London Stone
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

London Stone is a historic
landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern-day use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures ...
housed at 111 
Cannon Street Cannon Street is a road in the City of London, the historic nucleus of London and its modern financial centre. It runs roughly parallel with the River Thames, about north of it, in the north of the City. It is the site of the ancient London S ...
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 ...
. It is an irregular block of
oolitic limestone Oolite or oölite () is a sedimentary rock formed from ooids, spherical grains composed of concentric layers. Strictly, oolites consist of ooids of diameter 0.25–2 millimetres; rocks composed of ooids larger than 2 mm are called pisol ...
measuring 53 × 43 × 30 cm (21 × 17 × 12"), the remnant of a once much larger object that had stood for many centuries on the south side of the street. The name "London Stone" was first recorded around the year 1100. The date and original purpose of the stone are unknown, although it is possibly of Roman origin. There has been interest and speculation about it since the medieval period, but modern claims that it was formerly an object of veneration, or has some occult significance, are unsubstantiated.


Description

The present London Stone is only the upper portion of a once much larger object. The surviving portion is a block of
oolitic limestone Oolite or oölite () is a sedimentary rock formed from ooids, spherical grains composed of concentric layers. Strictly, oolites consist of ooids of diameter 0.25–2 millimetres; rocks composed of ooids larger than 2 mm are called pisol ...
approximately 53 cm wide, 43 cm high, and 30 cm front to back (21 × 17 × 12 inches). A study in the 1960s indicated that the stone is Clipsham limestone, a good-quality stone from
Rutland Rutland is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Leicestershire to the north and west, Lincolnshire to the north-east, and Northamptonshire to the south-west. Oakham is the largest town and county town. Rutland has a ...
transported to London for building purposes in both the Roman and medieval periods. More recently, Kevin Hayward has suggested that it may be
Bath stone Bath Stone is an oolitic limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate originally obtained from the Middle Jurassic aged Great Oolite Group of the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England. Its h ...
, the stone most used for monuments and sculpture in early Roman London and in Saxon times. The stone is located on the north side of
Cannon Street Cannon Street is a road in the City of London, the historic nucleus of London and its modern financial centre. It runs roughly parallel with the River Thames, about north of it, in the north of the City. It is the site of the ancient London S ...
, opposite
Cannon Street station Cannon Street station, also known as London Cannon Street, is a London station group, central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in List of stations in London fare zone 1, Travelcard zone 1 located on Cannon Stre ...
, in an aperture in the wall of 111 Cannon Street (EC4N 5AR), within a
Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone geological formation (formally named the Portland Stone Formation) dating to the Tithonian age of the Late Jurassic that is quarried on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The quarries are cut in beds of whi ...
casing.


History

When London Stone was erected and what its original function was are unknown, although there has been much speculation. The stone was originally located on the south side of medieval Candlewick Street (afterward widened to create modern Cannon Street), opposite the west end of St Swithin's Church. It is shown in this position on the
Copperplate map of London The "Copperplate" map of London is an early large-scale printed map of the City of London and its immediate environs, surveyed between 1553 and 1559, which survives only in part. It is the earliest true map of London (as opposed to Panorama of ...
, dating to the 1550s, and also appears on the derivative "Woodcut" map of the 1560s. It was described by the London historian
John Stow John Stow (''also'' Stowe; 1524/25 – 5 April 1605) was an English historian and antiquarian. He wrote a series of chronicles of History of England, English history, published from 1565 onwards under such titles as ''The Summarie of Englyshe C ...
in his ''
Survey of London The Survey of London is a research project to produce a comprehensive architectural survey of central London and its suburbs, or the area formerly administered by the London County Council. It was founded in 1894 by Charles Robert Ashbee, an A ...
'' (1598) as "a great stone called London stone", "pitched upright ... fixed in the ground verie deep, fastened with bars of iron". Stow does not give the dimensions of this "great stone", but a French visitor to London in 1578 had recorded that the stone was three feet high (above ground), two feet wide, and one foot thick (90 × 60 × 30 cm). Thus, although it was a local landmark, the part of it standing above ground was not particularly large.


Middle Ages

The earliest reference to the stone is usually said to be that in a medieval document cited by Stow in 1598. He refers to an early list of properties in London belonging to
Christ Church, Canterbury Canterbury Cathedral is the cathedral of the archbishop of Canterbury, the spiritual leader of the Church of England and symbolic leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Located in Canterbury, Kent, it is one of the oldest Christianity, Ch ...
(Canterbury Cathedral), and says that one piece of land was described as lying "neare unto London stone". In Stow's account, the list had been bound into the end of a
Gospel Book A Gospel Book, Evangelion, or Book of the Gospels ( Greek: , ) is a codex or bound volume containing one or more of the four Gospels of the Christian New Testament – normally all four – centering on the life of Jesus of Nazareth and the roo ...
given to the cathedral by "''Ethelstane'' king of the west Saxons", usually identified as
Æthelstan Æthelstan or Athelstan (; ; ; ; – 27 October 939) was King of the Anglo-Saxons from 924 to 927 and King of the English from 927 to his death in 939. He was the son of King Edward the Elder and his first wife, Ecgwynn. Modern histori ...
, king of England (924–939). However, it is impossible to confirm Stow's account, since the document he saw cannot now be identified with certainty. Nevertheless, the earliest extant list of Canterbury's London properties, which has been dated to between 1098 and 1108, does refer to a property given to the cathedral by a man named "Eadwaker æt lundene stane" ("Eadwaker at London Stone"). Although not bound into a Gospel Book (it is now bound into a volume of miscellaneous medieval texts with a Canterbury provenance ( MS Cotton Faustina B. ) in the
British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. Based in London, it is one of the largest libraries in the world, with an estimated collection of between 170 and 200 million items from multiple countries. As a legal deposit li ...
), it could be that it was this, or a similar text, that Stow saw. Like Eadwaker, other medieval Londoners acquired or adopted the
byname An epithet (, ), also a byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) commonly accompanying or occurring in place of the name of a real or fictitious person, place, or thing. It is usually literally descriptive, as in Alfred the Great, Suleima ...
"at London Stone" or "of London Stone" because they lived nearby. One of these was "Ailwin of London Stone", the father of Henry Fitz-Ailwin de Londonestone, the first
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
of the City of London, who took office some time between 1189–1193, and governed the city until his death in 1212. The Fitz-Ailwin house stood away from Candlewick Street, on the north side of St Swithin's church. London Stone was a well-known landmark in medieval London, and when in 1450
Jack Cade Jack Cade's Rebellion or Cade's Rebellion was a popular revolt in 1450 against the government of England, which took place in the south-east of the country between the months of April and July. It stemmed from local grievances regarding the ...
, leader of a rebellion against the corrupt government of Henry VI, entered the city with his men, he struck his sword on London Stone and claimed to be "Lord of this city". Contemporary accounts give no clue as to Cade's motivation, or how his followers or the Londoners would have interpreted his action. There is nothing to suggest he was carrying out a traditional ceremony or custom.


16th and 17th centuries

By the time of
Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...
London Stone was not merely a landmark, shown and named on maps, but a visitor attraction in its own right. Tourists may have been told variously that it had stood there since before the city existed, or that it had been set up by order of King Lud, legendary rebuilder of London, or that it marked the centre of the city, or that it was "set pfor the tendering and making of payment by debtors". It appears to have been routinely used in this period as a location for the posting and promulgation of a variety of bills, notices, and advertisements. In 1608 it was listed in a poem by Samuel Rowlands as one of the "sights" of London (perhaps the first time the word was used in that sense) shown to "an honest Country foole" on a visit to town. During the 17th century the stone continued be used as an "address", to identify a locality. Thus, for example,
Thomas Heywood Thomas Heywood (early 1570s – 16 August 1641) was an English playwright, actor, and author. His main contributions were to late Elizabethan and early Jacobean theatre. He is best known for his masterpiece ''A Woman Killed with Kindness'', a ...
's biography of
Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...
, ''Englands Elizabeth'' (1631), was, according to its title page, "printed by Iohn Beale, for Phillip Waterhouse; and are to be sold at his shop at St Pauls Head, neere London stone"; and the '' English Short Title Catalogue'' lists over 30 books published between 1629 and the 1670s with similar references to London Stone in the imprint. In 1671 the Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers broke up a batch of substandard spectacles on London Stone:
Two and twenty dozen  264of English spectacles, all very badd both in the glasse and frames not fitt to be put on sale ... were found badd and deceitful and by judgement of the Court condemned to be broken, defaced and spoyled both glasse and frame the which judgement was executed accordingly in Canning annonStreet on the remayning parte of London Stone where the same were with a hammer broken in all pieces.
The reference to "''the remayning parte'' of London Stone" may suggest that it had been damaged and reduced in size, perhaps in the
Great Fire of London The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through central London from Sunday 2 September to Wednesday 5 September 1666, gutting the medieval City of London inside the old London Wall, Roman city wall, while also extendi ...
five years earlier, which had destroyed St Swithin's church and the neighbouring buildings; it was later covered with a small stone cupola to protect it.


18th century to early 20th century

In 1598 John Stow had commented that "if carts do run against it through negligence, the wheels be broken, and the stone itself unshaken", and by 1742 it was considered an obstruction to traffic. The remaining part of the stone was then moved, with its protective cupola, from the south side of the street to the north side, where it was first set beside the door of St Swithin's Church, which had been rebuilt by
Christopher Wren Sir Christopher Wren FRS (; – ) was an English architect, astronomer, mathematician and physicist who was one of the most highly acclaimed architects in the history of England. Known for his work in the English Baroque style, he was ac ...
after its destruction in the Great Fire. It was moved again in 1798 to the east end of the church's south wall, and finally in the 1820s set in an alcove in the centre of the wall within a solidly built stone frame set on a
plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...
, with a circular aperture through which the stone itself could be seen. In 1869 the London and Middlesex Archaeological Society arranged for the installation of a protective iron grille and an explanatory inscription in Latin and English on the church wall above it. During the 19th and 20th centuries the London Stone was regularly referred to in popular London histories and guidebooks, and visited by tourists; during his stay in England in the 1850s the American author
Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (né Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associat ...
recorded a visit to London Stone in his journal, noting the indentations on the top "which are said to have been made by Jack Cade’s sword". In 1937
Arthur Mee Arthur Henry Mee (21 July 187527 May 1943) was an English writer, journalist and educator. He is best known for ''The Harmsworth Self-Educator'', ''The Children's Encyclopædia'', ''The Children's Newspaper'', and ''The King's England''. Ea ...
, the founder of ''
The Children's Newspaper ''The Children's Newspaper'' was a long-running newspaper published by the Amalgamated Press (later Fleetway Publications) aimed at pre-teenage children founded by Arthur Mee in 1919. It ran for 2,397 weekly issues before being merged with '' ...
'' and author of ''The King's England'' series of guidebooks, described it as "a fragment of its old self ..said by some to have been a stone set up in Stone Age days". The archaeologist George Byron Gordon was more expansive (and fanciful) in the course of his ''Rambles in Old London'', published in 1924. He described London Stone as "the very oldest object in London streets" and "an object of great antiquity when the Romans arrived and their predecessors the ancient Britons found it on their arrival more than two thousand years before. It was erected by the people of the New Stone Age".


1940 to present

In 1940 St Swithin's church was burnt out by bombing in
the Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...
. However, the outer walls remained standing for many years, with London Stone still in its place in the south wall. In 1962 the remains of the church were demolished, and replaced by an office building, 111 Cannon Street, which originally housed the
Bank of China The Bank of China (BOC; ; Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''Banco da China'') is a state-owned Chinese Multinational corporation, multinational banking and financial services corporation headquartered in Beijing, Beijing, China. It is one of ...
; London Stone was placed without ceremony in a specially constructed Portland stone alcove, glazed and guarded with an iron grille, in the new building. Inside the building it was protected by a glass case. The stone and its surround, including the iron grille, were designated a Grade II*
listed structure In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
on 5 June 1972. In the early 21st century the office building was scheduled for redevelopment, and in October 2011 the then landowners proposed to move the stone to a new location further to the west. Objections were raised by, among others, the Victorian Society and
English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...
, and the proposal was rejected by the
City of London Corporation The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the local authority of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United Kingdom's f ...
. Until February 2016 the ground floor of the building was occupied by a branch of
WHSmith WH Smith plc, trading as WHSmith (also written WH Smith and formerly as W. H. Smith & Son), is a British retailer, with headquarters in Swindon, England, which operates a chain of railway station, airport, port, hospital and motorway service s ...
newsagents. Inside the shop London Stone in its glass case was hidden behind a magazine rack and not usually accessible. In March 2016, planning permission was granted to allow the building to be demolished and replaced by a new one. The stone was put on temporary display at the
Museum of London London Museum (known from 1976 to 2024 as the Museum of London) is a museum in London, covering the history of the city from prehistoric to modern times, with a particular focus on social history. The Museum of London was formed in 1976 by ama ...
while the building works were carried out. It was returned to Cannon Street in October 2018. The new premises publicly display London Stone on a
plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...
, within a
Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone geological formation (formally named the Portland Stone Formation) dating to the Tithonian age of the Late Jurassic that is quarried on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The quarries are cut in beds of whi ...
casing loosely inspired by its 19th–century predecessor, and behind glass. The plaque adjacent to the stone reads


Interpretations


14th century

The ''Short English Metrical Chronicle'', an anonymous history of England in verse composed in about the 1330s, which survives in several variant
recension Recension is the practice of editing or revising a text based on critical analysis. When referring to manuscripts, this may be a revision by another author. The term is derived from the Latin ("review, analysis"). In textual criticism (as is the ...
s (including one in the so-called Auchinleck manuscript), includes the statement that "Brut sett Londen ston" – that is to say, that
Brutus of Troy Brutus, also called Brute of Troy, is a mythical British king. He is described as a legendary descendant of the Trojan hero Aeneas, known in medieval British legend as the eponymous founder and first king of Britain. This legend first appears ...
, the legendary founder of London, set up London Stone. This claim suggests that interest in the stone's origin and significance already existed. However, the story does not seem to have circulated widely elsewhere, and was not repeated in other chronicles.


16th century

In 1598 the London historian
John Stow John Stow (''also'' Stowe; 1524/25 – 5 April 1605) was an English historian and antiquarian. He wrote a series of chronicles of History of England, English history, published from 1565 onwards under such titles as ''The Summarie of Englyshe C ...
admitted that "The cause why this stone was set there, the time when, or other memory hereof, is none". However, his contemporary
William Camden William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland that relates la ...
, in his ''
Britannia The image of Britannia () is the national personification of United Kingdom, Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used by the Romans in classical antiquity, the Latin was the name variously appli ...
'' of 1586, concluded that it was a Roman ''milliarium'', a central stone from which all distances in
Roman Britain Roman Britain was the territory that became the Roman province of ''Britannia'' after the Roman conquest of Britain, consisting of a large part of the island of Great Britain. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. Julius Caes ...
were measured, and similar to the Milliarium Aureum of Rome. This identification remains popular, although there is no archaeological evidence to support it.


18th century

Alternatively, writers in the 18th century speculated that the stone was prehistoric and had been an object of
Druid A druid was a member of the high-ranking priestly class in ancient Celtic cultures. The druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no wr ...
ic worship. Although this suggestion is now generally dismissed, it was revived in 1914 by Elizabeth Gordon in an unorthodox book on the archaeology of prehistoric London. She envisaged London Stone as an ancient British "index stone" pointing to a great Druidic
stone circle A stone circle is a ring of megalithic standing stones. Most are found in Northwestern Europe – especially Stone circles in the British Isles and Brittany – and typically date from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, with most being ...
, similar to
Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric Megalith, megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, to ...
, and claimed it had once stood on the site of St Paul's. As noted above, in 1924 American archaeologist George Byron Gordon claimed a "New Stone Age" date for it, but such claims do not find favour with modern archaeologists, since there is no evidence.


19th century

By the early 19th century, a number of writers had suggested that London Stone was once regarded as London's "Palladium", a talismanic monument in which, like the original Palladium of Troy, the city's safety and wellbeing were embodied. This view seemed to be confirmed when a pseudonymous contributor to the journal ''
Notes and Queries ''Notes and Queries'', also styled ''Notes & Queries'', is a long-running quarterly scholarly journal that publishes short articles related to " English language and literature, lexicography, history, and scholarly antiquarianism".From the inner ...
'' in 1862 quoted a supposedly ancient proverb about London Stone to the effect that "So long as the Stone of Brutus is safe, so long shall London flourish". This verse, if it were genuine, would link London Stone to
Brutus of Troy Brutus, also called Brute of Troy, is a mythical British king. He is described as a legendary descendant of the Trojan hero Aeneas, known in medieval British legend as the eponymous founder and first king of Britain. This legend first appears ...
, as well as confirming its role as a Palladium. However, the writer in ''Notes and Queries'' was identified as
Richard Williams Morgan Richard Williams Morgan (1815–1889), also known by his bardic name Môr Meirion, was a Welsh people, Welsh Anglican priest, Welsh nationalism, Welsh nationalist, campaigner for the use of the Welsh language and author. Morgan's outspoken critic ...
, an eccentric Welsh clergyman. In an earlier book, Morgan had claimed that the legendary Brutus was a historical figure; London Stone, he wrote, had been the
plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...
on which the original Trojan
Palladium Palladium is a chemical element; it has symbol Pd and atomic number 46. It is a rare and lustrous silvery-white metal discovered in 1802 by the English chemist William Hyde Wollaston. He named it after the asteroid Pallas (formally 2 Pallas), ...
had stood, and was brought to Britain by Brutus and set up as the altar stone of the Temple of Diana in his new capital city of
Trinovantum Trinovantum is the name in medieval British legend that was given to London, according to Geoffrey of Monmouth's ''Historia Regum Britanniae'', when it was founded by the exiled Troy, Trojan Brutus of Troy, Brutus, who called it ''Troia Nova'' ("N ...
or "New Troy" (i.e. London). This story, and the verse about the "Stone of Brutus", can be found nowhere any earlier than in Morgan's writings, and both are probably his own invention. Although London Stone had been associated with Brutus in the 14th century, that tradition had never reached print, and there is nothing to indicate that Morgan had encountered it. The spurious verse is still frequently quoted, but there is no evidence that London's safety has ever traditionally been linked to that of London Stone. In 1881 Henry Charles Coote argued that London Stone's name and reputation arose simply because it was the last remaining fragment of the house of Henry Fitz-Ailwin of London Stone (), London's first Mayor, although London Stone was mentioned about 100 years before Henry's time, and the Fitz-Ailwin house was some distance from the stone on the other side of St Swithin's church. In 1890 the folklorist and London historian George Laurence Gomme proposed that London Stone was the city's original " fetish stone", erected when the first prehistoric settlement was founded on the site and treated as sacred ever after. Later, folklorist Lewis Spence combined this theory with Morgan's story of the "Stone of Brutus" to speculate about the pre-Roman origins of London in a 1937.


20th and 21st centuries

By the 1960s, archaeologists had noted that in its original location London Stone would have been aligned on the centre of a large Roman building, probably an administrative building, now known to have lain in the area of
Cannon Street station Cannon Street station, also known as London Cannon Street, is a London station group, central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in List of stations in London fare zone 1, Travelcard zone 1 located on Cannon Stre ...
. This has been tentatively identified as a ''
praetorium The Latin term ''praetorium'' (also and ) originally identified the tent of a general within a Roman '' castrum'' (encampment), and derived from the title praetor, which identified a Roman magistrate.Smith, William. Dictionary of Greek and Roma ...
'', even the local " governor's palace". It has further been suggested – originally by the archaeologist Peter Marsden, who excavated there from 1961–1972 – that the stone may have formed part of its main entrance or gate. This "''praetorium'' gate theory", while impossible to prove, is the prevailing one among modern experts. London Stone has been identified as a "mark-stone" on several
ley line Ley lines () are straight alignments drawn between various historic structures, prehistoric sites and prominent landmarks. The idea was developed in early 20th-century Europe, with ley line believers arguing that these alignments were recognis ...
s passing through central London. It has also entered the psychogeographical writings of
Iain Sinclair Iain Sinclair FRSL (born 11 June 1943) is a writer and filmmaker. Much of his work is rooted in London, recently within the influences of psychogeography. Early life and education Sinclair was born in Cardiff, Wales, on 11 June 1943. From 19 ...
as an essential element in London's "
sacred geometry Sacred geometry ascribes symbolic and sacred meanings to certain geometric shapes and certain geometric proportions. It is associated with the belief of a divine creator of the universal geometer. The geometry used in the design and constructi ...
". There are two recent additions to the mythology surrounding London Stone. The first claims that
John Dee John Dee (13 July 1527 – 1608 or 1609) was an English mathematician, astronomer, teacher, astrologer, occultist, and alchemist. He was the court astronomer for, and advisor to, Elizabeth I, and spent much of his time on alchemy, divination, ...
– astrologer, occultist and adviser to Queen Elizabeth I – "was fascinated by the supposed powers of the London Stone and lived close to it for a while" and may have chipped pieces off it for alchemical experiments; the second that a legend identifies it as the stone from which
King Arthur According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Great Britain, Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Wales, Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a le ...
pulled the
sword A sword is an edged and bladed weapons, edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter ...
to reveal that he was rightful king. Both these "legends" seem first to be recorded in 2002. The first may have been inspired by the fictionalised John Dee of
Peter Ackroyd Peter Ackroyd (born 5 October 1949) is an English biographer, novelist and critic with a specialist interest in the history and culture of London. For his novels about English history and culture and his biographies of, among others, William ...
's 1993 novel '' The House of Doctor Dee'' (see In literature below).


In literature


15th to 19th centuries

So familiar was London Stone to Londoners that from an early date it features in London literature and in stories set in London. Thus, in an often reprinted anonymous satirical poem of the early 15th century, "London Lickpenny" (sometimes attributed to
John Lydgate John Lydgate of Bury () was an English monk and poet, born in Lidgate, near Haverhill, Suffolk, Haverhill, Suffolk, England. Lydgate's poetic output is prodigious, amounting, at a conservative count, to about 145,000 lines. He explored and estab ...
), the protagonist, lost and bewildered, passes London Stone during his wanderings through the city streets: In about 1522 a pamphlet was published by the London printer
Wynkyn de Worde Wynkyn de Worde (; died , London) was a printer and publisher in London known for his work with William Caxton, and is recognised as the first to popularise the products of the printing press in England. Name Wynkyn de Worde was a German immi ...
. It comprised two anonymous humorous poems, the second of which, ''The Maryage ...'', just two pages in length, purports to be an invitation to the forthcoming wedding between London Stone and the "Bosse of Billingsgate", a water fountain near
Billingsgate Billingsgate is one of the 25 Wards of the City of London. This small City Ward is situated on the north bank of the River Thames between London Bridge and Tower Bridge in the south-east of the Square Mile. The modern Ward extends south to th ...
erected or renovated in the 1420s under the terms of the will of the
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
Richard Whittington Richard Whittington ( March 1423) of the parish of St Michael Paternoster Royal,Will of Richard Whittington: " I leave to my executors named below the entire tenement in which I live in the parish of St. Michael Paternoster Royal, Londo/ ...
. Guests are invited to watch the couple dancing – "It wolde do you good to see them daunce and playe." The text, however, goes on to suggest that both London Stone and the Bosse were known for their steadfastness and reliability. London Stone also features in a tract ''The Returne of the renowned Caualiero Pasquill of England ...'' published in 1589. Otherwise known as ''Pasquill and Marforius'' it was one of three that were printed under the pseudonym of the Cavaliero Pasquill, and contributed to the Marprelate controversy, a war of words between the Church of England establishment and its critics. At the end of this short work, Pasquill declares his intention of posting a notice on London Stone, inviting all critics of his opponent, the similarly pseudonymous
Martin Marprelate Martin Marprelate (sometimes printed as Martin Mar-prelate and Marre–Martin) was the name used by the anonymous author or authors of the seven Marprelate tracts that circulated illegally in England in the years 1588 and 1589. Their principal ...
, to write out their complaints and stick them up on the stone. Some writers have argued that this fictional episode proves that London Stone was a traditional place for making official proclamations. The
Jack Cade Jack Cade's Rebellion or Cade's Rebellion was a popular revolt in 1450 against the government of England, which took place in the south-east of the country between the months of April and July. It stemmed from local grievances regarding the ...
episode was dramatised in
William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's ''
Henry VI, Part 2 ''Henry VI, Part 2'' (1591) is a Shakespearean history play about King Henry VI of England's inability to quell the bickering of his noblemen, the death of his trusted advisor Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, and the political rise of Richard of ...
'' (act 4, scene 6), first performed . In Shakespeare's elaborated version of the event, Cade strikes London Stone with a staff rather than a sword, then seats himself upon the stone as if on a throne, to issue decrees and dispense rough justice to a follower who displeases him. In 1598, London Stone was again brought to the stage, in William Haughton's comedy '' Englishmen for My Money'', when three foreigners, being led about on stage through the supposedly pitch-black night-time streets of London, blunder into it. Later, London Stone was to play an important but not always consistent role in the visionary writings of
William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake has become a seminal figure in the history of the Romantic poetry, poetry and visual art of the Roma ...
. Thus in '' Jerusalem: The Emanation of the Giant Albion'', his long illustrated poem on engraved plates begun in 1804, London Stone is a
Druid A druid was a member of the high-ranking priestly class in ancient Celtic cultures. The druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no wr ...
ic altar, the site of bloody sacrifices. Alternatively in ''Jerusalem'' and in '' Milton a Poem'' it is the geographic centre of
Golgonooza Golgonooza is a mythical city in the work of William Blake. Golgonooza is a ''City of Imagination'' built by Los, ''the spiritual Four-fold London'', a vision of London and also linked to Jerusalem and is ''Blake's great city of art and science'' ...
, Blake's mystical city of London; it is a place where justice is delivered, where Los sits to hear the voice of Jerusalem, and where Reuben sleeps.


20th and 21st centuries

Ray Nelson's science fiction novel ''Blake's Progress'' (1975), based on the writings of
William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake has become a seminal figure in the history of the Romantic poetry, poetry and visual art of the Roma ...
, featured an
alternative history Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...
in which
Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...
won the
Battle of Actium The Battle of Actium was a naval battle fought between Octavian's maritime fleet, led by Marcus Agrippa, and the combined fleets of both Mark Antony and Cleopatra. The battle took place on 2 September 31 BC in the Ionian Sea, near the former R ...
and an
Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
n Empire replaced the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...
. In the alternate London, called Gogonooza, the London Stone is present, standing in front of a Temple of
Isis Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...
. In the last years of the 20th century and the early years of the 21st, the stone has made an increasing number of appearances in novels of imagination and
urban fantasy Urban fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy, placing supernatural elements in a contemporary urban area, urban-affected setting. The combination provides the writer with a platform for classic fantasy tropes, quixotic plot-elements, and unusual charac ...
. * In
Peter Ackroyd Peter Ackroyd (born 5 October 1949) is an English biographer, novelist and critic with a specialist interest in the history and culture of London. For his novels about English history and culture and his biographies of, among others, William ...
's novel '' The House of Doctor Dee'' (1993), the character Dr. Dee, vaguely based upon the historical figure of the occultist
John Dee John Dee (13 July 1527 – 1608 or 1609) was an English mathematician, astronomer, teacher, astrologer, occultist, and alchemist. He was the court astronomer for, and advisor to, Elizabeth I, and spent much of his time on alchemy, divination, ...
, claims that London Stone is the last remnant above ground of a glorious antediluvian and now buried city of London that he is searching for. * London Stone appears as an embodiment of evil in Charlie Fletcher's trilogy for children '' Stoneheart'' (2006–2008). * It features in ''The Midnight Mayor'' (2010), Kate Griffin's second Matthew Swift novel about urban magic in London * It is also part of
China Miéville China Tom Miéville ( , born 6 September 1972) is a British speculative fiction writer and Literary criticism, literary critic. He often describes his work as "weird fiction", and is allied to the loosely associated movement of writers called ...
's '' Kraken'' (2010), in which it is the beating heart of London and the sports shop that (at the time Miéville was writing) housed it hides the headquarters of the "Londonmancers" who may know the whereabouts of the kraken stolen from the
Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history scientific collection, collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, Fungus, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleo ...
. * The third of a series of fantasy novels for children ''The Nowhere Chronicles'' by
Sarah Pinborough Sarah Pinborough is an English author and screenwriter of over 20 Young adult fiction, YA and adult works. She is known for her Thriller (genre), thriller, fantasy and cross-genre novels. Biography Pinborough was born in Buckinghamshire, Eng ...
, writing as Sarah Silverwood, is entitled ''The London Stone'' (2012): "The London Stone has been stolen and the Dark King rules the Nowhere ..." * In Marie Brennan's ''Onyx Court'' series (2008–2011), the stone is part of the magical bond between the mortal Prince of the Stone and the fairie court beneath London. * The stone appears in several chapters of Edward Rutherfurd's novel, ''
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 ...
'' (1997). In the second chapter we see it as the marker stone for all the roads in Roman
Londinium Londinium, also known as Roman London, 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 Roman conquest of Brit ...
, and also sitting beside the wall of the Governor's Palace as mentioned above as a hypothesis of its use or origin. It is seen again in the ninth chapter where the main family unit of the novel bring in the character of the foundling who is found propped up against it. It is one of the many central focus points in the novel that the author uses to tie the different time periods together. * The stone is a central focus of
DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...
Vertigo Vertigo is a condition in which a person has the sensation that they are moving, or that objects around them are moving, when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. It may be associated with nausea, vomiting, perspira ...
storyline called ''The Knowledge'' (2008), featuring
John Constantine John Constantine (), also known as Hellblazer, is an antihero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette, and John Totleben, and first appeared in ''Swamp Thing'' #37 (June 1985). I ...
's
sidekick A sidekick is a close companion or colleague who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to those whom they accompany. Origins The first recorded use of the term dates from 1896. It is believed to have originated in pickpocket slang of ...
Chas Chandler Bryan James "Chas" Chandler (18 December 1938 – 17 July 1996) was an English musician, record producer and manager, best known as the original bassist in The Animals, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. H ...
. * The stone also appears many times in the ''Dark Fae FBI'' series (2017), by C.N. Crawford and Alex Rivers, in which it is the site of many ancient sacrifices and is used to channel memories and power. * The stone is mentioned in
Nicci French Nicci French is the pseudonym of English husband-and-wife team Nicci Gerrard (born 10 June 1958) and Sean French (born 28 May 1959), who write psychological thrillers together. Personal lives Nicci Gerrard and Sean French were married in 1990. ...
's crime novel ''Tuesday's Gone'' (2013). * The stone and its surrounding area is mentioned in Jodi Taylor's short story ''Christmas Pie'' (2023).


See also

* For the London Stone at Staines, and other Thames riverside boundary markers, see London Stone (riparian). * For the "Brutus Stone" in Totnes, Devon, see
Totnes Totnes ( or ) is a market town and civil parish at the head of the estuary of the River Dart in Devon, England, within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is about west of Paignton, about west-southwest of Torquay and ab ...
. *
List of individual rocks The following is a list of notable rocks and stones. See also * List of largest meteorites on Earth * List of longest natural arches * List of rock formations * List of rock formations that resemble human beings * List of rocks on Mars * Lists ...


Citations


References

* * * *


External links

* * * * * — Article on London Stone linked to a reproduction of the "Woodcut" map of London, . * — report on plans to move London Stone in 2006. {{coord, 51.5116, -0.0895, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title Limestone History of the City of London Monuments and memorials in London Kilometre-zero markers Grade II* listed buildings in the City of London Grade II* listed monuments and memorials Tourist attractions in the City of London Stones Mythological objects