A. D. 6i. 



^53 



61 — In the reign of Nero we have the firft undoubted mention of 

 London, which had for fome time been a Roman fettlement. It was at 

 this time very much celebrated as the refidcnce of a great number of 

 fuch dealers, as the Romans called merchants ; and it contained great 

 {lores of provifions. We cannot doubt that the fagacity of the Romans 

 foon marked its convenient fituation for water carriage, and eftablifhed 

 a military magazine of provifions and ftores in it. Tacitus, the author 

 who firft mentions this city, adds, that it was not diftinguifhed by the 

 name of a colony; a Roman honour, which, however, was afterwards 

 conferred upon it *. 



* ' Londinium perrexit, cognomento quidem 

 coloniie non iiifigne, led copia negotiatonim et 

 ' commeatuum maxime celebrc' [^Taciti Anna/, 

 L. xiv, c. 33.] Tbefe few plain words have been 

 varnidied over with falfe glofles, in order to make 

 a great and magnificent city of London at the very 

 commencement of its hiftory. [See in particular 

 Burton's Comment, on Antonhie, p. 154.] But 

 London, like moft communities or individuals, who 

 owe their dignity to intrinfic merit, has the real 

 honour to be indebted to no fplendid origin or ad- 

 ventitious helps, (except being the feat of govern- 

 ment) but has rifen to the firll rank among the 

 commercial cities of the world, by the advantage 

 of its fituation, and the indefatigable iuduflry and 

 commercial fpirit of its inhabitants. 



Much fttidy has been employed in tracing the 

 origin of the name of London. Though this is 

 not a work proper for the difcuflion of etymologi- 

 cal or antiquarian fubjefts, and though I am fully 

 aware, that etymology is a fource of information fo 

 fallacious, that thole, who are bell qualified to 

 judge of it, will place the fmallefl dependence upon 

 it ; yet, as fuch a city deferves the moll careful re- 

 fearch into its antiquity, and as I think, that fome 

 degree of light upon the origin of London may be 

 ftruck out of what feems to me to be the genuine 

 name of it, I beg leave for this once to fubmit to 

 the reader fome etymological obfervations. 



The name, being evidently not Roman, affords 

 a prclumption, that, before the Romans took pof- 

 felTion of this fpot, there cxilled upon it a town, 

 village, or colleftion of houfes, known to the inha- 

 bitants and neighbouring people by a name, which 

 the Romans, adapting it to the genius of their own 

 language, have called Londinium, and Lundonium, 

 or Lundinium. It was in the country of the Belgic 

 Britons, and molt probably firft built by them 

 on an elevated fpot, which on account of its being 

 almoft furrountled every tide by the river, (not 

 then, as now, confined by artificial banks and the 

 elevation of the foil) had been neglected by them, 

 when they firft cleared and cultivated the adjacent 

 country. [' Agros colere coeperunt.' Cars. Bell. 

 Gall. L. v, c. 12.] The Belgic Britons were a 

 •:o!ony of the Belgic Gauls, who were a mixed race 



Vol. I. 



of Germans and Gauls, the grtateft number of 

 them, however, being of German dcfcent : confe- 

 quently in their language tlie German was predo- 

 minant. [' Reperiebat, plerofque Belgas effe ortos 

 • ab Germanis, Rhenumque antiquitus tranfdudlos, 

 ' propter loci fertilitatem ibi confediffe ; Gallofque, 

 ' qui ea loca incolerent, expulifTe.' That is to lay, 

 they expelled thofe Gauls, who would not be fub- 

 jeft to them : for if all were expelled, then not the 

 moft [plerofque) but the whole of the inhabitants 

 of that part of the country muft thenceforth have 

 been Germans. Ci^s. Bell. Gall. L. ii, c. 4.J Cz- 

 far tells us, that the towns of the Belgic Britons 

 (the only Britons known to him) were built in the 

 midft of thick woods, and fortified with ramparts 

 and ditches. [' Oppidum antem Britanni vocant, 

 ' quum filvas impeditas vallo atque foffa munie- 

 ' runt.' Bell. Gall. L.M,c. 21.^ The ground, 

 where St. Paul's church ftands, (even now higher 

 than moft of the adjacent grounds, though they 

 have acquired in fome places about twenty feet of 

 adventitious height) was probably called Lund, or 

 the -wood, as ftill retaining its native trees, when 

 the reft of the country was tolerably well cleared. 

 Such an elevated fpot would be preferred to the 

 adjacent marfhy or Ilimy grounds for the fituation 

 of a new village or town, which would naturally 

 get the name of Lund-duyn or Lund-dun, the hill, 

 or fortified hill, of the wood, or Lund-tun, the in- 

 clofnre, or town of the wood, as the names of new 

 foundations muft undoubtedly be in the language 

 of the predominant people, and their language muft 

 have continued for fome time diftinft from that of 

 the aboriginal Britons. See theDidllonaries of the 

 Icelandic, Saxon, German, and Dutch, languages, 

 which are all kindred branches of the Gothic ; 

 and alfo of the WeKh language, wherein, if I mif- 

 take not, much of the Belgic is preferved. 



To this fuppofition, or hypothefis, it will be ob- 

 jected, that the name is not Li/ndan but London. 

 But the objedlion will not be made by any, who 

 have read the Saxon and old Engliih authors, or 

 even all the Roman writers who have mentioned 

 the place : and fome of thcfe I fhall lay before the 

 reader for his fatisfaction. 



Tacitus, the father of the hiftory of I^onJon, 



u 



