the same day that Elizabeth was released from jail.) In 1558, Elizabeth became the queen of England. She spent three days on her coronation in the Tower, to symbolize that it was her duty to "take possession" of it as the royal monarch of England. (Fisher, 1987) On January 15, 1559, she left in a festive parade to be crowned at Westminster Abby. Elizabeth would never return to the Tower.

In 1603, part of the Tower of London became a museum. King James I had ordered that the royal jewels be kept in the Tower Jewel House and be put on display for the Tower visitors. Though its roots trace back to a non-Englishman, the Tower of London has had a very

interesting place in English history. It has been the sight of murders, marriages, uproars, museums, and zoos. But the Tower of London will always be remembered as a "symbol of royal power, a fortress for the monarch, and a prison for the monarch's enemies".

Tower Bridge, right beside the castle, was built in the last century as the most seaward of the capital's bridges over the Thames. Its position meant that large ships had to pass under it to enter the city's Port. They could not have passed under a conventional bridge, this novel design got round the problem by having roadways that could be raised like a castle drawbridge.

Admiralty Arch

Built in 1910 to the design of Sir Aston Webb as part of the Queen Victoria Memorial. The arch is located at the northeast end of The Mall and on the southwest side of Trafalgar Square.

Albert Memorial

The national memorial to Prince Albert was built from a design by George Gilbert Scott who had been personally selected by Queen Victoria. The monument, thought by some to be gaudy and inappropriate, stands 175 feet high and houses a 14 foot high statue of the prince by John Foley. The Albert Memorial was completed in 1876 at a total cost of Ј120,000.

In one of the most complex restoration projects in the World, English Heritage has now restored the Memorial to all the gilded splendour which it was originally designed to display. Almost the entire upper section of the memorial had to be completely dismantled, the spire being reassembled with over 100 tons of lead lining the iron core. The double gilding of Albert's statue took up 1,800 twenty-five page books of 23-carat gold leaf.

The newly reborn Albert Memorial is a site to behold. The High Gothic architecture may not be to everyone's taste, but it is certainly a reminder of the greatness of the man and the times in which he lived.

Baker Street

Only about seven tenths of a mile in length, running between Oxford Street to the south and Regent's Park to the north, Baker Street enjoys a fame and name recognition all out of proportion to its importance as an artery for traffic or its significance as a shopping or cultural district.

Banqueting House

Banqueting House, by Inigo Jones, was the first structure to be built in connection with James I's rebuilding of Whitehall. Opened in 1608, it replaced a temporary structure of wood and canvas. Banqueting House is divided into two levels: the lower floor is for less formal functions and the upper is reserved for more lavish affairs.

Boudicca's Statue

An 1850 bronze sculpture by Thomas Thornycroft commerating Boudicca (also known as Boadicea), queen of the British tribe known as the Iceni, who led an ultimately unsuccessful revolt against the Romans in AD 60-61. An interesting local legend has it that Boudicca is buried beneath Track 10 at King's Cross Station.

British Museum

Containing such priceless antiquities as the Rosetta Stone, the Elgin Marbles, an original copy of the Magna Carta, the Lindisfarne Gospels and the Sutton Hoo treasure, the British Museum is considered to be in the first rank among the world's great museums.

Cleopatra's Needle

Found lying on its side in the desert sands of Egypt, this obelisk of pink granite, made in Heliopolis around 1500 BC, was given to Britain by the government of Egypt in 1819 and erected in its present location on the banks of the Thames in 1877.

Downing Street

The curious gather at the Whitehall end of Downing Street hoping to catch a glimpse of the country's powerful people coming or going from #10, the home of Britain's Prime Minister.

Green Park

Originally part of Henry VIII's hunting grounds, this triangular piece of land gets its name from the green color of the grass and trees which predominate, there. Adjacent to the Buckingham Palace grounds, Green Park is an especially pleasant place for a quiet walk, with its central tree-lined "avenue" leading from the Queen Victoria Memorial through the park to Piccadilly, on the north side.

London Bridge

This fabled bridge across the Thames River, noted in story and rhyme, has a colorful and continuous history that dates back to Roman times. The first London Bridge was built by Romans sometime after 43 AD and some of its wooden remains have been uncovered on the north side of the river. During its life the wooden structure was renewed several times. At one time, one of these structures was washed away by a flood, and another was torn down by invading Vikings, led by Olaf the Norseman in 1014.

Madame Tussauds

One of London's most consistently popular attractions, Madame Tussauds has the finest collection of wax models of contemporary and historical figures in the world. Painstakingly created, each model takes up to three months to prepare, and, in the case of models of living subjects, must be indistinguishable from the actual person before being approved for display.

Parliament & Big Ben

The legislative branch of the British government occupies what is officially called the New Palace of Westminster, situated on the original site of Edward the Confessor's Palace of Westminster. The neo-Gothic building was begun in 1840 and the first Parliament was opened by Queen Victoria in 1852. Victoria Tower at the south end of the building is, at 336 ft., the tallest square tower in the world. Tucked into a niche along the west side of the building, is a statue of Richard I, Lionheart, striking a heroic pose.

One of the world's most famous landmarks, Big Ben is the clock tower of the Houses of Parliament. "Big Ben" was originally the nickname given to the 13 ton "Great Bell of Westminster," but the term ultimately came to include the clock and St. Stephen's Tower.

The original specification for the clock (developed by Astronomer Royal, Professor George Biddell Airy) called for it to be accurate to within one second (the accuracy would be checked twice daily, comparing it's time to the Royal Observatory's standard). The clockmaking industry felt that this requirement would be impossible to achieve in a large, exposed, outdoor timepiece, but Big Ben has proven remarkably accurate, even during wartime. For example, during a WWII bombardment on 10 May 1941, the House of Commons was virtually destroyed, but Big Ben managed to lose only a half second of time through it all.

Buckingham Palace

Built in 1703 years ago by the 'man who was the Duke of Buckingham at that time. When George III became king soon after, he liked the palace so much that he bought it, and English kings and queens have lived in it ever since. Buckingham Palace is attended night and day by special troops of the British Army. These troops work in shifts, like all guards. Each time a new shift comes on, there is a very colorful ceremony called the "Changing of the Guard." The bugle call at this time suggested the music for the song that starts, "They're changing Guards at Buckingham Palace, Christopher Robin went down with Alice."

Buckingham Palace is the official London residence of the British monarch since Queen Victoria ascended the throne in 1837. It is placed at the end of the Mall, a wide avenue leading from Trafalgar Square, and faces the Victoria Memorial, a statue of Queen Victoria. A statue of Nike, the ancient Greek goddess of victory, stands in front of the palace in memory of Queen Victoria too. The royal Banner is set on the roof when the monarch is in residence, and the famous Changing of the guard takes place in the palace forecourt every day from, April to September and every other day from October to March. This is perhaps the most popular happening which can be seen in Buckingham Palace. Certain rooms are open to the public in August and September while the Queen is not in residence. Buckingham Palace was built by the Duke of Buckingham and Normandy in 1703 and bought by George III in 1761, although St. James's Palace continued to be the official royal residence until the accession of Queen Victoria. The building, in neo-classical style, was remodelled by John Nash in 1825. In 1856 a ballroom was added and in 1913 Sir Aston Webb altered the East Front, which faces the Mall. Marble Arch was the entrance to the palace until it was moved to the north-eastern corner of Hyde Park in 1851. The palace has about 600 rooms and is surrounded by 20 hectares of gardens. Some of the state apartments are open to the public in July and August. The Queen's Gallery and the Royal Mews on the south side of the palace are both permanently open to the public. In the queen's Gallery, annual exhibitions of paintings and works of art from the Royal Collection are shown. In the Royal Mews state coaches and carriages are displayed: among them is the Gold State Coach, which was used at every coronation since that of George IV in 1762. The stables, in which the Windsor Grey and Cleveland Bay carriage horses are kept, are also open to the public.

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey, London is the most beautiful of the Gothic churches in the capital and was founded by Edward the Confessor in the 11th century.

All coronations have taken place here since William the Conqueror. And most British monarchs from Henry III to George II are buried here.

Also to be found in the cathedral is Poets Corner where many of our finest poets are buried, and the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior.

The history of Westminster Abbey reaches back more than 900 years. In 1066, William the Conqueror was crowned king there. Since then, almost all the country's monarchs have been crowned in Westminster Abbey. The church has been added to and remodelled over the centuries, but some of its present architecture dates from the 1200's.

Harrods

Harrods in London's Knightsbridge has gone beyond being a mere department store, and has become a tourist destination in its own right. Tucked away in Knightsbridge, away from the main shopping area, this is the place to come to buy that chic green bag that wraps all purchases made here from a Chelsea bun to a grand piano.

You can spend days wandering the floors. There is the extensive Food Halls on the ground floor, where the rich and the famous get their groceries, the cosmetic counters, a book shop, you name it, they have it.

Perhaps it is a little less exclusive than it was in the days when they had their own fleet of ships scouring the

world on behalf of their patrons, but never the less it is a pleasant place to spend a few hours, and you will probably end up the proud owner of one of those green bags.

Hyde Park

Hyde is a London Royal Park, which Henry VIII acquired in 1536 (it had been owned by the monks of Westminster Abbey before that). A large area of open space in the city centre of 630 acres and a perimeter of 4 miles. It has the memorials at Marble Arch at the east side and Kensington palace at the west. Also within its environs is the Albert Memorial, Queen Victoria's monument to her husband.

The Serpentine Lake is popular for boating, sailing and even bathing. To the south of the Serpentine runs Rotten Row, the fashionable riding track through the park.

While up by Speaker's Corner at Marble Arch you can hear Briton's exercise their right to free speech. There may be a dozen or more at any one time, each standing on a soap box, and spouting (usually) controversial views, strongly held on any topic you can think of - religion, politics, fox hunting, trade unions, Europe, tourists.

Piccadilly Circus

Piccadilly Circus is London's hub. Five major roads converge here - most of the theatres are within a few hundred

yards of it.

At night the huge advertising hoardings are lit up - advertising English brands like McDonalds, Samsung, Fosters and Coca-Cola.

At the centre of the area is the statue of Eros which was unveiled in 1893. It was intended by the sculptor, Sir Albert Gilbert, to be the Angel of Christian Charity, but Eros has persisted as the name. Recent improvements have led to the area being less seedy than it had been!

St. Paul’s Cathedral

St Paul's, London's city cathedral was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and work was started 9 years after the medieval church had been burnt down in the Great Fire. The cathedral has been extensively restored in recent years. The exterior has had the grime of the ages removed, and clear glass (as specified in Wren's original design) has replaced the wartime bomb damaged stained glass.

You can climb up in to the Whispering gallery in the dome, where a whisper at one side carries right round the dome. Then up to the Stone Gallery giving a view over the city, and up to the Golden Gallery at the top of the dome.

The crypt is equally impressive, with the tombs of both Nelson and Wellington (complete with the 18ton carriage that took his body to the cathedral in 1852).

The Thames

The River Thames was London's main highway in times gone by. In those days the roads were rough, the horses slow, the highwaymen and footpads dangerous. Best go by sea!

The river was first bridged by the Romans at a convenient ford, and for centuries that remained the only bridge over the river in the area. The next bridge to be built was Westminster in 1750. Others soon followed including Tower bridge in Victorian times. . The Queen Elizabeth II Bridge at Woolwich was built in1991 to take the M25 over the river.

Coming up river from the sea, until one arrives at the upper reaches of the river beyond the capital, one passes the following bridges:

·

Queen Elizabeth II suspension bridge;

· Tower Bridge - built with a rising centre roadway, to enable ships to pass it on their way to the Docks (see photo);

· London Bridge, the oldest and most famous of the bridges. The wooden bridge on the Roman site continued until 1176, when it was replaced by a stone bridge. remarkably this survived until 1831, carrying out all sorts of useful tasks like displaying the severed heads of executed traitors and rebels. The 1831 bridge was designed by John Rennie, and when this in its turn was replaced in 1972, it was transported stone by stone to the Arizona Desert, where it resides today;

· Southwark Bridge;

· Blackfriars Road and Rail;

· Waterloo Bridge, replaced in 1942 Rennie's bridge of 1817;

· Charring Cross Rail;

·

Westminster Bridge - remember Wordsworth's sonnet "Earth has not anything to show more fair";

· Lambeth Bridge, on the site of the Archbishop's ferry - he had to be bought off (see photo);

· Vauxhall;

· Grosvenor Rail;

· Chelsea- a handsome suspension bridge;

· Albert Bridge - perhaps the nicest of them all (see photo);

· A further 18 bridges until one reaches Hampton Court Bridge, the last in the capital.

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square, London's most famous, was laid out in 1829 to 1841 to commemorate Nelson's victory at the Battle of the same name in 1805. Dominating the square, on a column that is 185 feet high, is the 17 foot high statue of Nelson himself.

Around the base of the column are the four giant bronze lions by Landseer. Around the sides are the church of St Martin's in the Fields (left) and the National Gallery (right) which houses one of the world's richest collections of paintings.

Lecture 4: The British Political System

The plan.

1. Henry VI (1422-61, 1470-71 AD)

2. The Tudors - Henry VII, Henry VIII, Mary & Elizabeth

3. Edward IV (1461-70, 1471-83 AD)

4. Charles II, James II , William III and Anne

5. George III

6. George IV

7. Queen Victoria

8. Edward VII

9. George V

10. Edward VIII

11. George VI

12. The British Parliament

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy which means that the sovereign reigns but does not rule. The continuity of the English monarchy has been interrupted only once, from 1649-1659, during the Cromwell republic. Succession to the throne is hereditary but only for the members of Protestant families in the direct line of descent. The monarch has a number of roles and serves formally as head of state, head of the executive, head of judiciary, head of the legislature, commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and “supreme governor” of the Church of England. The monarch is expected to be politically neutral, and should not make political decisions.

Some of the well-known British monarch throughout the history of Great Britain are: