Maps of Old London — Background and Themes

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In Category - Modern Nations

Authors: Mitton, G. E. (Geraldine Edith), 1868-1955 [Editor] Digital Source: Project Gutenberg Gutenberg Release Year: 2012 First Publication Year: Not confirmed

Key Word: London (England) -- Antiquities; London (England) -- Maps -- Early works to 1800; London (England) -- Maps Target Reader: Readers of public-domain and historical texts

Book Edition: Project Gutenberg digital edition Book Language: en

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Reading time 57 min

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An editorial note on G.E. Mitton's 1908 atlas of nine historical London maps, examining how the volume's structure—from Wyngaerde's panoramic view to Ogilby's post-Fire key—traces urban growth through shifting cartographic conventions and recurring details like alleys, courts, and ward boundaries.

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I. WYNGAERDE (IN THREE SECTIONS) II. AGAS III. SECTION OF AGAS IV. HOEFNAGEL V. NORDEN LONDON VI. NORDEN WESTMINSTER VII. FAITHORNE VIII. OGILBY IX. ROCQUE

LONDON ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK 1908

EDWARD STANFORD, GEOGRAPHER TO THE KING, 12, 13, and 14, Long Acre, London, W.C.

An atlas of Old London maps, showing the growth of the City throughout successive centuries, is now issued for the first time. Up to a recent date the maps here represented had not been reproduced in any form, and the originals were beyond the reach of all but the few. The London Topographical Society has done admirable work in hunting out and publishing most of them; but these reproductions are, as nearly as possible, facsimiles of the originals as regards size, as well as everything else. It is not every one who can afford to belong to the society, or who wishes to handle the maps in large sheets. In the present form they are brought within such handy compass that they will form a useful reference-book even to those who already own the large-scale ones, and, to the many who do not, they will be invaluable.

The maps here given are the best examples of those extant, and are chosen as each being representative of a special period. All but one have appeared in the volumes of Sir Walter Besant's great and exhaustive "Survey of London," for which they were prepared, and the publishers believe that in offering them separately from the books in this handy form they are consulting the interests of a very large number of readers.

The exception above noted is the map known as Faithorne's, showing London as it was before the Great Fire; this is added for purposes of comparison with that of Ogilby, which shows London rebuilt afterwards. Besides the maps properly so called, there are some smaller views of parts of London, all of which are included in the Survey.

The atlas does not presume in any way to be exhaustive, but is representative of the different periods through which London passed, and shows most strikingly the development of the City.

I must acknowledge the valuable assistance I have received from Mr. George Clinch, F.G.S., in the many difficulties which arose in the course of its preparation.

BY ANTONY VAN DEN WYNGAERDE

DESCRIPTION.--This is the earliest representation of London that has come down to our time. Accurately speaking, it is not a map, but a picture; but as many of the old maps are more or less in the same category, we need not exclude it on that account. Such topographical drawings are apt to be misleading, owing to the immense difficulties of perspective--witness the wretched samples hawked about the pavements at the present time. But, considering the difficulties, this map of Wyngaerde's is wonderfully accurate, and it has the advantage of being full of architectural details which no true map could give.

DESIGNER.--Of Wyngaerde himself little is known. He is supposed to have been a Fleming, and may have come to England in the train of Philip II. of Spain. He is known to have made other topographical drawings. The date of the one here reproduced cannot be fixed with perfect certainty, but must have been between 1543 and 1550.

ORIGINAL.--The original is in the Sutherland Collection at the Bodleian Library, Oxford, and it measures 10 feet by 17 inches, and is in seven sheets. A tracing of it, made by N. Whittock, can be seen in the Crace Collection, Prints Department, British Museum, or in the Guildhall Library.

The present reproduction is from that made by the London Topographical Society, which photographed the original.

It is reduced, and is here placed in three sections, which overlap for convenience in handling.

DETAILS.--If we examine the first section, which is that to the extreme west, we see the Abbey, very much as it is at present, with the exception of Wren's western towers. On the site of the present Houses of Parliament is the King's Palace at Westminster. It is impossible here to treat this in detail, for if that were attempted for all the buildings in this atlas, space would fail. A concise account of Westminster may be found in the book of that name in the _Fascination of London_ Series. The chief point to note in the palace is St. Stephen's Chapel, of which the crypt now alone remains. About fifteen or twenty years previous to the date of this map King Henry VIII. had claimed Whitehall from Wolsey, and transferred himself to it from the old palace, which was growing ruinous.

Across the river opposite to Westminster is Lambeth, standing in a grove of trees.

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G.E. Mitton's 1908 atlas brings together nine maps that chart London's expansion from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, each chosen as 'representative of a special period.' The volume opens with Wyngaerde's panoramic 'picture' rather than a measured map—an early acknowledgment that these images blend accuracy with artistic convention. Mitton notes that such topographical drawings face 'immense difficulties of perspective,' yet Wyngaerde's work remains 'wonderfully accurate' and rich in architectural detail. This tension between pictorial and cartographic precision runs through the collection, as later maps adopt increasingly systematic methods of representing the city.

From Picture to Plan: Shifting Modes of Representation

The atlas moves from Wyngaerde's panoramic view to Agas's woodcut, then to Hoefnagel, Norden, Faithorne, Ogilby, and Rocque. Each map embodies a different approach to depicting urban space. Wyngaerde offers a skyline of recognizable buildings; Agas presents a bird's-eye plan with streets and landmarks; later maps like Ogilby's employ a detailed key system. Mitton's selection highlights how cartographers gradually standardized symbols—the 'broad black line' for the city wall, chains for the line of freedom, dotted lines for parish boundaries. The progression is not merely chronological but conceptual: from artistic impression to measured survey, from singular viewpoint to systematic grid.

The Language of the Key: Ogilby's Systematic Notation

Ogilby's 1677 map, reproduced here, includes an elaborate key that enumerates '25 Wards, 122 Parishes and Liberties, and therein 189 Streets, 153 Lanes, 522 Alleys, 458 Courts, and 210 Yards bearing Name.' The key explains a visual code: churches are 'double Hatch'd,' streets left white, gardens 'faintly Prick'd.' Where space is tight, letters and figures refer to alphabetical tables. This system reflects a growing need to organize a dense, rebuilt city after the Great Fire. Mitton adds that Ogilby's London contained 479 courts, 472 alleys, and 172 yards—spaces formed by 'running narrow lanes between the backs of houses and swallowing up the gardens.' The key becomes a tool for navigating not just the map but the physical fabric of the city.

Recurring Details: Alleys, Courts, and the Texture of Streets

Throughout the excerpts, small urban features recur: alleys, courts, yards, and inns. Mitton quotes a description of how these spaces evolved from former gardens, creating a dense network of passages. The maps themselves label such places with small letters repeated up to 99 times across the sheet. This attention to minor thoroughfares reveals a city shaped by incremental development rather than grand planning. The atlas preserves these details, allowing readers to trace how London's street pattern thickened over time. Even the list of parishes—from St. James Clerkenwell to St. Katherine Cree-Church—conveys a mosaic of jurisdictions that governed daily life.

Movement Between Maps: Comparing Pre- and Post-Fire London

Mitton explicitly includes Faithorne's map of London 'as it was before the Great Fire' alongside Ogilby's post-Fire survey, enabling direct comparison. This pairing is the atlas's central structural device: two maps of similar scale but different dates, showing how the city was rebuilt. The editor notes that Faithorne's map had not been reproduced before, making it a rare resource. By placing them side by side, the volume invites readers to observe changes in street layout, the disappearance of certain alleys, and the emergence of new courts. The atlas thus functions as a tool for historical reconstruction, not merely a collection of curiosities.

Mitton's atlas is best approached as a comparative workbook. Readers are encouraged to move back and forth between maps, noting how the same location appears under different cartographic conventions. The editor's note and the Ogilby key provide essential guidance for interpreting symbols and abbreviations. Because the excerpts are incomplete, the full scope of each map's detail remains to be explored in the original plates. This volume rewards patient study of its visual and textual layers, offering a concrete sense of London's evolving geography.

Leafing through Mitton’s atlas, I recalled an evening tracing my own street’s vanished course on a ward map—those passageways erased, yet lingering in names. It felt like overhearing a forgotten argument. That same intimacy surfaced once in The Bullitt Mission to Russia Testimony before the Committee on Foreign Relations, United States Senate, of William C. Bullitt — Key Ideas to Explore—not scenery, but testimony layering a fragile present over an unspoken past.