Christian London – claresimons1

I had planned to visit churches locally and in Central London to photograph their Easter displays; their celebrations of the Good News that Jesus defeated death and is alive today. However, for obvious reasons this was not to be, so instead, I’ll be having a look at churches which claim to be the ‘oldest’ in some way or other. I’ve visited all these churches over the past couple of years; all photos are mine. As I mentioned previously, Christianity has been thriving in London for at least a thousand years, but there are very few structures remaining from that time. Many of the City churches have been completely rebuilt several times due to fire or war, or just wear and tear. St Paul’s Cathedral, for example, has been rebuilt four times, and there’s evidence of an original church on the site in AD604. The churches I’ve chosen all have part of the original building remaining.

All Hallows-by-the-Tower

I like to have the Walkie Talkie building peeping into the picture!

This is the oldest church inside the old Roman City walls. It was founded in 675, but only a single arch of the original church remains. However, underneath the church in the crypt there is part of a red tiled Roman floor. This was street level in Roman times.

Yes, this is an actual Roman Floor, a couple of thousand years old!

I also love the models of ships and the nautical themed stained glass windows, indicating the church’s long association with the River Thames.

The church has had a traumatic history: in 1650, gunpowder barrels stored in the churchyard exploded damaging a lot of the church and some nearby houses. It survived the Great Fire but was almost destroyed in the Blitz in 1940.

Address: Byward Street EC3R 5BJ www.allhallowsbythetower.org.uk

St Bartholomew the Great

This is such a beautiful church, inside and out. St Bart’s the Great is London’s oldest continuous place of worship, founded in 1123 as a priory and a hospital: Bart’s, which I looked at last month. It was partially destroyed in 1539 in Henry Vlll’s dissolution of the monasteries, but some parts survived so it remains to this day a functioning parish church. The interior is amazing, beautiful and atmospheric, with history seeping through the walls. It’s been the setting for several films and TV dramas.

Address: West Smithfield EC1A 7JQ www.greatstbarts.com

St Etheldreda’s – Ely Place

This is London’s oldest Catholic Church, established in 1290. Before the split with Rome, all churches were Catholic of course but St Etheldreda’s was one of the few that didn’t become Anglicized following Henry Vlll’s Act of Supremacy. The church actually ‘switched sides’ several times until 1874 when it was no longer illegal to hold mass on church premises. Again, there are many changes but parts of the original 1290 church remain. The most interesting thing about this church is that it’s in Ely Place, which is actually part of Cambridgeshire. Yes really! Ely Place and Ely Court are on land which once fell within the grounds of the Palace of the Bishops of Ely, so technically it’s in Cambridgeshire.

This is the Mitre Pub in Ely Court, also in Cambridgeshire. I love this narrow alleyway, maybe not dissimilar to how it looked in the thirteenth century? Apart from the totally different construction of the buildings!

Address: 14 Ely Place EC1N 6RY www.stetheldreda.com

Pyx Chamber, Westminster Abbey

This is the oldest part of Westminster Abbey, adjacent to the Abbey and built in 1070. Not actually a church, but I love it because it’s so old! The building was originally a Benedictine Monastery and the part that remains unchanged is below ground and was the monks’ dormitories. This space is not used as a film setting but should be in my opinion.

These are the monastery gardens and cloisters with the Abbey behind.

Above the Pyx Chamber is the Chapter House, a lovely octagonal building built in 1250. This was formally the meeting place of the King’s Great Council and the Commons, predecessors of today’s Parliament. When I visited there was an exhibition about the Magna Carta, including, in a glass case, one of only four copies of the actual document, on loan from the British Library, so that was worth a visit, wasn’t it? No photo, we weren’t allowed to! As usual, I loved the stained-glass windows.