Bishopsgate was the original Roman gate through the northern wall of the city. It "gained its name from a tradition that the gate was restored in Saxon times by Saint Erkenwald [or Eorconweald (Weinreb and Hibbert 66)], Bishop of London and Prince of East Anglia, who died in 693" (Bebbington 48; see also Smith 24). The gate was apparently placed under the charge of the Bishop of London. It was the bishop's responsibility to ensure that the hinges of the gate were kept in good repair. In exchange he was permitted to take for himself one stick from every wagon laden with wood as it passed through the gate as a form of taxation (Bebbington 48; Smith 24). In 1479, a new gate was erected by the Hanse merchants from the German Steelyard in Upper Thames Street (Smith 24). The Corporation of London rebuilt the gate again in 1731 (Weinreb and Hibbert 66). In the sixteenth century, anyone proceeding from the city to the Theatre or the Curtain in Shoreditch would likely have passed through Bishopsgate. Today Bishopsgate itself does not exist; it was demolished in 1760, along with the other gates in the city wall (Weinreb and Hibbert 66). Two plaques now mark the site of the gate near Liverpool Street Station. -- James Campbell and Janelle Day Jenstad, 2003