64-708: Aldersgate is a Ward of the City of London , England, named after one of the northern gates in the London Wall which once enclosed the City. The Ward of Aldersgate is traditionally divided into Aldersgate Within and Aldersgate Without, the suffix denoting whether the part was within the line of the wall or outside it. The ancient ward boundaries were redrawn in 2013; the names are preserved but their location only loosely approximates to their historic extent. The gate also gave its name to Aldersgate Street, which runs north from
128-516: A constable assigned, known as the Ward Constable, with the larger wards having Assistant Ward Constables in addition. The wards appear to have taken shape by the 11th century, before the Norman conquest of England . Their administrative, judicial and militia purposes made them equivalent to hundreds in the shires. The primary purpose of wards that had a gate on the city wall appears to be
192-589: A royal charter in 1068 by William the Conqueror . The site of the church was cleared in 1818 in preparation for the construction of the Post Office. Most of the buildings on Aldersgate Street were destroyed or badly damaged in the Second World War . The entire length of the eastern side of the street is now occupied by a part of the 40-acre (16 ha) Barbican residential and arts complex. At
256-630: A dedicated meeting house, the Box Meeting, used mainly by Quaker women for poor relief, on her marriage. 28 Aldersgate Street is the approximate former location of a Moravian Church . On 24 May 1738, attending a meeting at the church, the clergyman John Wesley underwent a profound religious experience. The following year, he broke with the Moravians and founded the Methodist Society of England. The yearly anniversary of his experience
320-407: A man named Ealdrād"; the gate probably acquired its name in the late Saxon period. When James VI of Scotland came to England to take the crowns of both England and Scotland in 1603, he entered the City at Aldersgate. Statues of the king were placed both outside (on horseback) and inside (seated on the throne) the gate to commemorate the occasion. The old gate was taken down in 1617, and rebuilt in
384-761: A record total of five seats on the Common Council in March 2017 winning two seats in Portsoken , two seats in Cripplegate ward and one seat in Aldersgate ward. Current elected representatives in Aldersgate, following the 2022 Common Council election and Aldermanic election are Christopher Makin (Alderman), Randall Anderson (Deputy), Naresh Sonpar, Steve Goodman, Helen Fentiman, Deborah Oliver and Anett Ridegg. The wards of London appear to have taken shape in
448-418: A subsidy roll from 1598 shows a "William Shakespeare" as owner of the property, but there is nothing to indicate that it is the playwright. The building no longer exists, and Barbican station now occupies the site. The nearby Shakespeare Tower is named for this (tenuous) connection. At the point where Aldersgate Street changes its name to Goswell Road there is also a public house "The Shakespeare". Adjacent to
512-400: A vacancy arises, for example, by the resignation or death of a councilman. The elections of aldermen are held individually from one another and arise if the sitting alderman dies, resigns or (after the six-year term) puts themselves up for re-election. Since the 2003 review (and confirmed by the 2013 review process ) the four residential wards elect twenty of the hundred common councilmen, and
576-425: A ward depends inter alia on the number of electors (which comprises both of residents and the business vote) in the ward. Only electors who are freemen are eligible to stand. Instead of a conventional electoral register , each ward has a ward list. All common councilmen are elected every four years in one set of elections held citywide. A by-election in a particular ward can occur between scheduled elections if
640-456: A ward-inquest. In 1869, work started on a new post office building known as General Post Office (West) to distinguish it from the old General Post Office building on the east side of St Martin Le Grand. It opened in 1874, also becoming the post office's Central Telegraph Office. Following the construction of the telegraph office, Bath Street, later known as Roman Bath Street, was joined to
704-601: Is a period of purdah whilst in (and for a period after) office, and during this period their appointed deputy will usually take their role within the ward. The City of London is the only remaining local authority in Great Britain to have (non-honorary) aldermen, since their general abolition in England and Wales in 1974 and the London boroughs in 1978. Wards continue to have beadles , with most having just one, but
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#1732772786803768-468: Is celebrated by Methodists as Aldersgate Day . Wesley's Chapel , in nearby City Road , remains a major focal point of the worldwide Methodist movement. The poet Thomas Flatman was born in a house in Aldersgate Street in 1633. As with most historic buildings on this stretch of road, the building no longer stands. At Nos. 35-38 stood Shaftesbury House, built around 1644 by Inigo Jones . It
832-497: Is denoted (on maps, in documents, etc.) as being "Within" and the part outside the Wall as being "Without". Archaically "Infra" (within) and "Extra" (without) and the terms "intramural" and "extramural" had the same meaning. Changes were made in 1994 to the City of London's external boundary with several London boroughs , which meant consequential changes to boundaries of several wards, where areas were transferred either to or from
896-460: The City of London Corporation has two council bodies: the now largely ceremonial Court of Aldermen , and the Court of Common Council . The wards are a survival of the medieval governmental system that allowed very small areas to exist as self-governing units within the wider city. They are both electoral/political sub-divisions and permanent ceremonial, geographic and administrative entities within
960-493: The Court of Aldermen and commoners (the City equivalent of a councillor ) to the Court of Common Council of the City of London Corporation . Only electors who are Freemen of the City of London are eligible to stand. In the 2017 City-wide Common Council elections, the Labour Party won one seat in Aldersgate ward with local resident Richard Crossan standing for Labour and being elected unopposed. The Labour Party won
1024-584: The Elizabethan era . Pick Hatch is mentioned in The Merry Wives of Windsor ("Goe ... to your Mannor of Pickt-hatch") and in The Alchemist ("The decay'd Vestalls of Pickt-hatch"). By the late eighteenth century the name Pickax was no more in use, and the road was fully incorporated into Aldersgate Street. Aldersgate is one of 25 wards of the City of London, each electing an alderman to
1088-553: The Museum of London from its opening in 1976 until it closed in December 2022 prior to its move to Smithfield Market (during which time it fell within the ward). Northbound it continues into Goswell Road at the junction with Fann Street ; southbound it continues into St. Martin's Le Grand . Barbican Underground station is located on Aldersgate Street and when it was opened in 1865 was named Aldersgate Street tube station. In 1910 it
1152-529: The liberty of St. Martin's Le Grand when that was disestablished in the 16th century. Aldersgate Without was, at an early date, part of an area outside the northern wall called the Soke of Cripplegate , held by the church of St. Martin's Le Grand . The Without division was coterminous with that part of the Ancient Parish of St Botolph Without Aldersgate that was part of the City. The area included
1216-418: The (now former) line of London Wall and the old gate and historically was divided into "Within" and "Without" divisions, with a deputy (alderman) appointed for each division. There is now only one deputy alderman for the ward. The Within division was focussed on the buildings on each side of St. Martin's Le Grand (which extends northward as Aldersgate Street), Noble Street and Foster Lane. The ward took in
1280-468: The 11th century, before the Norman Conquest. Their administrative, judicial and military purpose made them equivalent to Hundreds in the countryside. The primary purpose of wards like Aldersgate, which included a gate, appears to be the defence of the gate, as gates were the weakest points in any fortification. The ward initially only included land within the walls, but a degree of growth beyond
1344-729: The Angel Inn was described in The Picture of London as "much frequented by Scotch gentlemen and persons from the North". In 1825, the same directory listed it as among the principal inns visited by mail and stage coaches in London, and a hotel, coffee-house, and tavern. The inn was demolished in around 1840. It was also in the early decades of the nineteenth century that a number of buildings in Angel Street were acquired to allow for
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#17327727868031408-399: The City of London The City of London (also known simply as "the City") is divided into 25 wards . The city is the historic core of the much wider metropolis of Greater London , with an ancient and sui generis form of local government , which avoided the many local government reforms elsewhere in the country in the 19th and 20th centuries. Unlike other modern English local authorities,
1472-687: The change was less extensive this time. The reviews were conducted by senior officers of the corporation and senior judges of the Old Bailey . The wards are not reviewed by the Electoral Commission or a local government boundary commission under the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986 and (unlike other local government electoral reviews) the number and the names of the wards do not change. The final decision on changes to ward boundaries and representation
1536-473: The city – the wards affected were: Farringdon Without, Cripplegate, Coleman Street, Bishopsgate, Aldgate, Portsoken, and Tower. Following a significant reform of the business vote in the city, all the wards underwent a major boundary and electoral representation revision in 2003. The ward boundaries, and electoral representation at the Court of Common Council, were reviewed again in 2010 for change in 2013, though
1600-511: The city's guilds no longer elected members. The number of members of the Common Council grew to 240 by the mid-nineteenth century, but is today fixed at 100. Each ward was divided into precincts, each of which elected one common councilman. As the number of precincts grew over time, the number of councilmen elected therefore also increased. The precincts have now been abolished. The wards are ancient and their number has only changed three times since their creation in time immemorial . Their number
1664-545: The city, who are employees of them. The ward's alderman presides over the wardmote and appoints one of the common councillors of the ward as a deputy (in some wards two are appointed) for the year ahead. Wardmotes at which an alderman is to be elected are presided over by the Lord Mayor. There are also ward clubs , which are similar to residents' associations found elsewhere in the country, but because these have membership open to those without an electoral qualification in
1728-408: The city. The number of Commoners each ward returns to the Court of Common Council is given (for both before and after the 2013 election); being largely based on the size of the electorate, this gives some indication as to the present number of residents (with respect to the four residential wards) and the scale of business activity. (A † symbol is shown where the representation has been capped despite
1792-431: The city. They had their boundaries changed in 2003, and to a lesser extent in 2013, though the number of wards and their names did not change. Each ward, or aldermanry , has its own alderman , who is the most senior official or representative in the ward. The aldermen traditionally held office for life but in the modern era put themselves up for re-election at least every six years. They also now customarily retire at 70,
1856-408: The corner in between Aldersgate Street and Long Lane, opposite to the now Barbican station and Beech Street , stood the "Manchester Hotel" with over 240 rooms. It used to be a Victorian landmark in the area, popular with business men, visitors and juries attending trials at the Old Bailey . Opened in 1879, refurbished and modernised in 1921, suffered severe damages by the Second World War bombs and
1920-539: The corner of Butcher Hall Lane and Angel Street from 1630 until it was burned in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and the Angel coaching inn stood on the north side from the 17th century. It is unknown whether the inn was named after the street or vice versa. King's Head Court was established on the south side on the corner with St Martin's Le Grand by 1746 and appears on John Rocque's map of that year . In 1809,
1984-418: The defence of that gate, as gates were the weakest points in any fortification. In 1322 it was settled that an assembly consisting of two people elected from each ward would create ordinances for the whole city; in 1346 the number of representatives from each ward was formally linked to the size of the ward. The Common Council as we know it today, as a representative body of the wards, was realised in 1384 when
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2048-490: The electorate, the elections in 2013 and 2017 elected a revised number of common councilmen in a number of wards. The present and altered representation is shown in the main ward summary table below; the total number of common councilmen (one hundred) will not change. The cap on Farringdon Without is maintained; the wards of Farringdon Within and Castle Baynard each have eight councilmen by normal allocation. Some wards were, or are, divided into two divisions (these are given in
2112-585: The expansion of Christ's Hospital , including the Queen's Head (Queen's Hotel) on the north side on the corner with St Martin's Le Grand. Houses on the north side were demolished and the land let by the governors of the hospital to allow for the building of a new Bull and Mouth Inn . On the south side at the St Martin's Le Grand end, a number of houses described as "very ruinous" were demolished in Angel Street and King's Head Court in 1835 after they were condemned by
2176-467: The former gate towards Clerkenwell . The street was wholly part of Aldersgate Without ward until a short section further north was renamed and so added to it. The Wall was first built around the year 200, but Aldersgate was not one of the original Roman gates, being added later in the Roman period. The name Aldersgate is first recorded around 1000 in the form Ealdredesgate , i.e. "gate associated with
2240-559: The former liberty and street of St. Martin's is no longer within the ward's boundaries. The much-altered new ward of Aldersgate is bounded by Aldersgate Street, Beech Street , Noble Street, Angel Street , King Edward Street and Montague Street. Aldersgate Street forms a short section of the A1 route towards Edinburgh . It is located on the west side of the Barbican Estate and Barbican Centre , near St Bartholomew's Hospital and
2304-402: The gate meant some of the land beyond came under the sway of the City. Boundary markers – bars – were established here and elsewhere with the suburb eventually becoming part of the City. Aldersgate Bars are recorded as early as 1197. A mansion above Aldersgate, referred to as Aldrichgate, was gifted to John Blytone , the earliest known sword-bearer of the City of London when he resigned from
2368-463: The insurance markets (especially Lloyd's ) with Lime Street ward, and London Bridge with Bridge ward. Boundary changes in 2003 removed some of these connected places from their wards, but that boundary review and the current review do take into account of these historic/traditional connections. The City of London Police use the wards in their day-to-day neighbourhood policing, as well as in recording crime and other statistics, with each ward having
2432-404: The larger wards two or three. This is an ancient elected office that is now largely ceremonial, in that they accompany their alderman on the eight high ceremonial occasions in the city's civic calendar and in attending to call to order the wardmote , an annual meeting in each ward of electors, representatives and officials. These should not be confused with the beadles of the livery companies of
2496-468: The main ward list of this article) and where this happens a Deputy is appointed by the Alderman for each division, instead of the one for the whole ward. Additionally, all wards were further divided into precincts. The numbers and names of these precincts changed gradually over the centuries; precincts were named in various manners across the city's wards. In some wards they were named after localities or
2560-529: The modern roundabout on the site of the gate was the former headquarters of the General Post Office (closed in 1910 and demolished shortly afterwards), and the adjoining Postman's Park. The southern part of the roundabout and the northern part of where the Post Office once stood are located on the site of a collegiate church and sanctuary founded in 750 by Withu, King of Kent , hugely expanded in 1056 by Ingebrian, Earl of Essex, and issued with
2624-510: The normal allocation rules.) Angel Street, London Angel Street , formerly known as Angel Alley , Angel Court , and Angell Street , is a street in the City of London that runs between King Edward Street in the west and St Martin's Le Grand in the east. Although dating back to at least 1542, no original buildings now remain due to the effects of the Great Fire of London , the London Blitz , and redevelopment. Buildings in
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2688-584: The numbers of precincts for each division in two further wards: Dowgate (4 West and 4 East), and Langbourn (7 West and 5 East). This made a total of 220 precincts in 1715. Each precinct elected a Common Councilman. In 1831 there were a total of 236 Common Councilmen (including Deputies, some of whom were elected in their wards in addition to the Councilmen elected by precincts). The ward of Bridge Without had no precincts and did not elect any Common Councilmen throughout its history. Precincts no longer exist in
2752-887: The numerous parishes (on which many precincts were based), in other wards they were simply given numbers. In those wards which were divided into divisions, the precincts were allocated to one division or another. As of around 1800, the numbers of precincts in each ward (and for each division in brackets) were: Aldersgate 8 (4 Within and 4 Without), Aldgate 7, Bassishaw 2, Billingsgate 12, Bishopsgate 9 (5 Within and 4 Without), Bread Street 13, Bridge Within 14, Broad Street 10, Candlewick 7, Castle Baynard 10, Cheap 9, Coleman Street 6, Cordwainer 8, Cornhill 4, Cripplegate 13 (9 Within and 4 Without), Dowgate 8, Farringdon Within 17, Farringdon Without 16, Langbourn 12, Lime Street 4, Portsoken 5, Queenhithe 6, Tower 12, Vintry 9, and Walbrook 7. This amounted to 228 precincts, making each precinct on average around 3 acres (1.2 ha) in size. The City of London
2816-739: The others as a joint association and is now additional to them. In recent times the ward clerk is a permanent position held by an official at the corporation, and based at the Guildhall , though wards can appoint (usually at the wardmote) an honorary ward clerk in addition. The ward clerk is a separate office to that of the Town Clerk of London , who is the chief executive of the corporation. Particular churches, livery halls and other historic buildings, structures and institutions are associated with specific wards, such as St Paul's Cathedral with Castle Baynard ward , Vintners' Hall with Vintry ward ,
2880-604: The parish church of St Botolph's Aldersgate and the adjacent Postman's Park , named after the former principal sorting office in King Edward Street, and the location of the Memorial to Heroic Self Sacrifice . The church outside Aldersgate was one of four London churches dedicated to Saint Botolph , a 7th-century English saint. By the end of the 11th century Botolph was regarded as the patron saint of boundaries, and by extension of trade and travel. The division
2944-647: The remaining, "business-dominated" wards elect the remaining eighty councilmen. The four residential wards are Portsoken , Queenhithe , Aldersgate and Cripplegate , and the 2003 boundary changes reinforced this. The majority of City residents are in the Barbican Estate which is split between Aldersgate and Cripplegate wards. There are a minimum of two common councilmen per ward and three specific wards have their number of councilmen capped: Farringdon Without at ten, Cripplegate at nine and Farringdon Within at eight. With boundary changes as well as changes in
3008-447: The same retirement age as a justice of the peace . Each ward (irrespective of its size) returns one alderman to the Court of Aldermen. One of the aldermen is elected (by the senior liverymen ) as Lord Mayor of London for a period of one year. The Lord Mayor performs many functions and holds many ancient positions and privileges. The Lord Mayor continues to be the alderman of their ward during and after their term of office, though there
3072-507: The same year from a design by Gerard Christmas. The gate was damaged in the Great Fire of London in 1666 but was repaired and remained until 1761. Aldersgate Street contained the Bishop of London 's chapel and his chambers at London House, which was used from the 18th century because it was closer to St Paul's Cathedral than his official residence in Fulham . The ward of Aldersgate straddles
3136-582: The service of the Lord Mayor of London in 1395. In 1554 Aldersgate Street was the scene of a fraud where Elizabeth Crofts was smuggled into a wall to pretend to be a heavenly voice. Reputedly 17,000 people came to listen to her give out anti-Catholic propaganda. The house of Sarah Sawyer, in Rose and Rainbow Court (approximately the site of the present Museum of London ), formed one of the earliest Quaker meetings in London (before 1655). In 1675, it became
3200-472: The south side of Angel Street which connected it to Newgate Street in the south. It had formerly been known as Bagnio Court in reference to the Turkish baths that stood there. In 1890, the foundation stone was laid for the construction of a building known as General Post Office (North) which took up the whole of the north side of Angel Street and led to the demolition of the remaining buildings on that side of
3264-620: The street were damaged in the Great Fire of 1666 when Poulterer's Hall was destroyed, and in the early nineteenth century many buildings were demolished for redevelopment and due to their "ruinous" state. The Angel Inn, which dated from the 17th century, survived on the north side until around 1840. In the late nineteenth century, the General Post Office (West), which included the Central Telegraph Office,
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#17327727868033328-576: The street. It was designed by Henry Tanner . The telegraph office was slightly damaged by a bomb during the First World War, and more seriously during the London Blitz in 1940 when burning debris from adjacent buildings set it alight and totally destroyed the interior. It reopened in 1943 but closed again in 1962 and was demolished in 1967. The BT Centre , formerly the headquarters of British Telecom , opened in 1984 and now occupies
3392-400: The ward fell outside or within the London Wall , though only Farringdon and (formerly) Bridge have been split into separate wards in this way (Bridge Without was beyond the gates on London Bridge ). Some wards—Aldersgate, Bishopsgate and Cripplegate—cover an area that was both within and without the Wall and, although not split into separate wards, often the part (or division ) within the Wall
3456-414: The ward they have essentially become social clubs as part of the city's general civic social life along with the guilds, associations and liveries. There are twenty-two of these (Farringdon has always been an association of both wards of that name and Vintry and Dowgate the result of merger of the two clubs of each ward in 1957). Confusingly, there is also a 'United Wards Club' which was formed before many of
3520-785: The west and St Martin's Le Grand in the east. In the Middle Ages , Angel Alley was regarded as part of the sanctuary of St Martin's Le Grand and a witness in a 1536–1537 Star Chamber case testified that the future Cardinal Morton took sanctuary in Angel Alley in the fifteenth century. Angel Alley is also mentioned as within the College of St Martin's Le Grand in the Letters and Papers of the Reign of Henry VIII for 1542. John Strype referred to it as Angel Alley in his 1720 survey which
3584-500: Was very densely populated until the mid-19th century, giving each precinct in the region of 500 residents on average. A record of the wards, their divisions and precincts (including the names of the precincts) in 1715 give the following differences from the above figures: Aldersgate Within 5, Billingsgate 6, Broad Street 8 (4 Upper and 4 Lower), Castle Baynard 7 (4 First and 3 Second), Farringdon Without 15 (Fleet Street Side 8 and Holborn Side 7), and Queenhithe 9. This record also states
3648-542: Was based on John Stow 's surveys of 1598 and 1603 and William Herbert gave its former name as Angel Court. It is recorded as Angel Street on John Ogilby and William Morgan 's Large Scale Map of the City As Rebuilt By 1676 which shows the plan of London after its rebuilding following the fire. The eastern end of the street was part of the Liberty of St Martin's Le Grand . The Poulters' Hall stood on
3712-511: Was built on the south side of the street and a further post office building soon after replaced the whole of the north side of the street. In 1940, the telegraph office was seriously damaged during the London Blitz and subsequently demolished in 1967. The site is now occupied by the BT Centre (1984) so that today the street consists solely of two long office frontages. Angel Street runs between King Edward Street (originally Butcher Hall Lane) in
3776-547: Was consequently demolished. After the First World War it was temporary closed, and commanded by the government as a hostel for Jewish refugees escaping Poland and Belgium. Advertisement of the hotel regularly featured on local magazines and periodicals referring to its splendid rooms, wine cellar, luncheon for City workers, and as a venue for wedding receptions. Listed clockwise from the West Wards of
3840-519: Was demolished in 1882. Lauderdale House was demolished in 1708, the London home of the Duke of Lauderdale and earlier the house of his mother-in-law, the Countess of Home . No. 134 for many years had a sign claiming: "This was Shakespeare 's House". Although the building was very close to the nearby Fortune Playhouse , there is no documentary evidence surviving to indicate that Shakespeare resided here;
3904-434: Was made by the Court of Common Council and an Act of Common Council was passed on 4 November 2010 to give effect to the changes from 8 March 2013. Under the current arrangements, each ward is an electoral district , electing one alderman to the Court of Aldermen , and between two and ten common councilmen (the city's equivalent of a councillor ) to the Court of Common Council . The number of common councilmen elected by
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#17327727868033968-524: Was mainly focussed on the buildings on each side of Aldersgate street and included the western part of the Barbican Estate (including the Museum of London ), two livery company halls (the Ironmongers' Hall and the Plaisterers' Hall ) as well as 200 Aldersgate , a large office complex at the southern end of the street. Since ward boundary changes in 2013, almost all of the ward is Without and
4032-578: Was renamed Aldersgate, then Aldersgate & Barbican in 1924, before finally being renamed Barbican in 1968. Originally Aldersgate Street only corresponded to the section starting from the church of St Botolph without Aldersgate towards Long Lane. The portion of the road from Long Lane till Goswell Street (after 1864 Goswell Road ) was formerly named Pickax Street, where today is located the Barbican tube station. This name may derive from Pickt Hatch, an area of brothels said to be in this part of London during
4096-486: Was stated as 24 in the year 1206. In 1394 Farringdon was divided into Farringdon Within and Farringdon Without. In 1550 the ward of Bridge Without was created south of the river , with the ward of Bridge becoming Bridge Within. These two wards were merged in 1978, into the present-day Bridge ward. Thus the number of wards was 24 prior to 1394, 25 from 1394 to 1550, then 26 from 1550 to 1978, and has been 25 since 1978. The words "Without" and "Within" indicate whether
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