The restoration: a very merry monarch with his glamorous mistresses, flamboyant court and strange “touching for the king’s evil” ceremonies. This is also a time of a new power settlement, the flourishing of science and the vast expansion of London to the west: in many ways, the transition to a modern country.

Our walk leads you through the fantastically dramatic time of Charles’ II first ten years on the throne, its great characters and nation-changing events. We visit sites from the neo classical Banqueting House to Burlington House, including Whitehall and the gorgeous St James’s Square.