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871  Qtr 2  More Danes arrive in Britain
   Another army of Danes landed in London and were joined by those at Reading. The army defeated Alfred at Wilton and so the king decided to pay the Danes some money to keep the peace.1 
1013    Swein Fork-Beard and Canute attack England
   Swein Fork-Beard and his son Canute sailed from Denmark to attack England. Again London defended itself and the Vikings moved elsewhere, taking Wessex, Mercia and Northumbria. 
  Nov  London surrenders to Swein
   London was the last part of the country to accept Swein as the new king of England. Swein and his Viking army had already taken control of the Danelaw and the rest of the country accepted him as their new ruler. Swein's rule of the country would only last a few months. 
1016  Apr  Canute attempts to take the throne
   Canute advanced on London for a fight with Aethelred but Aethelred died in the same month. London accepted Edmund Ironside as their ruler. Canute would have to defeat Edmund if he was to become King of England.2 
1066  Oct 6  Harold and his forces reach London
   Harold II had to march south from Stamford Bridge to counter the threat of invasion from William of Normandy. 
1078    Work starts on the White Tower
   Gundulf began work on the White Tower, the Tower of London.3 
1128    Templar Church in London
   Hugh de Payens may have been granted the land for the first Temple Church in London at this time. Consisting of an orchard, a cemetery, a round church. The position was possibly at the end of Chancery Lane. The temple was moved in 1161.4 
1141  Jun  Matilda enters London
   Matilda and her supporters entered London for her coronation. Her supporters included David I, king of the Scots. Geoffrey de Mandeville who controlled the Tower of London, abandoned his king as he saw Matilda had the upper hand. He joined her side and offered her the Tower of London. He did this to ensure he kept the Earldom of Essex which made him one of the most powerful barons of the time. 
1155    Knights Templar build Temple in Fleet Street
   Being the superintendents of the Masons, the Knights Templars build their Temple in Fleet Street in London.5 
1161    Knights Templars move London Temple
   The Knights Templars moved their London temple to the new site between Fleet Street and the Thames.6 
1177    Henry as arbitrator
   Again Henry's knowledge of law is used in a conflict between Alfonso IX of Castile and Sancho VI of Navarre held in London.7 
1189    First Lord Mayor of London
   The post of Lord Mayor of London was introduced in this year. The first holder of the title was Henry FitzAilwin.8 
1212    A Great fire of London
   Fire broke out on the southern shore of the River Thames and crossed the river starting more fires on the northern shore. Many people were killed. Boats tried to rescue people trapped on London Bridge but the boats became overloaded and many drowned. This appears to be a big a disaster as the fire of 1666.9 
1215  Jan  John meets the Barons in London
   Promising the Barons safe passage, John met them in London to discuss their demands. John postponed any answer until Easter.10 
  May 17  London falls to the Rebels
   The gates to London were opened by a supporter of the rebellious Barons and the houses of Jews were targeted for ransacking and burning. The rebels called for those Barons still on the side of John to join them. The Tower of London held by John's supporters was too well defended to fall into the hands of the rebels.10 
1216  Feb  King John puts down revolt
   King John put down a revolt in East Anglia. The Barons and the French kept hold of London. 
  Feb  Small French fleet land in London
   A small French army landed in London. Their commander informed the rebel barons that Prince Louis would soon arrive from France. 
1263    Edward raids the Temple in London
   On the pretence of removing his mother's jewels, Edward (I) entered the Knights Templar's Temple in London and ransacked the treasury, taking the proceeds to the Tower of London. 
1265  Summer  Armies march
   Simon's son was sent to London to raise money and troops. He diverted back through Winchester which was loyal to the king and then moved through Oxford and Northampton. Edward (I) moved from Worcester to Bridgnorth destroying bridges and means of allowing Simon who was on the Welsh side of the Avon from crossing back. The people of Bristol, friendly to Simon's cause sent ships to Newport to help Simon cross, but they were intercepted and destroyed by Edward.11 
1294    Edward Balliol asks for resources
   Edward Balliol arrived in London and asked for men and money for Edward's French war.12 
1348  Jun  The Plague reaches England
   The plague reached the shores of England first at Melcombe Regis in Dorset. By winter of the year, the plague had reached London.13 
1354    Statute of Staples
   A law that fixed 15 towns as staple towns. A staple town was a town that was restricted in what it could sell to foreign merchants. The towns were Bristol, Canterbury, Carmarthen, Chichester, Cork, Drogheda, Dublin, Exeter, Lincoln, London, Newcastle, Norwich, Waterford, Winchester and York. 
1381  Jun 11  Rebels move towards London
   Both the Kentish and the Essex rebels move towards London. 
  Jun 12  Rebels reach London
   The Essex rebels reach Mile End near Aldgate and the Kentish rebels reach Southwark.14 
1450  Jun  London ransacked by the rebels
   The rebels under the command of Jack Cade defeated a section of King Henry's army at Sevenoaks and entered London. The rebels ransacked the city and after crossing London Bridge to the south were prevented crossing back to the north by angry Londoners. The rebels were defeated and fled. 
1460  Jul 2  Yorkists enter London
   The Yorkists marched first to Canterbury where the officers in charge of protecting the town against them joined forces with the rebels. They then moved on and arrived at London on July 2nd. There they were welcomed by the Mayor of London and the Archbishop of Canterbury.15 
1461  Feb 27  Yorkists enter London
   Edward and Warwick were allowed to enter the city of London. The citizens of London had refused to let the Queen enter and so she returned north with the King. 
1484  Dec  Richard returns to London
   Richard was welcomed into London by the Mayor and a procession led him to Blackfriars. Christmas was spent celebrating.16 
1566    The Royal Exchange founded
   The Royal Exchange in London was founded by Sir Thomas Gresham. The exchange and dealing in foreign currency had become very important and this put London at the heart of the process. 
Other

Selection of references used:

1. Ronald McNair Scott, Alfred the Great, 0 86332 832 6
2. Magnus Magnusson, Vikings!
3. E.B.D'Auvergne, The English Castles, 1926
4. Stephen Howarth, The Knights Templar, 0 00 216452 3
5. Preston Williams, Illustrations of Masonry
6. Edward Burman, The Templars, Knights of God, 0-85030-396-6
7. John Harvey, The Plantagenets
8. Richard Cavendish, Kings and Queens The Concise Guide, 978-0-7153-2376-2
9. The Plantagenet Chronicles, 1-85501-685-0
10. Maurice Ashley, The Life and Times of King John
11. Elizabeth Luckock and Caroline Gundy, Simon de Montfort, 1969, 08 008236 6
12. J.D. Mackie, A History of Scotland, 1978, 0 7139 1206 5
13. M H Keen, England in the Later Middle Ages, 0-415-02783-7
14. John J. Robinson, Born in Blood, 0-87131-602-1
15. Charles Ross, Edward IV
16. Anthony Cheetham, Life and times of Richard III, 0-297-83167-4

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