List of Christopher Wren churches in London facts for kids

Sir Christopher Wren was a brilliant architect who was 33 years old when the Great Fire of London happened in 1666. This huge fire destroyed many buildings in the city, including 88 churches. Wren's team was asked to build 51 new churches and the famous St Paul's Cathedral.

Many of these buildings are still standing today. Some have been changed a lot or rebuilt. Others were completely or partly destroyed during the German Blitz in 1940–41. Some were even torn down for other reasons.

Tribute to the memory of Sir Christopher Wren by Charles Robert Cockerell. It shows many of Wren's churches together.

Churches in London's City Centre

Many of Wren's churches were taken down because fewer people lived in the City of London in the 1800s. More were destroyed or damaged during the Blitz.

Churches Still Standing in Their Original Form

These churches have survived mostly as Sir Christopher Wren designed them.

Picture	Name	Where it is	Built
	St Benet Paul's Wharf	Queen Victoria Street, Queenhithe	1677–83
	St Clement Eastcheap	Clement's Lane, Candlewick	1683–87
	St Edmund, King and Martyr	Lombard Street, Langbourn	1670–79
	St James Garlickhythe	Garlick Hill, Vintry	1676–83
	St Margaret Lothbury	Lothbury, Coleman Street Ward	1686–90
	St Margaret Pattens	Eastcheap, Billingsgate	1684–87
	St Martin, Ludgate	Ludgate Hill, Farringdon Within	1677–84
	St Mary Abchurch	Abchurch Lane, Candlewick	1681–86
	St Mary Aldermary	Queen Victoria Street, Cordwainer	1679–82
	St Michael's Cornhill	Cornhill	1669–72
	St Paul's Cathedral	St Paul's Churchyard, Castle Baynard	1675-1711
	St Peter upon Cornhill	Cornhill	1677–84
	St Stephen Walbrook	Walbrook, Walbrook	1672–79

Churches Changed a Lot Before the Blitz

These churches were changed significantly before the air raids of World War II.

Picture	Name	Where it is	Built	What happened
	St Magnus-the-Martyr	Lower Thames Street, Bridge	1671–87	Changed after London Bridge was made wider in 1762.
	St Mary-at-Hill	Lovat Lane, Billingsgate	1670–76	Changed in 1787–88 and 1826–27.

Churches Rebuilt After the Blitz

The Blitz in 1940–1941 damaged almost all churches in the City of London. Many were nearly destroyed, with only outer walls and towers left. However, most were rebuilt to Wren's original plans.

Picture	Name	Where it is	Built	What happened
	St Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe	Queen Victoria Street, Castle Baynard	1685–95	Reopened in 1961.
	St Andrew, Holborn	Holborn Viaduct, Farringdon Without	1686–87	Reopened in 1961.
	St Anne and St Agnes	Gresham Street, Aldersgate	1676–87	Reopened in 1966.
	St Bride's Church	Fleet Street, Castle Baynard	1670–84	Reopened in 1957.
	St Lawrence Jewry	Gresham Street, Cheap	1670–86	Restored in 1957.
	St Mary-le-Bow	Cheapside, Cordwainer	1670–83	Reopened in 1964.
	St Michael Paternoster Royal	College Hill, Dowgate	1686–94	Restored in 1966–68.
	St Nicholas Cole Abbey	Queen Victoria Street, Bread Street Ward	1671–81	Reopened in 1962.
	St Vedast Foster Lane	Foster Lane, Cheap	1670–97	Restored by 1962.

Churches Where Only the Tower Remains

These churches were destroyed in the Blitz or torn down in the 1800s. Only their towers, and sometimes a small part of the outer wall, are left. They are no longer used as churches.

Picture	Name	Where it is	Built	What happened
	St Mary Somerset	Upper Thames Street, Queenhithe	1686–94	The main part of the church was demolished in 1871. The tower is now in a small garden.
	St Olave Old Jewry	Ironmonger Lane, Walbrook	1670–79	The main part of the church was demolished in 1887. The tower is now part of an office building.
	Christ Church Greyfriars	Newgate Street, Farringdon Within	1677–91	Destroyed in the Blitz. The ruins are a public garden, and the tower is a private home.
	St Alban's, Wood Street	Wood Street, Bassishaw	1682–87	Destroyed in the Blitz. The tower is a private home.
	St Augustine Watling Street	Watling Street, Bread Street Ward	1680–87	Destroyed in the Blitz. The tower is part of St Paul's Cathedral Choir School.
	St Dunstan-in-the-East	St Dunstan's Hill, Billingsgate	1698	Rebuilt in 1817–21, but destroyed in the Blitz. The ruins are now a public garden.

Churches Whose Stones Were Re-used Elsewhere

Sometimes, parts of demolished churches were moved and used to build new structures.

Picture	Name	Where it is	Built	What happened
	All Hallows Lombard Street	Lombard Street, Langbourn	1686–94	Demolished in 1939. Its tower and inside parts were moved to All Hallows Twickenham.
	St Mary Aldermanbury	Aldermanbury, Bassishaw	1670–74	Ruined in 1940. Its stones were sent to Fulton, Missouri in 1964 and rebuilt as a memorial to Sir Winston Churchill.

Churches Demolished Due to City Changes

The number of people living in the City of London went down a lot in the 1800s. A law called the Union of Benefices Act 1860 meant fewer churches were needed, so some were taken down.

Picture	Name	Where it is	Built	When it was demolished
	St Benet Gracechurch	Gracechurch Street, Bridge	1681–87	1868
	St Mildred, Poultry	Poultry, Walbrook	1670–77	1872
	St Antholin, Budge Row	Watling Street, Cordwainer	1678–84	1875
	St Michael Queenhithe	Upper Thames Street, Queenhithe	1676–86	1876
	All Hallows Bread Street	Bread Street, Cordwainer	1681–98	1878
	St Dionis Backchurch	Fenchurch Street, Langbourn	1670–77	1878
	St Matthew Friday Street	Friday Street, Bread Street Ward	1682–85	1885
	St Mary Magdalen Old Fish Street	Old Change, Bread Street	1683–87	1893
	All-Hallows-the-Great	Upper Thames Street, Dowgate	1677–84	1894
	St Michael Wood Street	Wood Street, Cripplegate	1670–75	1897

Churches Demolished for Other Reasons

These churches were taken down for various specific reasons.

Picture	Name	Where it is	Built	When it was demolished	Why it was demolished
	St Christopher le Stocks	Threadneedle Street, Walbrook	1670–71	1782	To make space for the Bank of England to expand.
	St Michael, Crooked Lane	Miles's Lane, Candlewick	1687	1831	Wider roads were needed for the new London Bridge.
	St Bartholomew-by-the-Exchange	Bartholomew Lane, Walbrook	1675–83	1840	To make Threadneedle Street wider.
	St Benet Fink	Threadneedle Street, Cornhill	1670–75	1841–46	To improve the area around the Royal Exchange.
	St Michael Bassishaw	Basinghall Street, Bassishaw	1675–79	1900	It was found to be unsafe in 1892.
	St George Botolph Lane	Botolph Lane, Bridge	1671–76	1904	It was found to be unsafe and closed in 1901.

Churches Completely Destroyed in the Blitz

These churches were ruined during the the Blitz and then their remains were removed.

Picture	Name	Where it is	Built	When it was destroyed
	St Stephen Coleman Street	Coleman Street, Coleman Street Ward	1677	1940
	St Mildred, Bread Street	Bread Street, Vintry	1677–83	1941
	St Swithin, London Stone	Cannon Street, Walbrook	1678	1962

Churches with Interiors Refurbished by Christopher Wren

Wren also worked on the inside of some churches that were not destroyed by the Great Fire.

Picture	Name	Where it is	When Wren worked on it	What happened
	Temple Church	Fleet Street, Farringdon Without	1682–83	During repairs after the Blitz, Wren's wooden altar was found in a museum and put back in its original place.

Churches Built Outside the City of London

These churches were built by Wren outside the area affected by the Great Fire of London.

Picture	Name	Where it is	Built	What happened
	St Anne's Church, Soho	Dean Street, Soho	1677–85	The main part of the church was destroyed in the Blitz and later taken down. The tower, built by S. P. Cockerell in 1801–03, remains.
	St Clement Danes	Strand	1680–82	Destroyed in 1941; reopened in 1958 after the Blitz.
	St James's Church, Piccadilly	Piccadilly, St James's	1676–84	Destroyed in 1940; restored in 1947–54 after the Blitz.
	Chapel of the Royal Hospital Chelsea	Royal Hospital Road, Chelsea	1682–87	Wren also designed the rest of the Hospital.

See also

• List of demolished churches in the City of London