History - Archive Articles

Roman Fresco Discovered next to Leadenhall Market

A huge and ornate fresco that probably adorned the residence of a wealthy Roman citizen has been discovered by archaeologists next to Leadenhall Market in the City of London.

The Great Flood of London in 1524

On this day, 492 years ago, the center of London was abandoned as some 20,000 people fled the arrival of a massive tidal wave that was to devastate the centre of the city.

Save the Last Remaining British Rail Hovercraft from Destruction

As developers move in with bulldozers, the Hovercraft Museum Trust is this evening fighting desperately to save one of the two remaining cross channel SRN4 hovercraft from destruction.

Solving the mystery of Roman London’s headless bodies

For the past 150 years, a mystery has surrounded part of the City of London, where an unusually large number of human skulls were discovered, but without their bodies.

100th Anniversary of London Underground’s Johnston Font

One hundred years ago, Londoners woke up to find their familiar underground station signs were being bastardized with some modern interloper.

When the trains ran on Christmas Day

When the railways were younger, the motor car didn't exist, and the Christmas holidays were just one day, trains were commonplace on Christmas Day itself.

Air raid siren to sound over London

Just after Christmas, the distinctive wail of an air-raid siren will once again echo out across the City of London.

Henry V’s ‘Crystal Sceptre’ on display for the first time

For nearly 600 years it has sat in a box in a vault, taken out just once a year for a ceremony and then put away, but finally, Henry V’s Crystal Sceptre has gone on public display.

The Georgian Dining Academy

A fairly rare chance to dine, for a price, at Simpson's Tavern in the evening hours.

Ada Lovelace gets her own gallery at the Science Museum

To mark the 200th anniversary of her birth, the Science Museum has opened a small gallery devoted the "mother of computing", Ada Lovelace.

75th Anniversary of the Balham Tube Disaster

It's the evening of 14th October 1940, and one of the worst wartime disasters of the London Underground is about to take place.

The Met Police opens its “Black Museum” to the public

The contents of one of London's most secretive private museums has gone on display for the very first time.

Plans to reopen derelict Crystal Palace subway

An underground Victorian subway built for the Crystal Palace and long since abandoned is attempting to open up to the public once more.

First ever public tours of Henry V’s Chapel

Within Westminster Abbey sits a monument to a mighty King, and to mark the 600th anniversary of his greatest victory, it is to be opened to the public.

The Victorian swimming baths floating in the Thames

Nearly 150 years ago, a miniature "Crystal Place" was moored on the Thames near Parliament, as a floating swimming bath.

Brian Haw’s protest camp inside the Museum of London

One of the enduring images of the Blair government was a lone man protesting outside Parliament in a tent -- and now some of that protest has come to the Museum of London.

Book tours of the Heathrow Express Depot

Next month is a chance to have a look around both the Transport Museum's overflow warehouse, and the Heathrow Express train depot on the same day.

Crossrail uncovers burial pit of Great Plague victims

A mass burial site suspected of containing 30 victims of The Great Plague of 1665 has been unearthed at Crossrail's Liverpool Street building site.

Gladiatorial fights return to London

Over the next few days, sweat and blood, groans and cheers, broken bones and damaged egos return to the roman amphitheater in the City of London.

Unbuilt London: The Outer Loop Railway

London has in recent years gained a loop railway that runs around the suburbs, but 100 years ago, a proposal was made for a much larger loop which would have dramatically changed how we see the city today.

Women Working on the Railways During WW1

The role played by women working on the railways during World War I will be told in an exhibition at railway stations this summer.

The year a quarter of London’s population died

The year of our Lord, 1665, and God's wrath smote the City of London laying waste to a quarter of its population for their sinful deeds.

Rarely seen roman ruin to open to the public

Under an otherwise unremarkable office block in the City can be found one of London's largest visible Roman ruins. Visible very rarely though, as it's behind locked doors.

Photographing Soldiers and Suffragettes

A hundred years ago, a short stocky woman roamed the streets of London, carrying a huge wooden box and tripod, aiming to capture the world around her.