20th Century London: Archive pictures go online

  • London
Sheffield Wednesday beat West Brom in the 1935 FA Cup Final at Wembley, which was demolished in 2003. Credit: English Heritage/PA Wire

More than 15,000 images from one of the earliest and most significant collections of aerial photography of Britain are now freely accessible online for the first time.

The photos on the Britain from Above website, launched today, have gone through a painstaking process of conservation and cataloguing.

Many of the photos, which range from 1919 to 1953, were so old and fragile that they were close to being lost forever.

An image of the Thames Flood in March 1947. Credit: English Heritage/PA Wire

With the help of the English Heritage and the Royal Commissions on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland and Wales, thousands of photos were digitised so that the public can enjoy these unique images. They include many of pictures of 20th century London.

Densely packed housing along Kensal Rise in 1921. Credit: English Heritage/PA Wire