cities and towns

Lincoln is the county town of Lincolnshire, the county which forms the Eastern part of central England. Although now it is all too often passed by, in the Middle Ages it was a prosperous trading centre with strong links to Denmark in particular. Which is why the City could afford to build such a big cathedral! The oldest part still visible was built in 1250. It stands on a hill in the City centre, and dominates the surrounding countryside. This view down the hill shows many old buildings from various periods of history.

YORK

York is an ancient city, standing at the original lowest bridging point of the River Ouse. It was important as a trading post from very early times and was adopted by the Romans as their administrative centre for the North of England (they called it Eboracum). The Roman emperor Constantine was proclaimed in York in AD306 - he was the first Roman emperor to tolerate Christianity in the Empire. Later, the city suffered under the Viking invasions but they too made it their regional centre, calling it Jorvik, from which the modern name derives. The cathedral (minster) dominates the city, and is the second most important in Britain after Canterbury. It is also the county town of Yorkshire.

OXFORD

The Bridge of Sighs. Part of Hertford College, it is a replica of the original in Italy, and a famous Oxford landmark. In the background is the Sheldonian Theatre, where degree ceremonies are held and where many superb concerts also take place.

Tom Quadrangle, the main feature of Christ Church and the largest quadrangle in Oxford. It is named after Great Tom, the bell in the tower, which is an enormous bell with a sonorous carrying ring. Tom rings 99 times at five past nine every evening, symbolically to summon the students of Christ Church back from the town to the college for the night. In the background is the spire of the Cathedral; unusually, Oxford Cathedral is also the College chapel for Christ Church, the entrance being built into Tom Quad.

The Radcliffe Camera. Part of the Bodleian Library, one of the two libraries in Britain which keeps a copy of every book published in the country. The word `camera' is simply Latin for `room', but in this case is short for `Camera Obscura' (hidden room)/ THe Camera Obscura is in the dome, and was an early form of periscope, whereby people inside could see what was going on throughout Oxford by means of mirrors reflecting light through the small windows at the top.

CAMBRIDGE

This is the main gate at Trinity College, Cambridge. Note the statue in the centre, which is of King Henry VIII. He was a great benefactor to this College, among many others. It was in his reign that this gateway was completed. The Royal coat of arms is below the statue.

on the bridge over the river Cam.

LONDON

The imposing Victoria Memorial, loved and hated in equal measure for its grandiose, flamboyant style, stands outside Buckingham Palace. Queen Victoria reigned from 1837 to 1901. During her reign, Britain reached the height of power and influence, being unquestionably the most powerful nation on earth. The memorial is a fitting tribute to the great reign of a great monarch. These days, it also serves as a reminder of past glories, swept away by the burden of two world wars and the decline of ideals of adventure and service.

BUCKINGHAM PALACE is the London residence of the Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. It is a magnificent classical building, originally designed for the Duke of Buckingham but bought from him by George III in 1761. The present building was designed by the architect John Nash in the 1820s, but the front was remodelled in a more severe style in the early 20th century by Aston Webb.

Westminster Abbey was originally founded by King Edward the Confessor and dedicated in 1066 - the year at the end of which England had been conquered by the Normans. In those days it was surrounded by fields, in the countryside West of London. Today, it is more or less in the centre of a gigantically expanded modern London. It stands opposite the Palace of Westminster (otherwise known as the Houses of Parliament), and is the site for all great ceremonial state religious occasions such as coronations. Many of Britain's most famous people are buried in the Abbey.

Big Ben' is one of the most famous London landmarks. It is the clock tower at the Eastern end of the Palace of Westminster, which is where the British parliament sits. On national news programmes, the chimes of Big Ben are used to signal the time.

CHINA TOWN, LONDON is a set of streets in an area called Soho, near the West End, which is almost exclusively occupied by Chinese people. There are many Chinese businesses based here including supermarkets, restaurants and import / export firms.

BIRMINGHAM

The clock tower on the corner of the museum.

Much of the old centre was demolished in the 1950s and 1960s and redeveloped in ugly, soulless concrete in the fashion of the day. The contrast between this and the original centre is clearly visible here. It is sad to think how many really beautiful buildings were lost because the spirit of the age had lost the ability to value beauty and craftsmanship for its own sake. It is also sad to see how bleak and dispiriting the concrete places have become, whereas the older, stone buildings have a genuinely uplifting impact on the spirit. Thankfully many lessons have been learned, and some of the more recent developments have started to get better.

In the centre of Birmingham, many interesting historical buildings survive. This is the Museum, with the War Memorial to the right. Note the intricate stonework on the classical portico next to the tower.