Trafalgar Square capital. Building work on the south side of the square in the late 1950s revealed deposits from the last interglacial. Among the findings were the remains of cave lion, rhinoceros, straight-tusked elephant and hippopotamus. The site of Trafalgar Square has been a significant location since the 13th century. During Edward I's reign, the area was the site of the King's Mews, running north from the original Charing Cross, where the Strand from the City met Whitehall coming north from Westminster. From the reign of Richard II to that of Henry VII, the mews was at the western end of the
Fleet Street marker was designed by Sir Horace Jones in 1880. It has a statue of a griffin at the top (lending it its nickname of "the Griffin"), and a statue of Queen Victoria in a niche in the side. In the Inner Temple Gardens is a memorial to Charles Lamb. In Salisbury Square there is an obelisk commemorating Robert Waithman, mayor of London between 1823 and 1833, and a blue plaque commemorating the birthplace of diarist and naval secretary Samuel Pepys. Several writers and politicians are associated with Fleet Street, either as residents or regulars to the various taverns, including Ben