| Ludgate | |
|---|---|
 An old illustration of the gatec. 1650 | |
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| General information | |
| Town or city | London |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 51°30′50.3″N0°06′08.2″W / 51.513972°N 0.102278°W /51.513972; -0.102278 |
Ludgate was the westernmost gate inLondon Wall. Of Roman origin, it was rebuilt several times and finally demolished on 30th July 1760. The name survives inLudgate Hill, an eastward continuation ofFleet Street,Ludgate Circus and Ludgate Square. The gates' materials were sold for £148.
According to legend, recorded by the Norman-Welsh clericGeoffrey of Monmouth, Ludgate was named after the ancient British kingLud. Lud was said to be the brother of KingCassivelaunus but some folklorists think he is a manifestation of the godNodens. There are other suggestions for the origins of the name, although none has been universally accepted. Later writers said it was derived from "flood gate" or "Fleet gate",[1] from "ludgeat", meaning "back gate" or "postern",[2] or from theOld English term"hlid-geat"[3][4][5][6][7] a common Old English compound meaning "postern" or "swing gate".[3][4][5][7]
Ludgate is believed to have been one of four original gates in theRomanLondon Wall, work on which started in 190 AD.[8]
Anti-royalist forces rebuilt the gate during theFirst Barons' War (1215–17) using materials recovered from the destroyed houses ofJews.[9] The gate was rebuilt about 1450 by a man called Foster who at one time was lodged in thedebtor's prison over the gate. He eventually becameSir Stephen Foster,Lord Mayor of London. His widow,Agnes, renovated and extended Ludgate and the debtor's prison; the practice of making the debtors pay for their own food and lodging was also abolished. Her gift was commemorated by a brass wall plaque,[10] which read:
Devout souls that pass this way,
For Stephen Foster, late mayor, heartily pray;
AndDame Agnes, his spouse, to God consecrate,
That of pity this house made, for Londoners in Ludgate;
So that for lodging and water prisoners here nought pay,
As their keepers shall answer at dreadful doomsday![11]
In February 1554, Ludgate was the final setting ofWyatt's rebellion, when SirThomas Wyatt the Younger arrived at the gate with part of his army numbering three or four hundred men. The gate was defended byLord William Howard with the localmilitia, who refused entry to the rebels, causing them to retreat and later surrender.[12]
Ludgate was rebuilt in 1586 to the design of William Kerwin; niches in the facade were furnished with statues of QueenElizabeth I and King Lud with his two sons;[13] these statues replaced medieval ones that had been defaced by Protestanticonoclasts during the reign of KingEdward VI. The gateway was finally demolished in 1760 at the request of the local citizens.[12] It was still in use as a debtor's prison, so the inmates were transferred to the Cityworkhouse inBishopsgate.[14] The statues from the facade were preserved at the Church ofSt Dunstan-in-the-West inFleet Street. When the church was rebuilt in 1831, they were sold and taken toHertford Villa inRegent's Park, but were returned to the church in 1935. Elizabeth's statue now stands in a niche over the vestry door, while the others are inside the porch.[13]
Gates and bars of theCity of London | |||
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 | Former gates ofLondon Wall andCity bars Listed clockwise from the West
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