Long-time London resident and avid museum and theatre-goer. I started this blog in 2014, and got serious about it in 2020 when I realised how much I missed arts and culture during lockdowns. I go to a lot more events than anyone would think is sensible, and love sharing my thoughts in the forms of reviews, the occasional thought piece, and travel recommendations when I leave my London HQ.
A walk along the boundaries of London’s Roman city walls reveals few traces of Londinium but centuries of London history.
The book for today’s walk is Discovering London’s Curiosities by John Wittich, published in 1973.
Discovering The Roman City
So, then. While cultural activities are outdoors-only, I am continuing my series of heritage walks to dust off my collection of guidebooks and discover different aspects of London’s history. Last time we traced the path of the Neckinger River from the Oxo Tower to St Saviour’s Dock. Today we will be following the path of London’s Roman city walls, starting and ending at the Tower of London.
Roman London is an interesting thing. The city’s Roman history is not as visible as that of many other places in the former Roman Empire. But at the same time it’s more visible than in somewhere like Paris. It is almost always unexpected – a Temple of Mithras in the basement of the Bloomberg Building, a section of wall behind a hotel or next to an Underground station. London is constantly changing, and has never been one to let history stand in the way of progress. Following the footprint of the Roman city walls is therefore no easy task and requires a great deal of imagination.
Luckily I had a handy guide to help me in my task – John Wittich‘s Discovering London’s Curiosities. I dug out this slim volume during the first lockdown, and used it on a riverfront walk. This time I was able to use it to follow the path of the former city walls. Despite the book being almost 50 years old I didn’t need to make too many modifications; almost all the sights were there, with the exception of a few post-war office blocks with Roman-themed mosaics, now demolished. Join me now as we trace the city walls, starting at the Tower of London.
A Walk in Roman London – Around the Tower of London
We start our walk at the Tower of London. I was interested to learn that the Tower incorporates some of the Roman city wall. Next to the White Tower are ruins of a bastion from the corner of the wall. The northern side of the wall through the city was the original section. There was a mistaken belief that the Thames was sufficient protection on the river side. In fact, most attacks came from the water, and the wall later extended along the waterfront.
Near the underpass leading to Tower Hill Station can be seen the remains of a postern gate. A postern gate was a rear entrance which allowed pedestrians to pass but not wheeled vehicles. The main entrances through the city wall were once at Aldgate, Aldersgate, Newgate, Ludgate, and Bridge or South Gate. Most have survived in name, if not physically. The gates provided an opportunity to protect the city, but also to exact taxes or levies on incoming goods.Those who are not armed with a stack of guidebooks, can look out for these tiled plaques. Dating from the 1980s, they mark out a London Wall Walk, and are often very informative.
Here is our first proper section of Roman wall, just next to Tower Hill Station. The book says that more of it is visible from Platform 1 of the station. I haven’t commuted in so long that I genuinely can’t remember, but I don’t think it is exposed now. Anyway, this is a good opportunity to talk a bit more about the mechanics of the wall. It was originally about 30 feet high, with a sentry wall along the top. Kentish stone formed the outside, with a core of concrete and rubble. Different gangs of workmen used different numbers of tiles between sections of stone. Here we see three rows have been used at the bottom, and two higher up.
A Walk in Roman London – Tower Hill to Aldgate
An interesting section of the wall is on Coopers Row near Fenchurch Street Station. You pass through a hotel entrance to get to it, so between COVID and building works I think we were lucky it was a bank holiday and we could get this close. This section combines Roman and medieval elements – the windows are later.
One of the ways in which the wall lives on is in place names, like here at Crosswall.
It’s not just wall-related place names that hint at London’s past, however. Here at Crutched Friars we have a visual clue to a long-forgotten history.
Sir John Cass’s Foundation, which was once the only location in London for advanced scientific study. The guidebook pointed me towards the plaques on the wall, three of which are above. Many buildings in the City of London have similar plaques, notably to show that one of the city guilds owns them. Here the plaques are parish boundary markers, like St Katherine Cree on the left, and a Ward of Aldgate marker.
There is a lot of good public history in London, like this example at Aldgate.
The water coming from this pump in Aldgate tasted a little different from the rest. Investigation revealed that the water was passing through a cemetery. Ewwww… Thanks to my guidebook for pointing that out!
A Walk in Roman London – Houndsditch to Moorgate
Houndsditch ran along the outside of the Roman wall, and was so named because of the number of dead dogs left there in the Middle Ages. Charming! Nearby was Holy Trinity Priory, of which very little remains. In the image below can be seen a typical London mix of architectural styles, plus some public art from Sculpture in the City.
An atmospheric side view of Bevis Marks Synagogue, currently undergoing some renovation work. It was first built in 1701 by a Quaker who returned his fee to the congregation as a gesture of goodwill. My guidebook describes it as the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue, which I guess makes it Sephardi.
The church of All Hallows, London Wall is, as the name suggests, built next to/on the Roman city wall.
Moor House is one of the sites of interest from my 1970s guidebook which no longer exists. Previously I would have been able to see a mosaic depicting a Roman soldier. As it is there is not much in this area to bring to mind the fields, open-air ice rink or ‘hospital for lunatics’ which Moorgate and Moorfields used to house.
A Walk in Roman London – Around the Barbican
We are now heading up to the highwalks around the Barbican. My guidebook told me I would be able to see the redevelopment of the area after the devastation of the Blitz. These days the redevelopment is complete and the devastation a distant memory.
All that remains of the church of St Alphage are some ruins, which we will see shortly. Below is modern Salters’ Hall, as in the medieval city guild to do with the salt trade. The wrought iron gates in the image have had an eventful life. They were commissioned by Prince Albert, who died before he could do anything with them. The Salters then bought them, and have had to rescue them a couple of times after they fell into disrepair. They were located in this nice park only a couple of years ago after yet another restoration.
The ruins of St Alphage church and another section of London wall at Salters’ Garden. This section is Roman with medieval additions and then topped with Tudor brickwork. It gives a good sense of scale, especially as the exposed Roman section is actually the top of the original wall rather than the bottom.
Let’s take a moment to admire this very handsome section of wall.
Cripplegate, perhaps surprisingly, takes its name from ‘crepel’, which means ‘underground passage’. This was an after-hours entry to the city for those who could prove their identity/right to enter.
Next to the church of St Giles, Cripplegate is another section of Roman wall, including a corner bastion. Near here was the guard room of the Roman fort, which in the 1970s could be visited by prior arrangement. No chance of that during lockdown, at least!
St Giles is a bit of an oddity, stranded as it is in the middle of the brutalist Barbican.
And Finally, On To Ludgate And Back Along The River
One of the best sections of wall is at Noble Street between the Barbican and Aldersgate. Redevelopment after WWII bombings brought it to light.
Simple yet effective interpretation at the Noble Street section of wall.
From Aldersgate the traces of the Roman city are much fewer. There are still however a number of historic sites, like Christ Church Greyfriars. This church is one of the few casualties of WWII bombing left standing, and is now a public garden.
A historic remnant on the walk up to Newgate. Not many of these public fountains survive, and I don’t remember seeing any others with the cups chained to them. No water though!
Crossing Holborn Viaduct, which is one of my favourite views of the city and also a reminder that London does, after all, have hills! The photo is a bit of a cheat as it comes from another walk I did in the summer, but by this point I was getting cold and tired so I hope you will forgive the lapse.
There was nothing of note to photograph for you at Newgate or Ludgate, so let us turn back along the river at Blackfriars and wend our way home. As I mentioned at the outset, this was the final section of wall to be built, but actually the most strategically important to prevent attacks from the water.
And I did finally find some Roman-themed mosaics! These are on the Thames Path on the Northbank. Thank you for joining me on this walk through the city, I hope you have enjoyed reading it!
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