Tranquility at London's Temple
February 29th 2008 06:17
One of the great things about London is that just seconds away from the cacophony, the crowds and the chaotic traffic of the modern city there are so many peaceful havens, survivors from past centuries, untouched and timeless. One of the loveliest of these is the old and tranquil Temple, which runs between bustling Fleet Street and the roaring highway along the Thames.
The Temple, which dates back to the time of Edward I, was named after the Order of the Knights Templar, who lived here during the 12th century. It is made up of Inner Temple and Middle Temple which, along with Gray’s and Lincoln’s, form the four Inns of Court, the traditional hubs of London law.
Inner and Middle Temple are divided by Middle Temple Lane which, until it was cut off by buildings, ran from Fleet Street to the River. The temples consist now of a labyrinth of little courts and alleys hemmed in by magnificent halls and dotted with fountains, memorials, ents of garden and ancient trees.
Some of London’s oldest and most historic buildings are here among the lanes and courtyards of the Temple. The Middle Temple Hall, in Middle Temple Lane, at Fountain Court was opened by Queen Elizabeth I in 1576. The Temple Church has functioned as a Lawyers’ Church since 1608.
Leading figures of history have been members of the Temple, like Sir Walter Raleigh who belonged to the Middle Temple. Many of the giants of English literature lived and worked here too, including Henry Fielding, Doctor Johnson, William Thackeray, Havelock Ellis, John Buchan and Anthony Hope, who conceived the idea for the Prisoner of Zenda on his way back across Fleet Street from the Courts of Justice after winning a case. Charles Lamb, son of a legal clerk, was born in Inner Temple in 1775 and lived here for much of his life; a fountain, with the inscription “Lawyers were children once”, marks his memory. Oliver Goldsmith died and was buried here, in Temple Church in 1774. The premiere of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night was staged in the middle Temple Hall in 1601. The Temple also features in works of literature, including Shakespeare’s Henry VI, Part 1, Thackeray’s Pendennis, Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway and Dicken’s Great Expectations.
And of course, many great legal minds were shaped and many momentous legal cases were forged in the Temple. They still are.
Temple is wonderful place to sit, think, write or draw. Its courtyards and gardens are beautiful, sheltered, quiet and uncrowded. It is wonderful place to ramble too – one passage leads to another, one court opens to one more and every plaque, stone and statue holds another story.
Acknowledgement: Ed Glinert, Literary London
Middle Temple
The Temple, which dates back to the time of Edward I, was named after the Order of the Knights Templar, who lived here during the 12th century. It is made up of Inner Temple and Middle Temple which, along with Gray’s and Lincoln’s, form the four Inns of Court, the traditional hubs of London law.
Inner Temple
Inner and Middle Temple are divided by Middle Temple Lane which, until it was cut off by buildings, ran from Fleet Street to the River. The temples consist now of a labyrinth of little courts and alleys hemmed in by magnificent halls and dotted with fountains, memorials, ents of garden and ancient trees.
Temple church
Some of London’s oldest and most historic buildings are here among the lanes and courtyards of the Temple. The Middle Temple Hall, in Middle Temple Lane, at Fountain Court was opened by Queen Elizabeth I in 1576. The Temple Church has functioned as a Lawyers’ Church since 1608.
Fountain Court, Temple
Leading figures of history have been members of the Temple, like Sir Walter Raleigh who belonged to the Middle Temple. Many of the giants of English literature lived and worked here too, including Henry Fielding, Doctor Johnson, William Thackeray, Havelock Ellis, John Buchan and Anthony Hope, who conceived the idea for the Prisoner of Zenda on his way back across Fleet Street from the Courts of Justice after winning a case. Charles Lamb, son of a legal clerk, was born in Inner Temple in 1775 and lived here for much of his life; a fountain, with the inscription “Lawyers were children once”, marks his memory. Oliver Goldsmith died and was buried here, in Temple Church in 1774. The premiere of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night was staged in the middle Temple Hall in 1601. The Temple also features in works of literature, including Shakespeare’s Henry VI, Part 1, Thackeray’s Pendennis, Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway and Dicken’s Great Expectations.
The Nisbett Plaque, Temple
And of course, many great legal minds were shaped and many momentous legal cases were forged in the Temple. They still are.
Vista from Fountain Court
Temple is wonderful place to sit, think, write or draw. Its courtyards and gardens are beautiful, sheltered, quiet and uncrowded. It is wonderful place to ramble too – one passage leads to another, one court opens to one more and every plaque, stone and statue holds another story.
Arcade at Temple
Acknowledgement: Ed Glinert, Literary London
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