St Giles-without-Cripplegate
Fore Street, Barbican
London EC2Y 8DA
It is thought that there has been a church on this spot for one thousand years. St Giles' Cripplegate is one of the few remaining medieval churches in the City of London, and claims attendance by, among countless others, Oliver Cromwell (married there in 1620), John Milton (buried there in 1674), Thomas Morley (organist around 1589) and William Shakespeare (lodged nearby in Cripplegate).
The church was damaged by fire and extensively rebuilt on three occasions, but astonishingly survived the Great Fire of London in 1666. During the Second World War, however, Cripplegate was so extensively bombed that barely any buildings remained standing in the entire ward and the church was devastated. Fortunately, restoration plans from 1545 were found in Lambeth Palace, and were used to make the restored church as much as possible like the original.
The name 'Cripplegate' refers to one of the gates through the old Roman City wall. It is likely that the word comes from an Anglo-Saxon word meaning a covered way or tunnel, which would have run from the town gate to the Barbican, a fortified watchtower on the City wall. It now sits at the heart of the brutalist architecture of the modern Barbican development.
Please visit the church's website for more information.
St Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe
St Andrew's Hill, Queen Victoria Street
London EC4V 5DE
Dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle, the church was originally known as St Andrew juxta Baynard Castle, due to its proximity to the former great medieval fortress of that name. The church received its present title, “by-the-Wardrobe”, after 1361 when the King’s Great Wardrobe, which housed the royal stores and ceremonial robes, was moved from the Tower of London to new quarters nearby. (A plaque in Wardrobe Place marks the site). Both the church and the Wardrobe were destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666. St Andrew’s was rebuilt on the original site between the years 1685 to 1693 by Sir Christopher Wren. Of the many churches in the City rebuilt by Wren, St Andrew’s was his last.
St Andrew’s was almost completely gutted by incendiary bombs during the night of 29th – 30th December 1940, only the tower and walls survived. However, the church was meticulously reconstructed between 1959 and 1961. The decorated plaster tunnel-vaulted ceiling over the nave is a copy of Wren’s original design.
In tribute to its most distinguished resident, the modern St Andrew’s now features a memorial to William Shakespeare in the west gallery. There is also a matching memorial to one of Shakespeare’s contemporaries, the famous lutenist, singer and composer John Dowland who was buried in the churchyard of St Ann’s, Blackfriars.
Please visit the church's website for more information.
St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate
Bishopsgate, London EC2M 3TL
St Botolph was one of the earliest and most revered of East Anglian Saints, and became known as the patron saint of wayfarers. The Churches at the entrance to the four City gates (Aldersgate, Bishopsgate, Aldgate and Billingsgate) were named after him after his relics passed through them.
Christian worship has probably been offered in this place since Roman days, and the present church, the fourth on the site, was completed in 1729 to the designs of James Gold, under the supervision of George Dance. Having survived the Great Fire of London unscathed, and only lost one window in the Second World War, St Botolph’s was ironically one of the many buildings to be damaged by the IRA bombs of 1992 and 1993. After the second bomb, the restoration took several years to complete, but the Georgian splendour of the interior was finally restored in 2015.
The registers record connections with many notable persons, including the baptisms of the great actor Edward Alleyn, Shakespeare’s contemporary and the founder of Dulwich College (1566), and Emilia Bassano, the first English professional woman poet (1569); the writer, Mary Wollstonecraft, was baptised here in 1759, and the poet John Keats in 1795. The names of the church’s main benefactors from 1481 are engraved on marble tablets beneath the windows, and the names of the Rectors from 1323 are recorded on panels at the foot of the galleries.
Please visit the church's website for more information.
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Photo credit: Charles Gervais
St Stephen Walbrook
39 Walbrook, London EC4N 8BN
Sir Christopher Wren himself lived in Walbrook, the street bearing the name of the stream which used to run across London from the City Wall near Moorfields to the Thames, and was responsible for building a beautiful new church after the Great Fire of 1666. Its predecessor had stood on the site since 1428, and before then Walbrook had been home to a monastery (founded by Henry I’s cupbearer), a Saxon church, and the Roman temple of Mithras dating from the 2nd century AD (the remains of which are beautifully preserved and can be seen to this day). The church was damaged by the Blitz, but survived, and in 1953 became the first branch of Samaritans when the charity was founded by its rector, Dr Chad Varah. This unique and historic building now houses a stunning round white altar by Henry Moore.
Please visit the church's website for more information.
We regret that this venue is not currently wheelchair accessible.
St Mary-at-Hill
Lovat Lane, London EC3R 8EE
St Mary-at-Hill has been a place of worship for nearly a thousand years, with earliest records dating back to 1177. Following the Great Fire of London in 1666, the building was almost entirely destroyed and subsequently rebuilt under the direction of Sir Christopher Wren in 1677.
Music has long been central to the life of St Mary-at-Hill. In the early 16th century, its choir included composers such as Thomas Tallis and William Mundy, while John Northfolke established a choir school here in the 1520s. The church’s historic organ was built by William Hill in 1848 and is one of the largest surviving examples of his early work. The organ was fully restored after a fire in 1988.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the church became the headquarters of the Church Army under Wilson Carlile. He famously drew in crowds with his trombone for lively services which were attended by local workers, many from the nearby Billingsgate Fish Market.
Today, as the Ward Church for Billingsgate, St Mary-at-Hill continues to serve those who live and work in the City. Alongside regular worship, it hosts music recitals, civic occasions, and community events, including the annual Fish Harvest Festival, held every second Sunday of October. St Mary-at-Hill remains both a place of worship and a gathering space, deeply rooted in the life of the Billingsgate Ward.
Please visit the church's website for more information.
If you require space for a wheelchair, a companion ticket, or have any other enquiries relating to accessibility, please send us a message.
Due to the nature of these buildings, toilet facilities are very limited. We advise you to use public facilities in the City of London, such as in the Barbican Centre. Thank you for your understanding.