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| St. Pauls, but not from Paternoster Row |
From the top of St. Paul's I could see something which looked like H.V. Morton's description of Temple Bar. This was the historic entrance to the City from the Strand. This beautiful three arched gateway was built by Sir Christopher Wren after the Great Fire of London in 1666. It has a wide central arch for carriages and two small ones either side for pedestrians. H. V. Morton says: 'On the Westminster side were statues of Charles I and Charles II, on the City side were Queen Elizabeth and James I. People in the old days used to say that Elizabeth was pointing a white finger at Child's Bank, and that James I was saying to her, "Suppose we go to Whitehall and sit down a bit."'
The heads of traitors, on spikes, were set up on the Gate in Jacobean and Stuart times.
Now it is in Paternoster Square, a little bit of the U.K. owned by the Japanese. There are convenient toilets, which must have been a great help to the Occupy London camp in 2011. There is also a nice statue by Elizabeth Frink, and the Paternoster Square column, designed by Whitfield Partners, topped by a gold-leaf covered flaming urn which is actually a ventilation shaft.
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| Temple Bar from Paternoster Row |
When the Monarch formally visited the City the gates of Temple Bar would be shut. A herald would knock, the Lord Mayor of London, whose authority is just over the City, would offer the Keys of the City and the City Sword to the Monarch, and the Monarch would ceremoniously enter.
Road widening swept Temple Bar away to Theobald's Park in Herefordshire, so I was surprised to see something which looked like Wren's Gateway just by St. Paul's. But there it is in, in Paternoster Square. H.V. Morton would be surprised and delighted to see it. The move cost 3 million, paid for by the City Livery Companies and the Temple Bar Trust
18th century books often carry the imprint 'St. Paul's Churchyard' and many booksellers had their little shops on Paternoster Row. The name comes from the monks who would process to and from St. Paul's Cathedral reciting the Lord's Prayer, 'Pater noster' in Latin. On 29-30 December 1940 thousands of incendiary bombs destroyed about 5 million books here in a second Great Fire of London
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| St. Mary le Bow |
I had to see Wren's St. Mary le Bow, the church which defines cockneys as born within the sound of Bow bells. Well, the bells are now the signature of the BBC World Service, so cockneys must be spread all over the world. It is one of the very oldest London churches and the Norman crypt dates from about the same time as William the Conqueror's Tower of London. Dick Whittington is supposed to have heard these bells and turned back to London to make his fortune. and I walked there across and down Cheapside, which has lost all its old character as one of the great London street markets. St. Mary le Bow has beautiful stained glass windows by John Haywood, installed in 1963. In the churchyard there is a statue to former parishioner John Smith 1580-1671,'Citizen and Cordwainer' founder of Virginia the first British colony in what became the USA. The Native American Princess Pocahontas is supposed to have saved his life.
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| Sir John Smith |
I was determined to see Leadenhall Market as I have often passed it on a bus, so that was where I went next. It is a beautiful Victorian shopping arcade designed by Sir Horace Jones who also designed Smithfield and Billingsgate markets and is on the site of one of London's oldest street markets Before the Great Fire in 1666 there was a lead roof over the market but this melted in the fire. It was once full of fishmongers and butchers. Far underneath lie the Basilica and the Forum of Roman London. There I found the Lamb Tavern and Old Tom's Bar under it, dating back to 1780, and also, oh heaven, Pizza Express.
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