Hyde Park Corner and Wellington (Constitution) Arch

This photo of the view of Wellington Arch at Hyde Park Corner in London is part of one of the panoramic images found on the PanoramicEarth.com Tour of London. There are over 100 images taken from around London linked to an interactive map.

Plan your visit to London by taking advantage of these London Hotel Specials or Thomson City Breaks. Get the most of London with these London Guide Books

Hyde Park Corner, like Marble Arch at the other end of Park Lane, is a very busy gyro system for traffic and a tube station. Sitting on the south-east corner of Hyde Park, it is formed by the convergence of Park Lane, Knightsbridge, Piccadilly, Grosvenor Place and Constitution Hill. The road from Knightsbridge joins to Piccadilly via an underpass running under Hyde Park Corner.

All these roads link very important places in London, Piccadilly runs, well, to Piccadilly Circus along the top of Green Park. In the other direction Kiightsbridge will pass the Brompton Oratory and head on to the Natural History, V&A and Science Museums. Head up Park Lane to get to Marble Arch and the shopping Mecca of Oxford Street. Wander along Constitution Hill to get to the front of Buckingham Palace and the Victoria Memorial. And finally Grosvenor Place will take you to Grosvenor Gardens and Victoria Station.

Thankfully, there is also an extensive set of underpass tunnels for pedestrians linking the various pavements around Hyde Park Corner, which avoids the need to play some demented version of Frogger trying to get from Green Park to Hyde Park. As you cross over though you will have to notice the triumphal Arch in the middle of Hyde Park Corner.

This is Wellington Arch (also called Constitution Arch) was built between 1826 and 1830 to counterbalance Marble Arch at the top end of Hyde Park. It was designed by Demicus Burton and the exterior is fairly plain as the cost of refurbishing Buckingham Palace at the same time consumed too much money for extensive decoration of the Arch to be possible.

Originally Wellington Arch stood opposite Apsley House just a short distance away, but was moved to the current location in 1882 when the surrounding roads were widened and Hyde Park Corner became an island surrounded by roads. Wellington Arch was originally topped by a statue of Sir Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, a soldier and Prime Minister. This was removed in 1912 and then replaced with the current bronze quadriga showing the Angel of Peace descending on the chariot of war. Unfortunately, the optimism of the early 1900s was not reflected by the conflicts of the subsequent years.

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The nearest tube station: Hyde Park Corner, though Green Park is also quite close.

The full panoramic image taken of the Hyde Park Corner can be found on the London tour by PanoramicEarth.com. An enlargement of this photo can be found on Flickr. You can also find a marker for Wellington Arch on Tagzania.

For more articles on London see the London Index or select one of the labels at the bottom.

The Monument and Great Fire of London

This photo from the Monument in London is part of one of the panoramic images found on the PanoramicEarth.com Tour of London. There are over 100 images taken from around London linked to an interactive map.

Plan your visit to London by taking advantage of these London Hotel Specials or Thomson City Breaks. Get the most of London with these London Guide Books

The Monument was erected to commemorate the Great Fire of London in 1666 and burned for 4 days destroying about 80% of the city in the process. This is probably the single greatest calamity to befall London, not rivaled even by the Blitz of WWII. Such an event had to be marked, and so the Monument was designed by Sir Christopher Wren (of St. Paul’s Cathedral fame) and built between 1671-7.

The Monument is not on the site of the start of the Great Fire, which started on Pudding Lane 202 feet to the East in Thomas Farynor’s bakery. However, the Monument is 202 feet tall thereby linking it to the site. In fact the Monument remains the tallest standing stone column in the world. The Monument is a hollow Doric column of Portland stone capped with a flaming copper urn symbolizing the Great Fire. On the North side of the Monument is a Latin inscription which translates as "In the year of Christ 1666, on 2 September, at a distance eastward from this place of 202 ft, which is the height of this column, a fire broke out in the dead of night which, the wind blowing, devoured even distant buildings, and rushed devastating through every quarter with astonishing swiftness and noise. On the third day at the bidding, we may well believe, of heaven, the fire stayed its course and everywhere died out."

The base of the Monument contains a bas and alto relief showing aspects of the Great Fire on the west side. Here London is personified grieving with the city ablaze behind her while Time lifts her up. Peace and Prosperity are in the clouds promising a better future and Charles II in armor is on the right.

In addition to being a monument to the Great Fire, the Monument was also designed as a scientific instrument. The co-designer with Wren was Robert Hooke, a keen physicist and together they installed cellar laboratory just below the ground floor. The top of the Monument opened to the sky turning the whole into a Zenith telescope, intended for studying the motion of the Earth around the Sun. Unfortunately the Monument proved to be too unstable for this type of experiment. In addition to all this, the steps inside the Monument were exactly 6 inches high allowing for precise measurements for experiments involving pressures and pendulums. Hooke did some work on the highly sensitive wheel barometer at this ‘Fish Street Pillar’.

Today the Monument has become an attraction with a viewing platform near the top. 311 steps ascend the inside or the Monument, and the stairwell is quite narrow making passing people coming the other way interesting. However the effort is more than worthwhile with panoramic views over London. Both the images on this page were taken from the top of Monument. The first picture shows the view towards Tower Bridge and the Tower of London with HMS Belfast moored in the river. (Free entrance with to all with the London Pass). In this direction you can also see City Hall.

The second image above shows the view over the City of London with the gherkin shaped Swiss Rhe building clearly showing against the skyline. You will also be able to see the area around the Tate Modern, Millennium Bridge, St. Paul’s Cathedral and Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre (Free entrance with the London Pass) and many other parts of London. On descending you will be presented with a certificate. The nearest tube station is Monument, though London Bridge is not far away.

The full panoramic image taken top of the Monument can be found on the London tour by PanoramicEarth.com. An enlargement of this photo can be found with others from London on Flickr.

For more articles on London see the London Index or select one of the labels at the bottom.

Marble Arch - London

This photo of Marble Arch in London is part of one of the panoramic images found on the PanoramicEarth.com Tour of London. There are over 100 images taken from around London linked to an interactive map.

Plan your visit to London by taking advantage of these London Hotel Specials or Thomson City Breaks. Get the most of London with these London Guide Books

Marble Arch is found in the centre of a very busy road system at the north end of Hyde Park where Park Lane meets Oxford Street. Fortunately a series of subways allows safe access to the area for those wishing to take a closer look. However, it must be said, Marble Arch is not exactly in a quiet place, and the buzz of traffic is constant. This photograph of Marble Arch was taken from the paved area in front of the Arch which is lined with various national flags.

Marble Arch started off life as a triumphal arch situated in front of Buckingham Palace on The Mall at the opposite end to Admiralty Arch. It was designed by John Nash in 1828 (who also worked on The Regents Park), based on the Arch of Titus in Rome. In 1851 Marble Arch was moved from in front of Buckingham Palace to the current location during the building of the East Front section of the Palace. The Ionic Arch in Hyde Park Corner (by Decimus Burton) was built at the same time that Marble Arch was moved, forming a balancing pair on either side of the park.

Marble Arch is made of white marble from Carraca in Tuscany. Inside Marble Arch are 3 small rooms which were used by the police until 1950. One such constable of the 1800’s was Samuel Parkes who was awarded the Victoria Cross after the Charge of the Light Brigade in 1854. There are 2 small outer arches and a large central arch. Only senior members of the royal family, the King’s Troop and the Royal Horse Artillery are allowed to ride or drive through the central Arch.

The location of Marble Arch is quite close to the location of the Tyburn Gallows, a place of execution used from 1196 to 1783. The three legged gallows once saw 24 people hanged at the same time. More recently the area was home to the largest cinema screen in London. The Odeon Marble Arch showed 70mm films on a screen 18m wide. This has now been converted to a multiplex. Sometimes in the winter a temporary ice ring is opended to the public in the square by Marble Arch.

The nearest tube station to Marble Arch is aptly called Marble Arch, located at the end of Oxford Street. Very close by are Hyde Park and Speakers Corner, where any member of the public is permitted to talk about any subject without fear of hanging. It is quite packed on Sundays where noisy debate and heckling can be found, mostly about politics, war and religion.

The full panoramic image taken of Marble Arch can be found on the London tour by PanoramicEarth.com. An enlargement of this photo can be found on Flickr.

For more articles on London see the London Index or select one of the labels at the bottom.