Early West London had two main focuses of growth, the area around
Thorney Island, site of
Westminster Abbey and the
Palace of Westminster, and
ribbon development heading west - towards Westminster - from gates in the
walls of the
City of London. In the 17th century these areas of growth would be linked by high status new developments, which formed a focal point in their own right, later becoming known as the
West End of London.
Initial growth The development of the area began with the establishment of the
Abbey on a site then called
Thorney Island, the choice of site may in part relate to the
natural ford which is thought to have carried
Watling Street over the
River Thames in the vicinity. Tradition dates the foundation to the 7th century AD with written records dating back to the 960s or early 970s. The Island and surrounding area became known as Westminster in reference to the church. The legendary origin is that in the early 7th century, a local fisherman named Edric ferried a stranger in tattered foreign clothing over the River Thames to
Thorney Island. It was a miraculous appearance of
St Peter, a fisherman himself, coming to the island to
consecrate the newly built church, which would subsequently develop into Westminster Abbey. He rewarded Edric with a bountiful catch when he next dropped his nets. Edric was instructed to present the
King and
St. Mellitus, Bishop of London with a salmon and various proofs that the consecration had already occurred . Every year on 29 June, St Peters day, the
Worshipful Company of Fishmongers presents the Abbey with a salmon in memory of this event. The Palace of Westminster subsequently developed, with Parliament being based there from its establishment in 1265. The presence of the centre of government as a distinct focus for growth, accompanied by the proximity of the city, ensured that western London was the fastest growing part of early London.
First West End The growth of the City of London beyond its city walls was much faster outside the western gates of
Ludgate and
Newgate than it was outside the gates to the north or to the east; this rapid growth was due to the roads from these western gates leading to the political centre of Westminster. The large and prosperous extramural ward of
Farringdon Without, extensively urbanised during the 12th century, has been described as London's
First West End. From the 15th to 17th centuries, growth along the roads from Ludgate (
Fleet Street and
The Strand) and Newgate (
Holborn and
High Holborn) accelerated, and came to extend far beyond Farringdon Without, into
Holborn,
Bloomsbury and
Westminster.
New West End Urban growth extending from the Westminster urban area, linked up with that extending from the City in the time of
Henry VIII. It was at around that time that Westminster first acquired City status. In the mid 17th century
Henry Jermyn, was instrumental in developing the
St James's and
Mayfair districts of Westminster. These districts provided a fashionable new focus for western London, that came to be known as the
West End. Jermyn would become known as the
Father of the West End. In 1720,
John Strype's "Survey of London" described Westminster as one of the then four distinct areas of London; in it he describes the
City of London,
Westminster (West London),
Southwark (South London), and
'That Part beyond the Tower' (East London). The area now usually referred to as
North London developed later. 's Map of London, 1741-5 As well as the proximity of the centre of government, the West End was long favoured by the rich elite as a place of residence because it was usually upwind of the smoke drifting from the crowded City. A further factor facilitating rapid growth in West London was the very large number of bridges linking the area to South London and the area beyond; by contrast, even today, there are no bridges east of
Tower Bridge, partly as the river becomes wider as it heads east. The term "West End of London" gained widespread currency as a proper noun, rather than just a geographical description in the 19th century.
Rapid growth Like other areas of the capital, West London grew rapidly in the Victorian era as a result of railway-based commuting; with the building of the termini at
Paddington and
Marylebone, and the lines radiating from them, having a particularly profound effect. This trend continued in the twentieth century and was subsequently reinforced by motorcar-based commuting. The size of London stabilised after the establishment of the
Metropolitan Green Belt shortly after the
Second World War. ==Geography==