I’m very interested in the history of
places I visit and the Great Fire of 1666 was a major turning point in the
story of London. I toured the Museum of London’s Fire! Fire! exhibition which commemorates
the 350th anniversary of this catastrophic event. Later I visited a
notable victim of the inferno and Sir Christopher Wren’s greatest achievement,
St. Paul’s Cathedral.
|
Fire! Fire! Exhibit at the Museum of London |
The Museum of London traces the history of
the city from its prehistoric origins to modern times and admission is free. I couldn’t
take in all of the permanent exhibits so I focused on The City Gallery with the
Lord Mayor’s Coach; the People’s City Gallery with a recreation of a Victorian
street; and the World City Gallery with its displays on postwar culture.
|
The Lord Mayor's Coach |
|
Victorian Street |
|
Victorian Penny-Farthing Bicycle |
|
The Beatles in the World City Gallery |
The Fire! Fire! exhibition explores the
devastating inferno that broke out in a bakery on Pudding Lane and destroyed a
quarter of the medieval city of London. The displays include a depiction of the
daily spread of flames across the city, a seventeenth century fire engine, and a leather water bucket. The exhibition
continues until April 17, 2017.
|
Day 3 of the Great Fire of London |
|
Fire Engine (1678) |
|
Leather Water Bucket |
After the fire Christopher Wren was
commissioned to rebuild St. Paul’s Cathedral. The Latin inscription on his
gravestone in the cathedral translates as: ‘If you seek his memorial, look
about you.’ This great church survived the Blitz and went on to host Sir
Winston Churchill’s funeral; Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer’s wedding; and
Queen Elizabeth’s ninetieth birthday celebration. We arrived too late for a
tour of the cathedral but the five o’clock evensong service was the perfect way
to experience this historic building.
|
St. Paul's Cathedral |
|
Statue of Queen Anne |
|
The Dome of St. Paul's Cathedral |
Photography isn’t allowed in St. Paul’s but
we got a unique view of Wren’s dome (which was modelled after the Pantheon in
Rome) from the roof terrace of One New Change Mall.
|
One New Change Mall Elevator |
|
View from the Elevator |
|
View of St. Paul's Cathedral from One New Change Mall Terrace |
|
Terrace Restaurant |
One of the few buildings to survive the
Great Fire is Prince Henry’s Room at 17 Fleet Street.
|
Prince Henry's Room, 17 Fleet Street |
Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in a narrow
alleyway off Fleet Street wasn’t so lucky but it was rebuilt. The pub lays
claim to Mark Twain and Charles Dickens among its regular patrons.
|
Fleet Street and View of St. Paul's |
|
Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese Pub Entrance |
Ye Olde Cock Tavern has the narrowest frontage
of all London pubs. This public house was also frequented by Charles Dickens as
well as diarist Samuel Pepys.
|
Ye Olde Cock Tavern, 22 Fleet Street |
In the midst of all these historic pubs we
had dinner at The Old Bank of England, a beautifully renovated bank building on
the site between Sweeney Todd’s notorious barber shop and Mrs. Lovett’s pie
shop. I had fish and chips (not a meat pie) and a free drink on the house.
|
The Old Bank of England Pub, 194 Fleet Street |
In my next post we’ll return to modern
times and go shopping at some of London’s world-class stores plus visit an exhibition
on one of my favourite bands, The Rolling Stones.
My Tip for the Day:
Attending services like evensong allows you
to enter churches after regular tour hours – and admission is free.
No comments:
Post a Comment
All comments are moderated.
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.