The New Jerusalem

In 1666 the Great Fire raveged much of the capital. After the flames had been put out and the dead buried, London was once more a blank canvas for builder and architects to create a new city - a city which could be rebuilt to reflect its glorious destiny. or most of the men at the centre of London's reconstruction, including Sir Christopher Wren, were members of the Rosicrucian founded Royal Society and believed in the mystical wisdom of the ancient world and the millenarianist beliefs of its founders. They were convinced that London had long been the chosen site of the New Jerusalem - the city that would descend from the sky at the second coming as foretold in the Book of Revelations. n this eye opening book, Adrian Gilbert, author of Signs in the Sky, exposes a hidden London, revealing the true significance of such well-known sites as St Paul's Cathedral, the Monument and Temple church. He also introduces us to the men and women who shaped seventeenth century London according to their own beliefs. Combining detective story, archaeological investigation and historical insight, The New Jerusalem is a colourful historical portrait of London as we have never seen it before.