Queenhithe is one of the oldest havens or harbours for ships along the Thames. "Hyd" is an Anglo-Saxon word meaning "landing place." Queenhithe was known in the ninth century as "Aetheredes hyd" or "the landing place of Aethelred." Aethelred was the son-in-law of Alfred the Great (the first king to unify England and have any real authority over London), an "ealdorman" (i.e., alderman) of the former kingdom of Mercia, and ruler of London (Sheppard 70). As you will see on the map, Queenhithe allowed a ship to harbour inside the retaining wall that had replaced the river bank (naturally about 100 metres behind the twenty-first century waterfront). The ship was thus sheltered from the tides and eddies during loading and unloading. -- Janelle Day Jenstad, 2002