How London Became The Capital City Of The World

[Music] London the capital city of the United Kingdom is home to approximately 8.9 million people nearly 40% of whom were born overseas this makes the modern Metropolis one of the most diverse and Multicultural cities on the planet although you may think this Accolade is a recent result of the globally interconnected world we live in today London has surprisingly been home to a wide array of people from both near and far for the past 2,000 years from the Romans to the Normans and the Stewarts to the victorians London's unique position throughout history has seen it become

the epicenter of Empires political movements destructive conflicts and cultural synergies these have layered themselves upon one another over successive centuries shaping the modern city we know today but how did London grow from a small provincial Town into one of the largest and most renowned metropolises on the planet this is how London became the capital city of the world the city that would one day become the mega Metropolis of London owes its existence to the arrival of the Romans in Britain almost 2,000 years ago when the legions invaded the island in the year 43 ad they

constructed a defensive settlement on the Northern side of the river temps naming it londinium like most cities founded by the Romans it was strategically situated at the narrowest point of the river that allowed for the construction of a bridge thereby connecting it to the wider Road and sea route networks of the Empire the initial settlement of londinium was small and remained vulnerable to attack just over a decade after its founding a massive armed rebellion led by the Celtic queen buddika against Roman rule swept across the greater Southeastern port portion of the country in 60 AD

resulting in the complete destruction of londinium as well as the other major Roman settlements of culo dunam and veru lamium after the sack of the city and queen budda's subsequent defeat by the Roman Legions londinium was gradually rebuilt as a planned town a forum was constructed sometime in the ' 80s ad and it soon boasted many other major public buildings including the largest Basilica built north of the Alps as well as numerous temples bathouses an Amphitheater as well as a large Fort for the city's Garrison by the turn of the first century londinium was home

to as many as 60,000 people and had replaced camulod dunam modern day Colchester as the provincial capital of Britannia sometime between 190 and 225 ad it was decided to build a defensive wall around the city to protect its inhabitants from future attacks the London and wall would Define the city's perimeter for many centuries to come and Incorporated six of the seven historical Gates of the city lgate New Gate alers gate gate Bishop's gate and old gate with only more gate being added later in medieval times by the fifth century however the Roman Empire was in

Rapid Decline and the year 410 marked the departure of the last Roman legion from Britain bringing an end to nearly 400 years of Roman occupation of the island with this withdrawal the city of londinium was largely abandoned by the end of the century it was only with the arrival of the Anglo-Saxons in Britain that the city of London was given a new lease of life just a quickly pause for a moment and let you know that making these videos involves a lot of work on our side from researching script writing and animation to editing and

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your first month of therapy when these Germanic tribes migrated across the North Sea from what is now Northern Germany and Denmark in the fifth and sixth centuries they initially left the abandoned Roman city as it was and focused on constructing their own settlement named ludeni to the west of the Roman walls in the area around what is now Covent Garden by the late 7th Century it had a population of around 10,000 people and was home to a flourishing Port as well as the first iteration of St Paul's Cathedral which was founded by the first post

Roman Bishop of London melitus in the year 604 the presence of a Christian place of worship in the city helped promote the conversion of the Pagan Anglo-Saxon peoples to Christianity in the decades that followed however by the 9th century the prosperous trading center and the religious Treasures housed in ludvic began to attract the attention of other Pagan peoples from overseas who were bent on seizing this wealth for themselves the Viking age in Britain began with the well-documented raid on the monastery of lindes fan in 793 and shortly afterwards other treasure Laden centers of worship across

the British Isles had form fall en victim to their attacks London was no exception recording its first Viking raid in the 830s these raids increased in number and intensity over the following years until the Vikings switched tactics from raiding to invading in the year 871 London was occupied by the great Heathen Army which reportedly camped within the old Roman Walls by 886 the city had been retaken by English forces under the leadership of Alfred the Great who ordered that the Saxon settlement of lenvik be moved back within the old Roman city walls the fortifications were

subsequently rebuilt as was the bridge that crossed the river temps and the settlement was renamed as lenur the city's size and Commercial wealth meant that it steadily grew in importance over the following centuries although it faced competition for political prominence from the traditional Anglo-Saxon capital of Winchester despite suffering further Viking attacks in the 10th and early 11th centuries London remained intact upon the orders of king Edward the Confessor it became a new center for royal power with the foundation of Westminster Abbey the church was completed around 1060 and was consecrated shortly before Edward's Death in

January 1066 Westminster Abbey then became a focal point for Royal religious ceremonies in the country with Edward being the first of 18 monarchs to be buried within the church and his successor King Harold godwinson becoming the first of 40 kings and queens to be coronated in the same building the year 1066 however would Mark a pivotal moment in London's history as well as that of the wider country the Norman conquest of England was launched by Duke William of Normandy in response to what he perceived as the wrongful succession of King Harold godwinson to the English

Throne believing himself to be the rightful air William invaded England defeated Harold's Anglo-Saxon Army at the Battle of Hastings and then marched on London to have himself crowned as the new King in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066 under the new Norman regime fortresses were built across the country to suppress the native population and within London itself several new fortifications were constructed the most prominent of these were situated at the Eastern end of the city where an initial Timber fortification was replaced with the first ever Stone Castle in England from that point onwards the Tower

of London as it became known would be greatly expanded over the following decades and centuries serving as a Bastion of royal power that was projected across the city and Country as a whole at this point London was by far the largest and most important city in England though it was not yet considered to be the nation's capital Winchester retained this honorary title as most institutions associated with royal power remained situated there it was only after a fire destroyed much of Winchester in the 11th century that the Royal offices relocated to London a further strengthening of

the city's Royal connections occurred in 1097 when King William II began the construction of Westminster Hall originally intended as a resident for the king rather than as a meeting place for Parliament London's development accelerated ated rapidly during the medieval period with its population rising from 15,000 in 1100 to well over 80,000 by 1300 aside from its predominantly native born population the city was home to several foreign communities including French wine Traders Flemish textile Merchants as well as Danish and German seafarers a sizable Jewish population also resided in the city having settled therea their entry into

the country following the Norman Conquest around 10 70 most of London was still confined within the city walls at this time though the area south of the river known as souk was also growing in importance passage over the river had been made possible by a wooden bridge that existed in various forms for centuries but in 1176 the timber Bridge was replaced with a more permanent Stone structure upon its completion in 1209 the New London Bridge had a gate house at its southern end and was LED with houses on either side which rose several stories high

and protruded over the river for over 600 years it remained the only way to cross the river temps on foot London's development was not only marked by physical construction but also by the establishment of its political institutions the first recorded mayor of the city Henry Fitz elwin took office in 1189 and the city's right to political representation was confirmed in the magnet Carter signed by King John in 1215 this formerly declared London's unique privileges separating it from the rule of the rest of the country and ensuring its independent governance by its own citizenry rather than

by royal power London's Fierce protection of its independence was largely motivated by the valuable trade that flowed through its markets almost all of England's wealthy merchants lived in London and they along with the craftsmen who supported their businesses organized themselves into guilds these guilds regulated their respective trades and ensured consistent standards across various professions the oldest of these the Weavers company was granted a royal Charter in 1155 and over the years many other guilds are Incorporated including the Mercers Brewers goldsmiths iron mongers butchers and plumbers among many others despite the prosperity on a the tightly

packed winding streets of the city were hot beds for disease the most destructive of which struck London in 1348 the Black Death decimated the population and at its height killed 200 londoners every day the city's dense population was also prone to breakdowns in social order there were countless riots and rebellions during the Middle Ages but none was more prominent than the peasants Revolt of 1381 this saw an army of several thousand country folk march on London to protest against the exorbitant tax rates imposed upon them the uprising led to the ransacking of the city during

which many opulent buildings were destroyed and government officials killed Law and Order was difficult to establish in medieval London although there were several jails in the city for imprisoning those suspected of committing crimes there was no police force yet established to prevent crime in the first place instead a system of deterrence was employed to show criminals what would happen should they be caught those convicted of lesser crimes might be placed in the stocks or pillar but for those convicted of the most serious crimes and sentence to death they were taken to one of the city's

execution grounds at tyon Smithfield or Tower Hill to meet a Grizzly end in front of a large jeering crowd the dawn of the 16th century and the accession of the chuda dynasty to the English Throne marked a significant turning point in London's history as it became one of the largest and most important cities in the world some of the earliest cartographic representations of London emerged during this time illustrating the growing scale and development of the city the Flemish artist Anton vanen vingard produced a panoramic image of London in 1543 showing that the city had begun

to expand beyond the confines of its walls particularly Westwoods towards the center of governmental power in Westminster the City's population also boomed during this period quadrupling from 50,000 in 1530 to over 200,000 by 16003 this growth was largely due to London's increasing importance as a center of Commerce which attracted people from across the country with the Allure of higher wages and the potential to make a fortune London's trading connections similarly expanded Beyond its immediate Neighbors in Western Europe to further a field including Russia America Africa and India many Merchants organized themselves into trading companies such

as the mosy company and the East India Company which accelerated the adoption of capitalism and lay the groundwork for the English and later British Empire which would spread to every corner of the globe when chuda londoners were not making money they were busy spending it in the city's numerous entertainment establishments in taverns and brothels had existed for many centuries already but the most defining cultural offering to emerge from this period was the theater initially confined to galleried coaching in and the houses of the upper classes plays became so popular and successful that dedicated theaters were

built in 1574 the city banned any such establishments within its walls prompting their construction on the outskirts the most famous of these was the globe in suuk which hosted many of the era's most influential and famous works produced by William Shakespeare as the chuda period gave way to that of the Stewart ERA with the death of Queen Elizabeth the in 16003 London began its transition into becoming a modern city though this transformation was only made possible through the occurrence of several Civ disruptive political and social events during the 17th century the first of these came

about in 16005 when a group of discontented English Catholics attempted to blow up King James I and his government during the state opening of parliament on the 5th of November although the plot was uncovered with the discovery of guy Forks surrounded by barrels of gunpowder in the basement of the building the subsequent trial and execution of the conspirators in Westminster set the tone for the other bloody events that were to follow when King James I first son Charles I inherited the throne in 1625 he quickly alienated many members of parliament with his increasingly autocratic rule

which eventually boiled over into a bitter Civil War erupting throughout the country in 1642 London's inhabitants quickly declared themselves in favor of the parliamentarian cause and constructed a ringwork of fortifications around the city to protect it from a royalist attack yet within a few years the ti turned in parliament's favor and King Charles I was captured and tried for treason on the 30th of January 1649 he was executed outside the banqueting house in London with his head being removed with one Fell Swoop of the executioners a in the decade following this London remained the political

center of the country although it was now governed as a republic until the monarchy was restored in 1660 with King Charles II being crowned in inside Westminster Abby in the following year London nevertheless remained a dangerous and volatile place for it was struck by plague in the year 1665 which claimed the lives of a staggering 60,000 people to make matters worse in the following year of 1666 a great fire swept through the city and destroyed the greater part of it confined within the old medieval walles in the fire's aftermath building regulations were introduced and the

city was reconstructed largely in stone and brick much of this process was carried out under the aices of the eras famed architect Sir Christopher Ren who rebuilt St Paul's Cathedral and 52 other churches within the city as well as a monument to the fire itself which remains standing to this day further construction saw the development of the West End of London which formed the new playground for The aristocratic Elite who built Mansions theaters and coffee houses in areas like Cent garden and St James's this cemented the separation of the more exuberant upper class area surrounding

the Royal Court in Westminster and the middle class mertile city of London which towards the end of the 17th century housed the headquarters of the bank of England the East India Company and the insurance firm Lloyds of London all of which played an instrumental role in supporting the international trade that flowed out of the Cities expanding docklands to the east [Music] with the dawning of the 18th century London's population had swelled to half a million people a sizable minority of these formed London's growing immigrant communities comprising not only of other Europeans like the Irish and

Jews but also those from further a field like Africa the Caribbean and Asia the city's continuing expansion bore witness to some of London's most iconic landmarks coming into existence during this period 10 Downing Street became the official residence of the Prime Minister in 1732 with Robert woole being the first to reside in the building and Buckingham Palace was purchased by George III and remodeled as a royal residence in 1761 more bridges were also built over the temps to ease the congestion on London Bridge with Westminster bridge opening in 1750 and black fries bridge opening in

1769 by the time the 19th century arrived D London had become the largest city in the world and was home to over 1 million people although this would grow to 6.7 Million by the end of the century the Industrial Revolution played a large part in the expansion of the Metropolis as people from the countryside flocked into the city in search of work many however would be forced into overcrowded poverty stricken slums the likes of which were immortalized in Charles dickens's novel Oliver Twist as the City's population Rose so did its crime rate and in 1829

the then Home Secretary and future Prime Minister Robert Peele established the Metropolitan Police which would serve the entire urban area over the following decades the force would become involved in solving some of London's most notorious crimes such as the case of Jack the Ripper who terrorized the East End in the late 1880s the most transformative aspect of London during this time came with the arrival of the railways this spurred the massive outward growth of the city as a network of tracks connected the developing middleclass suburbs around London to the main Railway termin of the city

center such as Houston puttington watero Kings Cross and ST pankas which in turn were linked by the underground tube Network in 1851 London hosted the Great Exhibition at the Crystal Palace which showcased the technological and cultural marvels of the age the fair was a huge success attracting 6 million visitors from across the world and promoted Britain at the height of its Imperial dominance other notable London landmarks were constructed during the 19th century such as Trafalga Square Big Ben the houses of Parliament and towerbridge however despite the Pomp and opulence that London was portraying to the

world the city itself remained a dirty and unsanitary place for most of its inhabitants frequent outbreaks of chera struck during this period and in 1858 the river temps which had always been used to carry away the city's sewage and Industrial Waste reached breaking point and produced a smell so terrible that contemporaries described it as the great stink a solution to the city's filthy problem was proposed by civil engineer Joseph baselet who organized the construction of a modern sewer system to move London's waist far Downstream to to the east this brought an end to the CER

outbreaks and his actions are thought to have saved more lives than the efforts of any other Victorian official the city's most drastic and irreversible changes however would occur in the 20th century when it was forced to face the social economic and political Fallout from two of the world's most destructive conflicts the first world war saw London experience its first aerial bombing raids carried out by Germans Zeppelins and later by airlanes these Air Raids killed around 670 people and caused Great Terror among London's population although a far greater impact of the war was felt in the

number of londoners who were killed in combat with about 124,000 men never returning from the front the second world war which broke out some 20 years later rought even more unimaginable destruction on the city in anticipation of air raids from the German Luft wafer thousands of London's children were evacuated to the countryside to escape the bombing and the citizens who remained behind in the city were forced to hide in homemade bomb shelters or underground stations the heaviest bombing took place during the blitz between September 1940 and may 1941 when London was subjected to 71 separate

raids with over 18,000 tons of high explosive being dropped the city of London itself and the adjacent docklands were the main targets of the German bombers which destroyed many commercial industrial and historic buildings however somewhat remarkably St Paul's Cathedral survived unscathed by the end of the war some 30,000 londoners had been killed by the bombing and hundreds of thousands were made homeless the postwar years saw London transform into the city that it is today the overcrowd crowed Victorian housing much of which had been damaged during the war was pulled down to make way for new

developments additionally New Waves of immigrants began to arrive in the city with many coming from the dominions of the British Empire adding a new Cosmopolitan and Multicultural Dynamic to the streets of the capital the city also bore witness to a cultural revolution in the' 60s as London became the center of a worldwide Movement exemplified by The Swinging 60s made famous by the ESS of British musicians such as the Beatles And The Rolling Stones as the New Millennium Dawn London in the 21st century established itself as truly being one of the world's greatest and most influential

cities almost every nationality and language is now represented within the Metropolis which is undoubtedly a direct result of the past two Millennia of History drawing people from all walks of life to its streets in search of the opportunities that can be found there from the Romans to the Normans and the Stewarts to the victorians London's unique position throughout history has arguably made it not just the capital of Britain but perhaps even the whole world