Located between the Tate Modern art gallery and Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, Cardinal’s Wharf includes a row of 17th century homes that stand along the River Thames. Number 49 has a notable ceramic plaque hanging next to its bright red door. The plaque claims that this was once the home of Sir Christopher Wren during the building of St. Paul’s Cathedral, as well as where Catherine of Aragon, first Queen of Henry VIII, took shelter when she first landed in London in 1502. While this remains an interesting piece of local lore, historians suggest the claim is ‘rubbish’ as future Queens would never have stayed at a common waterside inn, and Wren’s Cathedral was completed a decade before the home was actually built. It is believed that the plaque was placed on the home to prevent it from being torn down as improvements were being made to the city following World War II. (www.guardian.co.uk)
- No. 49 Cardinal’s Wharf
- Bankside, London SE1 9JE
- Underground: London Bridge