London boasts numerous historic landmarks. Buckingham Palace, St Paul's Cathedral, Westminster Abbey and Trafalgar Square are deeply ingrained in the fabric of the city, however London also boasts a darker side. In a city which has borne witness to the plague, Jack the Ripper and royal beheadings, part of London's character is derived from its history as a place of death and destruction. Londoners are nothing if not entrepreneurial though, and guided tours of some of the city's more grisly sites are a novel way to acquaint yourself with the city's dark past.
Whitechapel walking tours
Such was the frenzy caused by a three-year killing spree in the impoverished East End in the late 1880s that more than a hundred years later, we're still talking about it. The so-called Whitechapel murders have long been attributed to a unidentified figure known as Jack the Ripper, though no suspect was conclusively found. The Ripper is suspected to have lured at least five victims to their deaths and dozens of walking tours now traverse much-changed Whitechapel for a glimpse into one of the most notorious episodes of London's dark past.
Highgate's haunting beauty
One of the city's so-called 'Magnificent Seven' group of cemeteries, London's vast Highgate Cemetery is an eerie reminder of the Victorians' fascination with death. A rambling, densely-wooded tract dotted with Gothic crypts, enormous mausoleums and solemn statues dedicated to the those interred within, Highgate Cemetery remains one of the city's most popular tourist attractions. Guided tours can help familiarise you with some of the famous names inside – including Karl Marx, George Eliot and Douglas Adams – but perhaps the best way to explore Highgate is to simply stroll through its leafy surrounds and appreciate its haunting beauty.
Tower of terror
Officially called Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, the imposing multi-turreted compound which looms over the River Thames has for years been better known as The Tower of London. A remnant of the Norman Conquest of England, for generations the Tower has inspired awe and revulsion in equal measure. Reputedly haunted by the ghost of Queen Anne Boleyn – who among others was beheaded there in 1536 – the entry to the so-called Traitors' Gate is still visible from the Thames, through which the likes of Boleyn passed on their way to meet a grim fate. Tours of the Tower of London help unlock the mysteries of this near millennia-old structure, which stands as a symbol of London's feudal history and thirst for blood.
