Bird’s-Eye View Maps of Victorian London

in Maps & Views by Peter Berthoud

In 1880 Herbert Fry published London a handbook for Victorian visitors.

The popular book ran to many editions. A major factor for its success being the inclusion of twenty illustrations providing: “Bird’s-eye views of the principal streets.”

There are many excellent maps of Victorian London available in print and on-line but I haven’t seen these unusual and illuminating views published anywhere else and so wanted to share them here.

For example here is Buckingham Palace, a detail from Plate V.

Buckingham Palace, detail from Plate V

I didn’t want to risk damaging the original book whilst scanning it and my copy has a very tight binding. So, apologies for the slight shadows in the centre of each map. If anyone knows of better quality scans please do let me know.

From Charing Cross through Whitehall to Westminster



The Strand



Fleet Street and Ludgate Hill



Cannon Street



From Charing Cross, through Pall Mall to Pimlico



Regent Street



St James's Street and Old and New Bond Streets



Piccadilly



From Hyde Park Corner, through Knightsbridge to Kensington



Edgware Road



From Oxford Street, by Uxbridge Road to High Street Notting Hill



Oxford Street



Baker Street



Tottenham Court Road and Hampstead Road



New Oxford Street and Holborn



Euston Road and Marylebone Road



From The Poultry to Bishopsgate Street and to Whitechapel



The City Road



From London Bridge through the Borough to Newington Butts and Saint George's Fields



The Thames - A bird's-eye view from Herbert Fry's "London" (1891)

All these plates come from the 1891 edition of Fry’s London published by W.H. Allen, London.

I originally published them on my Facebook page but they can be enjoyed in far greater detail here.

(If you like this sort of thing, there are many unique albums of vintage London photos to be found on my Facebook page and you don’t need to sign-up in order to see them.)