Here at Trafalgar Square you will find The Golden Kilometre Distance Markers Plaque. Have you ever considered where distances to London are measured from? This seemingly simple question has a fascinating answer steeped in history and tradition.
The Golden Kilometre Distance Markers Plaque marks the official center of London. It is the original Charing Cross. This is the point to which all distances to the nation’s capital are measured.
King Edward I erected the original Charing Cross in 1290. It marked the final resting spot of his wife Queen Eleanor’s funeral procession. She died near Lincoln. A cross was placed at every spot her body stopped on its way to Westminster Abbey for burial. Today only three of the original crosses remain. They are at Geddington, Hardingstone and Waltham.
The cross outside Charing Cross Station is a replica. It was made in 1863. It stands a few hundred yards from where the genuine article stood.
For centuries distances to London were measured to one of seven obscure points. It depended on where you were coming from. In the early 1950s Mile Zero was created to simplify signposting.
A national system of road numbers would suggest a central point. A point from which all roads radiate. If you go looking for it you will find it doesn’t exist.
A- and B-roads have been with us for a hundred years now. A- and B-road numbers in Great Britain are allocated according to zones. These zones are bounded by the single-digit A-roads 1 to 6. They all center on London.
In Madrid there is a marble plaque with brass lettering. It marks Kilometro Cero. All distances to Madrid are measured from this point. It is the hub for the six main national highways that radiate from the capital.
Here in the UK we have our own capital city. It has six national roads striking out to the provinces. They are significant because they form the basis for the allocation of all other A- and B-numbers in England and Wales.
On the south side of Trafalgar Square at the foot of the statue of Charles I you can find our Mile Zero. It is not the central point of the road network though.
No numbers of significance converge here. It didn’t exist a century ago when road numbers were allocated.
In 1923 when numbers were first introduced London bristled with them. They all stopped at the City boundary. The Ministry of Transport supplied no funding to the City. It had no powers there.
The focal point of London’s roads was the Bank. It is a six-way junction between the Bank of England and Mansion House. It couldn’t be the hub of the numbering system. Historical accident put it in the City. A place where numbers didn’t exist.
The true historic center is in the City. That’s where we will look next.
So next time you see a road sign think of The Golden Kilometre Distance Markers Plaque. Think about the history beneath your feet. Think about how we measure our world.