Historical figures in London
The atlas holds 249 people and 882 moments here, from 1374 to 2025. The most recorded lives are Charles Dickens, John Milton and William Blake. Among them Writers, Political Leaders and Scientists, across the Space Age and the Cold War.
Notable people
Francis Bacon
from 1561 to 1626
8 moments here
English philosopher, lawyer, statesman, Attorney General, and Lord Chancellor under James I.…
Freddie Mercury
from 1964 to 1991
14 moments here
Freddie Mercury (Farrokh Bulsara) was a British singer, songwriter, pianist, and lead vocalist of Queen.…
Frédéric Chopin
from 1837 to 1848
4 moments here
Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the early Romantic period. Born in Żelazowa Wola, he grew up and trained in Warsaw, travelled through Central…
Friedrich Engels
from 1843 to 1895
8 moments here
German philosopher, political theorist, revolutionary socialist, businessman, and Karl Marx’s lifelong collaborator.…
Fyodor Dostoyevsky
in 1862
1 moment here
Russian novelist, journalist, essayist, and former military engineer whose life moved between Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Siberian imprisonment and…
Gabriel García Márquez
in 1957
1 moment here
Colombian novelist, journalist, screenwriter, and Nobel laureate whose life moved between Colombia, Europe, Cuba, the United States, Mexico, and…
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,…
George Bernard Shaw
from 1876 to 1898
4 moments here
Irish playwright, critic, polemicist, and political activist. Born in Dublin, Shaw moved to London in 1876, became a leading Fabian and dramatist,…
George Eliot
from 1850 to 1880
10 moments here
Mary Ann Evans, known by the pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, translator, journalist, and poet.…
George Frideric Handel
from 1710 to 1759
10 moments here
German-British Baroque composer. Born in Halle, he worked in Hamburg, travelled in Italy, served as Kapellmeister at Hanover, and settled in England.…
George Michael
from 1963 to 2012
12 moments here
English singer-songwriter and record producer, born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou in East Finchley, England.…
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.…
Giordano Bruno
from 1583 to 1584
2 moments here
Italian Renaissance philosopher, Dominican friar, writer, and cosmological theorist. Born at Nola, Bruno studied and lived in Italy, Switzerland,…
Giuseppe Verdi
from 1847 to 1875
2 moments here
Italian composer whose career transformed nineteenth-century opera. Born near Busseto, Verdi studied and worked in Busseto and Milan, then traveled…
Glynis Johns
from 1923 to 1970
10 moments here
British actress, dancer and singer whose stage and screen career ran from childhood performances in Britain to Broadway and later American work.…
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz
from 1673 to 1676
2 moments here
German polymath, philosopher, mathematician, jurist, diplomat, court councillor, historian, and librarian.…
Hans Christian Andersen
in 1847
2 moments here
Danish writer renowned for literary fairy tales including “The Little Mermaid,” “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” “The Snow Queen,” and “The Ugly…
Hastings Banda
from 1945 to 1985
2 moments here
Hastings Kamuzu Banda was a Malawian physician and politician who led Nyasaland to independence and served as Malawi's prime minister and first…
Helen Keller
from 1930 to 1946
5 moments here
Helen Adams Keller was an American deafblind author, lecturer, disability-rights advocate, and political activist.…
Henri Matisse
in 1898
1 moment here
French painter, sculptor, draughtsman, printmaker, and major figure of modern art. Born in Le Cateau-Cambresis, Matisse trained and worked…
Herbert Hoover
from 1907 to 1914
2 moments here
Herbert Clark Hoover was an American mining engineer, international relief administrator, U.S.…
H. G. Wells
from 1866 to 1946
8 moments here
Herbert George Wells was an English novelist, journalist, historian, teacher, and social critic.…
Hirohito
in 1921
2 moments here
Hirohito (posthumously Emperor Shōwa) was Emperor of Japan from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989.…
Howard Florey
from 1926 to 1960
2 moments here
Australian pharmacologist and pathologist who led the Oxford team that developed penicillin into a practical therapeutic drug.…
Moments
- 1774 Sketching assignment at Westminster Abbey William Blake
- 1774 London residence while finishing The Wealth of Nations Adam Smith
- 1776 Last journey: London David Hume
- 1777 London lodgings in Suffolk Street Adam Smith
- 1779 Royal Academy student William Blake
- 1780 Gordon Riots at Newgate Prison William Blake
- 1782 Green Street residence William Blake
- 1782 Marriage to Catherine Boucher William Blake
- 1784 Parker and Blake print shop William Blake
- 1785 Poland Street residence William Blake
- 1785 First audience with George III John Adams
- 1786 London meeting with George III Thomas Jefferson
- 1788 Kent and London family journey Jane Austen
- 1788 Birth on Holles Street Lord Byron
- 1790 Hercules Buildings residence William Blake
- 1791 Birth at Newington Butts Michael Faraday
- 1795 Winter in London John Quincy Adams
- 1796 Journey through London to Rowling Jane Austen
- 1797 Marriage to Louisa Catherine Johnson John Quincy Adams
- 1799 Medical treatment at Sloane Terrace Lord Byron
- 1799 Schooling at Dulwich Lord Byron
- 1801 Harrow School Lord Byron
- 1803 South Molton Street residence William Blake
- 1803 Schooling at Eagle House, Wimbledon Arthur Schopenhauer
- 1804 Return to Harrow Lord Byron
- 1804 Bookbinder's apprenticeship Michael Faraday
- 1805 Eton v Harrow match at Lord's Lord Byron
- 1809 Independent exhibition at Broad Street William Blake
- 1809 First seat in the House of Lords Lord Byron
- 1809 Departure for the Continent Lord Byron
- 1810 Meets Wellesley at Apsley House Simón Bolívar
- 1811 Stay with Henry in London Jane Austen
- 1812 Luddite speech in the House of Lords Lord Byron
- 1812 Humphry Davy lectures Michael Faraday
- 1812 Catholic-emancipation speech Lord Byron
- 1813 Chemical Assistant appointment Michael Faraday
- 1813 London visit to Eliza de Feuillide Jane Austen
- 1813 Departure on Continental tour Michael Faraday
- 1814 London stay with Henry Jane Austen
- 1815 Moves to Norfolk Street Charles Dickens
- 1815 Ministerial work in London John Quincy Adams
- 1815 Return to the Royal Institution Michael Faraday
- 1815 Nursing Henry in London Jane Austen
- 1815 Visit to the Prince Regent's Library Jane Austen
- 1816 Boarding school in Chelsea Edgar Allan Poe
- 1817 Manor House School Edgar Allan Poe
- 1818 Meeting John Linnell William Blake
- 1819 Birth at Kensington Palace Queen Victoria
- 1819 Christening in the Cupola Room Queen Victoria
- 1821 Move to Fountain Court William Blake