Whither ‘Barbican’?
The principal fort of Roman London was erected between 90 and 120 AD, southeast of the current Museum of London site at the junction of London Wall and Aldersgate Street. Circa 200 AD, city walls were constructed, incorporating the old fort, which evolved into a grand entrance known as Cripplegate.
The term ‘barbican’ derives from the Low Latin ‘Barbecana’, referring to a fortified outpost or gateway used for defensive purposes. In this instance, a Roman watchtower or ‘specula’ stood in front of the fort, starting from numbers 33-35 on the north side of the street formerly called Barbican (now the western end of Beech Street). This structure was later integrated into the fortifications north of the wall.
Highwalks
It’s quite a long way up from Barbican station onto the system of highwalks but there are stairs up just beside the tube station entrance. At the top of the stairs, a bridge takes us across the road.
The estate was designed to be walkable from end to end and, to do this, streets like Aldersgate Street below here needed pedestrian bridges above them – high enough to clear a London double decker bus underneath.
Residents here need to be fit if they wish to leave the Barbican estate and enter the real world.
John Trundle Court ahead here is the westernmost of the Barbican blocks.
We can walk along the line of the former street called Barbican up here on the first of the highwalks. The Roman Barbican was dead ahead.
Defoe Place
At Beech Gardens, we hang a right here into the bowels of Defoe House. Like many Barbican residential buildings, it has a literary name.
As we turn left at the bottom of these stairs, we’re on the site of the former Australian Avenue, built in the 1890s and hence the more modern streetname.
Australian Avenue but it led south to Jewin Crescent, obliterated during the Blitz.
It was called Jewin Crescent as it was the site of the first London Jewish cemetery. “There is a green hill far away, without a City wall.” This location, directly outside the Christian city, meant that a non-Christian cemetery could be placed here. Jewin Crescent marks the site of what was the only permitted Jewish cemetery in England up until 1177.
Following the expulsion of Jews from England in 1290, Edward I granted the cemetery site to William de Montford, Dean of St Paul’s.
1290 map of London showing the Jewish cemetary
It was long built over by the time Jewin Crescent was built.
Walk along the left side of Defoe House and then dive underneath and until you’re on the right hand side.
The Barbican Estate was constructed between 1965 and 1976, occupies a 35-acre site devastated by bombing during the Second World War.
But before any building was done, it was decided to straighten out a bend in the Metropolitan and Circle Line tracks.
When the The Metropolitan Railway expanded from Farringdon to Moorgate in December 1865, the tracks had to avoid the Whitecross Street Prison which was here at the time, and in the way. The new tracks had to skirt the prison’s northern wall and this caused a kink in the route. Whitecross was a debtors prison.
The first act of the creation of the Barbican was the realignment of 500 metres of the Metropolitan line between Barbican and Moorgate stations between 1963 and 1965. Defoe House, it’s built directly above the realigned railway tracks and along their line.
To demonstrate how this area was effectively a blank slate, the Thomas More Garden – the largest open space in the complex is over a wall – had you successfully followed the instructions above.
The future site of Thomas More Garden (1942)
Lakeside Terrace
Down some stairs, this walkway is also above the railway tracks running in the same line underneath.
We are on the former location of Bradford Avenue now which was a short road full of warehouses. And next we’d have been traversing Red Cross Street before the war. Red Cross Street once ran to the junction of Beech Street and Golden Lane. There was actually a red cross here located at St Giles Cripplegate.
Barbican Centre
We can hang a left here into the Barbican Centre. This was designed in the Brutalist style. It was voted “London’s ugliest building” in a poll in 2003 but it’s much loved as an concert venue.
I’m not spending time exploring the Barbican Centre on this walk. You can do that on your own.
The Midland Railway Cripplegate Depot was built on the former site of Whitecross Street Prison. And the Barbican Centre was built on the former site of the Cripplegate Depot.
The Debtors Act of 1869 finally ended debtors prisons and the Metropolitan Railway built the Cripplegate Depot between Aldersgate and Moorgate stations.
It was taken over by the Midland Railway and lasted until after the Second World War as just about the only building to survive the Blitz hereabouts.
The 1950s Ordnance Survey map shows the Cripplegate depot (‘Goods station’) as one of the few standing buildings
Gilbert Bridge
Exit the Barbican Centre onto Gilbert Bridge. This walkway follows the original line of Whitecross Street.
City Greenyard here – one of the lost streets beneath – had provided married quarters for City of London Police. Until 1883 it had been the Lord Mayor’s stables.
Unlike its northern neighbour, the Barbican Estate was not social housing but aimed at affluent City professionals and their families. The Corporation of London let all flats at commercial rents.
To attract tenants, promotional materials were created, portraying the Barbican Estate as ideal residences for well-to-do professionals and international businesspeople.
As we turn left at the end of Gilbert Bridge, here we’d be crossing Elephant Yard. Elephant Yard was the coaching yard which used to belong to the Elephant Inn, demolished in the 1840s.
Andrewes Highwalk
Andrewes Highwalk, our current walkway, is named for Lancelot Andrewes, rector of the nearby St Giles-without-Cripplegate Church.
At the end, Milton Street was once here. Turn right and find a bridge to cross.
We cross Fore Street which derived its name from its position outside the London city walls. The street flourished as a shopping destination until the mid-19th century.
After the bridge turn left – signposted to Moorgate station.
St Alphage Highwalk
St Alphage Highwalk passes the site of the church of St Alphage by the old London wall.
The saint, who died in 1012, was Archbishop of Canterbury. Greenwich was the scene of his martyrdom.
When he refused to impoverish his tenants to ransom himself from the Danes, he was brought into the Danish assembly and pelted with animal bones.
At the end of St Alphage Highwalk, descend the steps to the left down to London Wall.
London Wall
It would be impossible to do justice to the story of why this street is called London Wall. It’s a whole video by itself.
But the alignment I’m walking along was not the original course of the street – again a Barbican redesign.
Moorfields
Next left is Moorfields which gets its name from an open space located adjacent to the northern wall of the City. And it’s the site of Moorgate station, the end of the walk.
(Video below)
Walking route 2024
Walking route 1950