Temple Bar...Gateway to a new series

...(see I do think about these things)

It Sounds like a trendy drinking establishment for city slickers, however it a gateway that was used to regulate trade into the city, the bar would be a distance in front of the city gate to pay a toll before entering.

This 'bar' was originally placed at the boundary of Fleet St and the Strand, there is still a statue that commemorates this, but the City of London Corporation, eager to widen the road but unwilling to destroy so historic a monument, dismantled it piece-by-piece over an 11-day period and stored its 2,700 stones carefully before re-erecting the bar at Pasternoster Square.

There were seven gates into the city of London Ludgate, Newgate, Aldersgate, Moorgate, Bishopsgate, Aldgate and Cripplegate (no surprise that any mention of the gate unlikely, the others remain in the city).

Temple Bar has four statues to celebrate the Stuart monarchy: on the west side Charles II is shown with his father Charles I whose parents James I and Anne of Denmark are depicted on the east side. During the 18th century, the heads of traitors were mounted on pikes and exhibited on the roof.

'What has this got to do with your new series?' I hear you cry, well, for those of you who haven't already figured it out, Sir Christopher Wren designed Temple Bar so I have decided to start a series I'm calling 'Wrens London'.

I promise that it won't be a month of different angles of St Pauls (there will be one at some point).

Thanks to everyone for lovely comments, stars and favs on the end of my bridge series. Hopefully you will enjoy it just as much and I am aiming for you all at one point to go, "I didn't know that was his", no cheating on Google now.