London Thomas Cromwell Tudor History Tour

Step back in time to one of the most infamous periods of history. We’ll follow in the footsteps of Thomas Cromwell and the streets and lanes that he’d have known so well.
We will see some of the places where Thomas Cromwell worked. Right in the middle of the City are the remains of what were his incredible City of London estate. We will see some of the surviving remnants of Tudor London. We’ll visit places relating to Sir Thomas More, King Henry VIII , Catherine of Aragon and much more.

This is a great tour to see parts of London no-one else sees. There’ll be no other tourists around! Join us as we explore the beating heart of the oldest districts in the City and connect with Tudor London.

As huge fans of Thomas Cromwell, Tudor history and Wolf Hall, we just knew we had to create this tour. Thomas Cromwell’s Tudor London Walking Tour isn’t just for fans of Wolf Hall. It’s also for anyone with an interest in Thomas Cromwell, the Tudors and of course King Henry VIII too.

Meeting Point

Chancery Lane Underground Station

Chancery Lane Underground Station, High Holborn, London WC1V 6DR, UK

Your guide will meet you just outside Chancery Lane Underground Station and will have all ready given you their contact number the day before the tour.

What's included:

• Private Tour Guide

Not included:

• Tube tickets to and from your hotel

What to expect:

Duration: 3 hours

Staple Inn

Staple Inn, London, WC1V 7QH

This is one of the most prominent tudor facades in London.
The original building from 1585 was once the wool staple, where wool was weighed and taxed. It survived the great fire of London, was refaced in the 17th century and restored in the 19th and 20th centuries. The hall was damaged by bombing in 1944.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Gray's Inn

8 South Square, , London, WC1R 5ET

Thomas Cromwell was elected as a member of Gray's Inn which was and is a lawyers guild and would have been familiar with the paths, gardens and buildings of Gray's Inn.

10 minutes

Gray's Inn Chapel

Gray's Inn Square, London WC1R 5ET, UK

Step inside the lovely Gray's Inn Chapel which though built for the members of the Inn is open to worship and respectful visitors.

10 minutes

The London Silver Vaults

53-64 Chancery Lane, Entrance on Southampton Buildings, London, WC2A 1QT

Home of specialist dealers in fine English silver, antiques and objets d'art, housed in underground vaults.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Lincoln's Inn

Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3TL

Lincolns Inn is a beautiful and equally prestigious establishment as Greys Inn and on weekdays we might take a peek inside,

10 minutes

Maughan Library

Chancery Lane, King's College, London, WC2R 2LS

Now a private library building for the prestigious Kings College, this was once a place where Thomas Cromwell had an office.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Temple

Temple, London, UK

We will pass through another famous and beautiful legal district in London, much used as filming locations and as settings in many great literary works.

10 minutes

Temple Church

Temple, King's Bench Walk, London, EC4Y 7BB

See the beautiful Temple Church (from the outside) more recently famous for its role in the Da Vinci Code but with a history going back 800 years.

Pass by without stopping

Playhouse Yard

Playhouse Yard, City of London, London EC4V, UK

Once the location of a famed Tudor theatre.

2 minutes

Church Entry

Church Entry, City of London, London EC4V, UK

From here the plans for the divorce of King Henry VIII and Queen Katherine of Aragon were hatched.

5 minutes

Blackfriars

Blackfriars, London EC4V 6BJ, UK

See what small ruins remain of Blackfriars, one of many abbeys and priors that were seized and closed down by King Henry VIII. Whitefriars is nearby too and we will visit that also.

5 minutes

St. Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Churchyard, London, EC4M 8AD

From a short distance away we will marvel at the beautiful symbol of the City of London, St Pauls Cathedral which arose from the ashes of the Great Fire and narrowly escaped destruction in The Blitz.

2 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Golden Boy of Pye Corner

35 Cock Lane, London, EC1A 9BW

Learn the story of the Golden Boy and the Great Fire of London.

5 minutes

WIlliam Wallace Memorial

St. Bartholomew's Hospital, W Smithfield, London, EC1A 9DS

One of many memorials here. See where William 'Braveheart' Wallace met his end.

2 minutes

Great Rising of 1381 Memorial

57A W Smithfield, London EC1A 9DS, UK

Remembering one of the greatest moments in medieval history, the Peasants Revolt.

2 minutes

St Bartholomew's Gatehouse

The Gatehouse 57A West Smithfield, London, EC1A 9DS

See this wonderful old Tudor looking gatehouse and learn about its remarkable history.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Smithfield Martyrs' Memorial

57A W Smithfield, London EC1A 9DS, UK

Stand on the spot where Protestant bishops were burned to death at the stake by Queen Mary in Tudor times.

2 minutes

Christchurch Greyfriars Church Garden

King Edward St, London EC1A 7BA, UK

Thomas Cromwell had a more personal involvement with the dissolution of this once great old building than some others. Now left as a memorial garden having been bombed out in WW2.

5 minutes

Milk Street

Milk St, City of London, London EC2V, UK

This old street in the heart of the City of London is where Sir Thomas More was born who of course met an unfortunate end at Tower Hill.

2 minutes

Austin Friars

Austin Friars, City of London, London EC2N, UK

Once an Augustin Friary, following its dissolution. The entire sprawling estate became the person domain of Thomas Cromwell (one of many) and his main residence in the City of London.

10 minutes

Drapers' Hall

Throgmorton Street, London, EC2N 2DQ

Now the gorgeous home of the esteemed Drapers Livery Company, this building is one of the few reminders of the home of Thomas Cromwell.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Dutch Church

7 Austin Friars, City of London, London EC2N 2HA, UK

Once the church for the friars, it is a place that Thomas Cromwell would have known intimately and then as now a quiet refuge from the bustling financial centre of the City.

10 minutes

St Helen's Church, Bishopsgate

Great St Helen's, City of London, London EC3A 6AT, UK

Now the largest parish church in the City of London, before the Reformation this was a Nunnery and sits atop suspected Roman or Saxon foundations.

3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Fenchurch Street

Fenchurch St, City of London, London, UK

This famous old road is now utterly transformed but we will pass through it. On the south side near the Walkie-Talkie building was once another home of Thomas Cromwell

5 minutes

The Maypole of Shaft’s Court

140 Leadenhall St, City of London, London EC3V 4QT, UK

In Wolf Hall, King Henry VIII mentioned how upon meeting Anne of Cleves that he felt he might be marrying the Cornhill Maypole. Here it is next to the famed Cheesegrater building.

5 minutes

St Olave's Church

8 Hart Street, London, EC3R 7NB

We will pass by this lovely and truly ancient church, a favourite of Charles Dickens and where the famous diarist, Samuel Pepys is buried. He lived across the road during the time of the Great Plague and Great Fire of London

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Traitors' Gate

35 Tower Hill, London, EC3N 4DR

We finish the tour outside the Tower of London at Traitors Gate, the infamous entry point to the Tower for those likely never to leave again.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Tower Hill Scaffold Site

GW5C+VR, London EC3N 2LY, UK

One of the most famous election spots in British history. See the memorial at the very spot where Thomas Cromwell, Thomas More and countless others were put to death in Tudor times and indeed other periods in history.

5 minutes