| 8 | L O N | |
the river, which probably began at the
place now called Dockhead, and extend-
ing in a semicircle by Margaret's Hill, en-
tered the Thames about St. Saviour's
Dock, a little above the bridge. This
work being accomplished, Canute brought
his ships to the west of London bridge,
and attacked the city on all sides; how-
ever the citizens exerting themselves with
extraordinary bravery, he was repulsed with
considerable loss, and obliged to raise the
siege. Yet he afterwards renewed it with
greater vigour than before, but with no
better success. At last a peace was con-
cluded between King Edmund and Ca-
nute, by which the kingdom was divided
between them, when Mercia, of which
London was the capital, falling to Ca-
nute's share, the city submitted to him;
and Edmund dying a few months after,
Canute summoned a parliament to meet
in London, who chose that prince sole
monarch of England.
Canute now, resolving to win the hearts
of his new subjects, disbanded his army,
and threw himself entirely upon the af-
fections of the English, at which the
above parliament were so pleased, that
they granted him 83,000l. a prodigious
sum at that time! for, according to the
price of land and provisions then, it must
|
| | have |
|
| L O N | 9 |
have been equal to nine millions at pre-
sent; and of this immense sum, London
alone raised 11,000l. which is a con-
vincing proof of the opulence of the city,
since it must be possessed of above one se-
venth part of the wealth of the whole
kingdom.
But we are not writing a history of Eng-
land, but of its capital, we shall therefore
pass over the following reigns, till we
come to the invasion of William the
Conqueror, who laid Southwark in ashes;
but the Londoners afterwards submitting
to him, he, in the year 1067, granted
them his first charter in their own lan-
guage, which consists of little more than
four lines, beautifully written in the
Saxon character on a slip of parchment,
six inches long, and one broad, and is
still preserved in the city archives.
In 1077 happened the greatest casual
fire, that till this time ever befel the ci-
ty, by which the greatest part of it was
laid in ashes; and about two years after,
the Conqueror beginning to suspect the
fidelity of his subjects, caused the present
square tower of London to be erected,
to keep them in awe. See the TOWER
OF LONDON.
In this reign were several other dreadful
fires, and London bridge was in 1091
|
| | carried |
|
HomeVolume IVPage Group 1 - 19
