page_title: Fleet Street
section_title: Notable buildings
hierarchical_section_title: Fleet Street / Notable buildings
context_page_description: Fleet Street is a major street mostly in the City of London. It runs west to east from Temple Bar at the boundary with the City of Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the London Wall and the River Fleet from which the street was named.
  Having been an important through route since Roman times, businesses were established along the road during the Middle Ages. Senior clergy lived in Fleet Street during this period where there are several churches including Temple Church and St Bride's. Fleet Street became known for printing and publishing at the start of the 16th century and it became the dominant trade so that by the 20th century most British national newspapers operated from here. Much of the industry moved out in the 1980s after News International set up cheaper manufacturing premises in Wapping, but some former newspaper buildings are listed and have been preserved. The term Fleet Street remains a metonym for the British national press, and pubs on the street once frequented by journalists remain popular.
context_section_description: In the High Middle Ages senior clergymen had their London palaces in the street. Place-names surviving with this connection are Peterborough Court and Salisbury Court after their respective Bishops' houses here; apart from the Knights Templars' establishment the Whitefriars monastery is recalled by Whitefriars Street and the remains of its undercroft have been preserved in a public display area. A Carmelite church was established on Fleet Street in 1253, but it was destroyed during the Reformation in 1545.
  Today three churches serve the spiritual needs of the three 'communities' associated with the area of the street. Temple Church was built by the Knights Templar in 1162 and serves the legal profession. St Bride's Church was established as early as the 6th century and was later designed by Sir Christopher Wren in a style that complemented St Mary Le Bow further east in the City. It remains the London church most associated with the print industry. St Dunstan-in-the-West also dates from the 12th century supplements these as the local parish (as opposed to guild church) and is the London home for the Romanian Orthodox church.
  To the south lies an area of legal buildings known as the Temple, formerly the property of the Knights Templar, which at its core includes two of the four Inns of Court: the Inner Temple and the Middle Temple. There are many lawyers' offices (especially barristers' chambers) in the vicinity. The gatehouse to Middle Temple Lane was built by Sir Christopher Wren in 1684. To the west, at the junction with Strand are the Royal Courts of Justice whilst at the eastern end of the street the Old Bailey is near Ludgate Circus.
  As a principal route leading to and from the City, Fleet Street was especially noted for its taverns and coffeehouses. Many notable persons of literary and political fame such as Samuel Johnson frequented these, and journalists would regularly meet in pubs to collect stories. Some, such as Ye Olde Cock Tavern at No. 22 and Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese at No. 145, have survived to the 21st century and are Grade II listed. The El Vino's wine bar moved to No. 47 in 1923, quickly becoming popular with lawyers and journalists. Women were not allowed in the bar until 1982, and then only because of a court order. The Old Bank of England, which from 1888 to 1975 was a trading house for the country's central bank, is now a Grade II listed pub.
  Since 1971, the southern side of the street has been part of the Fleet Street Conservation Area, which ensures buildings are regularly maintained and the character of the street is preserved. The area expanded to the north side in 1981.
caption: St-Dunstan-in-the-West on Fleet Street, pictured in 1842
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