Smithfield area
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+Smithfield Market development
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Smithfield history overview
Wikipedia provides an overview of Smithfield history and development. British History Online has a section extracted from Old and New London 1878. For a comprehensive review of the area I recommend Alec Forshaw’s book Smithfield: past, Present and and Future. The London Society has a report of a talk that Alec gave in 2018.
Blog posts on Smithfield history
In the Smithfield category of Know Your London, lecturer on London history Adrian Prockter offers learned articles on Smithfield Market, Smithfield in Medieval and Victorian times, St Bartholomew’s Hospital, St Bartholomew the Great and the Less, Livery Halls and lots more.
The City Gent has a number of blog posts on Smithfield reporting on his wandering around the area. He covers the history of Smithfield and the market, the main buildings and memorials, Smithfield stories both cheerful and gruesome, and some Livery Halls.
Smithfield Martyrs
Hundreds of men and women were put to the fire for their faith in the 15th and 16th centuries - many of them in Smithfield. Virgina Rounding’s book The Burning Time tells the story of the Smithfield Martyrs, both Catholic and Protestant, the times they lived in, and the stories of two key figures: Richard Rich, Thomas Cromwell's protégé, and John Deane, Rector of St Bartholomew's.
The History of England tells the story ofAnne Agnew, the best known of the martyrs, burned in Smithfield in 1546.
Gillian Tindall recalls Smithfield’s Bloody Past in a post for Spitalfields Life. I suggest a further Smithfield search on this my favourite blog for many more engaging articles about the area by The Gentle Author and his guests.
Smithfield pubs
The City Gent also provides a guide to the architectural and historic attractions of Smithfield pubs in two articles: first a mention for The Bishops Finger and the Hand and Shears in Smithfield stories (some a bit gruesome) and then more in Another look at Smithfield Pubs including the Fox and Anchor, Smithfield Tavern - now Simmons, The Red Cow, The Sutton Arms, The Rising Sun and The Hope.
A London Inheritance features The Bishops Finger, St Barts, Butcher’s Hook and Cleaver, The Rising Sun, The Old Red Cow, and The Hand and Shears.
Smithfield Market
John Morgan wrote A Potted History of Smithfield Market for The Clerkenwell Post, and although the website is now down, you can find the text on The Wayback Machine.
New Museum