The Monument (London)

I knew nothing about The Monument before visiting London about 20 years ago I'm fascinated by history (hence my visit to Tintagel Castle whilst on my most recent holiday), and it intrigued me to know why there was an underground station called Monument - what was it, and why was it there? So, after walking out of the station to find this towering statue in this narrow lane came as a surprise, and yes towering - at 61m high I found it incredibly difficult to see the very top. It was built between 1671 and 1677 as a commemoration to the Great Fire of London and a celebration of the rebuilding of the city of London. The fire itself starting ...  Read the complete review

In 1666 London burnt down. When London was rebuilt it was decided that, although people were starving and homeless after losing their houses and most of their belongings, a monument would be built in memorial of the fire. Centuries later that monument is still standing, although if you are planning to visit The Monument you will be pleased to know that there has been a lot of maintenance work done on it. I had no interest in Monument at all. I was aware that it existed, I knew why it had been built but it just didn't interest me at all. However, when I found myself in the City with a couple of friends and one of them suggested that we go to the Monument I ...  Read the complete review

"In corners and upon steeples, and between churches and houses, as far as we could see up the city, a most horrid, bloody, malicious flame, not like the flame of an ordinary fire." - Samuel Peyps' eyewitness statement about the Great Fire of London in 1666. It started apparently on Sunday night, 2nd September, in a bakehouse down Pudding Lane, near what was then East Smithfield. London was a mainly wood-constructed city, but even the stone buidlings offered little resistance to the inferno. Now please forgive this huge chunk taken from an old book that I have, but although I'm middle-aged, even I wasn't around back then to be able ...  Read the complete review

Just tucked away in a quiet corner of The City, off Eastcheap, lies The Monument – a reminder of the Great Fire of 1666. Designed by Sir Christopher Wren, the Monument is 202ft tall – if you were to lay this column down and point it West, the tip would sit on the spot where the fire actually started. Tourists can pay a fee (was a pound when I went! A few years ago now) to enter the column and climb the 311 spiral steps up to the balcony. From here, much of the city can be seen. Interestingly, you get a much better feel for the City from this viewpoint – the new buildings blending with the old, and the hurried commuters below. ...  Read the complete review