London History Walks & Courses
From its Bronze Age beginnings to capital status, London has witnessed growth and destruction throughout its long history. Join us for lively classroom and online discussions as well as our popular walks around the city and discover who and what has left their mark on the city.
Watch City Lit tutor Eleanor Jackson explore some of London's secret spaces:
- Two levels of South London: Dulwich and Crystal PalaceCourse start date: Tue 9 Apr 2024
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Richard WatkinsThrough 4 walking tours explore the development of 2 south London areas: Dulwich and Crystal Palace.
First meeting place: The College Old Gates, the intersection of Dulwich Village, Gallery Road, College Road. West Dulwich and North Dulwich stations nearby also served with local buses.Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £64.00 - From the 1880s to the 1930s: how the new East End was bornCourse start date: Tue 23 Apr 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: David RosenbergIn an area branded 'the hell of poverty', libraries, theatres, art galleries and social housing were established. Workers went on strike and activists campaigned for better lives. Discover this history by taking actual, guided walks through six tumultuous decades of change. The first session is in the classroom at Keeley Street but all other sessions are guided walks. Full details of the meeting places for each walk will be given at the 1st session. 6 guided walks with 2 Zoom sessions. - Mews, monuments and museums: exploring SW7Course start date: Sun 28 Apr 2024
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Marilyn GreeneThis circular walk explores the alleys lanes, squares and delightful mews houses and passes a disused tube station in the mainly in the Knightsbridge conservation area and contrasts with the grand museums, institutions and monuments built in South Kensington (Albertopolis) developed with profits of the Great Exhibition held in Hyde Park in 1851.
Meets outside the main entrance to the V&A ends outside the Natural History Museum. Meets outside the main entrance to the V&A ends outside the Natural History Museum.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £15.00 Concession £12.00 - Stories of LondonCourse start date: Wed 1 May 2024
Location on this date: Blended (learn both online and in-person)
Tutors: Eleanor JacksonExplore London’s rich history in a series of guided walks. Each week we examine a different neighbourhood & era from the capital’s past. We look at its people, both rich and poor, & the events that shaped the city.
Initial lecture via Zoom followed by 6 guided walks.
This course will be delivered online and in person. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information. - The old Jewish East EndCourse start date: Mon 6 May 2024
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Diane BursteinToday the London Jewish community is associated with areas to the North West and North East of London but this tour explores the area where Jewish people settled from 1656 onwards. Take a guided walk through the streets of the East End to reveal old synagogue buildings, a soup kitchen , markets, shops, businesses and homes associated with London’s Jewish community. We’ll hear about some of the personalities associated with the area from philanthropists to performers.
Meets outside Liverpool Street Station , Liverpool Street Exit outside the upper concourse of the stationby the Kindertransport Memorial next to McDonalds.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £15.00 Concession £12.00 - Discovering Victorian London: empire, enterprise and educationCourse start date: Tue 7 May 2024
Location on this date: Blended (learn both online and in-person)
Tutors: Eleanor JacksonVictorian London shaped today's city. Discover the lasting legacy of the Victorian age, uncover its secrets, and meet some of the characters who created one of the world's greatest cities.
Initial lecture via zoom followed by 7 guided walks.
This course will be delivered online and in person. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information. - Introduction to Charles Booths’ LondonCourse start date: Tue 7 May 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sarah WiseDuring this six-week course, we will explore aspects of Charles Booth’s landmark survey ‘Life & Labour of the People in London’, published in 17 volumes between 1889 and 1903.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information. - Sweet Thames, run softly: a cultural explorationCourse start date: Wed 8 May 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Eleanor JacksonThe Thames runs like a silver thread through London’s history. It has been a muse & inspiration for centuries. This course examines its impact on our city, how it’s enriched & influenced our lives, both upstream & down.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information. - City gardens of the BlitzCourse start date: Sat 11 May 2024
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Marilyn GreeneDiscover the delightful gardens of the City of London created from WWII bomb sites. Revealing the history of the sites - including past industrial buildings, Roman ruins, and the sites of a former Wren churches and a Roman bath house - this walk spans the length of the City.
Starts Outside Café Nero Moorgate Station end St Dunstan in the East Garden. Starts Outside Café Nero Moorgate Station end St Dunstan in the East Garden.Full fee £29.00 Senior fee £23.00 Concession £19.00 - Dickens' LondonCourse start date: Sat 11 May 2024 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Molly Rumbelow'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.' Enjoy this introduction to Dickens' work and the London of his time. Morning lecture at City Lit followed by a walk in the area of the city connected to his work. - The lost town of Lundenwic: mid-Saxon London 600-900 CECourse start date: Sat 8 Jun 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Stuart BrookesLook at the least known episodes in London's history, Lundenwic (AD 600-900) and Lundenburh (AD 900-1000).
Includes an introductory lecture and guided walk. - Exploring Conservation FinchleyCourse start date: Sat 8 Jun 2024
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Marilyn GreeneFinchley Central contains three conservation areas. Starting at the oldest part of the former village of Finchley Church End , this walk stops to admire traces of the old village, Edwardian and Victorian architecture before moving on to the delightful Finchley Garden village and College Farm, the last remaining farm in Finchley.
Meeting points: Start by the bike rack Station Road Exit of Finchley Central tube station, end Henley's Corner on the junction of Regent's Park Road by La Deliverance statue.Full fee £29.00 Senior fee £23.00 Concession £19.00 - Crime and punishment in Old LondonCourse start date: Mon 10 Jun 2024
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Diane BursteinTake a guided walk through the old City and its borders taking in beheadings and brutality at the Tower, tales of cutpurses and con men, the rise of prisons and the ghastly punishments that were meted out to wrongdoers. We go on a journey to Newgate Gaol, the Bridewell Prison and the places of execution including the notorious Tyburn Tree to hear tales of brutality, escapes and the bloodthirsty crowds who watched executions. Our tour includes London’s atmospheric legal quarter taking in the Old Bailey, The Royal Courts of Justice and the Inns of Court to discover how London’s legal system developed .
Meet outside St Paul’s Cathedral by the Statue of Queen Anne.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £15.00 Concession £12.00 - London's East End in fact and fictionCourse start date: Sat 15 Jun 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sarah WiseCovering the early 19th century to the early 20th century, we will examine the history of the East End, and we will analyse how it was portrayed in works of fiction. - Further village LondonCourse start date: Wed 19 Jun 2024
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Paul Sinclair
A further five walks around London's former villages - Hampstead, Highgate, Fitzrovia and Soho.
Why did these areas grow up as villages and how did they become swallowed up by the city of London?
First meeting place: Hampstead, meet at Hampstead tube.
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