Visiting the Royal Exchange
Since I saw the picture of F&M at the Royal Exchange, I have always wanted to go there. So, it was a chance for me to experience such a historical location through a visit as a class study. At first, I was confused why the shopping mall is called “exchange,” so I did brief research on this luxurious building. The heritage of the Royal Exchange begins in the 16th century as Sir Thomas Gresham, a famous English merchant and financier, establishes the Royal Exchange as an exchange. It is London’s first purpose-built centre for trading stocks modelled on the Bourse in Antwerp, Belgium. However, the original The Royal Exchange was destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666, and then the second one in 1838. The third Royal Exchange was built in 1844, and we can see it nowadays. The architecture is based on the original layout yet adds a striking eight-column entrance, like the Pantheon in Rome. In 2001, the Royal Exchange is transformed into a luxurious shopping centr...
