Southwark is the historic gateway to the City of London, and as such has been an important area for many centuries.
London Bridge itself has a history to be proud of. The first London Bridge served the Romans when they founded Londinium – as it was then known. In the 12th century, the previous timber structures were replaced by a stone-arched bridge. And by the 16th century, the London Bridge itself was home to a host of commercial activities, in the form of haberdashers and mercers.
In fiction, Chaucer’s pilgrims set off from Southwark’s Tabbard Inn in his Canterbury Tales.
