Precinct of St Katharine
The Precinct of St Katharine was an administrative unit in the Tower Division east of the City of London . The district arose on the land belonging to the St Katharine by the Tower hospital . Several thousand people settled there over the centuries, so that at some point St Katherine became an independent property that was directly subordinate to the Lord Chancellor .
St Katharine was right on the Thames, east of the tower and south of East Smithfield . With the construction of the St Katharine Docks in 1825, the district disappeared. While the landowners received compensation, the other people who lived there were simply evicted.
history
St Katharine by the Tower Hospital was created in 1146 by a gift from Queen Matilda . This bought 13 acres of land east of the Tower of London from Holy Trinity Priory in Aldgate . Matilda gave the land to a newly founded hospital to look after the poor. The land was directly east of the tower and thus directly on the City of London . The area was geographically outside the city, but was still under its administration in the first centuries.
In the centuries after the establishment of St Katharine by the Tower, the first servants and soldiers of the Tower soon settled. Originally, all of the properties were leased directly from the hospital, which had strict supervision over the property owners. In the course of time, however, the land was further divided and the lease rights were resold, so that an increasingly dense, confusing mixture of small houses, small businesses and improvised buildings developed around the hospital. In the course of time, numerous piers have emerged in the open spaces on the Thames.
Reports from the middle of the 15th century show that at this time St Katharines was already home to a resident population of strangers and other people who were not wanted in the city. By a royal charter from 1442, the City and the Bishop of London lost control of the area. St Katharine, with all its lands, became a Royal Peculiar with its own ecclesiastical jurisdiction . In secular affairs, the area was directly under the Lord Chancellor. Regardless of the power of the London Livery Companys , businesses were able to settle near the City. In particular weavers and beer brewers from Flanders settled here and created businesses.
The monastery survived the dissolution of the English monasteries in the 16th century , making it the only religious community in London, next to Westminster Abbey , that still existed after the dissolution. The plan to add the district to the Tower Liberties , and thus to subordinate it directly to the constable of the Tower , failed because it would have been a negative deal for the constable.
St Katharina's reputation was bad. In a debate in the House of Commons in 1601, London MP Stephen Soane described the district as the cesspool of sin, the nursery of the easygoing and lustful people, the haven of the villains, thieves and beggars, and the keeper of the lazy. The 1603 Survey of London chooses a similar description, and 20th century historiography largely followed the two authors. It was only at the end of the 20th century that this interpretation began to change.
Although in St Katharine around 1640 about 3000 to 4000 inhabitants lived (~ 57,000–76,000 Ew / km²), the place was apparently comparatively clean and healthy. During the Great Plague of London , the mortality rate in St Katharines was only about half that of the neighboring boroughs. A source from 1661 reports 771 houses in St Katharine, which corresponds to about five inhabitants per house and a density of 11,000 to 15,000 houses / km².
The district was not affected by the Great Fire of London in 1666, as it ended west of the tower. However, major fires broke out in both 1672, 1721 and 1734, destroying around 100 (1672), 40 (1721) and 30 (1734) houses. According to contemporary sources, the number of houses fluctuated greatly. The New View of London from 1708 reports more than 850 houses in the district, while a source from 1801 mentions 505 houses, in which 2652 people live. In 1811 the number of inhabited houses had fallen to 495, in which 2706 people lived. By 1821 the number of inhabited houses had fallen to 421, in which 2624 people lived.
The end of the district came in the 19th century when an investment company wanted to build the St Katharine Docks on the site of the district. She managed to convince the British government of her plan - among other things with exaggerated depictions of the terrible living conditions in St Katharine. While the hospital moved to London's West End and the few landowners received compensation, the tenants stood on the street.
building
In addition to the church and hospital, the public buildings in St Katharine also included a mill. The preservation of the city clock has often been the subject of public endeavors, and a town hall for St Katharine was added from the 17th century.
administration
The administration of the hospital and thus also of the district was originally subject to three spiritual men and three spiritual women together with a master's degree. The master was responsible for the daily administration. He also appointed the lower officials who looked after the hospital and the district. If the master originally came from the order, it has been a layperson since the 16th century. For decisions, the master needed the consensus of both spiritual groups, which means, unusually for the time, that women had equal rights with men. The administration of the hospital and the city overlapped. Formally, it was about a joint administration, in fact certain posts were almost exclusively concerned with the city, others almost exclusively with the monastery and hospital.
Remarks
- ↑ a b House, p. 155
- ^ House, p. 157
- ^ House, p. 153
- ^ John Nichols and Son: Account of the Royal Hospital and Collegiate Church of Saint Katharine, Near the Tower of London, 1824 p. 8
- ^ John Nichols and Son: Account of the Royal Hospital and Collegiate Church of Saint Katharine, Near the Tower of London, 1824 p. 9
- ^ John Nichols and Son: Account of the Royal Hospital and Collegiate Church of Saint Katharine, Near the Tower of London, 1824 p. 10
- ^ House, p. 162
literature
- St Katharine's. In: Ben Weinreb, Christopher Hibbert: The London Encyclopedia, Julia Keay, John Keay, 3rd, Macmillan, ISBN 978-1-4050-4924-5 , p. 779.
- Anthony Paul House: The City of London and the Problem of the Liberties, c1540-c1640. Oxford 2006.
- Frederic Simcox Lea: The royal hospital and collegiate church of Saint Katharine near the Tower in its relation to the east of London. London 1878.