On the eastern edge of the square sits Lincoln’s Inn - one of the four surviving Inns of Court. Originally dating from as early at 1422, the Inns of Court are today an association of professional barristers, however their origins go back much further.  In the 13th century King Edward I took the control of the King’s Courts away from the clergy and handed them over to the lawyers.  These Inns provided legal training for pupils as well as food and lodgings.  At one point there were over twenty in London, but today only four still exist, and this is one of them. As you step through the Tudor entrance gate it is as if you have travelled back in time and entered a small London village.  Surrounding the beautiful, manicured gardens are barrister’s chambers.  In the heart of the complex is the Chapel and its ornate under-croft. Dating to the 1630s and open to the public daily, inside you will find the coats of arms of past treasurers of the Inn which are displayed as heraldic stained glass – look out for those belonging to William Pitt the Younger, Prime Minister in the 1780s.  The most famous clergy man to preach in the Chapel was the metaphysical poet John Donne.  It was Donne who wrote ‘send not to know for whom the bell tolls…it tolls for thee’ about the mourners bell of the Chapel in his famous work ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls.’  It is perhaps the Great Dining Hall which is the most magnificent of the buildings in this complex.  Dating from the 19th century and built in the neo-gothic style, it sits alongside the Old Dining Hall dating to the 15th century…both are places where lawyers come together to dine and discuss cases and both are equally magnificent!