Cheapside

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Image:Cheapside and Bow Church engraved by W.Albutt after T.H.Shepherd publ 1837 edited.jpg

Cheapside is a street in the City of London, which links Newgate Street with the junction of Queen Victoria Street, Cornhill, Threadneedle Street, Princes Street, Lombard Street and King William Street (via a small section called 'Poultry').

History

Cheapside was the birthplace of John Milton. It was for a long time one of the most important streets in London. It is also the sight of the 'Bow Bells', the church of St Mary-le-Bow, which has played a part in London's Cockney heritage and the tale of Dick Whittington.

Jane Austen in her 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice characterizes Cheapside as a London neighborhood frowned upon by the landed elite:

"I think I have heard you say that their uncle is an attorney in Meryton"

"Yes; and they have another, who lives somewhere near Cheapside."

"That is capital," added her sister, and they both laughed heartily.

"If they had uncles enough to fill all Cheapside," cried Bingley, "it would not make them one jot less agreeable."

"But it must very materially lessen their chance of marrying men of any consideration in the world," replied Darcy." [1]

Charles Dickens Jnr wrote in 1879:

"Cheapside remains now what it was five centuries ago, the greatest thoroughfare in the City of London. Other localities have had their day, have risen, become fashionable, and have sunk into obscurity and neglect, but Cheapside has maintained its place, and may boast of being the busiest thoroughfare in the world, with the sole exception perhaps of London Bridge". [2]

This is no longer true in the 21st century; Cheapside is today one further street of offices and occasional small retail outlets among many in the City of London, which itself is to a large extent simply the centre of the financial services industry. Moreover the street is no longer a primary traffic route.

Cheapside was extensively damaged during Luftwaffe Blitz raids in late 1940 and particularly during the The Second Great Fire of London. Much of the rebuilding following these raids occurred during the 1950s and 1960s and included a number of unsympathetic contemporary attempts at recreating the centuries-old architecture that had been destroyed. In recent years many of these buildings have themselves been demolished as a programme of regeneration takes place along Cheapside from Paternoster Square to Poultry.

Etymology and usage

Cheapside is also a common English street name, meaning "market-place", the word "cheap" referring to the Old English for "sell" as opposed to "low price".

Other cities and towns in England that have a Cheapside street include Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Derby, Halifax, Lancaster, Leicester, Luton, Manchester, Nottingham and Reading.

Image:Cheapside in 1823. Engraved by T.M. Baynes from a drawing by W. Duryer.JPG Image:Cheapside.jpg