The Governance of London

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: and in the case of Crayford, for which we have the parish of St Katharine Cree in the city. The connection thus discovered for three out-stations of the territorium boundary must point very strongly to something older than the burghal stronghold. It is only necessary to add that Staines was the Roman...
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Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: and in the case of Crayford, for which we have the parish of St Katharine Cree in the city. The connection thus discovered for three out-stations of the territorium boundary must point very strongly to something older than the burghal stronghold. It is only necessary to add that Staines was the Roman Pontes on the road between London and Silchester, and we have all the information available for the western parallel to that which we have found on the east and south. Let us finally turn to the northern side of the territorium. The nearest Roman city to London on the north is Verulam, and it happens that there is an important topographical feature, the history of which illustrates the point we are discussing. This feature is the so-called barrow on Hampstead Heath. It has been the subject of several traditions and much speculation.1 But one point stands out most clearly, namely, that this barrow was connected with both London and St Albans. This is contained in a legend recorded by Howitt as follows: In very early times the inhabitants of St Albans, who aspired to make the town the capital of this part of England, finding London growing a vigorous rival, set out to attack and destroy it; but the Londoners turning out met and defeated their enemies of St Albans on this spot, and this mound contains the dust of the slain. 2 Now I agree with Professor Hales in his attempt to elucidate this tradition, that 1 I fear I have contributed to this speculation in company with Professor Hales, Mr Elliot Stock, and others. See Athenccum, 1710 November and 1st December 1883. 1 Howitt, Northern Heights of London, 329-330. traditions are always from one point or another worth regarding. If they do nothing else they may illustrate some side of the popular mind, some tendency of...