City of London

The City of London, commonly called the Square Mile, is the historic and financial core on the north bank of the Thames. It covers roughly one square mile and contains St Paul’s Cathedral, the Bank of England, the Royal Exchange, Guildhall and the Monument to the Great Fire. Remnants of the Roman wall and parts of the medieval street pattern are visible between modern office blocks. The area is administered by the City of London Corporation, separate from other London boroughs, and it maintains its own police force and ceremonial structures such as Mansion House for the Lord Mayor.

The Square Mile functions as both a business district and a small residential community: the daytime workforce far exceeds the number of residents. Wards and livery companies still organise civic life, and institutions such as Lloyd’s and the Bank cluster around Lombard and Threadneedle Streets. The Barbican Centre and its estate sit within the City, and the Barbican Conservatory, tucked above the centre, contains a collection of plants and trees not usually found in office districts. Annual events, including the Lord Mayor’s Show, follow routes through the City’s narrow streets.