The main
fort of
Roman London was built between 90 and 120 AD south-east of where the
Museum of London now stands at the corner of
London Wall and
Aldersgate Street. Around 200 AD,
walls were built around the city that incorporated the old fort, which became a grand entrance known as
Cripplegate. The word
barbican comes from the Low Latin word
Barbecana, which referred to a fortified outpost or gateway, such as an outer defence of a city or castle or any tower situated over a gate or bridge that was used for defence purposes. In this case there seems to have been a Roman
specula or watchtower in front of the fort from numbers 33–35 onwards (now the west end of Beech St), which was later incorporated into the fortifications north of the wall. The Normans called it the
Basse-cour or
Base Court, synonymous with the modern word "
bailey" and still applied to the outer courtyard of
Hampton Court Palace. The Base Court continued to serve a military function during the reign of
Edward I, but
Edward III gave it to
Robert d'Ufford, 1st Earl of Suffolk, The Barbican terrace blocks and residences, including the green garden in the centre, are laid on an area just outside the city fortifications, to the north west of the surviving
London Wall and bastions. Most of the residences and the green square, as well as some of the area to the south, currently occupied by the
Museum of London, are on an area that was previously the cemetery serving the London Jewish community before their expulsion. Records of transactions of the time show that the cemetery had been expanded several times through the acquisition of property by Jews between 1268 and 1290.
The Jews were expelled from England in 1290, and on 12 July 1291
Edward I granted the site of the cemetery to Master William de Montford, who was Dean of St Paul's but seems to have held this land privately. Archaeological excavations were undertaken on part of the cemetery site prior to construction of the Barbican and the results of these investigations were published in Transactions of the Jewish Historical Society of England (JHSE) in 1961.
Post-war development During
World War II the City suffered serious damage and loss of life. The
Cripplegate ward was virtually demolished and by 1951 the resident population of the City stood at 5,324, of whom 48 lived in Cripplegate. Discussions began in 1952 about the future of the site, and the decision to build new residential properties was taken by the
Court of Common Council on 19 September 1957. To accommodate the estate, of the
Metropolitan line was realigned between
Barbican and
Moorgate stations between 1963 and 1965. The estate was built between 1965 and 1976, on a site. The complex was designed by architects
Chamberlin, Powell and Bon, whose first work was the ground-breaking
Golden Lane Estate immediately north of the Barbican. Unlike its northern neighbour, however, the Barbican Estate was not social housing. Rather, it was designed and built for affluent City professionals and their families, with all flats let out at commercial rents by the
Corporation of London. To help let out the flats, brochures were produced advertising the Barbican Estate as containing the perfect residences for well-heeled professionals and international businesspeople. Indeed, in its early years, a substantial number of high-profile politicians, lawyers, judges and bankers made their home here (see
famous residents). The Barbican was never 'council housing' in the conventional sense, since flats were targeted at professionals and let at 'market' rents, i.e. for similar prices to equivalent private homes in Central London. It was, however, owned and managed by the Corporation of the City of London, considered a local authority under the
Housing Act 1980. This meant that
Right to Buy applied to it, and, as a result, almost all flats are now privately owned, although a few continue to be let out by the City of London at market (non-subsidised) rents. The first building on the estate, Speed House, was officially opened in 1969, though extensive industrial disputes in the 1970s led to the last building, Shakespeare Tower, being completed only in 1976. It is now home to around 4,000 people living in 2,014
flats.). This is achieved through the use of 'highwalks'—walkways of varying width and shape, usually 1 to 3 storeys above the surrounding ground level. Most pedestrian circulation takes place on these highwalks whilst roads and car-parking spaces are relegated to the lower level. The
Minister for the Arts,
Tessa Blackstone, announced in September 2001 that the Barbican complex was to be
Grade II listed. At this point there was a growing desire to start demolishing the brutalist 1960s and 1970s structures in British cities, with the flotation in the 1990s of the idea of an "x" listing for buildings to be demolished at the earliest opportunity. This was greeted with dismay by the various architects associations, and by the
Labour-run authorities that had been primarily responsible for the building of many of the structures. It has been designated a site of special architectural interest for its scale, its cohesion and the ambition of the project. The complex is architecturally important as it is one of London's principal examples of concrete
brutalist architecture and considered a landmark. Various garden features punctuate the brutalist architecture, including a community-run
wildlife garden. The heating and cooling for the homes and buildings of the estate is provided from a central
district heating system called " Citigen" which is more efficient and avoid the chimneys and outdoor equipment of a conventional system. ==Blocks and towers==