Official Guides to the City of London

Anthony Astaix

Languages:

French, English.

Themes:

Christopher Wren's London, City churches, Crime and punishment, General city tour, Great Fire of London, Guildhall Art Gallery, Literary tours, Livery companies, Medieval London, Religion, Romans, Samuel Pepys, Tours for children, Wartime.

Biography

I'm French and have been living in London for almost a decade.

I worked as a chief editor specialized in Continental French law and I always loved discovering the layers of history and the traces of the individuals, especially in the old legal texts. That led me to study genealogy and palaeography and I traced my ancestry back to the 15th c. (no hidden king I’m afraid).

But, more important, I am fascinated by the history of London and Britain. I enjoy bringing to life characters and events from the past and trying to put these events into perspective with the history of England’s favourite enemy: once more unto the breach dear friends, once more, France!

Qualifications

Master Degree in law, University Paris I La Sorbonne

Art history, University Lille III

City of London Guide

Clerkenwell & Islington Guide

Museum of the order of St John Guide

Associate of Institute of Tourist Guiding (Green Badge)

Guided Tours

My tours are designed to offer a mix of information & fun. I love telling stories about people in a wider context and I enjoy explaining the origin of expressions and words in English and/or French. You will learn for instance where the words loo or desert come from.

Each tour focuses on key elements of London’s history. But, as Samuel Johnson said (The Life of Samuel Johnson, 1791), if you wish to have a just notion of the magnitude of London, you must not be satisfied with seeing its great streets and squares, but must survey the innumerable little lanes and courts.

Guided Tours (Visit my website for broader details):

  • City of London, 2 000 years of history
  • Clerkenwell, the monastic and medieval London
  • Guildhall, the beating heart of the City of London
  • Canonbury, from meadows to the industrial revolution
  • Guildhall art gallery, London in 10 paintings
  • St John‘s Gate, the fascinating history of the knights Hospitallers
  • Islington on all fours: an animal trail along St John street

 

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