This Week In London’s History
- Monday – 20th June 1934: Work starts on dismantling the original Waterloo Bridge, designed by John Rennie and opened in 1821, to allow for a more structurally sound replacement. The first stone is removed by Herbert Morrison, leader of the London County Council.
- Tuesday – 21st June 1887: Queen Victoria celebrates her Golden Jubilee with a procession through London that, according to Mark Twain, “stretched to the limit of sight in both directions”.
- Wednesday – 22nd June 1907: The deep-level ‘Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway’ opens. It would later form part of the Northern Line.
- Thursday – 23rd June 1912: Alan Turing is born in Maida Vale, West London. He would become a leading World War II cryptographer, whose techniques would be instrumental in breaking a number of German ciphers at Bletchley Park. He is considered by some to be the father of modern computer science.
- Friday – 24th June 1509: A lavish double coronation takes place in Westminster Abbey, as Henry VIII and his new wife, Catherine of Aragon, are crowned.
London Quote Of The Week
London is a small place, and it is very incestuous. People know where you live. Everybody is sort of on top of each other.
Jeanette Winterson
Photo by TheFella via the Londonist Flickr pool.
