Byward Street is a road in the
City of London
The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...
, the historic and financial centre of
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. It forms part of the
A3211 route and, if travelling eastward, is a short continuation of
Lower Thames Street
Thames Street, divided into Lower and Upper Thames Street, is a road in the City of London, the historic and financial centre of London. It forms part of the busy A3211 route (prior to being rebuilt as a major thoroughfare in the late 1960s, it ...
from a junction with
Great Tower Street, to
Tower Hill
Tower Hill is the area surrounding the Tower of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is infamous for the public execution of high status prisoners from the late 14th to the mid 18th century. The execution site on the higher gro ...
. It is located within the
City ward
A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to ...
of
Tower
A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...
.
History
Constructed between 1895 and 1906 through the ''Met. and Dist. Railways (City Lines and Extensions) Act, 1882'', Byward Street replaced the much older Black Swan Court, itself the successor to a
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of Roman civilization
*Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
foundation. The street originally provided access to the Crown Gate of the
Byward Tower
Byward Tower is a barbican (defensive gatehouse) of the Tower of London.
Byward Tower was built in the 13th century by Henry III, on the inward bank of the moat. It consists of two towers connected by an upper arcade, under which persons wishing ...
, from which it derives its name. The tower itself was so named because it was ''by the Ward'' (Warders' Hall; meeting room and residences of the
Yeoman Warders
The Yeomen Warders of His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress the Tower of London, and Members of the Sovereign's Body Guard of the Yeoman Guard Extraordinary, popularly known as the Beefeaters, are ceremonial guardians of the Tower of London. I ...
). Its close proximity to the
Tower of London
The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...
and the church of
All Hallows-by-the-Tower
All Hallows-by-the-Tower, at one time dedicated jointly to All Hallows (All Saints) and the Virgin Mary and sometimes known as All Hallows Barking, is an Early Medieval Anglican church on Byward Street in the City of London, England, overlooking ...
ensure a steady stream of visitors. A number of retail outlets and restaurants also line the street.
Byward Street formed part of the
marathon course of the
2012 Olympic and
Paralympic Games
The Paralympic Games or Paralympics is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disability, disabilities. There are Winter Paralympic Games, Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 ...
. The women's Olympic marathon took place on 5 August and the men's on 12 August. The Paralympic marathons were held on 9 September.
See also
Other nearby streets:
*
Mark Lane
*
Mincing Lane
Mincing Lane is a short one-way street in the City of London linking Fenchurch Street to Great Tower Street. In the late 19th century it was the world's leading centre for tea and spice trading.
Etymology
Its name is a corruption of Mynchen ...
*
Pepys Street
Pepys Street is a street in the City of London, linking Seething Lane in the west to Cooper's Row in the east. Savage Gardens crosses the street.
When the Port of London Authority Building was erected in 1923, Colchester Street was extended to ...
*
Savage Gardens
References
External links
*
{{coord, 51, 30, 35, N, 0, 04, 46, W, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title
Streets in the City of London