Royal Commission on the Amalgamation of the City and County of London the ancient City of London had been prominent political topics since the 1830s. Recommendations by royal commissions given in 1837, 1854 and 1867 had largely been left unimplemented. The Local Government Act 1888 had set up a County of London which surrounded, but did not include, the square-mile and main business district of the City of London. London was therefore governed by the Corporation of London at its core and the London County Council for its metropolitan area. When the first London County Council was elected, the Progressive Party, closely allied to the parliamentary Liberals, took control. The first chairman
Central Bank of London Ltd. Central Bank of London Ltd. The Central Bank of London Ltd. was a British joint stock bank, based in London, England. The bank was established in 1863 as the 'East London Bank', with its offices located in Cornhill in the City of London. Its early business was closely related to the East End trades, and so branches were soon opened at Southwark, Shoreditch and Whitechapel. Deposits had reached £495,000 by 1865, and by 1870 the bank was renamed the 'Central Bank of London'. In the mid 1870s further branches opened in Mile End, Blackfriars, Tottenham Court Road, Newgate Street and