118-662: Smithfield , properly known as West Smithfield , is a district located in Central London , part of Farringdon Without , the most westerly ward of the City of London , England. Smithfield is home to a number of City institutions, such as St Bartholomew's Hospital and livery halls , including those of the Butchers' and Haberdashers' Companies . The area is best known for the Smithfield meat market , which dates from
236-570: A Charter from King Richard I granting the Order formal privileges. Later Augustinian canonesses established the Priory of St Mary, north of the Knights of St John property. By the end of the 14th century, these religious houses were regarded by City traders as interlopers – occupying what had previously been public open space near one of the City gates . On numerous occasions vandals damaged
354-456: A circus . Elaborate costumes and masks allow people to set aside their everyday individuality and experience a heightened sense of social unity. Participants often indulge in excessive consumption of alcohol, meat, and other foods that will be forgone during upcoming Lent. Traditionally, butter, milk, and other animal products were not consumed "excessively", rather, their stock was fully consumed during Shrovetide as to reduce waste. This festival
472-578: A central role, from the Queen elections to the Grand Parade. Street parades continue in various districts throughout the month, with brass band, steelpan and roadmarch tunes. On the evening before Lent, Carnival ends with the symbolic burning of King Momo. Junkanoo is the principal street parade in the Bahamas, it has been practiced in the Bahamas before and after the 1834 emancipation of slavery in
590-433: A certain object or activity of desire. As such, during the season of Shrovetide, it is customary for Christians to ponder what Lenten sacrifices they will make for the coming Lent. The traditions of carrying Shrovetide rods and consuming Shrovetide buns after attending church are celebrated. On the final day of the season, Shrove Tuesday, many traditional Christians, such as Lutherans, Anglicans, and Roman Catholics, "make
708-408: A coherent festival or link these festivals. These similarities may represent a reservoir of cultural resources that can embody multiple meanings and functions. For example, Easter begins with the resurrection of Jesus , followed by a liminal period, and ends with rebirth . Carnival reverses this as King Carnival comes to life, and a liminal period follows before his death. Both feasts are calculated by
826-480: A common root. In early Christianity , Christ is figured as the victim of summary judgment , and is tortured and executed by Romans before a Jewish mob ("His blood is on us and on our children!" Matthew 27:24–25 ). Holy Week processions in Spain include crowds who vociferously insult the figure of Jesus. Irreverence, parody, degradation, and laughter at a tragicomic effigy of God can be seen as intensifications of
944-565: A cow or a dozen sheep one could get 1 penny. The livestock market expanded over the centuries to meet demand from the growing population of the City. In 1710, the market was surrounded by a wooden fence containing the livestock within the market. Until the market's abolition, the Gate House at Cloth Fair ("Fair Gate") employed a chain ( le cheyne ) on market days. Daniel Defoe referred to the livestock market in 1726 as being "without question,
1062-443: A day where all are meant to perform a "mask" that differs from their typical identity, all members of a society are able to connect through their theatricality and satire. Mircea Eliade , historian of religions, writes: "Any new year is a revival of time at its beginning, a repetition of the cosmogony. Ritual fights between two groups of extras, the presence of the dead, Saturnalia and orgies, are all elements which indicate that at
1180-636: A few years earlier, upon the arrival of his consort Isabel of Bavaria . Geoffrey Chaucer supervised preparations for the tournament as a clerk to the King. It is told that, between 1389 and 1394, another large tournament was celebrated in the city which spawned the Portuguese legend of the Twelve of England , where twelve Portuguese knights were called to defend the honour of several ladies-in-waiting of John of Gaunt 's castillian wife Constance of Castile . At
1298-505: A food shortage at the end of the winter as stores ran out. Until spring produce was available, people were limited to the minimum necessary meals during this period. On what nowadays is called vastenavond (the days before fasting ), all the remaining winter stores of lard, butter, and meat which were left would be eaten, for these would otherwise soon start to rot and decay. The selected livestock had already been slaughtered in November and
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#17327918966911416-621: A former right of way . After the Reformation , a separate parish likewise dedicated to St Bartholomew was granted in favour of St Bartholomew's Hospital ; named St Bartholomew-the-Less , it remained under the hospital's patronage , unique in the Church of England , until 1948, when the hospital was nationalized in the National Health Service . The church benefice has since been joined again with its ancient partner,
1534-471: A giant celebration that involved the whole community, and is thought to be the origin of Carnival. In many Christian sermons and texts, the example of a vessel is used to explain Christian doctrine: "the nave of the church of baptism", "the ship of Mary ", etc. The writings show that processions with ship-like carts were held and lavish feasts were celebrated on the eve of Lent or the greeting of spring in
1652-611: A graveyard and plague pit for victims of the Black Death . A chapel and hermitage were constructed, renamed New Church Haw ; but in 1371, this land was granted for the foundation of the Charterhouse, originally a Carthusian monastery . Nearby and to the north of this demesne, the Knights Hospitaller established a Commandery at Clerkenwell, dedicated to St John in the mid-12th century. In 1194 they received
1770-453: A great Institution like Smithfield, [the French] are unable to form the least conception. A Beast Market in the heart of Paris would be regarded an impossible nuisance. Nor have they any notion of slaughter-houses in the midst of a city . One of these benighted frog-eaters would scarcely understand your meaning, if you told him of the existence of such a British bulwark. An Act of Parliament
1888-455: A historical and religious point of view, the Carnival therefore represented a period of celebration, but above all of symbolic renewal, during which chaos replaced the established order, which, however, once the festive period was over, re-emerged new or renewed and guaranteed for a cycle valid until the beginning of the following Carnival. From an anthropological point of view, Carnival is
2006-660: A long time, the most famous Carnival (although Napoleon abolished it in 1797 and only in 1979 was the tradition restored). From Italy, Carnival traditions spread to Spain, Portugal, and France, and from France to New France in North America. From Spain and Portugal, it spread with colonization to the Caribbean and Latin America . In the early 19th century in the German Rhineland and Southern Netherlands ,
2124-528: A marriage would be consummated as a fertility ritual . Tacitus wrote in his Germania : Germania 9.6: Ceterum nec cohibere parietibus deos neque in ullam humani oris speciem adsimulare ex magnitudine caelestium arbitrator – "The Germans, however, do not consider it consistent with the grandeur of celestial beings to confine the gods within walls, or to liken them to the form of any human countenance." Germania 40: mox vehiculum et vestis et, si credere velis, numen ipsum secreto lacu abluitur – "Afterwards
2242-475: A method of empowering themselves in spite of social conflicts. For example, when the Caribbean Carnival was established as a result of French settlers, even the slaves had their version of the masquerade , where they would reverse roles to mock those of higher social status. Along with empowering individuals for a period of time, despite their typical status, Carnival brings communities together. In
2360-474: A national holiday, when costume bands fill the streets with pulsating Barbadian rhythms and fireworks. San Pedro is one of Belize 's few cities to observe Carnaval before Lent. Elsewhere, Carnaval (sometimes referred to as Carnival) often occurs in September. The Fiesta de Carnaval is often the most popular celebration, usually held over three days prior to Ash Wednesday, but the festivities often extend to
2478-515: A pagan." Confession books from around 800 contain more information about how people would dress as an animal or old woman during the festivities in January and February, even though this was a sin with no small penance. Also in Spain in the seventh century, San Isidoro de Sevilla complained in his writings about people coming out into the streets disguised, in many cases, as the opposite sex. Gradually, ecclesiastical authority began to realize that
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#17327918966912596-474: A pleasure forum, the four-day festival drew crowds from all strata of English society. In 1855, however, the City authorities closed Bartholomew Fair as they considered it to have degenerated into a magnet for debauchery and public disorder. In 1348, Walter de Manny rented 13 acres (0.05 km) of land at Spital Croft , north of Long Lane, from the Master and Brethren of St Bartholomew's Hospital, for
2714-501: A private dwelling until its reestablishment by Thomas Sutton in 1611 as a charitable foundation; it was the basis of the school named Charterhouse and almshouses known as Sutton's Hospital in Charterhouse on its former site. The school was relocated to Godalming in 1872. Until 1899 Charterhouse was extra-parochial ; that year it became a civil parish incorporated in the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury . Some of
2832-448: A reversal ritual, in which social roles are reversed and norms about desired behavior are suspended. During antiquity , winter was thought of as the reign of the winter spirits; these needed to be driven out in order for summer to return. Carnival can thus be regarded as a rite of passage from darkness to light, from winter to summer: a fertility celebration, the first spring festival of the new year. Several Germanic tribes celebrated
2950-547: A royal herald's timely announcement that Queen Mary had died shortly before the wooden faggots were to be lit at the Smithfield Stake . Under English Law death warrants were commanded by Sign Manual (the personal signature of the Monarch ), invariably upon ministerial recommendation, which if unexercised by the time of a Sovereign's death required renewed authority. In this case Queen Elizabeth did not approve
3068-588: A small part of Kensington. The area had an estimated population of 400,000 and occupied 8,000 acres (32 km ). During the passage of the London Government Bill an amendment was put forward to create a central borough corresponding to the definition used at the 1961 census. It consisted of the City of London, all of Westminster, Holborn and Finsbury; and the inner parts of Shoreditch, Stepney, Bermondsey, Southwark, Lambeth, Chelsea, Kensington, Paddington, St Marylebone and St Pancras. The population
3186-535: A special point of self-examination, of considering what wrongs they need to repent, and what amendments of life or areas of spiritual growth they especially need to ask God's help in dealing with." During Shrovetide, many churches place a basket in the narthex to collect the previous year's Holy Week palm branches that were blessed and distributed during the Palm Sunday liturgies. On Shrove Tuesday (the final day of Shrovetide), churches burn these palms to make
3304-502: A totally new phenomenon. Starting in 2004, the London Plan defined a 'Central Activities Zone' policy area, which as of 2008 comprised the City of London, most of Westminster and the inner parts of Camden, Islington, Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Southwark, Lambeth, Kensington & Chelsea and Wandsworth. It is described as "a unique cluster of vitally important activities including central government offices, headquarters and embassies,
3422-475: A tributary of the Fleet, which marked the City's northern boundary in the area. The Bars are first documented in 1170 and 1197, and were a site of public executions. Since the late 1990s, Smithfield and neighbouring Farringdon have developed a reputation for being a cultural hub for up-and-coming professionals, who enjoy its bars, restaurants and nightclubs. Nightclubs such as Fabric and Turnmills pioneered
3540-773: A very large number of commercial and industrial firms, as well as institutions of great influence in the intellectual life of the nation such as the British Museum , the National Gallery , the Tate Gallery , the University of London , the headquarters of the national ballet and opera, together with the headquarters of many national associations, the great professions, the trade unions, the trade associations, social service societies, as well as shopping centres and centres of entertainment which attract people from
3658-531: A yearly prize. It has imported various Brazilian Carnival traditions. The celebration in São Nicolau is more traditional, where established groups parade through the Ribeira Brava , gathering in the town square , although it has adopted drums, floats and costumes from Brazil. In São Nicolau, three groups, Copa Cabana, Estrela Azul, and Brilho Da Zona, construct a painted float using fire, newspaper for
Smithfield, London - Misplaced Pages Continue
3776-467: Is a large market with permanent buildings, designed by architect Sir Horace Jones , who also designed Billingsgate and Leadenhall markets. Work on the Central Market , inspired by Italian architecture, began in 1866 and was completed in November 1868 at a cost of £993,816 (£113 million as of 2024). The Grade II listed main wings (known as East and West Market ) are separated by
3894-647: Is a popular musical style. In all major cities and many towns throughout the country, Carnival is celebrated. The Humahuaca Carnival is a popular celebration, which takes place at the beginning of Lent (40 days before Holy Week), in the Quebrada de Humahuaca area, Jujuy province, Argentina. As Carnival coincides with summer in the Southern Hemisphere, in many parts of Argentina children play with water. The 19th century tradition of filling empty egg shells with water has evolved into water games that include
4012-478: Is a traditional harvest festival celebrated in Barbados . Its early beginnings were on the sugar cane plantations during the colonial period. Crop Over began in 1688, and featured singing, dancing, and accompaniment by shak-shak , banjo , triangle , fiddle , guitar, bottles filled with water, and bones. Other traditions included climbing a greased pole, feasting, and drinking competitions. Originally signaling
4130-798: Is celebrated during the last week before Great Lent . In German -speaking Europe and the Netherlands , the Carnival season traditionally opens on 11/11 (often at 11:11 a.m.). This dates back to celebrations before the Advent season or with harvest celebrations of St. Martin's Day . The word "Carnival" is of Christian origin. The Latin -derived name of the holiday is sometimes also spelled Carnaval , typically in areas where Dutch , French , Spanish , and Portuguese are spoken, or Carnevale in Italian -speaking contexts. Alternative names are used for regional and local celebrations. The word
4248-593: Is held from the end of July to the first Tuesday in August. The most important day is that of the j'ouvert (or juvé ), in which brass and steelpan bands perform. Barbuda 's Carnival, held in June, is known as "Caribana". The Antiguan and Barbudan Carnivals replaced the Old Time Christmas Festival in 1957, with hopes of inspiring tourism. In Argentina , the most representative Carnival performed
4366-478: Is held in the capital city of Victoria and takes place over three days. On Day 1, the grand opening is held in the city center near the clock tower. The second day is parade day. On Day 3, the closing ceremony is held, and a lottery winner is announced. The Harare Carnival is held late in May. Events include fashion and music shows. The climax is a street party featuring costumes and music. The Antiguan Carnival
4484-700: Is in fact no evidence that they existed much before 1200." Because Lent was a period of fasting , "Carnival therefore represented a last period of feasting and celebration before the spiritual rigors of Lent." Meat was plentiful during this part of the Christian calendar and it was consumed during Carnival as people abstained from meat consumption during the following liturgical season, Lent. During Carnival, also known as Shrovetide, people confessed (shrived) their sins in preparation for Lent as well. Shakespeare's 1601 play, The Merchant of Venice , Scene 5 of Act 2, mentions Christians who painted their faces to celebrate
4602-403: Is known for being a time of great indulgence before Lent (which is a time stressing the opposite), with drinking, overeating, and various other activities of indulgence being performed. For example, pancakes , donuts, and other desserts are prepared and eaten for a final time. During Lent, dairy and animal products are eaten less, if at all, and individuals make a Lenten sacrifice , thus giving up
4720-479: Is said to come from the Late Latin expression carne levare , which means "remove meat"; a folk etymology derives it from carne vale , "farewell to meat". In either case, this signifies the approaching fast. The word carne may also be translated as flesh, producing "a farewell to the flesh", a phrase embraced by certain Carnival celebrants to embolden the festival's carefree spirit. The etymology of
4838-640: Is suffered to continue year after year, from generation to generation, in the very heart of the most Christian and most polished city in the world. In 1843, the Farmer's Magazine published a petition signed by bankers, salesmen, butchers, aldermen and City residents against further expansion of the meat market, arguing that livestock markets had been systematically banned since the Middle Ages in other areas of London: Our ancestors appear, in sanitary matters, to have been wiser than we are. There exists, amongst
Smithfield, London - Misplaced Pages Continue
4956-478: Is the calypso competition. Calypso music, originating in Trinidad, uses syncopated rhythm and topical lyrics. It offers a medium in which to satirise local politics, amidst the general bacchanal. Calypso tents, also originating in Trinidad, feature cadres of musicians who perform biting social commentaries, political exposés or rousing exhortations to "wuk dah waistline" and "roll dat bumper". The groups compete for
5074-530: Is the so-called Murga , although other famous Carnivals, more like Brazil's, are held in Argentine Mesopotamia and the North-East. Gualeguaychú in the east of Entre Ríos Province is the most important Carnival city and has one of the largest parades. It adopts a musical background similar to Brazilian or Uruguayan Carnival. Corrientes is another city with a Carnival tradition. Chamamé
5192-455: Is used to paint people on the streets, the goal being to paint as many people as you can." Street fights often occur during the festivities – some locals treat this festival as an opportunity to exact revenge on their enemies. Vandalism is common and "businesses constantly have to prepare in covering or repainting their advertisements during Carnival season because of the mischief performed." The tradition continues despite critics who advocate
5310-708: The Indiculus superstitionum et paganiarum ("small index of superstitious and pagan practices"), which was drafted by the Synod of Leptines in 742. It condemned the Spurcalibus en februario . Pope Gregory the Great (590–604) decided that fasting would start on Ash Wednesday. The whole Carnival event was set before the fasting, to set a clear division between celebrations and penitence. He also dispatched missionaries to sanctify any excesses in popular Carnival customs. It
5428-477: The City of London . From 2004 to 2008, the London Plan included a sub-region called Central London comprising Camden, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Southwark, Wandsworth and Westminster. It had a 2001 population of 1,525,000. The sub-region was replaced in 2008 with a new structure which amalgamated inner and outer boroughs together. This was altered in 2011 when a new Central London sub-region
5546-641: The City of Westminster ), which is marked by the statue of King Charles I at the junction of the Strand , Whitehall and Cockspur Street , just south of Trafalgar Square . The central area is distinguished, according to the Royal Commission , by the inclusion within its boundaries of Parliament and the Royal Palaces, the headquarters of Government, the Law Courts , the head offices of
5664-474: The Grand Avenue , a wide roadway roofed by an elliptical arch with decorations in cast iron . At the two ends of the arcade, four prominent statues represent London, Edinburgh , Liverpool and Dublin ; they depict bronze dragons charged with the City 's armorial bearings . At the corners of the market, four octagonal pavilion towers were built, each with a dome displaying carved stone griffins . As
5782-522: The Great Fire of 1666 ). The area has borne witness to many executions of heretics and political rebels over the centuries, as well as Scottish knight Sir William Wallace , and Wat Tyler , leader of the Peasants' Revolt , among many other religious reformers and dissenters. Smithfield Market, a Grade II listed - covered market building , was designed by Victorian architect Sir Horace Jones in
5900-765: The London Government Bill , three unsuccessful attempts were made to define an area that would form a central London borough . The first two were detailed in the 1959 Memorandum of Evidence of the Greater London Group of the London School of Economics . "Scheme A" envisaged a central London borough, one of 25, consisting of the City of London, Westminster, Holborn, Finsbury and the inner parts of St Marylebone, St Pancras, Chelsea, Southwark and Lambeth. The boundary deviated from existing lines to include all central London railway stations ,
6018-648: The Marian martyrs , were executed at Smithfield during the reign of Mary I . G. K. Chesterton observed ironically: It is foolish, generally speaking, for a philosopher to set fire to another philosopher in Smithfield Market because they do not agree in their theory of the universe. That was done very frequently in the last decadence of the Middle Ages , and it failed altogether in its object. On 17 November 1558, several Protestant heretics were saved by
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#17327918966916136-478: The Tower of London and the museums, such that it included small parts of Kensington, Shoreditch, Stepney and Bermondsey. It had an estimated population of 350,000 and occupied 7,000 acres (28 km ). "Scheme B" delineated central London, as one of 7 boroughs, including most of the City of London, the whole of Finsbury and Holborn, most of Westminster and Southwark, parts of St Pancras, St Marylebone, Paddington and
6254-475: The Tower of London , and on 4 May 1535, they were taken to Tyburn and hanged – becoming the first Catholic martyrs of the Reformation. On 29 May, the remaining twenty monks and eighteen lay brothers were forced to swear the oath of allegiance to King Henry VIII; the ten who refused were taken to Newgate Prison and left to starve. With the monks expelled, Charterhouse was requisitioned and remained as
6372-410: The lunar calendar . Both Jesus and King Carnival may be seen as expiatory figures who make a gift to the people with their deaths. In the case of Jesus, the gift is eternal life in heaven , and in the case of King Carnival, the acknowledgement that death is a necessary part of the cycle of life. Besides Christian anti-Judaism , the commonalities between church and Carnival rituals and imagery suggest
6490-554: The manorial rights to hold weekly fairs , which initially took place in its outer court on the site of present-day Cloth Fair , leading to "Fair Gate". An additional annual celebration, the Bartholomew Fair , was established in 1133 by the Augustinian canons . Over time, this became one of London's pre-eminent summer fairs , opening each year on 24 August. A trading event for cloth and other goods as well as being
6608-468: The map after the major redevelopment of the area in the Victorian era . In 1123, the area near Aldersgate was granted by King Henry I for the foundation of St Bartholomew's Priory at the request of Prior Rahere , in thanks for his being nursed back to good health. The Priory exercised its right to enclose land between the vicinity of the boundary with Aldersgate Without (to the east), Long Lane (to
6726-455: The parish of St Sepulchre , was founded in 1137, and was endowed by Prior Rahere , who also founded St Barts. The ancient parish of St Sepulchre extended north to Turnmill Street , to St Paul's Cathedral and Ludgate Hill in the south, and along the east bank of the Fleet (now the route of Farringdon Street ). St Sepulchre's Tower contains the twelve "bells of Old Bailey", referred to in
6844-517: The "House of the Poore in West Smithfield in the suburbs of the City of London of Henry VIII's Foundation". Letters Patent were presented to the City , granting property and income to the new foundation the following month. King Henry VIII's sergeant-surgeon , Thomas Vicary , was appointed as the hospital 's first superintendent . The King Henry VIII Gate, which opens onto West Smithfield,
6962-424: The 10th century, has been in continuous operation since medieval times , and is now London's only remaining wholesale market . From the 12th century to the 19th century the area hosted Bartholomew Fair . Smithfield's principal street is called West Smithfield , and the area also contains the City's oldest surviving church building, St Bartholomew-the-Great , dating from 1123 (most City churches were destroyed in
7080-544: The 19th century, the area included boundary markers known as the West Smithfield Bars (or more simply, Smithfield Bars). These marked the northern boundary of the City of London and were placed at a point approximating to where modern Charterhouse Street meets St John Street, which was historically the first stretch of the Great North Road . The Bars were on the route of the former Fagswell Brook ,
7198-585: The Advocates for the Removal of Smithfield Market , applauding those "philanthropic men" who aim at removing to a distance the "vile Zoology" of the market and "routing that great nest of Hornithology [sic]". Charles Dickens criticised locating a livestock market in the heart of the capital in his 1851 essay A Monument of French Folly drawing comparisons with the French market at Poissy outside Paris: Of
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#17327918966917316-533: The British Empire. The Bahamas announced the first Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival to commence in May 2015. Carnival in the Bahamas rivals various carnivals throughout the Caribbean in that it is a unique blend between the revered Junkanoo and traditional Carnival. This fairly new festival has been referred to as the ultimate celebration of everything Bahamian. "Crop Over" (formerly called "Harvest Home")
7434-560: The Calypso Monarch Award, while the air is redolent with the smells of Bajan cooking during the Bridgetown Market Street Fair. The Cohobblopot Festival blends dance, drama, and music with the crowning of the King and Queen of costume bands. Every evening the "Pic-o-de-Crop" Show is performed after the King of Calypso is finally crowned. The climax of the festival is Kadooment Day, celebrated with
7552-647: The Charterhouse, eventually demolishing its buildings. By 1405, a stout wall was built to protect the property and maintain the privacy of the Order, particularly its church where men and women alike came to worship. The religious houses were dissolved in the Reformation , and their lands broken up. The Priory Church of St John remains, as does St John's Gate . John Houghton (later canonized by Pope Paul VI as St John Houghton ), The prior of Charterhouse went to Thomas Cromwell , accompanied by two other local priors, seeking an oath of supremacy that would be acceptable to their communities . Instead they were imprisoned in
7670-556: The City, due to its extremely poor hygienic conditions as well as the brutal treatment of the cattle. The conditions at the market in the first half of the 19th century were often described as a major threat to public health: Of all the horrid abominations with which London has been cursed, there is not one that can come up to that disgusting place, West Smithfield Market, for cruelty, filth, effluvia, pestilence, impiety, horrid language, danger, disgusting and shuddering sights, and every obnoxious item that can be imagined; and this abomination
7788-578: The Great was designated as a Liberty , responsible for the upkeep and security of its fabric and the land within its boundaries. With the advent of street lighting, mains water, and sewerage during the Victorian era, maintenance of such an ancient parish with so few parishioners became increasingly uneconomical after the Industrial Revolution. In 1910, it agreed to be incorporated by the Corporation of London which guaranteed financial support and security. Great St Barts' present parish boundary includes just 10 feet (3.048 m) of Smithfield – possibly delineating
7906-463: The Priory Church of St Bartholomew the Great. Following the diminished influence of the ancient Priory, predecessor of the two parishes of St Bartholomew, disputes began to arise over rights to tithes and taxes payable by lay residents who claimed allegiance with the nearby and anciently associated parish of St Botolph Aldersgate – an unintended consequence and legacy of King Henry VIII's religious reforms. Smithfield and its market, situated mostly in
8024-448: The Rolls of Parliament of the year 1380, a petition from the citizens of London, praying – that, for the sake of the public health, meat should not be slaughtered nearer than " Knyghtsbrigg ", under penalty, not only of forfeiting such animals as might be killed in the "butcherie", but of a year's imprisonment. The prayer of this petition was granted, audits penalties were enforced during several reigns. Thomas Hood wrote in 1830 an Ode to
8142-400: The United Kingdom, West Indian immigrants brought with them the traditions of Caribbean Carnival ; however, the Carnivals now celebrated at Notting Hill , Leeds , Yorkshire, and other places became divorced from their religious origin and became secular events that take place in the summer months. Interpretations of Carnival present it as a social institution that degrades or "uncrowns"
8260-422: The area's reputation for trendy night life , attracting professionals from nearby Holborn , Clerkenwell and the City on weekdays. At weekends, the clubs and bars in the area, having late licences , draw people into the area from outside London too. Smithfield has also become a venue for sporting events. Until 2002 Smithfield hosted the midnight start of the annual Miglia Quadrato car treasure hunt , but with
8378-489: The ashes used during the services held on the very next day, Ash Wednesday. The term "Carnival" is traditionally used in areas with a large Catholic presence, as well as in Greece . The celebration is known as Fastelavn in historically Evangelical Lutheran countries. It is called Shrovetide in areas with a high concentration of Anglicans ( Church of England / US Episcopal Church ), Methodists , and other Protestants . In Slavic Eastern Orthodox nations, Maslenitsa
8496-550: The car, the vestments, and, if you like to believe it, the divinity herself, are purified in a secret lake." In the Middle Ages , Carnival referred to a period following Epiphany season that reached its climax before midnight on Shrove Tuesday . British historian John Bossy , in writing on the origin of the practices during Carnival, states that "These were, despite some appearances, Christian in character, and they were medieval in origin: although it has been widely supposed that they continued some kind of pre-Christian cult, there
8614-689: The desired result could not be achieved by banning Carnivals, which eventually led to a degree of Christianization of the traditions. They then became part of the liturgy and the liturgical year. In the Middle Ages, "Carnival and Lent were both necessary, inevitable episodes in the eternal cycle of the Church year." While forming an integral part of the Christian calendar, particularly in Catholic regions, many Carnival traditions resemble those antedating Christianity. While medieval pageants and festivals such as Corpus Christi were church-sanctioned, Carnival
8732-540: The early Middle Ages. The Lenten period of the liturgical calendar , the six weeks directly before Easter , was historically marked by fasting, study, and other pious or penitential practices. During Lent, no parties or celebrations were held, and people refrained from eating rich foods, such as meat, dairy, fat, and sugar. The first three classes were often totally unavailable during this period because of late winter shortages. While Christian festivals such as Corpus Christi were Church-sanctioned celebrations, Carnival
8850-421: The end of the year and in the expectation of the new year the mythical moments of the passage of chaos to the cosmogony are repeated". Eliade also writes: "Then the dead will come back, because all barriers between the dead and the living are broken (is the primordial chaos not revived?), and will come back since – at this paradoxical moment – time will be interrupted, so that the dead may be again contemporaries of
8968-566: The end of the yearly cane harvest, it evolved into a national festival. In the late 20th century, Crop Over began to closely mirror the Trinidad Carnival. Beginning in June, Crop Over runs until the first Monday in August when it culminates in the finale, the Grand Kadooment. Crop Over time for many islanders is one big party. Craft markets, food tents/stalls, street parties, and cavalcades fill every week. A major feature
9086-409: The entire period between Christmas and the beginning of Lent. In those two months, Christian populations used their several holidays as an outlet for their daily frustrations. Many synods and councils attempted to set things "right". Caesarius of Arles (470–542) protested around 500 CE in his sermons against the pagan practices. Centuries later, his statements were adapted as the building blocks of
9204-529: The executions, thus freeing the Protestants. During the 16th century, the Smithfield site was also the place of execution of swindlers and coin forgers , who were boiled to death in oil. By the 18th century, the "Tyburn Tree" (near the present-day Marble Arch ) became the main place for public executions in London. After 1785, executions were again moved, this time to the gates of Newgate prison, just to
9322-425: The full week. This festival "always includes music, dancing, costumes and parades". Comparsas are held throughout the week, consisting of large groups "of dancers dancing and traveling on the streets, followed by a Carrosa (carriage) where the musicians play. The Comparsa is a development of African processions where groups of devotees follow a given saint or deity during a particular religious celebration." One of
9440-656: The greatest in the world", and data available appear to corroborate his statement. Between 1740 and 1750 the average yearly sales at Smithfield were reported to be around 74,000 cattle and 570,000 sheep. By the middle of the 19th century, in the course of a single year 220,000 head of cattle and 1,500,000 sheep would be "violently forced into an area of five acres, in the very heart of London, through its narrowest and most crowded thoroughfares". The volume of cattle driven daily to Smithfield started to raise major concerns. The Great North Road traditionally began at Smithfield Market, with St John Street and Islington High Street forming
9558-443: The higher functions of thought, speech, and the soul by translating them into the grotesque body , which serves to renew society and the world, as a release for impulses that threaten the social order that ultimately reinforces social norms, as a social transformation, or as a tool for different groups to focus attention on conflicts and incongruities by embodying them in "senseless" acts. Furthermore, some cultures use Carnival as
9676-646: The increased night club activity around Smithfield, the UHULMC (a motoring club) decided to move the event's start to Finsbury Circus . Since 2007, Smithfield has been the chosen site of an annual event dedicated to road bicycle racing known as the Smithfield Nocturne . Number 1, West Smithfield is head office of the Churches Conservation Trust . Meat has been traded at Smithfield Market for more than 800 years, making it one of
9794-472: The initial stages. Road mileages were taken from Hicks Hall , a short distance up St John Street, some 90 metres north of the West Smithfield Bars . The site of the hall continued to be used as the starting point for mileages even after it was demolished soon after 1778. The road followed St John Street, and continued north, eventually leading to Edinburgh . Using the former site of the hall as
9912-408: The largest concentration of London's financial and business services sector and the offices of trade, professional bodies, institutions, associations, communications, publishing, advertising and the media". For strategic planning, since 2011 there has been a Central London sub-region comprising the boroughs of Camden , Islington , Kensington and Chelsea , Lambeth , Southwark , Westminster and
10030-554: The living." Eliade speculates that people have "a deep need to regenerate themselves periodically by abolishing the elapsed time and making topical the cosmogony". As regards masks (monsters, animals, demons), he assigns them an apotropaic meaning. For the Canary Islands, see its section under Europe. Carnival was introduced by Portuguese settlers. It is celebrated on each of the archipelago's nine inhabited islands. In Mindelo , São Vicente , groups challenge each other for
10148-455: The market was being built, a cut and cover railway tunnel was constructed below street level to create a triangular junction with the railway between Blackfriars and Kings Cross through Snow Hill Tunnel . Closed in 1916, it has been revived and is now used for Thameslink rail services. The construction of extensive railway sidings , beneath Smithfield Park, facilitated the transfer of animal carcasses to its cold store , and directly up to
10266-478: The meat market via lifts . These sidings closed in the 1960s. They are now used as a car park, accessed via a cobbled descent at the centre of Smithfield Park. Today, much of the meat is delivered to market by road. Central London Central London is the innermost part of London , in England , spanning the City of London and several boroughs . Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define
10384-428: The meat would no longer be preservable. All the food that had survived the winter had to be eaten to assure that everyone was fed enough to survive until the coming spring would provide new food sources. Traditionally, the feast also was a time to indulge in sexual desires , which were supposed to be suppressed during the following period fasting. Before Lent began, all rich food and drink were consumed in what became
10502-435: The mold, and iron and steel for structure. Carnival São Nicolau is celebrated over three days: dawn Saturday, Sunday afternoon, and Tuesday. The celebrations are captured in the award-winning feature documentary Tchindas , nominated at the 12th Africa Movie Academy Awards . Carnival was introduced by German settlers. The celebration is based on the "Rheinische" Carnival tradition. The Seychelles carnival began in 2011. It
10620-437: The most popular comparsas of Fiesta de Carnaval is the male group comparsa, usually composed of notable men from the community who dress up in outlandish costumes or cross-dress and dance to compete for money and prizes. Other popular activities include body painting and flour fighting. "On the last day of Carnival painters flood the street to paint each other. This simply means that a mixture of water paint and water or raw eggs
10738-407: The north) and modern-day Newgate Street (to the south), erecting its main western gate which opened onto Smithfield, and a postern on Long Lane. By facing the open space of Smithfield and by having 'its back to' the buildings lining Aldersgate Street , the Priory site has left a continuing legacy of limited connectivity between the Smithfield area and Aldersgate Street. The Priory thereafter held
10856-472: The nursery rhyme " Oranges and Lemons ". Traditionally, the Great Bell was rung to announce the execution of a prisoner at Newgate . As a large open space close to the City, Smithfield was a popular place for public gatherings. In 1374 Edward III held a seven-day tournament at Smithfield, for the amusement of his beloved Alice Perrers . Possibly the most famous medieval tournament at Smithfield
10974-465: The oldest markets in London. A livestock market occupied the site as early as the 10th century. In 1174 the site was described by William Fitzstephen as: a smooth field where every Friday there is a celebrated rendezvous of fine horses to be traded, and in another quarter are placed vendibles of the peasant, swine with their deep flanks, and cows and oxen of immense bulk. Costs, customs and rules were meticulously laid down. For instance, for an ox,
11092-537: The property was damaged during The Blitz , but it remains largely intact. Part of the site is now occupied by Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry . From its inception, the Priory of St Bartholomew treated the sick . After the Reformation it was left with neither income nor monastic occupants but, following a petition by the City Corporation, Henry VIII refounded it in December 1546, as
11210-402: The returning of the daylight. Winter would be driven out, to make sure that fertility could return in spring. A central figure of this ritual was possibly the fertility goddess Nerthus . Also, there are some indications that the effigy of Nerthus or Freyr was placed on a ship with wheels and accompanied by a procession of people in animal disguise and men in women's clothes. Aboard the ship
11328-506: The sacred order. In 1466, in festivies sponsored by Pope Paul II , Jews were forced to race naked through the streets of the city of Rome. Clement IX stopped these practices and in their place assessed a heavy tax on the Jews to help pay for the costs of the city's Carnival celebrations. Some of the best-known traditions, including carnal parades and masquerade balls , were first recorded in medieval Italy . The Carnival of Venice was, for
11446-418: The scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local government. Its characteristics are understood to include a high-density built environment, high land values, an elevated daytime population and a concentration of regionally, nationally and internationally significant organisations and facilities. Road distances to London are traditionally measured from a central point at Charing Cross (in
11564-410: The season: What, are there masques? Hear you me, Jessica: Lock up my doors, and when you hear the drum And the vile squealing of the wry-nck'd fife, Clamber not you up o the casements then, Nor thrust your head into the public street To gaze on Christian fools with varnish'd faces. Traditionally, a Carnival feast was the last opportunity for common people to eat well, as there was typically
11682-402: The second half of the 19th century, and is the dominant architectural feature of the area. Some of its original market premises fell into disuse in the late 20th century and faced the prospect of demolition. The Corporation of London 's public enquiry in 2012 drew widespread support for an urban regeneration plan intent upon preserving Smithfield's historical identity. In the Middle Ages, it
11800-594: The source of both the name and the parade floats . The characteristics of the celebration of Carnival take their origins from ancient European festivals, such as the Greek Dionysian (the Anthesteria ) or the Roman Saturnalia . During these festivities, there was a temporary release from social obligations and hierarchies to make way for the overthrow of order, joking and even debauchery. From
11918-545: The south of Smithfield. The Smithfield area emerged largely unscathed by the Great Fire of London in 1666, which was abated near the Fortune of War Tavern, at the junction of Giltspur Street and Cock Lane, where the statue of the Golden Boy of Pye Corner is located. In the late 17th century several residents of Smithfield emigrated to North America, where they founded the town of Smithfield, Rhode Island . Until
12036-474: The starting point ended in 1829, with the establishment of the General Post Office at St Martin's-le-Grand , which became the new starting point, with the route following Goswell Road before joining Islington High Street and then re-joining the historic route. In the Victorian period , pamphlets started circulating in favour of the removal of the livestock market and its relocation outside of
12154-694: The throwing of water balloons . Carnival in Aruba means weeks of events that bring colourfully decorated floats, contagiously throbbing music, luxuriously costumed groups of celebrants of all ages, King and Queen elections, electrifying jump-ups and torchlight parades, the Jouvert morning: the Children's Parades, and finally the Grand Parade. Aruba's biggest celebration is a month-long affair consisting of festive "jump-ups" (street parades), spectacular parades, and creative contests. Music and flamboyant costumes play
12272-437: The time, John of Gaunt's daughter Philipa of Lancaster was married to John of Aviz , King of Portugal , lending credence to the story, although how much and which parts of it are true is still debated. Along with Tyburn , Smithfield was for centuries the main site for the public execution of heretics and dissidents in London. The Scottish nobleman Sir William Wallace was executed in 1305 at West Smithfield. The market
12390-512: The weakened medieval tradition also revived. Continuously in the 18th and 19th centuries CE, as part of the annual abuse of the Carnival in Rome, rabbis of the ghetto were forced to march through the city streets wearing foolish guise, jeered upon and pelted by a variety of missiles from the crowd. A petition of the Jewish community of Rome sent in 1836 to Pope Gregory XVI to stop the annual abuse
12508-515: The whole of Greater London and farther afield. In many other respects the central area differs from areas farther out in London. The rateable value of the central area is exceptionally high. Its day population is very much larger than its night population. Its traffic problems reach an intensity not encountered anywhere else in the Metropolis or in any provincial city, and the enormous office developments which have taken place recently constitute
12626-593: The word Carnival thus points to a Christian origin of the celebratory period. Other scholars argue that the origin of the word is a common meat-based country feast (in Latin carnualia ) or the festival of the Navigium Isidis ("ship of Isis"), where the image of Isis was carried to the seashore to bless the start of sailing season. The festival consisted of a parade of masks following an adorned wooden boat, called in Latin carrus navalis , possibly
12744-605: Was a broad grassy area known as Smooth Field , located beyond London Wall stretching to the eastern bank of the River Fleet . Given its ease of access to grazing and water , Smithfield established itself as London's livestock market , remaining so for almost 1,000 years. Many local toponyms are associated with the livestock trade: while some street names (such as "Cow Cross Street" and " Cock Lane ") remain in use, many more (such as "Chick Lane", "Duck Lane", "Cow Lane", "Pheasant Court", "Goose Alley") have disappeared from
12862-462: Was also a manifestation of European folk culture . In the Christian tradition, fasting is to commemorate the 40 days that Jesus fasted in the desert , according to the New Testament , and also to reflect on Christian values. It was a time for catechumens (those converting to Christianity ) to prepare for baptism at Easter. Carnival in the Middle Ages took not just a few days, but almost
12980-599: Was also a manifestation of medieval folk culture . Many local Carnival customs are claimed to derive from local pre-Christian rituals, such as elaborate rites involving masked figures in the Swabian-Alemannic Fastnacht . However, evidence is insufficient to establish a direct origin from Saturnalia or other ancient festivals. No complete accounts of Saturnalia survive, and the shared features of feasting, role reversals, temporary social equality, masks, and permitted rule-breaking do not necessarily constitute
13098-580: Was also the custom during Carnival that the ruling class would be playfully mocked using masks and disguises . In the year 743, the synod in Leptines (located near Binche in Belgium) spoke out furiously against the excesses in the month of February. Also from the same period dates the phrase: "Whoever in February by a variety of less honorable acts tries to drive out winter is not a Christian, but
13216-424: Was completed in 1702 and remains the hospital's main entrance. The Priory's principal church, St Bartholomew-the-Great, was reconfigured after the dissolution of the monasteries , losing the western third of its nave . Reformed as an Anglican parish church , its parish boundaries were limited to the site of the ancient priory and a small tract of land between the church and Long Lane. The parish of St Bartholomew
13334-479: Was created, now including the City of London and excluding Wandsworth. The 1901 Census defined Central London as the City of London and the metropolitan boroughs (subdivisions that existed from 1900 to 1965) of Bermondsey , Bethnal Green , Finsbury , Holborn , Shoreditch , Southwark , Stepney , St Marylebone and Westminster . During the Herbert Commission and the subsequent passage of
13452-586: Was denied: "It is not opportune to make any innovation." In the Rhineland in 1823, the first modern Carnival parade took place in Cologne . Carnaval ( Karneval , Fasching or Fastnacht in Germany) mixed pagan traditions with Christian traditions. Pre-Lenten celebrations featured parades, costumes and masks to endure Lent's withdrawal from worldly pleasures. Other areas developed their own traditions. In
13570-525: Was estimated to be 270,000. 51°30′N 0°08′W / 51.50°N 0.13°W / 51.50; -0.13 Carnival Carnival or Shrovetide is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period , consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday , and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras . Carnival typically involves public celebrations , including events such as parades , public street parties and other entertainments, combining some elements of
13688-538: Was passed in 1852, under the provisions of which a new cattle market should be constructed at Copenhagen Fields, Islington . The Metropolitan Cattle Market opened in 1855, leaving West Smithfield as waste ground for about ten years during the construction of the new market. The present Smithfield meat market on Charterhouse Street was established by act of Parliament : the Metropolitan Meat and Poultry Market Act 1860 ( 23 & 24 Vict. c. cxciii). It
13806-416: Was that commanded in 1390 by Richard II . Jean Froissart , in his fourth book of Chronicles , reported that sixty knights would come to London to tilt for two days, "accompanied by sixty noble ladies, richly ornamented and dressed". The tournament was proclaimed by heralds throughout England, Scotland, Hainault, Germany , Flanders and France, so as to rival the jousts given by Charles of France at Paris
13924-574: Was the meeting place prior to the Peasants' Revolt and where the Revolt's leader, Wat Tyler , was slain by Sir William Walworth , Lord Mayor of London on 15 June 1381. Religious dissenters ( Catholics as well as other Protestant denominations such as Anabaptists ) were sentenced to death in this area during the Crown 's changing course of religious orientation started by King Henry VIII . About fifty Protestants and religious reformers , known as
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