View historical maps of Southwark from 1572 to 1899.
A selection of historical maps of what is now the London Borough of Southwark is available, and includes:
This is an ordnance survey map of the northern half of Southwark from the 1960s or 1970s. It has the ancient parish boundaries of St Saviour, St Mary Magdelene, Rotherhithe and St Mary Newington overlaid on it.
John Rocque was a son of French Huguenot émigrés who rose to become cartographer to the then Prince of Wales. This Plan of London is generally considered his most famous work.
In this earlier plan of London, Rocque soberly describes a physical superiority of London over Paris. The header text calculates London to be 8 ½ square miles compared to Paris's 6 ⅓ square miles. It is unclear if Rocque's royal patronage required him to make propaganda maps. Or, if he was just emboldened by his position.
This scan shows part of the 1830 update of Greenwood's Map of London, based on the original 1824 to 1826 survey.
The Dutch cartographer Jacob de la Feuille first published this 'novissima & accuratissima' (new and accurate) map of 'Angliae Regni Metropolis' (England's capital city) in Amsterdam in 1690. The map shows the sprawling metropolis of London, Westminster and Southwark during the joint reign of Mary II and William III.
It contrasts intricate details, like the field systems and a 'Places of Southwark' key, with the artistic inclusion of angelic cherubs.
This birds-eye map by German cartographers Georg Braun and Franz Hogenburg roughly translates to 'London, prolific [or fertile] capital city of England'. The map formed part of their 'Civitates Orbis Terrarum' (Cities of World) atlas created between 1572 and 1616.
This 4 inch to the mile map from the publishers Kelly and Co. shows areas such as Dulwich, Sydenham, Norwood and Brixton.
This scan shows part of the 1830 update of Greenwood's Map of London, based on the original 1824 to 1826 survey.
The year and provenance of this map is unknown, but the fact that Peckham Rye park hadn't yet been laid out may provide a clue.
A rather generous giveaway from the United Kingdom Newspaper from 1832. The title reads: 'Plan of London from actual survey 1832. Presented gratis to the readers of the United Kingdom Newspaper by their obliged and humble servants, The Proprietors'.
This map is centred on Rye Lane and shows individual buildings and back gardens in the Peckham area.
This detailed map shows the central southern section of Stanford's Map of the County of London. Note the commercial docks in Rotherhithe and the profusion of railway lines leading to the former Bricklayers goods depot on the Old Kent Road.
Today's border between Southwark and Lewisham roughly follows the old boundary between Surrey and Kent. This map of Kent from 1596 shows routes into Southwark from the Kentish coast.
This map was probably created by the Ordnance Survey around 1830. It details stretches from The Borough and Newington in the north to Camberwell and Denmark Hill further south. Note the Grand Surrey Canal passing through what is now Burgess Park and the open fields south of Walworth.
This detailed map shows building detail from Walworth to Penge and from Brixton to Deptford. Note the Crystal Palace before it burnt down in 1936.
This 1830 update of Greenwood's Map of London, based on the original 1824 to 1826 survey, is a blend of art and science. A decorative border with engravings of Westminster Abbey and St Paul's Cathedral sit well against scale bars, map legend, extensive topographic differentiation and Metropolitan Borough boundaries.