Watch London grow in 4K from a Roman river crossing to a city of 9 million – 2,000 years of history in 5 minutes, built as a 3D timelapse from real geodata and archaeological research.
From Londinium and Boudica's revolt to the Great Fire, Victorian expansion, the Blitz and today's skyline, London grows year by year on the real terrain of the Thames valley.
Chapters
0:00 Intro: London today, then 2,000 years back
0:13 AD 47: Londinium founded / Boudica
0:31 AD 200: Roman London and its wall
0:45 AD 410: Rome leaves Britain
0:59 886: Alfred the Great refounds London
1:10 1066: Normans and the Tower of London
1:31 1348: The Black Death
1:58 1600: Shakespeare's London
2:11 1666: The Great Fire of London
2:22 1710: Wren's St Paul's and rebuilding
3:03 1851: Victorian London
3:22 1894: Tower Bridge
3:49 1940: The Blitz
4:14 1991: Canary Wharf
4:25 2012: The Shard
4:39 Today: Greater London, 9 million people
See Roman Londinium, Lundenwic, Viking raids, Norman and medieval London, Tudor and Shakespeare's London, the Great Plague and Great Fire, Wren's rebuilding, Georgian and Victorian expansion, docks, railways and suburbs, the Blitz, post-war rebuilding and the modern City, Canary Wharf and The Shard.
No AI imagery: London is reconstructed on the real terrain of the Thames valley using historical and archaeological research. Pre-modern buildings are reconstructions; population figures before the first census (1801) are estimates.
About CityEons: we turn the history of the world's great cities into 3D timelapses, from first settlement to today's metropolis. Subscribe for the next city.
Which city should we build next? Tell us in the comments.
Music
"Swirling Snowflakes - part 1" by Maarten Schellekens
https://freemusicarchive.org/music/maarten-schellekens/cinematic-music/swirling-snowflakes-part-1/
Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)
"Sunrise in Antibes" by Maarten Schellekens
https://freemusicarchive.org/music/maarten-schellekens/ambient-music/sunrise-in-antibes-1/
Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)
Sound effects: Pixabay
Data credits
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (openstreetmap.org/copyright)
Terrain: Copernicus DEM GLO-30 © DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014-2018, provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA
Contains Natural England data © Natural England copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0
Contains Forestry Commission information © Crown copyright and database right, Open Government Licence v3.0
Contains British Geological Survey materials © UKRI, Open Government Licence v3.0
Contains Environment Agency and Office for National Statistics data, Open Government Licence v3.0
Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026
#London #History #Timelapse #LondonHistory #CityEons
