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History of London
London is the capital of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is the largest city in Europe and one of the largest cities in the world with the population of 11 million people. About a fifth of the total population of the UK lives in the Greater London area that is in London and its suburbs.
A visitor going to London expects to see a giant city, but the real size of London impresses even those who have been well informed. The territory of Greater London covers an area of 720 square miles and is twice as great as the territory of New York, though its population is almost twice smaller. London is a city which was never planned, it has no city centre, and it is a constellation of once separate towns and villages grown together.
London is more than twenty centuries -old. The Romans founded a settlement on the River Thames and called it Londinium. But the word is probably of Celtic origin meaning "lake fortress" . When there was a rising tide in the sea, the waters of the Thames covered almost the whole place where the town was standing, making a great lake. Even now the city needs huge security buildings protecting the city from the floods.
A high hill that was never covered with water became the place where the first fortress was built. At first it was earthen, but later it was made of stone. The line where the walls of this fortress were became the boundary of the City of London.
There were many beautiful buildings in medieval City of London, but most of them were wooden. When the Great Fire broke out in 1666, almost, the whole City was ruined by the fire.
After the fire the City could not be reconstructed, it had to be built again. A commission of six architects was organized for this business and Sir Christopher Wren was the most talented of them. It was forbidden to build wooden houses in the City of London.
Today the City is only the central part of London, its business and financial centre. Numerous banks, offices and firms are situated there, including the Bank of England and the Stock Exchange. Only about five thousand people live permanently in the City but nearly a million works there. In the day-time the streets of the City are crowded but late at night they are deserted.
Besides the City the most important parts of London are the West End, the East End and Westminster. They are very different from each other and seem to belong to different towns and epochs.
The West End is the richest and the most beautiful part of London. It’s the symbol of wealth and luxury. Life doesn’t stop here until late at night or even early in the morning. The best hotels, shops, restaurants, clubs, theatres, museums, art galleries, concert halls are situated there. Its streets and parks are the finest in the capital.
Hyde Park is the largest and the most popular of the London parks. It was formerly a deer park and royal hunting ground. Today Hyde Park is the place for all sorts of national parades and mass meetings. There is Speaker’s Comer in it where orators of all types declare their various opinions for those who wish to hear.
Westminster is the historic, the governmental part of London. Westminster Abbey is regarded as the centre of the Westminster area which is sometimes called the City of Westminster. Westminster Abbey has more historic associations than any other building in Britain. When in the thirteenth century the first English Parliament was called here, the Westminster area was a separate City of Westminster. Westminster Abbey is the most important church in the country. Kings and queens are crowned, married and buried here. Here is also the grave of the Unknown Soldier who represents the fallen in the First World War. Many outstanding statesmen, scientists, writers, poets and painters are buried here: Newton, Darwin, Chaucer, Dickens, Tennyson, and Kipling.
The East End was once the poorest district of London - with lots of factories and docks, narrow streets and unimpressive buildings. Today the district is changing very fast. There are huge offices and new blocks of flats in the East End. The Port of London is situated here.
London is a cosmopolitan city. People of several races and many nationalities live there. A survey carried out in the 1980-ies found that 137 different languages were spoken in the homes of just one district of London.