London - From origins to the present day

London - From origins to the present day

Originally Celtic city, London was fortified by the Roman invaders who called it Londinium, around 50 A.D. and they used it as a port on the River Thames to the 410.

London, lived a difficult moment, but during the medieval period was able to increase its importance and over the years, it developed, on the Roman London, what is today the financial district (the City), which, however, was largely destroyed by a great fire. The reconstruction lasted ten years and saw the work of the great architect Christopher Wren, who rebuilt many destroyed churches, including St. Paul's Cathedral, where now rest the heroes of the British nation
In the sixteenth century, it became the capital of the British Empire. During the eighteenth century, however, London grew to become the largest city in the world
The local administration tried to cope with this enormous expansion, especially to provide adequate infrastructure to the city. To this end, in 1855 he created the Metropolitan Board of Works. In 1889 the MBW was liquidated and in its place was established the County of London, governed from the first assembly elected by the entire London "stretched", the London County Council.

During World War II London was devastated by the German air. The raids killed over 30,000 Londoners and destroyed large parts of the city, including the old quarters of the city. London was rebuilt in various architectural styles in the following decades, and this must be the excessive presence of buildings and skyscrapers in the city center.
The external expansion of London was slowed down considerably since the end of World War II with the adoption of various plans, theses to the preservation of a green ring.

Among the recent events we can not forget July 7, 2005, when a coordinated series of terrorist attacks carried out by Islamic extremists, hit the passengers of three subway lines and a bus. That morning they detonated four suicide bombers, starting at 08:50 hours. One in the metropolitan area of ​​Aldgate in the City, another on a load of passenger train that ran through a tunnel of the Piccadilly Line, a third of a train in the Edgware Road station. About an hour later, at 9:47, a bomb carried by a quarter bomber ripped through a double-decker bus of line number 30 that passed for Russell Square.
These attacks have caused 55 deaths, in addition to several hundred wounded. A further series of attacks occurred on 21 July, this time without causing casualties.