Aldwych

Aldwych

Aldwych (/[unsupported input]ˈɔːldwɪtʃ/) is a place an road in the Ceety o Wastmeenster in Lunnon, Ingland.

Description

Aldwych, the road, is a crescent, connectit tae the Strand at baith ends. At its centre, it meets the Kingsway. Biggins alang its lenth are:

• Waldorf Hilton hotel
• India House (Indian High Commission in London)
• Australia House (High Commission of Australia in London)
• Aldwych Theatre
• Novello Theatre
• Bush House, heidquarters o BBC World Service
• Centrium, umwhile Television House
• Connaught House, Columbia House, Aldwych House, an Clement House, biggins o the London School of Economics.
• The umwhile steid o the Gaiety Theatre, London, unner reconstruction

Nearbi, in the Strand, is the nou-disuised Aldwych tube station.

Its offeecial name is "Aldwych" but the road is whiles colloquially referred tae as "The Aldwych", rather in the same manner that "Strand" is aften referred tae as "The Strand".

History

The name, "Aldwych", derives frae the Auld Inglis eald an wic meanin 'auld tradin toun' or 'auld mercatplace'; the name wis later appleed tae the street an destrict. It wis recordit as Aldewich in 1211. In the seivent century, an Anglo-Saxon veelage an tradin centre namit Lundenwic ("Lunnon tradin toun") wis established approximately ane mile tae the wast o Londinium (namit Lundenburh or "Lunnon Fort" bi the Saxons) in what is nou Aldwych. Lundenwic probably uised the mooth o the River Fleet as a harbour or anchorage for tradin ships an fishin boats.

The Waldorf Hilton on Aldwych

Lundenwic wis 'rediscovered' in the 1980s efter the results o extensive excavations wur reinterpretit as bein urban in character. Thir conclusions wur reached independently bi the airchaeologists, Alan Vince an Martin Biddle. Recent excavations in the Covent Garden aurie hae uncovered an extensive Anglo-Saxon dounset, coverin aboot 600,000-square-metre (150-acre), stretchin frae the present-day National Gallery steid in the wast tae Aldwych in the east. As the presumit locus o the ceety, Lundenburh, wis muivit back athin the auld Roman waws, the aulder dounset o Lundenwic gained the name o ealdwic: "auld settlement", a name which evolvit intae Aldwych.

The modren street wis creatit in a redevelopment in the early twintiet century, that saw the demolition o the auld Wych Street an the construction o Australia House (biggit 1913-18) an Bush House (completit in 1925).

A statue o the nineteent-century prime meenister, William Ewart Gladstone, wis instawed in 1905 near St. Clement Danes kirk.

On 18 Februar 1996, a bomb detonatit prematurely on a Number 171 bus travellin alang Aldwych, killin Edward O'Brien, the IRA operative transportin the device; it an aw injured fower ithers.

See an aw

• The umwhile Aldwych tube station (closed 1994)
• Aldwych tramway station
• Aldwych Theatre
• Wych Street