Last Day in London

Well it is our last day to be part of the history and sights of London.

Geoff had planned a jam packed day and we spent quite a bit of time running between things.

First stop was St Lawrence Jewry. This church was destroyed in the Great Fire and rebuilt by Wren. In 1940 it was destroyed in the Blitz and was destroyed in the Blitz. It was rebuilt again in 1957 to the Wren design.

Then it over to the Guildhall across the square. Although we have been in the square several times we hadn't been inside. There is an interesting art gallery and below the floor level is the remains of the Roman amphitheatre.

Someone had told us to pop our head into the actual working part of the Guildhall as it was worthwhile. We were not prepared for the magnificence of this original building. It has been used as a town hall for several hundred years, and is still the ceremonial and administrative centre of the City of London and its Corporation. The term Guildhall refers both to the whole building and to its main room, which is a medieval great hall.

The current building was begun in 1411 and completed in 1440, and it is the only stone building not belonging to the Church to have survived through to the present day.

 

Then it was a race to get to the starting point of our tour around Bermondsey.

Apparently these streets were some of the worst slum areas in London. Great improvements were made by a Dr Salter and his wife who devoted their lives to the improvement of the local people. This set of houses were built by the Salters as an example of how quality housing could be made available to the poor. He was also the local labour MP for the area and was greatly loved by the people.

The people of Southwark raised the money for the statues of Dr Salter and his wife Ada and their cat.

Their daughter died when she was eight from Scarlet Fever which was prevalent in the slums. Apparently they never got over it but continued to work for the poor.

We walked past King Edward III manor house. When the residence was constructed in around 1350, Rotherhithe was a small hamlet set in low lying marshland. The manor house itself was built upon a small island directly next to the River Thames and consisted of a range of stone buildings around a central courtyard.

There was a moat on three sides of the complex, with the north side being completely open to the River Thames. This allowed the king to arrive by boat and at high tide to moor up against the steps that led from the river to a gatehouse located in a tower. There was also a hall with a large and imposing fireplace, the king's private chambers, kitchens and other buildings. Further south, on drier land, was an outer court with other buildings surrounded by an earth bank.

The most popular theory about its purpose is that this was where the king practiced his falconry, with the birds being able to stay within eyeshot across the flat marshlands and the River Thames.

The pub where Captain Kidd used to drink and he was executed on the waterfront in front of it.

The Mayflower sailed from the wharf in front of this pub.

The highlight of the tour was hearing about Brunel's tunnel. At the start of the 19th century, there was a pressing need for a new land connection between the north and south banks of the Thames to link the expanding docks on each side of the river. This tunnel is beneath the river connecting Rotherhithe and Wapping. It measures 11 m wide by 6m high and is 396 m long, running at a depth of 23m below the river surface measured at high tide. It was the first tunnel known to have been constructed successfully underneath a navigable river and was built between 1825 and 1843 using Marc Isambard Brunel's and Thomas Cochrane's newly invented tunnelling shield technology, by Brunel and his son Isambard Kingdom Brunel.

The tunnel was originally designed for, but never used by, horse-drawn carriages. It now forms part of the London Overground railway network.

After a quick meeting and goodbye with Patrick we had some lunch. In the afternoon we visited the Florence Nightingale museum which I have wanted to do for ages. It was very interesting from a historical point of view as well as being able to pay my respects to someone I have always admired!

And then we just hung around and gazed upon our favourite piece of London. It was sunny and warm and the Houses of Parliament just shone.

So it with great ambivalence that we go home tomorrow. We still love the UK and there is still so much to see. But we have missed our wonderful family so much over this long time of being away. So torn!