London's Scarlet Thread: A Fiery History of Redheads and Red Icons

London through Colour: Red

Before London’s red became a brand—seen on every street corner in the form of a postbox or a Routemaster bus—it was a colour of survival, rebellion, and deep-seated superstition. The scarlet thread that runs through London’s history is ancient, beginning long before the Pre-Raphaelites ever picked up a brush.
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Fun Fact: Before "ginger" took over, a popular London insult for redheads was "Dane." This dates back to the Viking age; if you had red hair, it was assumed you were a descendant of the "Bloody Danes" who had invaded the city centuries earlier!

1. The Original Rebel: Boudicca’s Flaming Mane

​Long before Londinium was even a settled city, its first major threat arrived with a "great mass of the tawniest hair" falling to her hips. Boudicca, the warrior queen of the Iceni, is the foundational figure of Britain's red-haired legacy. While Roman historian Cassius Dio described her hair as xanthos (which can mean golden or auburn), the legend that has lived in the British psyche—and now stands in bronze by Westminster Bridge—is one of a woman with a fiery, blood-red mane.
When she burned the early Roman London to the ground in AD 60, she left behind a "red layer" of scorched earth that archaeologists still find under the city streets today. For the Romans, that red hair was the ultimate symbol of the "barbaric" North—unpredictable, fierce, and impossible to tame. 

Fun fact: spot her sculpture at Westminster!

Spotting redheads in London, captured by a client!

2. The Conqueror’s Fury: William and the "Rufus" Line
​By the medieval period, red was a colour of power and "otherness." William the Conqueror was a formidable figure, but it was his son, William II, who truly leaned into the hue. He was known universally as William Rufus--Rufus being the Latin for "The Red." Whether it was his literal hair or his florid, hot-tempered complexion, the name stuck.
In the medieval mindset, red was a dual-edged sword. On one hand, it was the colour of the sun and gold; on the other, it was the "fire of hell." A red-haired king was seen as naturally more aggressive and potent—a useful reputation for a Norman dynasty trying to hold onto a rebellious England.

​Fun fact: In the Middle Ages, ginger was so prized in London that it was considered a "rich man's spice." One pound of ginger was literally worth the price of a live sheep!

3. The Scarlet Stigma: Medieval Misunderstandings
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​The medieval fascination with red was often darker and more complicated. Because red hair was a minority trait, it became a visual shorthand for anyone deemed an "outsider."

• The Judas Myth: In medieval art and mystery plays staged across London, Judas Iscariot was almost always depicted with a shock of red hair and a red beard. This was a deliberate artistic choice to make the "traitor" stand out from the other apostles.
• The Jewish Connection: This artistic trope led to a long-standing, often painful association between red hair and the Jewish community. During the Spanish Inquisition and in medieval England, red hair was frequently used as a stereotype to identify and marginalize Jewish people, despite red hair occurring naturally across many different ethnicities.
• The "Poison" and the "Gold": Folklore of the time was wild—some believed the fat of a red-haired man could be used to make poison, while the alchemist Theophilus Presbyter claimed the blood of a red-haired boy was necessary to turn copper into gold.

4. The Royal Flame: Elizabeth I and the Tudor Red (16th Century)

By the 16th century, the perception of red hair was dramatically reshaped by the most powerful woman in England. Queen Elizabeth I, inheriting her striking auburn locks from her father, Henry VIII, transformed red hair into a powerful political and cultural brand. At a time when red hair could still carry negative connotations, the "Virgin Queen" reclaimed it as a symbol of divine right, celestial power, and English pride.

She leaned into the hue so heavily that it sparked London’s very first "red craze." Courtiers, eager to mirror her authority, famously dyed their hair and even their beards to match her auburn locks. Elizabeth’s use of red extended beyond her hair; she often paired her flaming curls with a ghostly white complexion (the "Mask of Youth") and crimson-stained lips, creating a high-contrast aesthetic that suggested she was more goddess than mortal. By standardising this "Elizabethan Red," she ensured that her powerful presence was felt in every corner of the capital, setting a visual precedent for a city that would eventually adopt the colour as its own official uniform.
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Fun Fact: As she aged, Elizabeth owned over 80 red wigs to maintain her iconic image, ensuring the "scarlet thread" of her reign never faded into grey. Queen Elizabeth I is credited with the first Gingerbread Man. She had her royal bakers create little edible figures that resembled her most important guests to impress them at court banquets.

​Tudor "Sanders" Dye: Tudor cooks were so obsessed with the colour red that they used "sanders" (ground red sandalwood) to dye their food bright crimson. Red wasn't just on their heads; it was on their dinner plates, symbolising wealth and vitality.

5. The Passionate Palettes of the Pre-Raphaelites (Mid-19th Century)

​Fast forward several centuries, and London, a city of sooty greys and muted tones, witnessed a radical artistic movement burst forth, ablaze with colour: the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. These painters, rebelling against the academic conventions of their time, sought to return to the rich, jewel-like colours and intense detail of early Renaissance art. And what colour did they embrace with fervent zeal? Red.

Fun facts: did you know Dante Gabriel Rossetti had a house and studio in Chelsea on Cheyne Walk? I took a couple on a private tour to visit an artist in his studio in the back garden of the former home. Rossetti drew a portrait of my ancestor Maria Pollen, an interior designer and author, whose name inspires my business Pollen & Reid. ​

6. The Royal Mail’s Identity Crisis: London’s postboxes were originally green to blend in with the scenery. They only turned red in 1874 because people kept walking into them or failing to find them! The "Bright Red" (or "Post Office Red") was chosen specifically because it was the most visible colour in a thick London "Pea Souper" fog.

​Fun fact: The "Larder of London": If you walk through Butler’s Wharf or Shad Thames today, you are standing in what used to be called the "Larder of London." These massive brick warehouses were once filled to the rafters with ginger, cinnamon, and pepper. Some locals swear that on a damp London afternoon, you can still catch the faint, ghostly scent of spice drifting from the old brickwork.