Bucket List visit - part 3 of 9: Boat Trip down the Thames to Greenwich ...

This is something I had never done – or really had never thought about doing!  So I was very happy to tag along to tick off another experience … or more likely open my eyes as a way to get to Greenwich along the river.

Lonely Planet's Thames Hop-On-Hop-Off  River Cruise
see here
Greenwich is to be found where the meander is shown.

London arose from the Roman fort ‘Londonium’ two millennia ago … it has enjoyed its eras – for example those Roman times: and how - we keep finding relics …

Westminster Bridge, by the Houses of Parliament,
our starting point

Once the Romans withdrew … the Vikings came and plundered its wealth … but from the late 800s AD Alfred the Great and his Anglo-Saxons drove out the invaders to lay claim to their port and establish a new golden age of trade along old man River Thames.

Ethelred the Unready

The Vikings came again, Ethelred the Unready needed Olaf the Norseman to help upset those plunderers and recapture the city: they pulled the early London Bridge down – so the Vikings left.

Benedictine Monks had in the 700s settled further up the river on Thorney Island – the early Royal residence of King Canute, then Edward the Confessor - and we know who came next: the man that conquered.

It was Edward who had established the historic division between the centre for trade – the City of London –and that of government – the City of Westminster …

… which William endorsed when he conquered England in 1066 – by issuing what is known today as the “William Charter” – see my post on this amazing tiny piece of treasured parchment.

The Tower of London outside the eastern
walls of the City of London

We left on the boat trip from near enough Thorney Island … now under Westminster Bridge, and the Houses of Parliament and other iconic buildings … the Thames has been tamed (perhaps!) … it is now confined not being allowed to spread its wings out into flood plains that are no more.

William the Conqueror built the Tower of London … which lies outside the City of London walls – yet is today still an iconic landmark for tourists and visitors alike …

View from Greenwich Park looking
north over the Thames and on into London

We cruised down the Thames towards Greenwich - being regaled with numerous interesting subjects which we noted – to the riverside gateway to London, founded by those Romans with empirical desires back in the day. 

Greenwich too has had its fair share of history … it shone in the Middle Ages – Henry VIII and Elizabeth I made sure of that.

Arms of the Metropolitan Borough of
Greenwich - granted 15th July 1903 -
by the College of Arms

Greenwich held its ground for centuries, occasionally foregoing its ‘popularity’ … but revival is rarely far away - as is happening now that that Tudor Palace has been found and is being excavated, conserved and partially restored for us in the 21^st century to see.  (My Painted Hall post - part 5 ).

Now we are here – we will have some lunch, wander along the river, visit the Painted Hall, by-pass the Cutty Sark, before jumping onto our cruise ship for its return to Westminster Bridge – knowing that when we arrive at Parliament we will be walking over the home of 8^th century Benedictine monks of Thorney Island.

On our return trip I will highlight a few of the riverside places of interest that we passed.

Ready for fooooood? - lunch comes next …

My post on The William Charter - a parchment treasure from 1067 AD (950 years ago)

Flooding in London and Europe going back one thousand years - another of my eclectic posts!  

Go here to look at the route: Thames River Services - the sightseeing spots are quite clearly highlighted ... 

Hilary Melton-Butcher

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