Understanding London (Foundation) – Resources

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Most people who have had the chance to travel to London; England and visit the city of London have had their minds blow away from the rich cultural and historic composition of the state. Born of a Roman Britain settlement in the 1st century everything about the city of London is absolutely minded bobbling. It is the oldest part of London with physical shreds of evidence of Roman and medieval structures towering the land. Currently celebrated as the world’s leading international financial and business center with a resident population of about 10,000 people and a regular constant 300,000 people coming in for work and business purposes, this small city has seen quite a bit in its time. Let’s take a dive into the history of the City.

City of London History

Established in 43AD by Roman legions, seven years after the Romans invaded Britain, the City, or Square Mile as it has become known, is the origin point from which modern-day London developed. Initially referred to as Londinium the City would see commendable growth after the completion of the Roman Bridge built over River Thames almost at the same point where the London Bridge now sits. The bridge gave way for a road nexus and

major docking port opening up the City to more settlement and business. At its peak as a Roman Britain city, the City of London was home to approximately 50,000-60,000 inhabitants from all over the world. Administratively, the City of London is the smallest of the 33 London districts sitting on only 1.12 square miles within the greater London region hence its title Square Mile. The City also coined a unique local government separate from the rest of London administered by the City of London Corporation chaired by the Lord Mayor of London. Today, focusing on the city of London history is undoubtedly one of the most intricate studies with an upward of 2000 years of history. The city of The Roman London came to an end with the overall decline of the Roman Empire giving way to the Anglo-Saxon restoration from 410 AD. At this time, medieval London and the whole of England was under Viking rule and it wasn’t until 886 AD that Alfred the Great the first English king began

reoccupying and rebuilding the old Roman London area. It is during this era that the St Paul’s Cathedral was built and the London Bridge which had caved under numerous Viking attacks on the City rebuilt.

City of London history enthusiasts uncover incredible information explaining a lot about the origin and significance of present historic structural evidence hailing from monumental statues like the Monument to the Great Fire of London within the City of London to ancient buildings like the Tower of London and the bank of London. London history tells a story of resilience; the rise after the fall of a city being faced with countless wars for control and natural epidemics threatening its annihilation. Being the smallest and oldest district of England, the city of London has immense history spread out across 2000 years and four different periods.

In spite of the years of countless devastations and destructions, the city of London stands at the center of one of the largest Megacities in the world today with a population of over 10 million inhabitants.

Check our useful sources for Understanding London (Foundation) subject:

• • Using the internet
    Teach yourself to use the internet

    http://www.vts.intute.ac.uk/

    The above will be of use if you want to improve or refresh your internet searching skills.
• • Reference & Research
    Directgov

    http://www.direct.gov.uk/

    entry to government information and services online

    Government Office for London (GOL)

    http://www.gos.gov.uk/gol/

    represents and delivers policies for 10 central government department across the capital. Provides a link to an A-Z topic listing plus links to sections relating to GOL policy teams.

    Info4local

    http://www.info4local.gov.uk/

    quick way to find information on government department web sites. Listing new publications, subjects covered by departments, as well as useful links. Regular alerting service available

    Local Government Association (LGA)

    http://www.lga.gov.uk/

    provides information on the major issues affecting local government, provides A-Z guides and details of publications.

    Londinium.com

    http://www.londinium.com/

    London web site directory

    Londons Past Online: a Bibliography of London History

    http://www.rhs.ac.uk/bibl/london.asp

    LSE London: Urban and Metropolitan Research

    http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/LSELondon/

    established in 1998 as a centre of research that explored the economic and social issues of the London region.

    National Statistics

    http://www.statistics.gov.uk/

    Official UK statistics and information about statistics. Has separate themes e.g. health & care; labour market; population & migration; social & welfare; transport, travel & tourism

    OPSI

    http://www.opsi.gov.uk/

    Office of Public Sector Information, access UK legislation from 1987-

    Public TV

    http://www.public.tv/

    online source which ‘gives fast and free access to high quality government, public sector, professional training, and business videos.’

    United Kingdom Parliament

    http://www.parliament.uk/

    Information on UK Parliament, the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Indexed site allows you to search for a word or phrase in a document or debate or search by individual members’ names within debates, parliamentary questions, committees etc.

    YouGov

    http://www.yougov.com/

    Monitors news and opinion from broadcast, print and the internet. Provides a UK political news service, where users can vote on issues