Traditionally London is divided into several parts: the City, Westminster, the West End and the East End

Some facts from the history of London

London is an ancient city. It was founded more than twenty centuries ago. When the Romans began invading the country it was a small village.
The Romans built London, which they called Londinium. It was a large and rich city with clean streets, beautiful palaces, shops and villas. The word "Londinium" is probably of Celtic origin meaning "lake fortress". You may be surprised why a lake fortress, because you know that London stands on a river but not on a lake. It is true but during the tide in the sea the waters of the river Thames covered almost the whole territory where the town was standing on a great lake except for a high hill which was not covered with water and was chosen as a place where the first fortress was built. It was first made of earth and then of stone. The line, where the walls of this fortress were became the boundary of the City of London.
Nowadays, when the Queen makes ceremonial visits to the City, she stops at Temple Bar Memorial (it used to be the Temple Bar Gates that showed the boundary of the City at Westminster side) to receive the right of entry from the Lord Mayor. This memorial is crowned with the Griffins that guard the City of London.
In the 5th century the Romans left Britain, but other invaders came to the British shores. They almost ruined the city and it remained in this poor state for almost 400 years. Only in the 9th century the Saxon kings began to rebuild the city. They started building of Westminster Abbey.
In the 17th century London suffered two awful tragedies, the Great Plague in 1665 and the Great Fire in 1666.
The Great Fire happened through carelessness of a young baker who left a small bundle of wood near a very hot oven. In medieval City of London the buildings were wooden. The houses were burning like paper. In a few hours this fire destroyed 3,000 houses and at least 97 churches. Fortunately, the wind soon stopped and then heavy rain fell. Thus, London was saved.

The Tower of London is one of the most ancient buildings in London with very long history. For over 900 years the Tower has been a fortress and a royal palace, a prison and a place for execution, an arsenal, royal mint, menagerie and a safe for Crown Jewels. Now it is a museum.

The Tower of London had never had a chance to serve as a fortress and to resist an enemy’s attack.
The Tower does not belong to the City historically. This fortress was built by William the Conqueror at the end of the 11th century. He built it right at the Gates of the City to keep the unruly Londoners in fear.
Later the kings began to use it as a royal residence. They used to spend a night before coronation there.
In the centre of the Tower of London there is the famous White Tower which is the most ancient part of the Tower and the oldest building of London. William the Conqueror built it right away after his successful invasion. It is not white of course, it became dark with age. Its walls are four metres thick and now this building is a museum.
The Tower is also known as Bloody Tower because it once became a state prison and a place for executions for the greatest political leaders of the country. Among them were Sir Thomas More — great scientist was beheaded there, Sir Walter Raleigh — the famous sea captain spent more than twelve years in its walls. Lady Jane Grey, who was the Queen of England for several days, was also kept here.
Only the ravens of the Tower remind of those dark years. Ravens have lived at the Tower of London for hundreds of years. There are six of them, according to the order of King Charles II. The state donates the money to feed the birds. All the visitors must be careful as the ravens are not tame and they do bite.
The ravens are taken particular care of because there is a legend that Great Britain will keep its might and glory until the ravens leave the Tower. If the ravens disappear, Great Britain will face a great tragedy. The Tower is guarded by the Yeomen Warders, who are often called "Beefeaters". They are dressed in traditional medieval clothes of Tudor times. They work as guides and tell this story to the visitors. The name "Beefeater" is thought to originate from a French word "Buffetier". Buffetiers were guards in the palace of French kings and were responsible for the food in the palace. They are best known for their scarlet and gold dress uniforms which are worn on state occasions. They used to be monarch’s private bodyguards. The buffetiers also used to guard the Tower and its prison.
Old traditions and ceremonies are kept up in the Tower of London. One of them is the Ceremony of the Keys. Every night for the last 700 years at 21.53 the Tower has been locked up in the Ceremony of the Keys. The chief Yeoman Warder locks various doors ceremonially. At the ceremony the Chief Yeoman Warder comes out with a bunch of keys and an old lantern. The sentry calls: "Halt! Who comes there?" The Head warder replies: "The Keys". "Whose keys?" — asks the sentry. "Queen Elizabeth’s Keys" is the answer. After that the sentry says: "Advance, Queen Elizabeth’s Keys. All’s well."
Not far from the Tower of London there is Tower Bridge — a masterpiece of engineering skill. Tower Bridge was built at the end of the 19th century to match the medieval style of the fortress. This bridge is opened to let big ocean ships move up the Thames from the ocean. The territory between the Tower and the bridge is called the Pool for that reason.
St. Paul’s Cathedral is in the centre of London and is considered to be an architectural masterpiece.
After the Great Fire the City had to be built again. The commission of six architects was organized for the rebuilding and Sir Christopher Wren was the most talented of them. This architect drew a plan which greatly determined the look of today’s London though it was not realized in every detail. It was forbidden to build wooden houses in the City of London.
St. Paul’s Cathedral was the greatest work of Sir Christopher Wren. It is one of the largest churches in the world. Sir Wren was building the Cathedral for 35 years, completed it in 1711, and his aim was to build a church that could rival the great St. Peter Basilica in Rome. St. Paul was built of white stone as well as many other buildings in the City of London. But smoke and soot made the stones black and only the columns and edges were washed by the rain and remained white. That is how the building got its peculiar white-and-black look.
On top of St. Paul’s Cathedral is a high dome, which contains the Whispering Gallery, where whisper can be heard at a great distance.
Fleet street is famous all over the world as the centre of British news services.
Barbican is a district of the City of London. Nowadays Barbican is one of the most beautiful districts of London. It is also famous for the Barbican Centre. The Barbican Centre is an enormous complex which contains two theatres (the Royal Shakespeare Company and the London Symphony Orchestra), an art gallery, three cinemas, two restaurants and two exhibition halls.