turn left down Walbrook Street. Follow it across Cannon Street (where it leads into Dowgate Hill) and take the second turning on your right, along College Street.
Shortly after, turn right again and walk up College Hill, passing the sites where Dick Whittington was buried (now a church) and where he lived (now buildings at numbers 19-20.)
Just after the junction with Cloak Lane, turn left along Cannon Street, cross the road, continue left and turn right along Bow Lane, which is a small laneway just after a large junction. Follow Bow Lane and turn left at the junction with Cheapside. Soon after, you will see St Mary-le-Bow Church on your left.
Dick Whittington
Dick Whittington, born in 1358, is one of the most famous Londoners who ever lived. Many people think of him as having walked to London with his cat, and though there is evidence that he did walk to London from the countryside, is it uncertain whether he actually had a cat or not.
He was Lord Mayor four times between 1397 and 1419 and during his terms of office he built public drinking fountains and conveniences, acts which made him popular. On his death, he left his fortune to various charities, to rebuild Newgate Prison and to construct a wing at St Thomas' Hospital across the river for unmarried mothers.
He lived in a house at 19-20 College Hill and was buried (in 1423) in the predecessor of St Michael Paternoster church. Both the original church and Whittington's grave were destroyed in the Great Fire of London.
St Mary-Le-Bow Church (pictured) was designed by Sir Christopher Wren. It used to house the Great Bell of Bow, of the nursery rhyme "Oranges and Lemons", and it is claimed that when Whittington ran away from London he heard the bells ringing out and returned to the city.
Traditionally, anyone born within the sounds of the Bow bells is said to be a true cockney or Londoner. These days, few people live in the City.
Did You Know?
Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, published in 1898, includes an epitaph to Whittington that it claims was also destroyed in the Great Fire. The epitaph contains many facts that were wrong. For example, that he served as mayor only 3 times and that he was knighted.
It also claims that he had a cat, but in fact there is no record of this until it was mentioned in a ballad in 1605, almost 200 years after his death. However, in 1949 the mummified remains of a 14th century cat were discovered near where Whittington lived, so the legend lives on.
What is more likely is that Whittington did have a cat but it was not of the feline variety. Instead, it was the name of his boat that he used for bringing coal from Newcastle to London.
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