St. Matthew Friday Street
Encyclopedia
St. Matthew Friday Street was a church in the City of London
located on Friday Street, off Cheapside
. Recorded since the 13th century, the church was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666, then rebuilt by the office of Sir Christopher Wren. The rebuilt church was demolished in 1885.
was the only church in the City of London dedicated to the apostle and patron saint of accountants. Friday Street was so named, according to John Stow
, after the fishmongers living there, although none are recorded in the parish records. Cheapside was the principal market street of medieval London (“cheap” meaning market) and many of the lesser streets running off were called after the commodity sold there, such as Milk Street, Bread Street and Wood Street. It is more likely, therefore, that Friday Street was called from fishmongers vending, rather than living there.
The earliest surviving reference to the church is in a document from the reign of Henry III, as “St Matthew in Fridaistret”. A document from 1381/2 refers to the church as “St. Matthew in Chepe”.
In 1631, Hugh Myddleton
, the entrepreneur who had engineered the New River
to supply water to London (and which still survives between Hertfordshire
and Stoke Newington
) was buried in St. Matthew Friday Street. He had been a parishioner and churchwarden. When the church was demolished, 254 years later, an unsuccessful attempt was made to find his monument and coffin.
During this time, the rector of St. Matthew’s was the puritan divine Henry Burton
. In 1636, he preached there that William Laud
’s changes to church ritual were drawing the Church of England closer to popery and accused the bishops of being “caterpillars”, not pillars of the church. As a result, Burton was placed in a pillory and had his ears cut off. After Laud’s fall and execution, Burton published “The Grand Impostor Unmasked, or a detection of the notorious hypocrisie and desperate impiety of the late Archbishop (so styled) of Canterbury, cunningly couched in that written copy which he read on the scaffold”.
St. Matthew’s ties with the Dissenters survived the Restoration. By the Act of Uniformity 1662
, the Book of Common Prayer was made compulsory in all churches. In his diary entry on the day the Act came into effect - Sunday, August 24, 1662 - Samuel Pepys recorded a visit to his uncle’s house for dinner, and recounted:
“Porridge” was a Puritan term for the Book of Common Prayer.
4 years’ later, St. Matthew’s, along with 88 other churches, was destroyed in the Great Fire.
The parish was combined with that of nearby St Peter, Westcheap
, which was not rebuilt, but whose churchyard still survives today as a park off Cheapside. The Commissioners responsible for rebuilding the churches after the Fire contemplated moving the church to a more convenient location. This didn’t happen. Instead, the site of the church was augmented by a piece of parish land. Building commenced in 1682 and the church was complete by 1685, at a total cost of £2309. In addition to this amount, the combined parishes paid Wren a gratuity of £3 8s.
St. Matthew Friday Street was the smallest and cheapest of the Wren churches.
Due to the move of population from the City to the suburbs in the second half of the nineteenth century, the church became redundant and was demolished in 1885 under the Union of Benefices Act 1860
. The parish was joined to St Vedast alias Foster, the site sold for £22,005 and the proceeds used to build St. Thomas Finsbury Park.
The reredos
, by Edward Pearce
, was acquired by the London decorating firm of White, Allom & Company, who suggested to Margaret Greville
(the Honorable Mrs. Ronald Greville) (1863–1942), a noted society hostess, that it should be rebuilt in the hall at Polesden Lacey
, her house at Great Bookham
, near Dorking
in Surrey
- where it can be seen today. It has a segmental pediment on two Corinthian columns, framing two round-headed panels, which originally framed the Ten Commandments
The section of Friday Street on which the church formerly stood was destroyed during the Second World War. The street was built over by the New Change Buildings in the 1950s, the site of St. Matthew’s being in the courtyard. The site is currently being redeveloped once again.
Entrance to the St. Matthew’s was via alleyways to the north and south.
The tower, in the south west corner, was the plainest of any Wren church. It was plain brick and hung one bell. The tower was not visible from the street.
St. Matthew’s communion table is now in St. Vedast-alias-Foster, while the font and pulpit are in St. Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe
.
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...
located on Friday Street, off Cheapside
Cheapside
Cheapside is a street in the City of London that links Newgate Street with the junction of Queen Victoria Street and Mansion House Street. To the east is Mansion House, the Bank of England, and the major road junction above Bank tube station. To the west is St. Paul's Cathedral, St...
. Recorded since the 13th century, the church was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666, then rebuilt by the office of Sir Christopher Wren. The rebuilt church was demolished in 1885.
History
St. MatthewMatthew the Evangelist
Matthew the Evangelist was, according to the Bible, one of the twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the four Evangelists.-Identity:...
was the only church in the City of London dedicated to the apostle and patron saint of accountants. Friday Street was so named, 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...
, after the fishmongers living there, although none are recorded in the parish records. Cheapside was the principal market street of medieval London (“cheap” meaning market) and many of the lesser streets running off were called after the commodity sold there, such as Milk Street, Bread Street and Wood Street. It is more likely, therefore, that Friday Street was called from fishmongers vending, rather than living there.
The earliest surviving reference to the church is in a document from the reign of Henry III, as “St Matthew in Fridaistret”. A document from 1381/2 refers to the church as “St. Matthew in Chepe”.
In 1631, Hugh Myddleton
Hugh Myddleton
Sir Hugh Myddelton , 1st Baronet was a Welsh goldsmith, clothmaker, banker, entrepreneur, mine-owner and self-taught engineer...
, the entrepreneur who had engineered the New River
New River (England)
The New River is an artificial waterway in England, opened in 1613 to supply London with fresh drinking water taken from the River Lea and from Amwell Springs , and other springs and wells along its course....
to supply water to London (and which still survives between Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
and Stoke Newington
Stoke Newington
Stoke Newington is a district in the London Borough of Hackney. It is north-east of Charing Cross.-Boundaries:In modern terms, Stoke Newington can be roughly defined by the N16 postcode area . Its southern boundary with Dalston is quite ill-defined too...
) was buried in St. Matthew Friday Street. He had been a parishioner and churchwarden. When the church was demolished, 254 years later, an unsuccessful attempt was made to find his monument and coffin.
During this time, the rector of St. Matthew’s was the puritan divine Henry Burton
Henry Burton (Puritan)
Henry Burton , was an English puritan. Along with John Bastwick and William Prynne, Burton's ears were cut off in 1637 for writing pamphlets attacking the views of Archbishop Laud.-Early life:...
. In 1636, he preached there that William Laud
William Laud
William Laud was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1633 to 1645. One of the High Church Caroline divines, he opposed radical forms of Puritanism...
’s changes to church ritual were drawing the Church of England closer to popery and accused the bishops of being “caterpillars”, not pillars of the church. As a result, Burton was placed in a pillory and had his ears cut off. After Laud’s fall and execution, Burton published “The Grand Impostor Unmasked, or a detection of the notorious hypocrisie and desperate impiety of the late Archbishop (so styled) of Canterbury, cunningly couched in that written copy which he read on the scaffold”.
St. Matthew’s ties with the Dissenters survived the Restoration. By the Act of Uniformity 1662
Act of Uniformity 1662
The Act of Uniformity was an Act of the Parliament of England, 13&14 Ch.2 c. 4 ,The '16 Charles II c. 2' nomenclature is reference to the statute book of the numbered year of the reign of the named King in the stated chapter...
, the Book of Common Prayer was made compulsory in all churches. In his diary entry on the day the Act came into effect - Sunday, August 24, 1662 - Samuel Pepys recorded a visit to his uncle’s house for dinner, and recounted:
“Porridge” was a Puritan term for the Book of Common Prayer.
4 years’ later, St. Matthew’s, along with 88 other churches, was destroyed in the Great Fire.
The parish was combined with that of nearby St Peter, Westcheap
St Peter, Westcheap
St Peter, Westcheap was a former church in the City of London.The Mortality Bill for the year 1665, published by the Parish Clerk’s Company, shows 97 parishes within the City of London. By September 6 the city lay in ruins, 86 churches having been destroyed...
, which was not rebuilt, but whose churchyard still survives today as a park off Cheapside. The Commissioners responsible for rebuilding the churches after the Fire contemplated moving the church to a more convenient location. This didn’t happen. Instead, the site of the church was augmented by a piece of parish land. Building commenced in 1682 and the church was complete by 1685, at a total cost of £2309. In addition to this amount, the combined parishes paid Wren a gratuity of £3 8s.
St. Matthew Friday Street was the smallest and cheapest of the Wren churches.
Due to the move of population from the City to the suburbs in the second half of the nineteenth century, the church became redundant and was demolished in 1885 under the Union of Benefices Act 1860
Union of Benefices Act 1860
The Union of Benefices Act was a necessary piece of legislation to reduce the number of parish churches in the City of London as the residential population declined in the second half of the 19th century.Churches affected were...
. The parish was joined to St Vedast alias Foster, the site sold for £22,005 and the proceeds used to build St. Thomas Finsbury Park.
The reredos
Reredos
thumb|300px|right|An altar and reredos from [[St. Josaphat's Roman Catholic Church|St. Josaphat Catholic Church]] in [[Detroit]], [[Michigan]]. This would be called a [[retable]] in many other languages and countries....
, by Edward Pearce
Edward Lovett Pearce
Sir Edward Lovett Pearce was an Irish architect, and the chief exponent of palladianism in Ireland. He is thought to have initially studied as an architect under his father's first cousin, Sir John Vanbrugh. He is best known for the Irish Houses of Parliament in Dublin, and his work on Castletown...
, was acquired by the London decorating firm of White, Allom & Company, who suggested to Margaret Greville
Margaret Greville
Dame Margaret Helen Grenville, Hon Mrs Greville, DBE , was a British society hostess and philanthropist.-Family:Born as Margaret Helen Anderson, she was the illegitimate daughter of William McEwan , a brewery multimillionaire, who later was elected as an M.P....
(the Honorable Mrs. Ronald Greville) (1863–1942), a noted society hostess, that it should be rebuilt in the hall at Polesden Lacey
Polesden Lacey
Polesden Lacey is an Edwardian house and estate. It is located on the North Downs at Great Bookham, near Dorking, Surrey, England. It is owned and run by the National Trust and is one of the Trust's most popular properties....
, her house at Great Bookham
Great Bookham
-Today:The village has a high street, located in Great Bookham, which is, as its name suggests, the larger of the two villages. It has two butchers, a family run fishmongers and two traditional greengrocers...
, near Dorking
Dorking
Dorking is a historic market town at the foot of the North Downs approximately south of London, in Surrey, England.- History and development :...
in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
- where it can be seen today. It has a segmental pediment on two Corinthian columns, framing two round-headed panels, which originally framed the Ten Commandments
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and most forms of Christianity. They include instructions to worship only God and to keep the Sabbath, and prohibitions against idolatry,...
The section of Friday Street on which the church formerly stood was destroyed during the Second World War. The street was built over by the New Change Buildings in the 1950s, the site of St. Matthew’s being in the courtyard. The site is currently being redeveloped once again.
Architecture
The plan for the church was an irregular rectangle. The walls were built of rubble. The east wall – the only one visible, on Friday Street – was faced with stone. The wall was unadorned at street level, but had a row of 5 round headed windows with cherub-headed keystones above.Entrance to the St. Matthew’s was via alleyways to the north and south.
The tower, in the south west corner, was the plainest of any Wren church. It was plain brick and hung one bell. The tower was not visible from the street.
St. Matthew’s communion table is now in St. Vedast-alias-Foster, while the font and pulpit are in St. Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe
St. Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe
St. Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe is a Church of England church located on Queen Victoria Street, London in the City of London, near Blackfriars station.-History:...
.
Organists
- John Young 1735-1767
- Martin Rennoldson 1767-1802
- William Boyce 1802-1812
- John Cash 1812-1815
- Thomas Grady 1815-1817
- J.C. Webb 1818-1830
- Miss Lea 1830-1835
- Mrs Andrews 1836-1878
See also
- List of Christopher Wren churches in London
- List of churches rebuilt after the Great Fire but since demolished
Publications
- Cobb,Gerard "The Old Churches of London" Batsford,1942
- Jeffery, Paul. "The city churches of Sir Christopher Wren", Hambledon Press, 1996
- Huelin, Gordon. "Vanished churches of the City of London", Guildhall Library Publications, 1996