List of churches and cathedrals of London

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St. Paul's from the South

London is the location of many famous churches, chapels and cathedrals, in a density unmatched anywhere else in England.[1]

Contents

History

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Wren & Anglican Churches

Before the Great Fire of London in 1666, the City of London had over 107 churches in an area of only one square mile (2.6 km²). Of the 86 destroyed by the Fire, 51 were rebuilt along with St Paul's Cathedral. The majority have traditionally been regarded as the work of Sir Christopher Wren, but although their rebuilding was entrusted primarily to him, the role of his various associates, including Robert Hooke and Nicholas Hawksmoor especially, is currently being reassessed and given greater emphasis.

With regard to Anglican churches, as opposed to nonconformist chapels and meeting houses, the designs of the Wren office have provided a benchmark for church architecture ever since. Their character of pragmatism and fitness for purpose combined with a joyous inventiveness do seem to reflect Wren's personality in particular. Wren also designed a number of Anglican churches outside the City, including St James's, Piccadilly and St Clement Danes. After Wren, Hawksmoor was by common consent London's most significant church architect for Anglican churches, being responsible in his own right for six great Anglican churches in the East End of London, of which most still stand (for example St George's Church, Bloomsbury and Christ Church, Spitalfields).

Metropolitan area

The building of the King's Weigh House (an example of nonconformist church architecture) today serves as the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral of the Holy Family in Exile.

London's churches and chapels are extraordinarily numerous and diverse. Anglican and nonconformist churches and chapels are most numerous, but there are also Jewish and Catholic and others.

Most of the Anglican churches lie within the Anglican dioceses of London to the north and the Southwark to the south. For historical reasons, those parts of London north of the Thames but east of the River Lea fall within the diocese of Chelmsford. There are still some two thousand Anglican churches alone, across the capital, and if nonconformist and other denominations are included, they cover every age and style, the design and evolution of which at least six hundred different architects have made contributions. As London expanded during the early 19th century, many new churches and chapels were built independently by the growing nonconformist urban population; to match the growth in nonconformist churches and chapels, an Anglican "Waterloo church" building programme saw numerous Anglican churches constructed across south London in the first half of the century.

Significance

Although many churches and chapels were entirely or partly lost to 19th-century demolitions and to bombing in the Second World War, London's remaining churches and chapels are renowned worldwide for their historical and architectural value. Today, London's greatest concentrations of historic churches, chapels, and cathedrals are in the City of London and the neighbouring City of Westminster. A number of the churches are mentioned in the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons. Churches in this list belong to various denominations, as indicated.

Camden

City of London

In 1666 there were 96 parishes within the bounds of the City. Today the following continue Christian witness in one form or another in the heart of London:

Greenwich

Hackney

Haringey

  • St Anns Church, Tottenham

Hammersmith and Fulham

Islington

Kensington & Chelsea

Lambeth

Lewisham

  • Wildfell Hall, Catford

Redbridge

Southwark

Tower Hamlets

Westminster

Methodist Central Hall - The Methodist Church of Great Britain (Largest Pipe Organ in London)

Churches which do not meet in traditional Church buildings

In a time when many church buildings are closing down and being converted into warehouses or flats, ironically there are a growinng number of churches in London which are using unusual buildings for their meeting places. Some are converted buildings, but growing numbers of London churches do not own their own buildings. Many meet in schools or community halls. Some of the more unusual venues include:-

References

  1. ^ Simon Bradley, Nikolaus Pevsner. London: The City Churches, p. 16. Penguin Books, 1998
  2. ^ St Leonard, Foster Lane

External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_churches_in_London"

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