Opened by Queen Elizabeth I in 1597, the Royal Exchange was a market place of shops, offices and a trading floor founded by Sir Thomas Gresham. Here, merchants and traders could meet to do business.
Possibly England's first shopping mall and open to the elements, it had a bell tower crowned by a huge grasshopper (Gresham family emblem)
A bell summoned merchants at 12 noon and 6 pm.
The original exchange was destroyed in the Great Fire, rebuilt during reign of Charles II and again destroyed by fire in 1838.
The present exchange was designed by William Tite and opened by Queen Victoria in 1844 as a four-sided building surrounding a central courtyard as in the original 16th century building.
The 8 column portico was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome.
Ceased to be an Exchange in 1939 when the outbreak of WW2 stopped it trading. Now an upmarket retail centre with restaurants and cafés
No comments:
Post a Comment