Of events that preceded this remarkable change in London government nothing is known, and some historians have conjec tured a revolt in the city. Formidable obstacles to corporate administration were to be found in the existence of many sokes, or private territorial liberties, each with its separate jurisdiction. It is not till two years later (1193) that mention occurs of the first mayor, Henry FitzAilwyn. He held the office till his death in 1212. Much remains obscure. Certain aldermen, when they appear in subsequent jurisdiction, were territorial magnates, rep resentatives of the wards which they held in personal possession; and there are many indications that they exercised powers anterior to the creation of the mayoralty. It is probable that from their body were derived the "more discreet men of the city" who were called into council. Certainly by the reign of Edward I. the aldermen had become the main administrative body, as for cen turies they remained. Every mayor down the ages has been chosen from the aldermen, and is so chosen to-day. With the institution of London's mayor the portreeve disappears, and the sheriff falls back into a secondary place.
King John's charter to London of 1215 granted to the citizens the right to elect their mayor from among themselves annually, directing that they should present their choice to the sovereign or his minister for the royal approval. From the "ridings" to Westminster for this purpose originated the Lord Mayor's Show, which survives as the most popular of London's pageants.
The mayor of London was one of the treasurers of Richard I.'s ransom. In John's reign of misgovernment, the city espoused the cause of the barons, whom they admitted within the walls and supported with men and money. Robert FitzWalter, the Castellain of London and owner of Baynards Castle, the city's western fortress by the river, was chosen leader of the barons. Both the Mayor of London and FitzWalter are named in Magna Carta among those charged to see that the terms of the great charter were strictly carried out. Incidentally those terms specifically preserved the city's privileges and customs.
The long period covered by the reigns of Henry III. and Edward I. is made notable in civic history by the various occasions upon which the city was "taken into the King's hands," its mayor being arbitrarily displaced from office, and a royal warden ap pointed. London always supported the popular cause against tyrannical kings. A body of Londoners fought against Henry III. under Simon de Montfort's banner at the battle of Lewes in 1264. For a period of five years (1265-70) Henry III. ruled London by his custos, as did Edward I. for 13 years (1285-98).
Thirteenth and Fourteenth Century London.—London records become much more full in the 13th century, especially its later years. Chroniclers' narratives are supplemented by contem porary City archives (now in part printed) such as the Letter Books which begin under Edward I., the rolls of the mayor's court and Hustings court, and citizens' wills enrolled in the latter. From these is derived information of the trading and social activities of the citizens, and—still very imperfectly—of the panorama that the town presented. London ranged along the Thames-side, no where extending far back from the water, having a small outpost on the opposite bank at Southwark. A London custumal lays emphasis upon "the many folk of the city, and they are housed close together and are more crowded early and late than other people are"—the common condition of any walled town.
Of the houses, some knowledge is derived from specifications still extant. The merchants lived in timber-framed dwellings. FitzAilwyn, the first mayor, gave to London that assize which is honoured as the first Building Act. It aimed at protection against fires, which frequently devastated the city. Thatch was prohibited for roofs, party walls were to be of stone, though for centuries after this provision was ignored. Many citizens' houses carried a solar, or sleeping-room above. A building agreement of 1384 provides for an important dwelling in timber of three storeys, to have a hall 4oft. by 24ft. parlour, kitchen, buttery and cellars, with storehouses adjoining. More sumptuous dwell ings than this were built for nobles and the richest merchants.
London when the mayoralty was set up was already spreading out beyond the city wall into the western liberty, where many ecclesiastics had their town hostels. The Knights Templars mi grated from Holborn to the Thames-side, where they had raised their Round Church by 1189. The greatest enterprise for Lon don's development undertaken in the middle ages was the con struction of the first stone bridge to replace the earlier successive wooden structures. Old London bridge is customarily dated from King John, in whose reign it was completed, and it served the city till 1832, when it was taken down. Peter of Colechurch began the work in 1176; he died during its progress; and it took more than 3o years to complete. The bridge consisted of 19 arches and a drawbridge, the largest span being 3of t. ; the original breadth above the stonework was 2oft. This was widened in later centuries. It bore houses from early times, partly over hanging the water and supported by struts.