C. J. Schüler is a freelance writer, journalist and cultural historian specialising in travel, the arts, the environment, and European fiction in translation.

In this talk he will expand on a subject close to his heart and ours in COPSE: the history of the Great North Wood that once covered large areas of South London and still survives in patches as a series of open spaces, targets for a number of Club walks.

From the Amazon page for his book:

Standing in the busy streets of South London today, it is hard to imagine that much of this suburban townscape was once a vast wood, stretching unbroken for almost seven miles from Croydon to the Thames at Deptford.

In The Wood That Built London, C.J. Schüler takes us on a journey through time, telling tales of invaders and trade guilds, map makers and soldiers, royals and working class people. From the 8th century to current conservation efforts, Schüler offers a fresh perspective on London’s history, with tales of murder, Anglo-Saxon treasure, fires, pandemics, the blitz and more along the way.

This compelling narrative history charts the fortunes of the North Wood from the earliest times: its ecology, ownership, management, and its gradual encroachment by the expanding metropolis.

More information can be found on his website at https://cjschuler.com/. The following is extracted from his ‘About’ page:

His latest book, My Dear Mr Rose: Letters to the Honorary Secretary of the Authors’ Club, 1908–34, appeared in a numbered limited edition by the Authors’ Club on 11 May 2023.

The Wood That Built London, a history of the woodland that once covered much of South London, was published by Sandstone Press on 7 October 2021. His travelogue Along the Amber Route: St Petersburg to Venice (also from Sandstone), hailed as ‘timely and powerful’ by the Financial Times on its publication in February 2020, was shortlisted for Stanford Dolman Award and longlisted for the Jewish Quarterly-Wingate Prize.

He is also the author of  Writers, Lovers, Soldiers, Spies: A History of the Authors’ Club of London, 1891–2016 (Author’s Club, 2016), published in 2016 to wide acclaim, and three illustrated histories of cartography: Mapping the World (Éditions Place des Victoires/Frechmann, 2010), Mapping the City and Mapping the Sea and Stars (2012).

C. J. Schüler has written for The Independent, The Independent on Sunday, The Tablet, the Financial Times and the New Statesman. A former staff member with with the Rough Guides and The Independent, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society in 2011, and was chairman of the Authors’ Club from 2008 to 2015.

An experienced public speaker, he has addressed literary festivals, bookshop events, learned societies and community groups, and is available for speaking engagements.