The Gates Of The City
On this first day of the year let us contemplate those places of going out and coming in, specifically the old gates of the City of London.
Discovering the sixteenth century figures of Old King Lud and his sons that once stood upon Ludgate yet are now forgotten in an alley of Fleet St, made me think more closely of the gates that once surrounded the City.
So I was delighted to come upon this eighteenth century print in the Spitalfields Market for a couple of pounds with the plangent title “The City Gates As They Appeared Before They Were Torn Down.”
Printed in 1775, this plate recorded venerable edifices that had been demolished in recent decades and was reproduced in Harrison’s History of London, a publication notable for featuring Death and an Hourglass upon the title page as if to emphasise the mutable, ever-changing nature of the capital and the brief nature of our residence in it.
Moorgate (demolished 1761)
Aldgate (demolished 1761)
Bishopsgate (demolished 1760)
Cripplegate (demolished 1760)
Ludgate (demolished 1760)
Newgate (demolished 1767)
Aldersgate (demolished 1617)
Bridgegate (demolished 1762)
The City Gates As They Appeared Before They Were Torn Down, engraved for Harrison’s History of London 1775
Sixteenth century figures of King Lud and his sons that formerly stood upon Ludgate, and stowed ever since in an alley at the side of St Dunstan in the West, Fleet St
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Happy New Year to you dear GA! I love seeing old London and last yeari was lucky enough to look around the Temple Bar, which stood originally in Fleet Street as the gate between Westminster and the City. It used to be bedecked with the heads of criminals. When one fell off, into the street, it was replaced with another. What a gruesome thought!
However, Temple Bar was lucky to survive, despite several moves, including being a grand entrance to a country estate. It seems that the 1760s were a very bad decade for London’s gates. What were they thinking? Only the names have survived.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful find with us.
+++ A PEACEFUL NEW YEAR 2025! +++
+++ EIN FRIEDLICHES NEUES JAHR 2025! +++
+++ UNE NOUVELLE ANNÉE 2025 PAISIBLE ! +++
Thanks for all the stories from London’s East End so far — I’m looking forward to the next ones in the new year!
Love & Peace
ACHIM
Fascinating. AaI love the stories that you have been able to tell about London. The 17602 seem to be a difficult time for these gates. What was going on then that they were torn down?
These engravings are so stately. I loved seeing the grouping of 8 – my collage-artist-self would love to discover a sheet like this at an ephemera fair and scoop it up for my collection. It was notable to me that every opening was arched — not a squared-off entryway in the bunch. Graceful and
ever-beautiful.
Thanks for bringing these wonders to us, every day.
Happy New Year, GA and readers.
With these fine engravings available it should be possible to rebuild these gates, imagine, what a project that would be for London, well worthwhile I think !
Happy New Year.