Lost London

Re-discover our medieval past with Mr Londoner.

London was established in 47AD by the Romans. They were here for 400 years. But they left in a hurry as their empire collapsed around them. Angles and Saxons from Germany and Jutes and Vikings from Scandinavia arrived in their place. Just over six hundred years later, in 1066, a new set of invaders shipped in from northern France. These incomers, the Normans, displaced the existing Anglo-Saxon nobility and created their own special brand of feudalism. The origins of Britain’s famously class-based society spring from this rigid hierarchy. The Normans were originally ‘Norsmen’ from Scandinavia. Collectively, these powerful and competing tribal fiefdoms came to define medieval England – the period dated roughly between the late 5th to the late 15th century. The Middle Ages ended abruptly – with Henry VII’s 1485 defeat and dispatch of King Richard III – at the Battle of Bosworth. The year marked the birth of the mighty Tudor dynasty.

The City of London is full of clues to our medieval past @meetmrlondoner

Conflict, pestilence and monsters
It was during medieval times that England became a kingdom. Emerging from the tatters of the Roman Empire, the Saxons converted to Christianity in the 7th century. They were famous for their epic poems of chivalry and honour, like Beowulf, with the odd monster thrown in for free. Described by historian and broadcaster Michael Wood as “being at the very root of English literature,” nobody quite knows when this 1,300-line verse was penned, or by whom.

The Saxons were a creative and artistic powerhouse. They excelled at craft. Metalwork flourished during the period, as can be seen in some of the incredible Saxon treasures at the British Museum. The finds from the 7th century Sutton Hoo burial ship are simply exquisite. This period of Saxon British history was once referred to as the Dark Ages. But historians have been forced to have a rethink, as more archaeology has come to light, especially following the Second Word War. The Dark Ages weren’t really dark at all … they just weren’t terribly well-lit.

The Great Fire of London destroyed much of medieval London. Artist unknown, Museum of London

Dominated by the Catholic church, the Saxon and then Norman eras witnessed population growth, conflict, pestilence and, eventually, a frenzy of Norman castle-building. Finding traces of medieval London is however far from easy. Fires, wars and gentrification have all taken their toll. The Great Fire of London in 1666 and the Blitz, and the subsequent bombing that followed during the Second World War, changed the face of the Metropolis forever.

The dramatic interior of St Bartholomew the Great @meetmrlondoner

London’s most notable and famous surviving buildings from the Middle Ages include the 11th century Westminster Abbey and the 12th century Temple Church, founded by the knights Templar. One of London’s most remarkable medieval structures is the church of St Bartholomew the Great. Its vast and dramatic Roman quire played a starring role in the 1994 Hugh Grant film Four Weddings and a Funeral. The atmospheric crypt of St Mary-le-Bow church, in Cheapside, was built by Archbishop Lanfranc in 1080. This small subterranean space is a revelation. It’s full of atmosphere and history with its floor is paved by 18th century tomb stones. This truly unique place, which even though free to enter, is sadly rarely visited by those on the regular tourist trail.

Goosebumps
South of the river, in Bankside, are the remains of the once magnificent Winchester Palace. It was built in the 1130s for the Bishops of Winchester. Despite fires, riots and Hitler’s bombs, the vast rose window of the palace’s great hall stands to this day. The bishops rapidly became the local political and religious powerhouse throughout Bankside. They extended their control to all aspects of social life throughout the neighbourhood. This included controlling the operations of a thriving local sex trade. Bankside prostitutes, possibly because of the beckoning hand and arm gestures they deployed to attract trade, became known as ‘Winchester Geese’. To be “bitten by a goose” in medieval days implied one had acquired a social disease. It’s where today’s expression of ‘having goosebumps’ – to imply anxiety and anticipation – has its early origins.

A few graves are the only clue to the existence of the former Catholic and church priory at Blackfriars @meetmrlondoner

Archaeological evidence abounds at the nearby medieval Southwark Cathedral, where extensive Saxon and Roman remains can be inspected. This is the christening place of university-founder John Harvard. It’s also the burial place of William Shakespeare’s brother, Edmund. The Cathedral’s towering medieval spires still dominate the neighbourhood. The locale is home to Borough Market, Shakespeare’s Globe and the former Bankside Power Station. Today this dramatic modernist building is a leading art gallery – the Tate Modern. This south-eastern corner of London is Southwark – one of the three centres of Medieval London. Across the river was the original City of London and further west, as the name implies, Westminster. Beyond these enclaves, what is today Greater London was back then swathes of verdant countryside.

Chivalry and chaos
Medieval society, although structured and chivalric at its higher echelons, was challenging and often chaotic for the poor, who represented the vast majority of citizens. In the words of a later commentator, the 17th century philosopher Thomas Hobbes, life was “Nasty, brutish and short”. Today, however, you need to know exactly where to look to dig out London’s hidden medieval past. The City of London – the Square Mile – is a good place to start. It is still administered from its famous 15th century Guildhall. Second World War bombing inflicted terrible damage to the building. But its vast and glorious medieval undercroft survives. The magnificent Guildhall also reveals intriguing clues of earlier Roman and Anglo-Saxon settlement. Archaeologists discovered the remains of a Roman gladiatorial amphitheatre in 1990, during the construction of the Guildhall Gallery – an incredible and surprising find.

Tracking down evidence of the earlier part of the medieval period, during Saxon occupation, is particularly problematic. The Saxons built mainly in wood. Few of their buildings survive today, because the later Norman inhabitants upgraded existing Saxon buildings using stone. All Hallows Church by the Tower is a notable exception. It too was badly-damaged in the Blitz. But the devastating bombs and fires of the 1940s also revealed the church’s Roman and Saxon foundations. Founded in the 7th century by St Erkenweld, All Hallows belonged to Barking Abbey, in Essex. It is one of the earliest Christian sites in London. The church is home to the only known original Anglo-Saxon stone arch to survive in London. Its design incorporates what were by then at least 300 year-old Roman tiles, a great example of Saxon up-cycling and a nod to our own times.

The Dominican Friary at Blackfriars sits underneath some mighty Victorian buidings @meetmrlondoner

Further west, in 1276, King Edward I granted permission to London’s Dominican brotherhood to establish their friary at Blackfriars. With some good detective work, you can hunt out its last surviving stones, some of them hiding in plain sight among the modern office blocks. These remains, although few in number, tell an intensely rich story of church, faith and monastic intrigue.

The Blackfriar pub is a rare and unique survivor @meetmrlondoner

Lost London tours often end at the historic Blackfriar – a beautiful Edwardian pub. With its exquisite Art Nouveau interior, it commemorates the neighbourhood’s Catholic origins in a glorious yet cosy setting. The beer’s good too.

 

About the Author

Mr Londoner is running Lost London medieval tours throughout the spring and summer. He is writer, broadcaster and former Museum of London director, Antony Robbins.

Meet Mr Londoner here