St Anne's Limehouse facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Anne's Limehouse |
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| Denomination | Church of England |
| Churchmanship | Conservative Evangelical |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Grade I listed |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Limehouse |
| Deanery | Tower Hamlets Deanery |
| Diocese | London |
| Province | Canterbury |
St Anne's Limehouse is a historic church in London, designed by a famous architect named Nicholas Hawksmoor. It's an Anglican Church, which is part of the Church of England. This beautiful building is located in Limehouse, an area within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It officially opened in 1730. St Anne's was one of just twelve churches built after a special law was passed in 1711 to help build more churches in London.
Contents
A Look Back: The History of St Anne's
St Anne's Limehouse was once part of a much larger church area called St Dunstan's, Stepney. Before the 1700s, this area was huge but didn't have many people. It stretched all the way to the Thames River. As London grew, these big church areas were split into smaller ones. In 1709, a new church area in Limehouse was created. The church might have been named after Queen Anne. She helped raise money for it by taxing coal that traveled along the River Thames.
Building the Church
The church was designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor. He was chosen to create one of twelve new churches. These churches were needed because London's population was growing very fast in the 1700s. The plan was to build 50 churches, but only a few were actually built. These churches are sometimes called the Queen Anne Churches. The building was finished in 1727 and officially opened in 1730. A builder named Edward Strong the Younger constructed the church. He was a friend of Christopher Wren the Younger.
The White Ensign Flag
Queen Anne made a special rule for St Anne's. Because the new church was close to the river, it was a good place for sea captains to record important events that happened at sea. So, she gave St Anne's Church the right to fly the White Ensign. This is the second most important flag of the Royal Navy. The church's tall tower, with its golden ball on the flagpole, became a special "sea mark" on maps for sailors. Even today, St Anne's Limehouse is allowed to display the White Ensign flag 24 hours a day, every day of the year.
Fires and Fixes
The church was badly damaged by a fire on Good Friday in 1850. It was then repaired between 1851 and 1854 by an architect named Philip Hardwick. Later, between 1983 and 1993, Julian Harrap restored it again. During this time, strong steel supports were added to the roof. The church was given a special Grade I listed status in 1950. This means it's a very important historic building. St Anne's had more big repairs from 2007 to 2009. This included fixing the organ, the altar, and the floor.
The original pipe organ, built in 1741, was destroyed in the 1850 fire. The new organ, made by Gray and Davison, won first prize at the Great Exhibition of 1851. This was a huge event that showed off new inventions and art. Musicians really love this organ. Since 2009, the church has been the main practice place for the Docklands Sinfonia, which is a local orchestra. It also hosts classical music concerts sometimes. Today, St Anne's is still the main church for the Limehouse area. It is part of the Diocese of London.
The Churchyard Garden
After the churchyard stopped being used for burials, it was turned into public gardens. The Metropolitan Public Gardens Association helped with this project. A landscape gardener named Fanny Wilkinson designed the garden. She kept a famous stone pyramid that Nicholas Hawksmoor built in 1730. It has the words "The wisdom of Solomon" carved on it. Also in the churchyard is a white stone war memorial from 1918. It has a bronze figure of Christ. Both the pyramid and the memorial are also listed as historic buildings.
St Anne's Today
St Anne's is part of the Conservative Evangelical branch of the Church of England. It describes itself as "A genuinely mixed East End Church with a passion for straightforward Bible teaching." This means they focus on teaching directly from the Bible.
Where to Find St Anne's
The church is right next to Limehouse Town Hall and close to Limehouse Library. Both of these buildings are also historic. The Town Hall is now used as a community center. Across the road is the old Sailors' Mission.
The address for the church is: St Anne's Church, Three Colt Street, London E14 7HP.
The closest train station is Westferry, which is on the Docklands Light Railway.
St Peter's Barge: A Floating Church
In the late 1900s, the East London Docklands area was redeveloped. Over 100,000 people now work in the Canary Wharf area. A big part of this business center is within St Anne's Church's area. Because of this, St Anne's started holding lunchtime meetings in pubs and wine bars. They wanted to reach out to people working in Canary Wharf. This effort grew with help from St Helen's Bishopsgate. However, it was hard to find a permanent place for meetings because property in Canary Wharf is very expensive.
The Idea of a Floating Church
The idea to build a church on water came true when the St Peter's Canary Wharf Trust was formed. In 2003, they bought a Dutch cargo barge. This barge was refitted in the Netherlands. Then, it sailed across the North Sea by itself in the summer of 2003. A BBC documentary even showed this journey! The barge now has a permanent mooring (a place where it is tied up) in the heart of Canary Wharf at West India Quay.
In July 2004, a full-time Church of England minister was chosen to lead the clergy (church leaders) at the barge. In September 2004, St Peter's started a new Sunday evening church service. It also created its own groups and meetings to serve the many thousands of people who now live in the area.
See also
