Writers in London
The atlas holds 68 people and 315 moments here, from 1374 to 2015. The most recorded lives are Charles Dickens, John Milton and Freddie Mercury.
Notable people
Charles Dickens
from 1815 to 1870
18 moments here
English novelist, journalist, editor, social reformer, actor and celebrated public reader. This chronology traces documented residences, workplaces,…
John Milton
from 1608 to 1674
17 moments here
English poet, polemicist, and civil servant. This chronology follows documented residences, education, continental travel, marriages, public service,…
Freddie Mercury
from 1964 to 1991
14 moments here
Freddie Mercury (Farrokh Bulsara) was a British singer, songwriter, pianist, and lead vocalist of Queen.…
Oscar Wilde
from 1881 to 1895
13 moments here
Irish author, poet, playwright, critic, and leading figure in late nineteenth-century aestheticism.…
George Orwell
from 1927 to 1950
13 moments here
George Orwell was the pen name of Eric Arthur Blair, an English novelist, essayist, journalist, critic, and democratic socialist.…
Daniel Defoe
from 1660 to 1731
12 moments here
English merchant, political writer, journalist, intelligence agent, and novelist. This chronology records documented physical presences from his…
William Shakespeare
from 1592 to 1614
11 moments here
English playwright, poet, actor, and theatrical shareholder. Surviving records place Shakespeare principally in Stratford-upon-Avon and London, with…
Charlie Chaplin
from 1889 to 1975
11 moments here
English actor, comedian, director, writer, producer and composer whose screen persona, the Tramp, became an international icon.…
Lord Byron
from 1788 to 1812
10 moments here
George Gordon Noel Byron, 6th Baron Byron (1788–1824), was a British poet, peer, and political speaker.…
Thomas More
from 1478 to 1535
10 moments here
English lawyer, humanist author, royal councillor, Speaker of the House of Commons, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, and Lord Chancellor under…
Karl Marx
from 1845 to 1883
9 moments here
German philosopher, economist, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. Born in Trier, Marx studied in Bonn and Berlin, worked in Cologne, and…
Michael Faraday
from 1791 to 1860
9 moments here
English chemist and physicist whose experimental work transformed the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry.…
Charles Darwin
from 1829 to 1882
8 moments here
English naturalist, geologist, and biologist whose observations during the global voyage of HMS Beagle and subsequent research led to his theory of…
Friedrich Engels
from 1843 to 1895
8 moments here
German philosopher, political theorist, revolutionary socialist, businessman, and Karl Marx’s lifelong collaborator.…
Francis Bacon
from 1561 to 1626
8 moments here
English philosopher, lawyer, statesman, Attorney General, and Lord Chancellor under James I.…
Jane Austen
from 1788 to 1815
7 moments here
English novelist Jane Austen spent her life in southern England, principally in Hampshire, Bath, Southampton, Chawton, and Winchester.…
John Locke
from 1647 to 1702
6 moments here
English philosopher, physician, and political writer. Locke was born in Somerset, educated in London and Oxford, served Lord Shaftesbury in London,…
Geoffrey Chaucer
from 1374 to 1400
6 moments here
English poet, courtier, diplomat, and civil servant, best known for The Canterbury Tales. His documented career included military service in France,…
Adam Smith
from 1764 to 1777
5 moments here
Scottish moral philosopher and political economist of the Scottish Enlightenment, author of The Theory of Moral Sentiments and An Inquiry into the…
Helen Keller
from 1930 to 1946
5 moments here
Helen Adams Keller was an American deafblind author, lecturer, disability-rights advocate, and political activist.…
Doris Lessing
from 1949 to 2013
5 moments here
British novelist Doris May Lessing was born in Kermanshah, Iran, grew up in Southern Rhodesia, and moved to London in 1949.…
Douglas Adams
from 1952 to 1994
5 moments here
English author, screenwriter and humourist best known for The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.…
Ronald Reagan
from 1982 to 1989
4 moments here
American broadcaster, actor, labor leader, governor of California, and 40th president of the United States.…
Mahatma Gandhi
from 1888 to 1931
4 moments here
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist, political ethicist, and leader of mass nonviolent resistance.…
Moments
- 1374 Residence above Aldgate Geoffrey Chaucer
- 1386 Member of the Wonderful Parliament Geoffrey Chaucer
- 1390 Robbed at Hatcham Geoffrey Chaucer
- 1390 Robbed at Westminster Geoffrey Chaucer
- 1399 Residence in the Westminster Abbey close Geoffrey Chaucer
- 1400 Death in London Geoffrey Chaucer
- 1478 Birth in the City of London Thomas More
- 1494 Legal training at New Inn Thomas More
- 1496 Student at Lincoln's Inn Thomas More
- 1503 Spiritual exercises at the London Charterhouse Thomas More
- 1505 Second stay in England Desiderius Erasmus
- 1505 Residence at the Old Barge Thomas More
- 1510 Arrival at Thomas More's house Desiderius Erasmus
- 1525 Move to Chelsea Thomas More
- 1534 Appearance before the succession-oath commission Thomas More
- 1534 Imprisonment in the Bell Tower Thomas More
- 1535 Execution at Tower Hill Thomas More
- 1535 Treason trial at Westminster Hall Thomas More
- 1561 Birth at York House Francis Bacon
- 1576 Admission to Gray's Inn Francis Bacon
- 1579 Residence for legal study Francis Bacon
- 1583 Residence at Castelnau's London house Giordano Bruno
- 1584 Ash Wednesday discussion at Whitehall Giordano Bruno
- 1592 Established on the London stage William Shakespeare
- 1594 Performs before Elizabeth I at Greenwich William Shakespeare
- 1597 Recorded as a St Helen's householder William Shakespeare
- 1598 Acts at the Curtain Theatre William Shakespeare
- 1599 Moves to Southwark William Shakespeare
- 1600 Essex hearing at York House Francis Bacon
- 1601 Counsel at the Essex treason trial Francis Bacon
- 1604 Lodges with the Mountjoy family William Shakespeare
- 1606 Marriage to Alice Barnham Francis Bacon
- 1608 Installed among the Blackfriars players William Shakespeare
- 1608 Birth on Bread Street John Milton
- 1611 Continues visiting London after retirement William Shakespeare
- 1612 Gives evidence at Westminster William Shakespeare
- 1613 Signs the Blackfriars transaction in London William Shakespeare
- 1614 Returns to London with John Hall William Shakespeare
- 1621 Imprisonment in the Tower Francis Bacon
- 1626 Home during Lent Term John Milton
- 1626 Death at Arundel House Francis Bacon
- 1632 Move to Hammersmith John Milton
- 1640 Aldersgate Street residence John Milton
- 1640 Lodgings at St Bride's Churchyard John Milton
- 1645 Barbican residence John Milton
- 1647 Westminster School education John Locke
- 1647 High Holborn residence John Milton
- 1649 Scotland Yard chambers John Milton
- 1649 Charing Cross residence John Milton
- 1651 Return to London and private life in Fetter Lane Thomas Hobbes