The proud city; St Paul's Cathedral

The Proud City' was a series of six posters commissioned by London Transport in 1944. Each poster presented an image of war-ravaged buildings, accompanied by a quotation from a noted British poet or historian. In this poster, Walter E Spradbery depicts St Paul's Cathedral from Bread Street, which had suffered considerable bomb damage. The text beneath is taken from a document of 1673, the year St Paul's was completed. '… the principal ornament of our royal City, to the Honour of our Government, and of this realm'. The combination of this quotation and Spradbery's commanding image was intended to maintain morale among London Transport's Passengers and staff. 'The Proud City' series was a celebration of London's survival of the Blitz. The posters appeared all over the City and were also produced in different languages to convey the message internationally.