London's East End: Life & Traditions

Bounded by the river Lea on one end and by the walls of the City on the other, the East End of London has, through the years, seen a wide variety of people and ways of life pass by. Through bountiful photos, drawings, maps, and engravings, and an authoritative text that weaves a rich historical tapestry, find yourself transported to the riversides and docks where pirates met their fates and Captain Cook married a barmaid; to the monasteries and slums east of the tower; and to Shoreditch where audiences cheered the first performance of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Over five centuries' worth of anecdotes, folk tales, diary excerpts, court cases, newspapers, and letters capture this colorful, ever-changing neighborhood.