Churchill & London

I couldn't leave the Guildhall (yes, still there, sorry!) without including some of their fine statues. This one of Churchill appealed to me particularly, especially because of the London connection.

Think of London's spirit, and you think of the Blitz, and Churchill was always there, always seen as part of the indomitable spirit that carried us through that war. Here he is in the ruins of the bit of the Guildhall that was bombed.

Building on the past

If you are wondering why the Guildhall is featuring so strongly these last few days, it's because I got to explore it for free on the London Maze.

The London centred Art Gallery and museum is small, but perfectly formed. Not only are there odd bits of London History - like this trowel with magnificent ivory (!!) handle, but also fascinating information. I particularly enjoyed finding out how bit of old buildings get reused in other places. I would say it is worth the modest entrance fee, or it appears you can see a lot more for free on Fridays.

The Guildhall

I've always felt that is London had a heart, the Guildhall is where it beats. The word itself is probably Saxon in origin, and excavation has uncovered a Roman amphitheatre, showing this has been an important site for at least two thousand years.

This shot is of the vaulted arches around the Great Hall that probably date from the 15th Century - the Guildhall was the only non-church stone building to survive the great fire in 1666.

Gog & Magog

Neatly tying together recent events and commemorations, here is the statue of Magog in the Guildhall. Gog & Magog were two giants that were defeated by Brutus, the first king of Britain, and chained where the Guildhall stands. They make the rounds with the Lord Mayor's parade each year, and have done for hundreds of years. These carvings are modern replacements, as the more ancient versions went up in flames in the Blitz.

Read about Gog & Magog's story here.

Do you measure up?

This is a GOOD story. If you know about London, you may have known about the standards of length to be found in Trafalgar Square and the Greenwich Observatory but did you know about this one in the Great Hall in the Guildhall? You did? OK. But do you know how they came to be there? Let me tell you.

The UK Accounting System until 1782 was tally sticks. That's right, sticks with notches cut in them. So tax records were quite bulky, and kept in the Houses of Parliament along with a few forests representing the accounts. In 1834, they decided they weren't needed any more and gave the job of destroying them to two not very bright caretakers. Who fed them into the boilers. All at once. And did the job Guy Fawkes couldn't manage and burnt down the houses of Parliament. Quite a pretty sight by all accounts, and one that Turner immortalised. But the fire also destroyed the official Imperial Standards of Length, Weight etc so these secondary references were eventually put up in the places we now see.

If you are looking for something to do today, it's the Lord Mayor's Parade, centred on the Guildhall - but you won't be able to go in and see this.