This Week In London’s History
- Monday – 12 August 1827: Renowned poet and painter William Blake dies. Five days later, he would be buried in an unmarked grave in Bunhill Fields.
- Tuesday – 13 August 1977: Hundreds of protesters clash with police at a National Front march in Lewisham. About 400 Socialist Worker Party members had gathered to try to prevent the National Front march, but had been prevented by police, leading to attacks on the police themselves and over 200 arrests.
- Wednesday – 14 August 1821: The funeral procession of Queen Caroline, wife of George IV, makes its way through London en-route to Harwich and a ship that would carry her body to Germany for burial. The originally prescribed route had deliberately avoided central London, but huge numbers of demonstrators had blocked all other viable routes and forced the procession to travel through the City. During the subsequent disturbances and rioting as crowds attempt to re-route the procession, many soldiers and civilians are hurt, and two are killed.
- Thursday – 15 August 1858: Edith Nesbit is born in Kennington. She would become a hugely prolific author of children's books, as well as a co-founder of the Fabian society.
- Friday – 16 August 2001: Princess Diana’s former butler, Paul Burrell, is charged with theft from her estate at West End Central police station. Amidst some controversy, the subsequent trial would later collapse as the Queen recalls a conversation suggesting that Burrell was merely ‘storing’ Princess Diana’s belongings.
Random London Quote Of The Week
I thought of London spread out in the sun
Its postal districts packed like squares of wheat
Philip Larkin, The Whitsun Weddings
Photo by O.F.E. via the Londonist Flickr Pool.
