Leo Hollis

This books covers a rather intense period of English history when it seemed that society itself would fall apart. Reading the opening chapter the I was struck by several parallels between 17th century England and early 21st century America. Once again the issues of religion and the course of the nation drove the English people to take sides and ultimately remove and beheaded Charles the First. It also was a time of great intellectual upheaval as well. Instead of Anglican versus Catholic
it became Puritan versus Anglican. In order to avoid a large survey focus the author focuses on 5 men and their participation in the remaking of the London after the Great Fire. This approach more or less
works.… (meer)

London is a city of layers. From its Roman core, successive generations have built over and outward, turning the walled town into the vast metropolis that it is today. This evolution can be seen just by walking around central London, yet many of the signs of it are tucked away in obscure corners or hidden in the anonymity of everyday life.

It is for those people who seek to discover the city’s past for themselves that Leo Hollis wrote this guidebook. In it he details a dozen walks that allow participants to explore the span of London’s history, from the Roman remnants to its vast physical expansion during Victorian times. Each walk includes a small map and instructions in bold as to the streets to take, along with explanatory text providing the background of the sites and their historical relevance.

Hollis’s book can be a good tool with which to explore London’s past. His text is readable yet insightful, bringing to light the relevance of so much of the architectural and geographical landscape that might otherwise be taken for granted. Yet its usefulness is marred by the unclear directions the walks offer. Oftentimes these are more simplistic than London’s streets can justify and in a few places they prove to be outright wrong. These problems can be surmounted by an aware reader, though, and should not detract from the informative explorations of the city that Hollis offers within its pages.… (meer)

A fantastic book! Trying to combine biographies of five men, English history from Cromwell's rise through the crowning of George I, the rebuilding of London after the Great Fire, and the building of Wren's St Pauls Cathedral could have made this book just a survey, or perhaps incomprehensibly dense. Instead it is fascinating and (perhaps surprisingly) readable. Very highly recommended for any readers interested in English history of the period. It certainly should be considered a new standard work on the Restoration and the birth of modern London.… (meer)