History of London

What do you know about history of London?

Pre-reading tasks

Let’s check out what you know about London

1. How old is London?

2. Is London one of the world’s largest cities?

3. Which two great tragedies happened to London?

4. What sights worth visiting do you know in London?

Look through the text and say whether the following statements are true or false

1. London was built by the Roman invaders.

2. London grew stronger under the Tudor rule.

3. During the reign of Edward the Confessor London was a wealthy and successful city.

4. Two awful disasters happened in London during the reign of Elizabeth I.

5. The Great Plague followed immediately after the Great Fire.

6. Many of the buildings in London today were built during the reign of Victoria.

LONDON

London was begun by the Romans about 2,000 years ago. They called their town Londinium. The Romans invaded England in 43 AD and decided to build a settlement on the north bank of the river Thames.

Edward the Confessor (1042-1066) built a wooden palace at Westminster. Later Parliament met here. Because of this Westminster became the seat of government not the city of London itself.

Christianity grew stronger in Anglo-Saxon Britain. In 604 AD a cathedral was founded in London and named after the apostle, Saint Paul. There is still a cathedral on the site, St Paul’s Cathedral.

London grew in importance under the Tudor rule. It became the centre of trade and government. By the end of the Tudor era there were about 200,000 people living in London.

During the reign of Elizabeth I, London was a wealthy and successful city. Theatre became popular, helped by the arrival of playwright William Shakespeare sometime between 1585 and 1593. The most famous theatre is The Globe, in which Shakespeare owned a share. His plays were performed there. The original theatre was burnt down in 1613 and immediately rebuilt, but closed by the Puritans in 1642. In the 1990s a new Globe Theatre was built, as close to the original as possible, and thrives with constant productions of Shakespeare’s plays.

The first Stuart King, James I, came to the throne in 1603. In 1605 a group of men tried to blow up both him and the Houses of Parliament. This Gunpowder Plot failed.

London suffered two disasters in later Stuart years. In 1665 the Great Plague killed about 70,000 people. The bubonic plague was brought to London by rats on board of trading ships. It spread very quickly because people lived in very close quarters and hygiene standards were very low.

In 1666 the Great Fire of London destroyed two thirds of the City: 13,200 houses, 430 streets and 89 churches. The fire could be seen from forty miles round the capital. It started as a small fire accidentally in Pudding Lane in the City of London, and raged for four days as an enormous fire.

To prevent such a disaster happening again King Charles II commanded that all new houses in London should be of stone and brick, not wood. Sir Christopher Wren constructed St Paul’s Cathedral as well as many churches.

In 1714, George I became king. London quickly grew in size and population during the Georgian era. In 1801 the population reached about one million. Merchants and bankers grew rich and many lived in the new West End. Other people suffered terrible poverty. Thousands lived in filthy East End slums, where disease, crime and drunkenness were common.

During the reign of Victoria, London expanded enormously as industry came to Britain and railways were built linking much of Britain to the capital. London was the centre of world trade and had a large, powerful Empire.

Many of the buildings in London today were built in Victorian times. The most famous is probably the Houses of Parliament, built in 1834 after a fire destroyed the original buildings.

The World first Underground railway (‘The Tube’) opened in 1862.

Notes

Romans - римляне, Rome – Рим. When in Rome do as the Romans do (proverb) – со своим уставом в чужой монастырь не ходят.

Londinium – the early name of London

Edward the Confessor – Эдуард Исповедник

under the Tudor/Stuart rule – при правлении Тюдоров/Стюартов

during the reign of Elizabeth I – Elizabeth the First

James I (James the First) – Яков I. Gunpowder Plot – «Пороховой заговор»

Charles II (Charles the Second) – Карл II

William Shakespeare – one of the most prominent writers of England

Sir Christopher Wren – Сэр Кристофер Рэн

to invade – завоевывать, invader – захватчик

bubonic Plague – бубонная чума

Sights

St. Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, Westminster Palace, the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, the Globe, the Tube, the Tower, the British Museum, Trafalgar Square, Nelson’s Column, Buckingham Palace

Ex.1 Match the main events of London with the ruling kings and queens

Ex.2 Tell your friend about history of London using the key words

Roman invaders, to build a settlement, Anglo-Saxons, a wealthy city, the Great Plague, the Great Fire, stone buildings, size and population growth, Victorian times, the Tube.

Ex.3 Find additional information about places of interest in London and prepare a walking tour. Act as a guide of a tourist group. Use the following phrases:

I. Good morning, dear ladies and gentlemen!

Welcome to Exciting London tours.

I am your guide, my name is ….

Today you will enjoy a bus tour around London.

We are to start at ….

Then we are going to have a look at … and ….

After that you’ll be able to enjoy a marvelous view of ….

Also, we’ll see … with its famous ….

Besides, you will have a chance to watch ….

Finally, you will be able to make photos of ….

II. Let’s begin our tour. This is ….

Not far from … you can see ….

Look to the right, here is ….

In front of you there is ….

Next to … you see ….

Here is ….

This is ….

III. Have you got any questions?

Thank you for your attention. I hope you’ve enjoyed our tour!

We can also offer you walking tours and or individual tours around the city.