St. George Botolph Lane
Encyclopedia
St. George Botolph Lane was a church off Eastcheap
, in the ward of Billingsgate
in the City of London
. The rear of the church overlooked Pudding Lane
, where the fire of London started. It was first recorded in the twelfth century, and destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. It was one of the 51 churches rebuilt by the office of Sir Christopher Wren. The church was demolished in 1904.
, the patron saint
of England. St Botolph was the Anglo-Saxon
patron saint of travellers, consequently churches dedicated to him were usually located at city gates. There still three churches in the City of London dedicated to St. Botolph (none by Wren) – St Botolph's Aldgate
, St Botolph Aldersgate
and St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate
. Botolph Lane, on which St. George’s stood, was named after a fourth – St. Botolph Billingsgate, which was destroyed in the Great Fire of London
in 1666 and not rebuilt.
The earliest surviving reference to St. George’s is in deed dated 1180, as "St. George's in Estehepe". Other early records refer to the church as "S. George the Martyr near Estchep," "St. George Buttolph" and "Seynt George in Podynge lane,"
St. George’s underwent renovation in 1360 and 1627. According to John Stow
, writing during the reign of Elizabeth I
, the church had escaped the depredations of Tudor
looting since its monuments ‘were well preserved from spoil’.
After the Fire, the parish was combined with that of St Botolph Billingsgate. Rebuilding commenced in 1671, using rubble from old St. Paul’s Cathedral. Stone was recovered from St. Botolph’s for use in the walls. It was finished in 1676, at a cost of £4466.
The most famous character associated with the church was Lord Mayor and MP for the City of London William Beckford
(father of the writer and constructor of follies, William Thomas Beckford
). The sword rest used during his 1770 mayoral visit has the inscription "Sacred to the memory of that real patriot the Right Hon. William Beckford, twice Lord Mayor of London: whose incessant spirited efforts to serve his country hastened his dissolution.." It is now in St Mary-at-Hill
.
The church’s proximity to Billingsgate
fish market prompted James Peller Malcolm
to write "The narrow streets and alleys and their wet slippery footways will not bear description or invite unnecessary visits".
St. George Botolph Lane fell into decay during the second half of the 19th century. The last service was held in 1890, and in May 1900 a letter to The Times
reported that not only had the church been condemned as structurally unsafe, but the accumulation of human remains in the vault had become a health hazard. The church was closed in 1901 and demolished in 1904, the parish being combined with that of nearby St. Mary-at-Hill. Many bodies were disinterred from the churchyard and reburied at Brookwood Cemetery
.The site of the church is now occupied by Richard Seifert
’s Farryner House of 1973. The churchyard gates survive in Lovat Lane
dressings. The interior of the church was divided into a nave and aisles by four Composite columns.
The square tower was accommodated within the north west of the church. This had square belfry windows and was topped with a parapet with flaming urns on the corners.
The unique feature of the church was that it was built on a stylobate
. The site was originally low lying and sloped down the hill toward the Thames, so the level of raised by Wren and made even by the construction of a platform.
A parish boundary mark can still be found on Fish Street Hill
Eastcheap
Eastcheap is a street in the City of London. Its name derives from cheap, market, with the prefix "East" distinguishing it from the other former City of London market of Westcheap . In medieval times Eastcheap was the City's main meat market, with butchers' stalls lining both sides of the street...
, in the ward of Billingsgate
Billingsgate
Billingsgate is a small ward in the south-east of the City of London, lying on the north bank of the River Thames between London Bridge and Tower Bridge...
in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. The rear of the church overlooked Pudding Lane
Pudding Lane
Pudding Lane is a street in London, formerly the location of Thomas Farriner's bakehouse where the Great Fire of London began in 1666. It is off Eastcheap in the City of London, near London Bridge. The nearest tube station is Monument, a short distance to the west...
, where the fire of London started. It was first recorded in the twelfth century, and destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. It was one of the 51 churches rebuilt by the office of Sir Christopher Wren. The church was demolished in 1904.
History
St. George Botolph Lane was the only church in the City of London dedicated to St George of CappadociaCappadocia
Cappadocia is a historical region in Central Anatolia, largely in Nevşehir Province.In the time of Herodotus, the Cappadocians were reported as occupying the whole region from Mount Taurus to the vicinity of the Euxine...
, the patron saint
Patron saint
A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
of England. St Botolph was the Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
patron saint of travellers, consequently churches dedicated to him were usually located at city gates. There still three churches in the City of London dedicated to St. Botolph (none by Wren) – St Botolph's Aldgate
St Botolph's Aldgate
St Botolph's Church, Aldgate, St Botolph-without-Aldgate, or just Aldgate Church, is a Church of England liberal and inclusive parish church in the City of London, standing at the junction of Houndsditch and Aldgate High Street. The current 18th century church is made of brick with stone quoins...
, St Botolph Aldersgate
St Botolph Aldersgate
St Botolph's-without-Aldersgate is a Church of England church on Aldersgate Street in the City of London, dedicated to St Botolph. The church is renowned for its beautiful interior and historic organ....
and St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate
St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate
St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate is a Church of England church in the City of London, first mentioned in 1212 and dedicated to St Botolph.The nearest London Underground station is Liverpool Street.-History:...
. Botolph Lane, on which St. George’s stood, was named after a fourth – St. Botolph Billingsgate, which was destroyed in the Great Fire of London
Great Fire of London
The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the central parts of the English city of London, from Sunday, 2 September to Wednesday, 5 September 1666. The fire gutted the medieval City of London inside the old Roman City Wall...
in 1666 and not rebuilt.
The earliest surviving reference to St. George’s is in deed dated 1180, as "St. George's in Estehepe". Other early records refer to the church as "S. George the Martyr near Estchep," "St. George Buttolph" and "Seynt George in Podynge lane,"
St. George’s underwent renovation in 1360 and 1627. According to John Stow
John Stow
John Stow was an English historian and antiquarian.-Early life:The son of Thomas Stow, a tallow-chandler, he was born about 1525 in London, in the parish of St Michael, Cornhill. His father's whole rent for his house and garden was only 6s. 6d. a year, and Stow in his youth fetched milk every...
, writing during the reign of Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
, the church had escaped the depredations of Tudor
Tudor dynasty
The Tudor dynasty or House of Tudor was a European royal house of Welsh origin that ruled the Kingdom of England and its realms, including the Lordship of Ireland, later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1485 until 1603. Its first monarch was Henry Tudor, a descendant through his mother of a legitimised...
looting since its monuments ‘were well preserved from spoil’.
After the Fire, the parish was combined with that of St Botolph Billingsgate. Rebuilding commenced in 1671, using rubble from old St. Paul’s Cathedral. Stone was recovered from St. Botolph’s for use in the walls. It was finished in 1676, at a cost of £4466.
The most famous character associated with the church was Lord Mayor and MP for the City of London William Beckford
William Beckford
William Beckford may refer to:* William Beckford , English businessman, often called "Alderman Beckford", father of William Thomas* William Beckford of Somerley , Jamaican slave-owner and writer...
(father of the writer and constructor of follies, William Thomas Beckford
William Beckford
William Beckford may refer to:* William Beckford , English businessman, often called "Alderman Beckford", father of William Thomas* William Beckford of Somerley , Jamaican slave-owner and writer...
). The sword rest used during his 1770 mayoral visit has the inscription "Sacred to the memory of that real patriot the Right Hon. William Beckford, twice Lord Mayor of London: whose incessant spirited efforts to serve his country hastened his dissolution.." It is now in St Mary-at-Hill
St Mary-at-Hill
St. Mary-at-Hill is a Church of England church on Lovat Lane, a cobbled street off Eastcheap in the ward of Billingsgate, London, England. Rebuilt many times, St Mary-at-Hill was originally founded in the 12th Century, where it was first known as "St. Mary de Hull" or " St...
.
The church’s proximity to Billingsgate
Billingsgate
Billingsgate is a small ward in the south-east of the City of London, lying on the north bank of the River Thames between London Bridge and Tower Bridge...
fish market prompted James Peller Malcolm
James Peller Malcolm
-Life:Son of a merchant in Philadelphia, he was born there in August 1767. He was admitted to the Quaker school; but his family left to avoid the fighting in American War of Independence, and his education was mostly at Pottstown, Pennsylvania. He returned with his family to Philadelphia in 1784,...
to write "The narrow streets and alleys and their wet slippery footways will not bear description or invite unnecessary visits".
St. George Botolph Lane fell into decay during the second half of the 19th century. The last service was held in 1890, and in May 1900 a letter to The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
reported that not only had the church been condemned as structurally unsafe, but the accumulation of human remains in the vault had become a health hazard. The church was closed in 1901 and demolished in 1904, the parish being combined with that of nearby St. Mary-at-Hill. Many bodies were disinterred from the churchyard and reburied at Brookwood Cemetery
Brookwood Cemetery
Brookwood Cemetery is a burial ground in Brookwood, Surrey, England. It is the largest cemetery in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in western Europe.-History:...
.The site of the church is now occupied by Richard Seifert
Richard Seifert
Reubin Seifert - normally known as Richard Seifert was a British architect, best known for designing the Centrepoint tower and Tower 42 , once the tallest building in the City of London...
’s Farryner House of 1973. The churchyard gates survive in Lovat Lane
The building
The Wren church was a rough square, with its east front facing Botolph Lane. This consisted of 3 bays, with the centre bay protruding and slightly wider. The windows on the north and east sides were round headed, and the church had Portland stonePortland stone
Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries consist of beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building stone throughout the British Isles, notably in major...
dressings. The interior of the church was divided into a nave and aisles by four Composite columns.
The square tower was accommodated within the north west of the church. This had square belfry windows and was topped with a parapet with flaming urns on the corners.
The unique feature of the church was that it was built on a stylobate
Stylobate
In classical Greek architecture, a stylobate is the top step of the crepidoma, the stepped platform on which colonnades of temple columns are placed...
. The site was originally low lying and sloped down the hill toward the Thames, so the level of raised by Wren and made even by the construction of a platform.
A parish boundary mark can still be found on Fish Street Hill
See also
- List of Christopher Wren churches in London
- List of churches rebuilt after the Great Fire but since demolished