Virtually all travelers who find themselves inGreat Britain, they want to visit its capital. It's not surprising, because the history of London is already about two millennia, full of events, including bloody ones. What can you tell about the creation and development of the political, economic and cultural center of the United Kingdom, its interesting sights?
The history of London: the beginning
The first mention of the capital of foggy Albiondate back to 43 year of our era. In fact, the history of London begins with the landing of Roman legionaries on the British Isles. Moving deep into the territory, the troops met with an obstacle, which became the famous Thames. The crossing of the river meant the construction of a bridge. For the work of the Romans were forced to establish a camp on the north bank of the Thames, which received the name Londinium.
Если верить записям ученого Тацита, уже в 51 году The new settlement deserved the title of the mainstay of trade. At first it was surrounded by an earthen wall, later (around the beginning of the fourth century) it was replaced by a stone wall. The history of London shows that the city survived the hard times associated with the collapse of the Roman Empire. The buildings were destroyed, the number of residents of the city has significantly decreased. However, already in the seventh century, London began to reborn. It was then that the city acquired the first cathedral, named after St. Paul.
In the ninth century, the former Londinium returnedreputation of the center of trade, but there was a new problem - the raids of the Vikings. The order was able to guide only the monarch Edward the Confessor, in the middle of the 11th century proclaimed the Anglo-Saxon rule in the city.
Middle Ages
История Лондона в период средневековья также is rich in events. In the 11th century, Westminster Abbey was erected on its territory, in which the famous William the Conqueror was crowned in 1066. Through the king's efforts the settlement became rich and large. In 1209, the famous London Bridge, crossing the Thames, was built, it existed for about 600 years.
Временной период, охватывающий 12, 13 и 14-й century, proved a difficult test for this settlement. The history of the city of London shows that he was briefly captured by the French, survived a peasant revolt. The plague epidemic was also a serious problem.
Beneficial for the capital of foggy Albionwas the period of the Tudor dynasty. At this time, London was among the largest European shopping centers. Positively affected by its development weakening of Spain, defeated in the war of 1588.
New time
Tudors were replaced by Stuarts, however the capitalcontinued to flourish. By the way, London acquired the status of the main city of Great Britain in 1707. In the same century, there is a restoration of St. Paul's Cathedral, destroyed in the fire, the construction of the Westminster Bridge. Buckingham Palace becomes the main residence of kings.
In the 19-20th centuries, the city survived industrialization andurbanization, the number of its inhabitants has grown to a million people. In 1836, the construction of railroads began, in 1863 in London there was a subway. Of course, there were also problems, for example, cholera epidemics, which can easily be explained by rapid population growth.
Information on losses incurred in the period of the Secondworld, also contains the history of London. Briefly: the capital repeatedly suffered from bombing enemy aircraft, many buildings were destroyed. It is known only an approximate number of casualties among civilians - 30 thousand people.
Description
Of course, not only the creation history is interesting.Of london What is the main city of the United Kingdom today? It is known that this settlement is the second largest city located in Europe. Its area is approximately 1,580 square kilometers.
How many people live in the capital MistyAlbion? According to the latest data, this figure is approximately 8.5 million. The inhabitants of the city are not only British, but also Irish, Asians, Indians and others.
Interesting Facts
London’s history says that the city is far fromalways wore its modern name. In various annals that have survived to this day, this locality is referred to as Londinium, Lyudenburg, Lyudenvik. The 17th century is considered to be the bloodiest in the history of the capital. It was at this time that its inhabitants faced such shocks as the Great Plague that killed more than 60 thousand people, the Great London fire, which destroyed many buildings with historical value.
Locals often call their city"Big smoke". This is due to the Great Smog - a catastrophe that occurred in 1952. Within five days the settlement was shrouded in smoke, this happened as a result of excessive concentration of industrial enterprises in its territory. The great smog claimed the lives of about four thousand people.
In the world there is no subway, built before the London. Its inhabitants in London have called it “the pipe”, since it is this form that most of the tunnels have.
London History Museum
The inhabitants of the capital of Great Britainrelate to the history of the beloved city. Proof can be the Museum of History of London, the number of exhibits which has long exceeded one million. Everything that is connected with the life of a settlement, beginning with the times preceding its foundation, is stored in this building.
The grand opening of the museum was held in 1976year, it is located next to the Cathedral of St. Paul. Anyone can visit it for free. At the moment, the most interesting exhibit is the coach of the Lord Mayor.
Museum of Natural History
The Natural History Museum in London appeared inIn 1881, he first worked as part of the British Museum, and later officially separated from him. The building is famous for rare exhibits from the world of zoology, botany, mineralogy, and paleontology. First of all, its popularity among residents and visitors of the city is due to the fact that among the exhibits there are dinosaur remains.
For example, in the Museum of Natural History (its second name) you can see the skeleton of diplodocus, whose length is 26 meters. Also, visitors are shown a mechanical model of a tyrannosaur.
Bright sights
Fortunately, the eventful history of Londonrecorded not only in textbooks. It can be studied by exploring the sights, which is deservedly famous for the capital of foggy Albion. For example, the Tower of London - a fortress that has existed for over 900 years, found almost the entire bloody history of Britain. At the moment, it has been turned into a unique museum complex, inside of which there are many interesting exhibits.
Вестминстерское аббатство – превосходный образчик Gothic architecture, existing for several centuries and admiring for its elegance. It was here that the coronations of the British rulers took place for more than a thousand years, and here are the graves of prominent representatives of the nation - not only monarchs, but also scientists and writers. The British Museum contains such a number of exhibits that it is impossible to study all of them even for a few days. The building area is 6 hectares. Not to mention, and Buckingham Palace, in which 775 rooms.
