Greater London is often referred to as "the City" or "the Square Mile" and it forms the main financial district. Archaically, the urbanised area of London was known as the Metropolis. In common usage, the terms "London" and "Greater London" are usually used interchangeably. Greater London is officially divided for some purposes, with varying definitions, into Inner London and Outer London. For some strategic planning purposes it is divided into five sub-regions. Greater London is under the strategic local governance of the Greater London Authority (GLA). It consists of an elected assembly, the London Assembly, and an executive head, the Mayor of
7th (City of London) Battalion, London Regiment St Martin's Hall, Long Acre, London, on 16 April 1859 that led the War Office to authorise the recruitment of Rifle Volunteer Corps (RVCs). Richards himself enlisted 1000 men to form the 'Workmen's Volunteer Brigade'. Although the unit began holding parades at the City of London's Guildhall in the autumn of 1860, the first officers' commissions were not issued until 26 April 1861, when the unit was formally adopted as the 3rd City of London RVC. The men were generally less well-off than some other London RVCs recruited from the professions and middle classes, but the unit received some financial