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Strand Street in London
Strand is a street in London. It currently starts at Trafalgar Square and runs east to join Fleet Street at Temple Bar, which marks the boundary of the City of London at this point, though its historical length has been longer than that.
It derives itse name from the Old English word for 'shore' or 'river bank'. (Danish/Norwegian, German and Dutch have also derived their word for beach from the same Germanic root - many beaches in Ireland are still called strands). This was because (prior to the construction of The Embankment in the 19th century the street ran directly along the River Thames. One of its churches may originate from that time.
Along with Aldwych, it has been a major settlement area since Saxon times outside of the old Roman city walls, as well as a route between the ruins of the old Roman city of Londinium and the new Saxon city of Lundenwic, and later in the middle ages between the separate settlements of London (the civilian-commercial centre) and Westminster (the royal-political centre). Until the 16th or 17th century its only rival as a link of development and activity between these places was the River Thames, and as such contained several palaces. |
