Tales of the City: stories about the City, its history and its influence
Given its extraordinary history, it’s no surprise that the City has some great tales to tell. Here are ten favourites:
1. Fruity bells
“Oranges and lemons...” begins the well-known English nursery rhyme. But did you know that the bells of all of the six churches it features are in, or close to, the City? They are popularly believed to be:
- Bells of St Clements – St Clement, Eastcheap
- Bells of St Martins – St Martin Orgar
- Bells of Old Bailey – St Sepulchre-without-Newgate
- Bells of Shoreditch – St Leonard, Shoreditch (Wikipedia entry)
- Bells of Stepney – St Dunstan and All Saints Stepney (link to its own website)
- Great bell at Bow – St Mary-le-Bow
The last of the bells to be featured in the rhyme (Bow bells) are famous for many reasons – in 1392, Richard (Dick) Whittington heard them call him back to London to become Lord Mayor; to be born within the sound of them was the sign of a true Londoner or Cockney; and, during the Second World War, the BBC's World Service broadcast a recording of them as a symbol of hope to the free people of Europe.
2. A bridge too far
Opened in 1973, the current London Bridge replaced one that was – quite literally – “falling down”, sinking under the weight of an ever-increasing flow of traffic. The previous bridge (built in 1831), was sold to Robert McCulloch, Chairman of the McCulloch Oil Corporation. As it was dismantled, each stone was numbered; they were then shipped to California, before being taken by road to Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Reconstruction of the bridge began there in 1968 when the Lord Mayor of City of London laid the cornerstone. In 1971, building was complete. Today, the old London Bridge is Arizona’s second-biggest tourist attraction after the Grand Canyon.
3. Take a gander
A celebrated City character was Old Tom, a gander that managed to escape execution in Leadenhall Market when 34,000 geese were slaughtered there in two days. Fed at the local inns, Old Tom became a favourite amongst the market’s traders and customers. After his death in 1835 at the age of 38, he lay in state in the market before being buried there.
4. Boats to floats
Historically, the Lord Mayor of the City of London travelled by river each year to Westminster to swear allegiance to the crown (the origin of today’s Lord Mayor’s Show). Nowadays, he travels by road, but it was these river journeys that gave birth to the word “float” which describes vehicles in parades and shows today.
5. Road to nowhere
Until comparatively recent boundary changes, the City had no roads – that is to say that none of its highways or byways use the word “road” within their names. Today there is one (Goswell Road) which runs along a very small part of the City’s boundary line. All other thoroughfares in the City use "street", "lane", "gate", "wall" or some other word. The reason is thought by some to be that – as the old definition of a road was “a way between places” and the City is at the heart of the capital (and thus our nation) – it is not "between" anywhere but the at the start or end of any journey.
6. Trading places
The City is the birthplace of London’s ancient livery companies or guilds – bodies of tradesmen that regulated their respective professions to protect customers and their members. In 1515, following years of dispute between the companies about which was more important, the Lord Mayor of the day established an order of precedence based on their political and economic power (the top 12 became known as the Great Twelve). Before this order was established however, and following even earlier disputes, it had been agreed that two companies – the Merchant Taylors’ and the Skinners’ – should alternate between sixth and seventh place each year. This annual switch was carried over to the new order. The fact that the companies were permanently at sixes and sevens with each other gave birth to today’s well-known expression.
7. Inspiring spire
The magnificent tiered spire of St Bride’s church on Bride Lane is thought to be the inspiration behind the modern-day wedding cake. The story goes that in the early part of the 19th century, a pastry chef from Fleet Street – one Mr Rich – copied Wren’s unusual design when creating a cake for his daughter’s wedding. The fact that it is the church of St Bride is mere coincidence, it being named after St Bride of Kildare – a sixth-century saint.
8. Freedom pass
One of the oldest surviving traditional ceremonies still in existence is the granting of the Freedom of the City of London. It is believed that the first Freedom was presented in 1237. The medieval term 'freeman' meant someone who was not the property of a feudal lord, but had the right to earn money and own land. The modern freedom has only a few charitable and educational privileges and certainly does not entitle the holder to engage in the oft-cited colourful activities such as herding sheep over London Bridge or going about the City with a drawn sword. But despite this it continues to attract men and women from every walk of life who wish to identify with pride with the Citizens of London.
9. Party plan
The City was the birthplace of the Labour Party. On 27 February 1900, representatives of all socialist groups in Britain met with trade union leaders at the Memorial Hall in Farringdon Street (now demolished). There, they established "a distinct Labour group in Parliament, who shall have their own whips, and agree upon their policy, which must embrace a readiness to cooperate with any party which for the time being may be engaged in promoting legislation in the direct interests of labour."
10. Mark of approval
Over the centuries, City livery companies (or ‘guilds’) have defined and protected the highest standards in City trade, regulating their professions to the benefit of customers and members alike. Today, there are 108 of them. Some (like the Goldsmiths) continue to have a regulatory role. The process we know today as ‘hallmarking’ originates from this company and actually means ‘marked at Goldsmiths’ Hall’. A visit to this hall (in Foster Lane) and to the nearby Goldsmiths’ Gardens is rewarded with many visual references to the leopard’s head ‘hallmark’ – used to verify the purity of silver since the early 14th century.