Medieval London Wards

The table below lists the standardized spellings used by MLD for the 24 wards in medieval London, as well as the two suburbs of Southwark and Westminster.  It does not include the ward of Bridge Without, which was created in 1550 when the city of London gained control of three manors (the Guildable Manor, King’s Manor, and Great Liberty) in Southwark. Downloadable color pdf maps of the Wards of London (West Sheet) and (East Sheet) on the Historic Towns Trust website were first printed in M. D. Lobel, ed., The City of London from Prehistoric Times to c. 1520, vol. 3  (Oxford, 1989).

The wards served as the main administrative units in medieval London; each was represented by an alderman, who presided over the wardmote and sat on the Court of Aldermen. Each ward sent representatives to the Common Council; the numbers sent depended on the size of the ward, although there were periods when the common councillors were elected by the crafts, not the wards. Lower ward officials included the constable, beadle, rakers, scavengers, and ale-connors.