135-606: Croydon Clocktower is an arts and museum complex located on Katharine Street in Croydon , London . The venue, which forms part of the 19th-century Town Hall , was opened as an arts and museum complex by Queen Elizabeth II in 1994. A notable early success was the Picasso exhibition in March to May 1995 named Picasso's Croydon Period . The venue contains the Museum of Croydon , Clocktower Café and
270-516: A frigidarium with two southern pools and an eastern swimming pool . Following the revolt, the Diocletian Reforms saw the British administration restructured. Londinium is universally supposed to have been the capital of one of them, but it remains unclear where the new provinces were, whether there were initially three or four in total, and whether Valentia represented a fifth province or
405-542: A commuter town for London. By the early 20th century, Croydon was an important industrial area, known for car manufacture, metal working and Croydon Airport . In the mid 20th century these sectors were replaced by retailing and the service economy , brought about by massive redevelopment which saw the rise of office blocks and the Whitgift Centre , the largest shopping centre in Greater London until 2008. Historically,
540-471: A temple of Isis was located there. Londinium grew up as a vicus and soon became an important port for trade between Roman Britain and the Roman provinces on the continent. Tacitus wrote that at the time of the uprising of Boudica , "Londinium... though undistinguished by the name of ' colony ', was much frequented by a number of merchants and trading vessels." Depending on the time of its creation,
675-498: A 43-storey tower, began on Wellesley Road in 2011 and was completed in 2016. Other developments with towers over 50 floors high have been given planning approval. These include the 54-storey "Menta Tower" in Cherry Orchard Road near East Croydon station, and a 55-storey tower at One Lansdowne Road, on which construction was set to begin in early 2013. The latter is set to be Britain's tallest block of flats, including office space,
810-411: A black border, 'with a tessellated floor, suggesting it may have had a higher status than normal, possibly acting as an antechamber for the aedes or shrine-room'. The alignment of the church is close to the lines of the basilica, being off by just two degrees, and it is feasible for the understructure to have utilized the dry solid 2nd century basilica wall fabric for support. If St Peter's was built in
945-556: A church, a mill, and around 365 inhabitants, as recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086. Croydon expanded in the Middle Ages as a market town and a centre for charcoal production, leather tanning and brewing. The brewing industry remaining strong for hundreds of years. The Surrey Iron Railway from Croydon to Wandsworth opened in 1803 and was an early public railway. Later 19th century railway building facilitated Croydon's growth as
1080-435: A decade. During the later decades of the 1st century, Londinium expanded rapidly, becoming Britannia's largest city, and it was provided with large public buildings such as a forum and amphitheatre. By the 2nd century, Londinium had grown to perhaps 30,000 or 60,000 people, almost certainly replacing Camulodunum ( Colchester ) as the provincial capital, and by the mid-2nd century Londinium was at its height. Its forum basilica
1215-473: A decline, finally closing in 1959. By the 1950s, with its continuing growth, the town was becoming congested , and the Council decided on another major redevelopment scheme. The Croydon Corporation Act was passed in 1956. This, coupled with national government incentives for office relocation out of Central London, led to the building of new offices and accompanying road schemes through the late 1950s and 1960s, and
1350-577: A first-century flagon suggests that a temple of Isis had existed much earlier. The Egyptian goddess was believed to have influence over the sea and hence the safety of seafarers. In 286, the emperor Maximian issued a death sentence against Carausius , admiral of the Roman navy 's Britannic fleet ( Classis Britannica ), on charges of having abetted Frankish and Saxon piracy and of having embezzled recovered treasure. Carausius responded by consolidating his allies and territory and revolting. After fending off Maximian's first assault in 288, he declared
1485-608: A four-star hotel and a health club. In May 2012 it was announced that Croydon had been successful in its bid to become one of twelve " Portas Pilot " towns and would receive a share of £1.2m funding to help rejuvenate its central shopping areas. In November 2013, Central Croydon MP Gavin Barwell gave a presentation at a public meeting on the Croydon regeneration project, detailing various developments underway due to be completed in coming years. On 26 November 2013, Croydon Council approved
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#17328585237361620-454: A grid skewed by major roads passing from the bridgehead and by changes in alignment produced by crossings over the local streams. It recovered after about a decade. The first forum was constructed in the 70s or 80s and has been excavated, showing it had an open courtyard with a basilica and several shops around it, altogether measuring about 100 m × 50 m (330 ft × 160 ft). The basilica would have functioned as
1755-557: A grid. The main streets were 9–10 m (30–33 ft) wide, while side streets were usually about 5 m (16 ft) wide. In 60 or 61 AD, a little more than ten years after Londinium was founded, the king of the Iceni died. He had possibly been installed by the Romans after the Iceni 's failed revolt against Publius Ostorius Scapula 's disarmament of the allied tribes in 47 or may have assisted
1890-503: A guesthouse. A marble slab with a dedication to the god Mars was discovered in the temple complex. The inscription mentions Londiniensi ('the Londoners'), the earliest known reference naming the people of London. By the second half of the 2nd century, Londinium had many large, well-equipped stone buildings, some of which were richly adorned with wall paintings and floor mosaics, and had subfloor hypocausts . The Roman house at Billingsgate
2025-483: A halt for stage coaches on the road south of London. At the beginning of the 19th century, Croydon became the terminus of two pioneering commercial transport links with London. The first, opened in 1803, was the horse-drawn Surrey Iron Railway from Wandsworth , which in 1805 was extended to Merstham , as the Croydon, Merstham and Godstone Railway. The second, opened in 1809, was the Croydon Canal , which branched off
2160-452: A large, new one billion pound shopping centre, in the form of a new Westfield shopping mall to add to the two which the company currently has in Greater London; Westfield plans to work jointly with Hammerson and to incorporate the best aspects of the two companies' designs. In November 2017, Croydon Council gave permission for the new Westfield shopping centre to be built and in January 2018,
2295-509: A large-scale attack forced Emperor Julian to send troops to deal with the problem. Large efforts were made to improve Londinium's defences around the same time. At least 22 semi-circular towers were added to the city walls to provide platforms for ballistae and the present state of the river wall suggests hurried repair work around this time. In 367, the Great Conspiracy saw a coordinated invasion of Picts, Gaels, and Saxons joined with
2430-461: A massive pier base for such a bridge were found in 1981 close by the modern London Bridge . Some Claudian -era camp ditches have been discovered, but archaeological excavations undertaken since the 1970s by the Department of Urban Archaeology at the Museum of London (now MOLAS ) have suggested the early settlement was largely the product of private enterprise . A timber drain by the side of
2565-509: A nearby schoolhouse and schoolmaster's house. There was a Warden in charge of the well-being of the almoners. The building takes the form of a courtyard surrounded by the chambers of the almoners and various offices. Threatened by various reconstruction plans and road-widening schemes, the Almshouses were saved in 1923 by intervention of the House of Lords . On 21 June 1983 Queen Elizabeth II visited
2700-472: A new Britannic Empire and issued coins to that effect. Constantius Chlorus 's sack of his Gallic base at Gesoriacum ( Boulogne ), however, led his treasurer Allectus to assassinate and replace him. In 296, Chlorus mounted an invasion of Britain that prompted Allectus's Frankish mercenaries to sack Londinium. They were only stopped by the arrival of a flotilla of Roman warships on the Thames, which slaughtered
2835-411: A pagan shrine room (also known as an aedes ). Wheeler proposed that a Christian church might have been established on its site and that this accounted for the later medieval legends. The possible existence of the shrine room is supported by 19th-century excavations under Gracechurch Street , immediately adjacent to the church's eastern end. These unearthed an adjoining room covered in yellow panels with
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#17328585237362970-558: A pageant held at Lloyd Park and an exhibition held at the old Croydon Aerodrome. The growing town attracted many new buildings. The Fairfield Halls arts centre and event venue opened in 1962. Croydon developed as an important centre for shopping, with the construction of the Whitgift Centre in 1969. No. 1 Croydon (formerly the NLA Tower) designed by Richard Seifert & Partners was completed in 1970. The Warehouse Theatre opened in 1977. The 1990s saw further changes intended to give
3105-550: A popular society venue attracting crowds to its fêtes . One widely publicised event was a "Grand Scottish Fete" on 16 September 1834 "with a tightrope performance by Pablo Fanque , the black circus performer who would later dominate the Victorian circus and achieve immortality in the Beatles song, Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite! " The spa closed in 1856 soon after the opening nearby of
3240-678: A redevelopment of the Town Centre by The Croydon Partnership, a joint venture by the Westfield Group and Hammerson. London Mayor Boris Johnson approved the plan the following day. The Croydon Advertiser listed the approval as an "Historic Night for Croydon". At Ruskin Square , a Boxpark made of sea containers opened in 2016 as a temporary measure until new buildings are constructed for shops, offices and housing. The London Evening Standard said that this and other developments were reviving
3375-479: A renaming of an older one. In the 12th century, Gerald of Wales listed "Londonia" as the capital of Flavia , having had Britannia Prima ( Wales ) and Secunda ( Kent ) severed from the territory of Upper Britain. Modern scholars more often list Londinium as the capital of Maxima Caesariensis on the assumption that the presence of the diocesan vicar in London would have required its provincial governor to outrank
3510-483: A score of 90%. The Zotefoams company has its headquarters in Croydon. For centuries the area lay within the Wallington hundred , an ancient Anglo-Saxon administrative division of the county of Surrey . In the later Middle Ages – probably from the late 13th century onwards – residents of the town of Croydon, as defined by boundary markers known as the "four crosses", enjoyed a degree of self-government through
3645-480: A short-lived Roman military camp, but the evidence is limited and this topic remains a matter of debate. Archaeologist Lacey Wallace notes "Because no LPRIA settlements or significant domestic refuse have been found in London, despite extensive archaeological excavation, arguments for a purely Roman foundation of London are now common and uncontroversial." The city's Latin name seems to have derived from an originally Brittonic one and significant pre-Roman finds in
3780-469: A single large fire or a series of smaller conflagrations. Fire destroyed substantial areas of the city in the area north of the Thames but does not seem to have damaged many major public buildings. There is very little evidence to suggest similar burning in the adjacent Southwark settlement. The Hadrianic fire (or fires) has normally been assumed to be accidental, but it has also been suggested that it could relate to an episode of political turbulence. During
3915-476: A smaller but stable settlement population as archaeologists have found that much of the city after this date was covered in dark earth —the by-product of urban household waste, manure, ceramic tile, and non-farm debris of settlement occupation, which accumulated relatively undisturbed for centuries. Some time between 190 and 225, the Romans built a defensive wall around the landward side of the city. The London Wall survived for another 1,600 years and broadly defined
4050-477: A smaller shrine for Roman services somewhere within the basilica. The first forum in Londinium seems to have had a full temple, but placed outside just west of the forum. By the turn of the century, Londinium was perhaps as large as 60,000 people and had replaced Camulodunum (Colchester) as the provincial capital. A large building discovered near Cannon Street Station has had its foundation dated to this era and
4185-650: A structure of two suffixes: -in-jo- . However, the Roman Londinium was not the immediate source of English "London" ( Old English : Lunden ), as i -mutation would have caused the name to have been Lyndon . This suggests an alternative Brittonic form Londonion ; alternatively, the local pronunciation in British Latin may have changed the pronunciation of Londinium to Lundeiniu or Lundein , which would also have avoided i -mutation in Old English. The list of
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4320-475: A supply depot and distribution centre like Ostia near Rome. Emperor Hadrian visited Londinium in 122. The impressive public buildings from around this period may have been initially constructed in preparation for his visit or during the rebuilding that followed the "Hadrianic Fire". The so-called fire is not mentioned in any historical sources but has been inferred by evidence of large-scale burning identified by archaeologists on several excavation sites around
4455-423: A town court or portmote , and a form of free tenure of property . These privileges set the area of the town apart from its rural hinterland, where the more usual and more restrictive rules of manorial tenure applied. However, Croydon did not hold any kind of formal borough status. In 1690, the leading inhabitants petitioned William III and Mary for Croydon to be incorporated as a borough. The application
4590-400: A weekly market , and this probably marks the foundation of Croydon as an urban centre. Croydon developed into one of the main market towns of north east Surrey. The market place was laid out on the higher ground to the east of the manor house in the triangle now bounded by High Street, Surrey Street and Crown Hill. By the 16th century the manor house had become a substantial palace, used as
4725-487: Is Grade II listed; it was built in four phases. starting with the engine house in 1851, with a further engine house in 1862, a further extension in 1876–7 to house a compound horizontal engine and a further extension in 1912. In 1883 Croydon was incorporated as a borough. In 1889 it became a county borough, with a greater degree of autonomy. The new county borough council implemented the Croydon Improvement scheme in
4860-511: Is a Perpendicular -style church, which was remodelled in 1849 but destroyed in a great fire in 1867, after which only the tower, south porch, and outer walls remained. A new church was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott , one of the greatest architects of the Victorian age , and opened in 1870. His design loosely followed the previous layout, with knapped flint facing and many of the original features, including several tombs. Croydon Parish Church
4995-463: Is a red brick building with stone dressings. Its three bays are divided by paired Doric pilasters supporting a triglyph frieze and panelled parapet. The Parish Church of St Michael and All Angels by John Loughborough Pearson in West Croydon was built between 1880 and 1885, and is Grade I listed. The development of Brighton as a fashionable resort in the 1780s increased Croydon's importance as
5130-545: Is a timber drain of 47 AD. It sat at a key ford at the River Thames which turned the city into a road nexus and major port (which was built between 49 and 52 AD ), serving as a major commercial centre in Roman Britain until its abandonment during the 5th century. Following the foundation of the town in the mid-1st century, early Londinium occupied the relatively small area of 1.4 km (0.5 sq mi), roughly half
5265-510: Is assumed to have been the governor's palace. It boasted a garden, pools, and several large halls, some of which were decorated with mosaic floors . It stood on the east bank of the now-covered River Walbrook , near where it joins the Thames. The London Stone may originally have been part of the palace's main entrance. Another site dating to this era is the bathhouse ( thermae ) at Huggin Hill , which remained in use prior to its demolition around
5400-543: Is the burial place of six Archbishops of Canterbury: John Whitgift , Edmund Grindal , Gilbert Sheldon , William Wake , John Potter and Thomas Herring . Historically part of the Diocese of Canterbury , Croydon is now in the Diocese of Southwark . In addition to the suffragan Bishop of Croydon , the Vicar of Croydon is a preferment . Addington Palace is a Palladian-style mansion between Addington Village and Shirley , in
5535-454: Is uncertain. The present structure of St Peter upon Cornhill was designed by Christopher Wren following the Great Fire in 1666, but it stands upon the highest point in the area of old Londinium and medieval legends tied it to the city's earliest Christian community. However, the east end of St Peter's and its high altar, is also positioned above the area where some basilicas of the period had
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5670-610: The 28 Cities of Britain included in the 9th-century History of the Britons precisely notes London in Old Welsh as Cair Lundem or Lundein . The pronunciation of Londinium in English is / l ʌ n ˈ d ɪ n i əm / lun- DIN -ee-əm , and its pronunciation in Classical Latin is [ɫɔnˈdɪniʊ̃ː] . The site guarded the Romans' bridgehead on the north bank of
5805-501: The Alemanni , who allegedly played a part in the proclamation of Constantine as emperor at York in AD 306. The town lies on the line of the Roman road from London to Portslade , and there is some archaeological evidence for small-scale Roman settlement in the area: there may have been a mansio (staging-post) here. Later, in the 5th to 7th centuries, a large pagan Saxon cemetery
5940-649: The Croydon Central Library . Other facilities which can be accessed from Croydon Clocktower include the David Lean Cinema , which offers a regular programme of art house and independent films, and the Braithwaite Hall, which is used for concerts, theatre and children's shows. Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London , England, 9.3 miles (15.0 km) south of Charing Cross . Part of
6075-535: The Grand Surrey Canal at Deptford . The London and Croydon Railway (an atmospheric and steam-powered railway) opened between London Bridge and West Croydon in 1839, using much of the route of the canal (which had closed in 1836). Other connections to London and the south followed. The arrival of the railways and other communications advances in the 19th century led to a 23-fold increase in Croydon's population between 1801 and 1901. This rapid expansion of
6210-533: The London market, most probably for medicinal purposes, and particularly for the treatment of granulation of the eyelids . There is also a plausible Brittonic origin for Croydon in the form "Crai-din" meaning "settlement near fresh water" (cf Creuddyn, Ceredigion ), the name Crai (variously spelled) being found in Kent at various places even as late as the Domesday Book . Alternative, although less probable, theories of
6345-595: The London Borough of Croydon , a local government district of Greater London , it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensive shopping district. The entire town had a population of 192,064 as of 2011, whilst the wider borough had a population of 384,837. Historically an ancient parish in the Wallington Hundred of Surrey, at the time of the Norman conquest of England Croydon had
6480-596: The London Borough of Croydon . Six archbishops lived there between 1807 and 1898, when it was sold. Between 1953 and 1996 it was the home of the Royal School of Church Music . It is now a conference and banqueting venue. Croydon was home to the Addiscombe Military Seminary (1809–1861), at which young officers were trained for the army of the East India Company . Croydon was a leisure destination in
6615-513: The Mayor of London , Sadiq Khan , approved the regeneration scheme. Work to demolish the existing Whitgift Centre was due to begin in 2018 and Westfield Croydon was initially to open by 2022. The Westfield plans were delayed and the planning permission elapsed: however, in 2021, Croydon Council confirmed they were committed to see the Westfield Centre proceed. There are several other major plans for
6750-750: The Thames and a major road nexus shortly after the invasion. It was centred on Cornhill and the River Walbrook , but extended west to Ludgate Hill and east to Tower Hill . Just prior to the Roman conquest, the area had been contested by the Catuvellauni based to the west and the Trinovantes based to the east; it bordered the realm of the Cantiaci on the south bank of the Thames. The Roman city ultimately covered at least
6885-460: The " Procurator " or " Publican of the Province of Britain at Londinium", the remains of a governor 's palace and tombstones belonging to the governor's staff have been discovered, and the city was well defended and armed, with a new military camp erected at the beginning of the 2nd century in a fort on the north-western edge of the city, despite being far from any frontier. Despite some corruption to
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#17328585237367020-459: The 12th century, claiming the city's Christian community was founded in the 2nd century under the legendary King Lucius and his missionary saints Fagan , Deruvian , Elvanus, and Medwin. None of that is considered credible by modern historians but, although the surviving text is problematic, either Bishop Restitutus or Adelphius at the 314 Council of Arles seems to have come from Londinium. The location of Londinium's original cathedral
7155-509: The 19th century, Charles Roach Smith estimated its length from the Tower west to Ludgate at about one mile (1.6 km) and its breadth from the northern wall to the bank of the Thames at around half that. In addition to small pedestrian postern gates like the one by Tower Hill , it had four main gates: Bishopsgate and Aldgate in the northeast at the roads to Eboracum ( York ) and to Camulodunum ( Colchester ) and Newgate and Ludgate in
7290-535: The A22 from Purley to the M25 Godstone interchange. Road traffic is diverted away from a largely pedestrianised town centre, mostly consisting of North End . East Croydon railway station is a hub of the national railway system, with frequent fast services to central London, Brighton and the south coast. The town is also at the centre of the only tramway system in southern England. As the vast majority of place names in
7425-553: The Almshouses and unveiled a plaque celebrating the recently completed reconstruction of the building. On 22 March each year the laying of the foundation stone is commemorated as Founder's Day. In 1864, the Catholic St Mary's Church in Croydon was opened. It was designed by E. W. Pugin and Frederick Walters in the Gothic Revival style . The Grade II listed West Croydon Baptist Church was built in 1873 by J. Theodore Barker. It
7560-486: The City of London. The best dating evidence for this event(s) comes from burnt stocks of unsold Terra Sigilatta pottery, which can be dated to c. 120–125. These were found in destroyed warehouse or shop buildings at Regis House and Bucklersbury. Hadrianic fire horizons tend to be dated to around the 120s to 130s, but it is difficult to prove that they are contemporary, and there remains some uncertainty as to whether they indicate
7695-573: The Crystal Palace which had been rebuilt on Sydenham Hill in 1854, following its success at the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park . Horse racing in the area took place occasionally, notably during visits of Queen Elizabeth I to the archbishop. Regular meetings became established first on a course at Park Hill in 1860 and from 1866 at Woodside , where particularly good prizes were offered for
7830-509: The Danish came our crook and crooked . This term accurately describes the locality; it is a crooked or winding valley , in reference to the valley that runs in an oblique and serpentine course from Godstone to Croydon." Anderson challenged a claim, originally made by Andrew Coltee Ducarel , that the name came from the Old French for "chalk hill", because it was in use at least a century before
7965-595: The East Croydon station, after a compulsory purchase order was rejected in 2008 at Cabinet level. On 22 November 2011, then Mayor of London Boris Johnson announced £23m of additional funding to help redevelop the town at the Develop Croydon Conference. Several apartment developments, for instance Altitude 25 (completed 2010), have been built in recent years, and several more are being built or planned. The construction of Saffron Square , which includes
8100-570: The French language would have been commonly used following the Norman Conquest . However, there was no long-term Danish occupation (see Danelaw ) in Surrey, which was part of Wessex , and Danish-derived nomenclature is also highly unlikely. More recently, David Bird has speculated that the name might derive from a personal name, Crocus : he suggests a family connection with the documented Chrocus , king of
8235-505: The Roman era, it would make the church contemporaneous to the potential Romano-British church at Silchester , similarly built adjacent to the Roman Basilica and most likely pre- Constantine in age. London certainly had a Christian community in 314 when Bishop Restitutus attended the Council of Arles. This community must have had some meeting place, and apart from St Peter's no other location has yet been proposed, either in antiquity or in
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#17328585237368370-481: The Romans against his tribesmen during that revolt. His will had divided his wealth and lands between Rome and his two daughters, but Roman law forbade female inheritance and it had become common practice to treat allied kingdoms as life estates that were annexed upon the ruler's death, as had occurred in Bithynia and Galatia . Roman financiers including Seneca called in all the king's outstanding loans at once and
8505-431: The Thames at a natural ford near Westminster before being diverted north to the new bridge at London. The Romans enabled the road to cross the marshy terrain without subsidence by laying down substrates of one to three layers of oak logs. This route, now known as Watling Street , passed through the town from the bridgehead in a straight line to reconnect with its northern extension towards Viroconium ( Wroxeter ) and
8640-523: The Thames, especially the Battersea Shield ( Chelsea Bridge , perhaps 4th-century BC) and the Wandsworth Shield (perhaps 1st-century BC), both assumed to be votive offerings deposited a couple of miles upstream of Londinium, suggest the general area was busy and significant. It has been suggested that the area was where several territories intersected. There was probably a ford in that part of
8775-474: The Walbrook at the centre of Londinium. Expansion of the flourishing port continued into the 3rd century. Scraps of armour , leather straps, and military stamps on building timbers suggest that the site was constructed by the city's legionaries . Major imports included fine pottery , jewellery and wine . Only two large warehouses are known, implying that Londinium functioned as a bustling trade centre rather than
8910-549: The area are of Anglo-Saxon origin, the theory accepted by most philologists is that the name Croydon derives originally from the Old English croh , meaning " crocus ", and denu , " valley ", indicating that, like Saffron Walden in Essex, it was a centre for the cultivation of saffron . It has been argued that this cultivation is likely to have taken place in the Roman period, when the saffron crocus would have been grown to supply
9045-543: The area of the City of London , whose boundaries are largely defined by its former wall . Londinium's waterfront on the Thames ran from around Ludgate Hill in the west to the present site of the Tower in the east, around 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi). The northern wall reached Bishopsgate and Cripplegate near the former site of the Museum of London , a course now marked by the street "London Wall". Cemeteries and suburbs existed outside
9180-441: The area of the modern City of London and equivalent to the size of present-day Hyde Park . In 60 or 61 AD, the rebellion of the Iceni under their queen, Boudica , compelled the Roman forces to abandon the settlement, which was then razed. Following the defeat of Boudica by the Roman governor Gaius Suetonius Paulinus a military installation was established, and the city was rebuilt. It had probably largely recovered within about
9315-485: The battle shortly thereafter at "a place with narrow jaws, backed by a forest", speaks against the tradition, and no supporting archaeological evidence has been yet discovered. After the sack of the city by Boudica and her defeat, a large military fort covering 15,000 m was built at Plantation Place on Cornhill , with 3m-high banks and enclosed by 3m deep double ditches. It was built as an emergency solution to protect Londinium's important trade and to help reconstruct
9450-414: The bridges near modern Staines . A minor road led southwest to the city's main cemetery and the old routes to the ford at Westminster. Stane Street to Noviomagus ( Chichester ) did not reach Londinium proper but ran from the bridgehead in the southern suburb at Southwark . These roads varied from 12–20 m (39–66 ft) wide. After its reconstruction in the 60s AD, the streets largely adhered to
9585-405: The church is also mentioned in Domesday Book . The will of John de Croydon, fishmonger, dated 6 December 1347, includes a bequest to "the church of S John de Croydon", the earliest clear record of its dedication . The church still bears the arms of Archbishop Courtenay and Archbishop Chichele , believed to have been its benefactors. In 1276 Archbishop Robert Kilwardby acquired a charter for
9720-415: The city at this date. Suetonius then returned to the legions' slower infantry, who met and defeated the Iceni army, slaughtering as many as 70,000 men and camp followers. There is a long-standing folklore belief that this battle took place at King's Cross , simply because as a mediaeval village it was known as Battle Bridge. Suetonius's flight back to his men, the razing of Verulamium ( St Albans ), and
9855-508: The city proper. A round temple has been located west of the city, although its dedication remains unclear. Substantial suburbs existed at St Martin-in-the-Fields in Westminster and around the southern end of the Thames bridge in Southwark , where excavations in 1988 and 2021 have revealed an elaborate building with fine mosaics and frescoed walls dating from 72 AD. Inscriptions suggest
9990-407: The city's administrative heart, hearing law cases and seating the town's local senate. It formed the north side of the forum, whose south entrance was located along the north side of the intersection of the present Gracechurch , Lombard , and Fenchurch Streets . Forums elsewhere typically had a civic temple constructed within the enclosed market area; British sites usually did not, instead placing
10125-465: The city's economy. Although Londinium remained important for the rest of the Roman period, no further expansion occurred. Londinium remained well populated, as archaeologists have found that much of the city after this date was covered in dark earth which accumulated relatively undisturbed over centuries. Some time between 190 and 225, the Romans built the London Wall, a defensive ragstone wall around
10260-422: The city. It dominated the town and lay over the main road into Londinium controlling traffic from London Bridge and on the river. Several major building projects at this time such as roads, a new quay and a water lifting machine indicate the army had a key role in reconstruction. The fort was in use for less than 10 years. The city was eventually rebuilt as a planned Roman town , its streets generally adhering to
10395-446: The construction of a riverside wall. It ran roughly along the course of present-day Thames street , which roughly formed the shoreline. Large collapsed sections of this wall were excavated at Blackfriars and the Tower in the 1970s. An inscription found on a third-century stone altar recorded the rebuilding of a temple of Isis by the governor of Britannia Superior – Marcus Martiannius Pulcher . An earlier inscription found on
10530-522: The corner of North End and George Street, were erected by Archbishop John Whitgift. He petitioned for and received permission from Queen Elizabeth I to establish a hospital and school in Croydon for the "poor, needy and impotent people" from the parishes of Croydon and Lambeth . The foundation stone was laid in 1596 and the building was completed in 1599. The premises included the Hospital or Almshouses, providing accommodation for between 28 and 40 people, and
10665-480: The corners and at points along each wall. Londinium's amphitheatre , constructed in 70, is situated at Guildhall . When the Romans left in the 4th century, the amphitheatre lay derelict for hundreds of years. In the 11th century, the area was reoccupied, and by the 12th century the first Guildhall was built next to it. A temple complex with two Romano-British temples was excavated at Empire Square, Long Lane, Southwark in 2002/2003. A large house there may have been
10800-487: The country. There was a market on Surrey Street . Croydon was the location of London's main airport until the Second World War. During the war, much of central Croydon was devastated by German V-1 flying bombs and V-2 rockets , and for many years the town bore the scars of the destruction. After the war, Heathrow Airport superseded Croydon Airport as London's main airport, and Croydon Airport quickly went into
10935-544: The earlier one over a period of 30 years from around 90 to 120 into a square measuring 168 m × 167 m (551 ft × 548 ft). Its three-storey basilica was probably visible across the city and was the largest in the empire north of the Alps ; the marketplace rivalled those in Rome and was the largest in the north before Augusta Treverorum ( Trier , Germany) became an imperial capital. The city's temple of Jupiter
11070-473: The early 1890s, which widened the High Street and cleared much of the "Middle Row" slum area. The remaining slums were cleared shortly after Second World War , with much of the population relocated to the isolated new settlement of New Addington . New stores opened and expanded in central Croydon, including Allders , Kennards and Grade II listed Grants , as well as the first Sainsbury's self-service shop in
11205-415: The early 2nd century, Londinium was at its height, having recovered from the fire and again had between 45,000 and 60,000 inhabitants around 140, with many more stone houses and public buildings erected. Some areas were tightly packed with townhouses ( domus ). The town had piped water and a "fairly-sophisticated" drainage system. The governor's palace was rebuilt, and an expanded forum was built around
11340-423: The early 3rd century. The northwest fort was abandoned and dismantled but archaeological evidence points to renewed construction activity from this period. The London Mithraeum rediscovered in 1954 dates from around 240, when it was erected on the east bank at the head of navigation on the River Walbrook about 200 m (660 ft) from the Thames. From about 255 onwards, raiding by Saxon pirates led to
11475-452: The empty 24-storey St George's House office building, occupied by Nestlé until September 2012, into 288 flats. In 2007, events were held under the label of Croydon Exp07 to promote billions of pounds of promised projects, including swimming pools and a library. However, plans for a new shopping centre, to be called Park Place , had already been abandoned amid a scandal about cash for peerages . Also abandoned were plans for an arena near
11610-413: The former associations of the sites had probably died down. There is more evidence that early English Christian churches met in private homes and that some Roman villas also converted rooms to dedicated places of Christian worship. In 1995 a large and ornate 4th-century building on Tower Hill was discovered: built sometime between 350 and 400, it seems to have mimicked St Ambrose 's cathedral in
11745-490: The garrison at Londinium. The Iceni and their allies overwhelmed them and razed the city. The 9th Legion under Quintus Petillius Cerialis , coming south from the Fosse Way , was ambushed and annihilated . The procurator Catus Decianus , meanwhile, escaped with his treasure to Gaul , probably via Londinium. Gaius Suetonius Paulinus had been leading the 14th and 20th Legions in the Roman conquest of Anglesey ; hearing of
11880-424: The imperial capital at Milan on a still-larger scale. It was about 100 m (330 ft) long by about 50 m (160 ft) wide. Excavations by David Sankey of MOLAS established it was constructed out of stone taken from other buildings, including a veneer of black marble. It was probably dedicated to St Paul. From 340 onwards, northern Britain was repeatedly attacked by Picts and Gaels . In 360,
12015-556: The lack of written and inscribed sources. (It was customary elsewhere to name roads after the emperor during whose principate they were completed, but the number and vicinity of routes completed during the time of Claudius would seem to have made this impractical in Britain's case.) The road from the Kentish ports of Rutupiae ( Richborough ), Dubris ( Dover ), and Lemanis ( Lympne ) via Durovernum ( Canterbury ) seems to have first crossed
12150-416: The landward side of the city. Along with Hadrian's Wall and the road network, the London Wall was one of the largest construction projects carried out in Roman Britain. The wall was originally about 5 km (3 mi) long, 6 m (20 ft) high, and 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) thick. Its dry moat ( fossa ) was about 2 m (6 ft 7 in) deep and 3–5 m (9.8–16.4 ft) wide. In
12285-404: The legionary base at Deva Victrix ( Chester ). The Great Road ran northeast across Old Ford to Camulodunum ( Colchester ) and thence northeast along Pye Road to Venta Icenorum ( Caistor St Edmund ). Ermine Street ran north from the city to Lindum ( Lincoln ) and Eboracum ( York ). The Devil's Highway connected Londinium to Calleva ( Silchester ) and its roads to points west over
12420-510: The life of the town well into the early modern period , and as local patrons they continue to have an influence. Croydon appears in Domesday Book (1086) as Croindene , held by Archbishop Lanfranc . Its Domesday assets included 16 hides and 1 virgate of land; a church; a mill worth 5s; 38 plough -teams; 8 acres (3.2 ha) of meadow ; and woodland for 200 hogs . It had a recorded population of 73 households (representing roughly 365 individuals); and its value in terms of taxes rendered
12555-583: The linchpin of a cultural quarter encompassing nearby College Green. Plans include an art gallery, a new college , shops and offices, with a multi-storey car park set for demolition to make space for 218 homes. As of 2011, Croydon's annual retail turnover from comparison goods was £353 million, the fifth-highest in Greater London behind the West End , Shepherd's Bush , Stratford and Kingston upon Thames . Croydon had as of 2012 320,991 square metres (3,455,120 sq ft) of total town centre floorspace,
12690-469: The main Roman road excavated at No 1 Poultry has been dated by dendrochronology to 47 AD. Following its foundation in the mid-1st century, early Roman London occupied a relatively small area, about 350 acres (1.4 km ) or roughly the area of present-day Hyde Park . Archaeologists have uncovered numerous goods imported from across the Roman Empire in this period, suggesting that early Roman London
12825-453: The main summer home of the archbishops and visited by monarchs and other dignitaries. However, the palace gradually became dilapidated and surrounded by slums and stagnant ponds, and in 1781 the archbishops sold it, and in its place purchased a new residence at nearby Addington . Nevertheless, many of the buildings of the original Croydon Palace survive, and are in use today as Old Palace School . The Parish Church (now Croydon Minster )
12960-502: The mid 19th century. In 1831, one of England's most prominent architects, Decimus Burton , designed a spa and pleasure gardens below Beulah Hill and off what is now Spa Hill in a bowl of land on the south-facing side of the hill around a spring of chalybeate water. Burton was responsible for the Beulah Spa Hotel (demolished around 1935) and the layout of the grounds. Its official title was The Royal Beulah Spa and Gardens. It became
13095-444: The modern era. There is, however, some conflicting evidence to the theory that St Peter's was deliberately cited above a pagan shrine room. Current research suggests it was very rare for early English Christian churches to be founded in pagan temples and that when temples were turned into churches, this occurred later, in the late 6th century and onwards. This was also true elsewhere in the Roman Empire; for example in Rome. By this time
13230-401: The modesty of Londinium's first forum may have reflected its early elevation to city ( municipium ) status or may have reflected an administrative concession to a low-ranking but major Romano-British settlement. It had almost certainly been granted colony ( colonia ) status prior to the complete replanning of the city's street plan attending the erection of the great second forum around
13365-520: The name's origin have been proposed. According to John Corbet Anderson: "The earliest mention of Croydon is in the joint will of Beorhtric and Aelfswth, dated about the year 962. In this Anglo-Saxon document the name is spelt [here he uses Old English characters] Crogdaene . Crog was, and still is, the Norse or Danish word for crooked, which is expressed in Anglo-Saxon by crumb , a totally different word. From
13500-403: The north and another to the west – but these were not along major roads. Aldersgate was eventually added, perhaps to replace the west gate of the fort. (The names of all these gates are medieval, as they continued to be occasionally refurbished and replaced until their demolition in the 17th and 18th centuries to permit widening the roads.) The wall initially left the riverbank undefended: this
13635-435: The others. The governor's palace and old large forum seem to have fallen out of use around 300, but in general the first half of the 4th century appears to have been a prosperous time for Britain, for the villa estates surrounding London appear to have flourished during this period. The London Mithraeum was rededicated, probably to Bacchus . A list of the 16 "archbishops" of London was recorded by Jocelyne of Furness in
13770-562: The perimeter of the old City of London. The etymology of the name Londinium is unknown. Following Geoffrey of Monmouth 's pseudohistorical History of the Kings of Britain , it was long published as derived from an eponymous founder named Lud , son of Heli . There is no evidence such a figure existed. Instead, the Latin name was probably based on a native Brittonic place name reconstructed as * Londinion . Morphologically, this points to
13905-413: The provincial procurator confiscated the property of both the king and his nobles. Tacitus records that when the king's wife Boudica objected, the Romans flogged her, raped her two daughters, and enslaved their nobles and kinsmen. Boudica then led a failed revolt against Roman rule. Two hundred ill-equipped men were sent to defend the provincial capital and Roman colony at Camulodunum, probably from
14040-525: The races run under National Hunt rules. In that sphere its prestige was second only to Aintree , home of the Grand National . Increasing local opposition to the presence of allegedly unruly racegoers coupled with the need to obtain a licence from the local authority led to it being closed down in 1890. The Elizabethan Whitgift Almshouses , the "Hospital of the Holy Trinity", in the centre of Croydon at
14175-485: The rising, he immediately returned along Watling Street with the legions' cavalry. An early historical record of London appears in Tacitus's account of his actions upon arriving and finding the state of the 9th Legion: At first, [Paulinus] hesitated as to whether to stand and fight there. Eventually, his numerical inferiority—and the price only too clearly paid by the divisional commander 's rashness—decided him to sacrifice
14310-518: The river; other Roman and Celtic finds suggest this was perhaps where the opposed crossing Julius Caesar describes in 54 BC took place. Londinium expanded around the point on the River Thames narrow enough for the construction of a Roman bridge but still deep enough to handle the era's seagoing ships. Its placement on the Tideway permitted easier access for ships sailing upstream. The remains of
14445-528: The second highest in Greater London only behind the West End. Apart from its large central shopping district, Croydon has a number of smaller shopping areas, especially towards the southern end of the town in which are many restaurants. As of 2011, two of Croydon's restaurants were listed in The Good Food Guide . In a 2015 study by CACI , Croydon was ranked 12th in the "Hot 100 UK retail locations" with
14580-406: The single city of Londinium to save the province as a whole. Unmoved by lamentations and appeals, Suetonius gave the signal for departure. The inhabitants were allowed to accompany him. But those who stayed because they were women, or old, or attached to the place, were slaughtered by the enemy. Excavation has revealed extensive evidence of destruction by fire in the form of a layer of red ash beneath
14715-474: The survivors. The event was commemorated by the golden Arras Medallion , Chlorus on one side and on the other a woman kneeling at the city wall welcoming a mounted Roman soldier. Another memorial to the return of Londinium to Roman control was the construction of a new set of forum baths around 300. The structures were modest enough that they were previously identified as parts of the forum and market but are now recognised as elaborate and luxurious baths including
14850-602: The terms of the London Government Act 1963 ) the County Borough of Croydon was abolished and the area was transferred to Greater London and combined with the Coulsdon and Purley Urban District to form the London Borough of Croydon . The borough has on several occasions sought city status . (This would be a purely honorific change of title, making no practical difference to the borough's governance.) A draft petition
14985-404: The text, the list of bishops for the 314 Council of Arles indicates that either Restitutus or Adelphius came from Londinium. The city seems to have been the seat of the diocesan vicar and one of the provincial governors following the Diocletian Reforms around 300; it had been renamed Augusta —a common epithet of provincial capitals—by 368. Unlike many cities of Roman Britain, Londinium
15120-611: The town a more attractive image. These included the closure of North End to vehicles in 1989 and the opening of the Croydon Clocktower arts centre in 1994. An early success of the centre was the " Picasso 's Croydon Period" exhibition of March–May 1995. The Croydon Tramlink began operation in May 2000 (see Transport section below). The Prospect West office development was built in 1991 to 1992, and its remodelling planned in 2012 has now been completed. Renamed Interchange Croydon when it
15255-412: The town boomed as a business centre in the 1960s, with many multi-storey office blocks, an underpass , a flyover and multi-storey car parks . The redeveloped town centre has since been identified as an " edge city " – a significant urban and commercial centre in its own right, located on the outskirts of a larger metropolitan area (in this case, London). In 1960 Croydon celebrated its millennium with
15390-566: The town formed part of the County of Surrey , and between 1889 and 1965 a county borough , but it was amalgamated into Greater London in 1965. Croydon lies on a transport corridor between central London and the south coast of England, to the north of two high gaps in the North Downs , one taken by the A23 Brighton Road and the main railway line through Purley and Merstham and the other by
15525-519: The town including the redevelopment of the Croydon Gateway site; and extensions of Tramlink to Purley Way, Streatham , Lewisham and Crystal Palace . Croydon has many tall buildings such as the former Nestlé Tower (St George's House). The London Borough of Croydon's strategic planning committee in February 2013 gave the go-ahead to property fund manager Legal and General Property's plans to convert
15660-434: The town led to considerable health problems, especially in the damp and overcrowded working class district of Old Town. In response to this, in 1849 Croydon became one of the first towns in the country to acquire a local board of health . The Board constructed public health infrastructure including a reservoir , water supply network , sewers , a pumping station and sewage disposal works. The Surrey Street Pumping Station
15795-409: The town which was in the process of gentrification. A Croydon Vision 2020 plan was drawn up by Croydon Council after a 1999 study by town planning consultants EDAW . The plan includes new office blocks, apartment buildings, shopping centres and other developments, some of which have already been built. More than 2,000 new homes are planned. A redeveloped Fairfield Halls has been planned to be
15930-598: The wall at the City Wall at Vine Street Museum opened to the public. Septimius Severus defeated Albinus in 197 and shortly afterwards divided the province of Britain into Upper and Lower halves, with the former controlled by a new governor in Eboracum ( York ). Despite the smaller administrative area, the economic stimulus provided by the wall and by Septimius Severus's campaigns in Caledonia somewhat revived London's fortunes in
16065-421: The west along at the road that divided for travel to Viroconium ( Wroxeter ) and to Calleva ( Silchester ) and at another road that ran along the Thames to the city's main cemetery and the old ford at Westminster . The wall partially utilised the army's existing fort, strengthening its outer wall with a second course of stone to match the rest of the course. The fort had two gates of its own – Cripplegate to
16200-455: The year 120. By this time, Britain's provincial administration had also almost certainly been moved to Londinium from Camulodunum (now Colchester in Essex ). The precise date of this change is unknown, and no surviving source explicitly states that Londinium was "the capital of Britain," but there are several strong indications of this status: 2nd-century roofing tiles have been found marked by
16335-478: The year 200. Brothels were legal but taxed. A large port complex on both banks near London Bridge was discovered during the 1980s. The bulk of the Roman port was quickly rebuilt after Boudicca's rebellion when the waterfront was extended with gravel to permit a sturdy wharf to be built perpendicular to the shore. The port was built in four sections, starting upstream of the London Bridge and working down towards
16470-574: Was "the largest town which does not have the title of City in the whole of Western Europe". The grounds on which it has been turned down have invariably been that it is (as was stated in 1992) merely "part of the London conurbation, rather than a place with a character and identity of its own". Undeterred, council representatives have more than once described Croydon as "a city in all but name". In 2008, Boris Johnson , then Mayor of London, said he would support Croydon being awarded city status. Roman London Londinium , also known as Roman London ,
16605-444: Was a highly cosmopolitan community of merchants from across the empire and that local markets existed for such objects. Of the fifteen British routes recorded in the 2nd- or 3rd-century Antonine Itinerary , seven ran to or from Londinium. Most of these were constructed near the time of the city's foundation around 47 AD. The roads are now known by Welsh or Old English names, as their original Roman names have been lost because of
16740-477: Was built next to the waterfront and had its own bath. Londinium seems to have shrunk in both size and population in the second half of the 2nd century. The cause is uncertain, but plague is considered likely, as the Antonine Plague is recorded decimating other areas of Western Europe between 165 and 190. The end of imperial expansion in Britain after Hadrian's decision to build his wall may have also damaged
16875-457: Was corrected in the 3rd century. Although the reason for the wall's construction is unknown, some historians have connected it with the Pictish invasion of the 180s. Others link it with Clodius Albinus , the British governor who attempted to usurp Septimius Severus in the 190s. The wall survived another 1,600 years and still roughly defines the City of London's perimeter. In 2023 a section of
17010-414: Was effectively ignored. Croydon's growth in the 19th century brought the issue of incorporation back on to the political agenda, and in 1883 the ancient parish of Croydon, apart from its exclave of Croydon Crook or Selsdon , was created a municipal borough within Surrey. In 1889, because the population was high enough, it was made a county borough , exempt from county administration. In 1965 (under
17145-399: Was initially approved, the king authorising the drafting of a charter , but the process was then abruptly halted, apparently through the intervention of Archbishop John Tillotson , who probably feared a threat to his own authority over the town. The application was revived the following year, when Queen Mary again authorised a charter, but once again it was abandoned. A second petition in 1707
17280-409: Was not placed on the site of a native settlement or oppidum . Prior to the arrival of the Roman legions , the area was almost certainly lightly rolling open countryside traversed by numerous streams now underground . Ptolemy lists it as one of the cities of the Cantiaci , but Durovernum (Roman Canterbury ) was their tribal capital ( civitas ). It is possible that the town was preceded by
17415-466: Was one of the largest structures north of the Alps when Emperor Hadrian visited Londinium in 122. Excavations have discovered evidence of a major fire that destroyed much of the city shortly thereafter, but the city was again rebuilt. By the second half of the 2nd century, Londinium appears to have shrunk in both size and population. Although Londinium remained important for the rest of the Roman period, no further expansion resulted. Londinium supported
17550-402: Was renovated, public and private bathhouses were erected, and a fort ( arx ) was erected around 120 that maintained the city garrison northwest of town. The fort was square (with rounded corners) measuring more than 200 m × 200 m (660 ft × 660 ft) and covering more than 12 acres (4.9 ha). Each side had a central gatehouse, and stone towers were erected at
17685-471: Was reopened in 2014, the 180,000 square foot office development was the first new grade A office development of its size to open in Croydon for more than 20 years. Another large shopping centre, Centrale , opened in 2004 opposite the Whitgift Centre, and adjoining the smaller Drummond Centre . House of Fraser and Debenhams are the anchor stores in the combined centre. In addition, there are plans for
17820-468: Was situated on what is now Park Lane, although the extent of any associated settlement is unknown. By the late Saxon period Croydon was the hub of an estate belonging to the Archbishops of Canterbury . The church and the archbishops' manor house occupied the area still known as " Old Town ". The archbishops used the manor house as an occasional place of residence: as lords of the manor they dominated
17955-512: Was submitted by the County Borough to the Home Office in 1951, a more formal petition in 1954, and two more applications in 1955 and 1958. When the London Borough was created in 1965, the Council endeavoured to have it styled a City, as was the City of Westminster . Further bids for city status were made in 1977, 1992, 2000, 2002, and 2012. All have failed. The borough's predominant argument has always been its size: in 2000 it pointed out that it
18090-551: Was the capital of Roman Britain during most of the period of Roman rule. Most twenty-first century historians think that it was originally a settlement established shortly after the Claudian invasion of Britain , on the current site of the City of London around 47–50 AD, but some defend an older view that the city originated in a defensive enclosure constructed during the Claudian invasion in 43 AD. Its earliest securely-dated structure
18225-404: Was £37 10s 0d. The church had been established in the middle Saxon period, and was probably a minster church , a base for a group of clergy living a communal life. A charter issued by King Coenwulf of Mercia refers to a council that had taken place close to the monasterium (meaning minster) of Croydon. An Anglo-Saxon will made in about 960 is witnessed by Elfsies, priest of Croydon; and
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