St Mary-at-Hill
Encyclopedia
St. Mary-at-Hill is a Church of England
church on Lovat Lane, a cobbled street off Eastcheap
in the ward of Billingsgate
, London, England.
Rebuilt many times, St Mary-at-Hill was originally founded in the 12th Century, where it was first known as "St. Mary de Hull" or " St. Mary de la Hulle".
Although the official address is Lovat Lane, the more notable side faces the street called "St Mary at Hill" where there is a huge two-faced clock extending several feet into the street. There is a narrow alleyway alongside, but no right of way.
, writing at end of the sixteenth century described it as "the fair church of Saint Marie, called on the Hill, because of the ascent from Billingsgate".
The church was badly damaged in the Great Fire of London of 1666 which began only a few feet away in Pudding Lane
. After the fire, the parish was united with that of St Andrew Hubbard. Christopher Wren
rebuilt the interior and the east end, but retained the medieval walls on the other three sides, and the west tower to which he added a lantern. Wren's east end has a venetian window, now blocked up, and a broken pediment. His interior has four free-standing corinthian columns, supporting barrel vaults in a Greek cross pattern, and a coffered central dome. The church is 96 feet long and 60 feet wide.
There have been considerable alterations since the seventeenth century. In 1787-8 George Gwilt
Senior rebuilt the west wall and replaced the tower in brick and in 1826-7 James Savage
installed round headed iron-framed windows in the north wall and replaced the vaults, ceilings and plasterwork. In 1848-9 he added a cupola to the dome and cut windows through the chancel vault. In 1849, the seventeenth century wooodwork was sympathetically augmented and adapted by W. Gibbs Rogers.The church survived the Second World War unharmed, but was severely damaged by a fire in 1988, after which the roof and ceiling had to be rebuilt. Much of the woodwork, including the box-pews, has not been reinstated.
Writing before the 1988 fire Sir John Betjeman
said of the church "This is the least spoiled and the most gorgeous interior in the City, all the more exciting by being hidden away among cobbled alleys, paved passages, brick walls, overhung by plane trees…"
The church was designated a Grade I listed building on 4 January 1950. On St Mary-at-Hill, there is an adjacent Grade II brick and stone rectory of 1834 designed by James Savage, incorporating a vestry of the late 17th century.
choir sang here.
The organ-builder Mighaell Glocetir worked at St.Mary-at-Hill from 1477 to 1479. He is possibly the same person as the builder Myghell Glancets who worked on St.Michael church at Cornhill in 1475. The great composer Thomas Tallis
was organist at St.Mary-at-Hill in 1538-1539. A William Hill organ was installed in 1848 and partly restored after the 1988 fire, but a more complete restoration did not commence until 2000. It is now used for concerts on Thursday lunchtimes.
In several books on English folklore, or about ceremonies of London, there is mention of the costermonger's festival held here every October. It also goes by the name "Fish Harvest Festival" or "Harvest of the Sea", associated with the fishmarket that was held at Billingsgate. Another notable ceremony is Beating the Bounds
, where notables and children process around the boundary of a parish or ward on Ascension Day, carrying slender rods. Originally the children were whipped (not severely) at points along the route. Almost every example died out in the middle of the nineteenth century, but the account books of St.Mary-at-Hill testify to its existence here. Four shillings were paid for the provision of fruit on the day of the "Perambulation" in 1682. In another example at Chelsea the whipped children were given four pence. One rare surviving example of "Beating the Bounds" is at the nearby church "All Hallows by the Tower", where it is held every three years.
.
, author of Night Thoughts
was married here in 1731. The antiquarian John Brand
became rector here in 1784. William Turner Alchin
, another antiquarian, was born here in 1790.
for its own parish use. It stood out from the main cemetery through its railed enclosure and planting, including monkey puzzle trees.
The London Borough of Lambeth
subsequently compulsorily purchased the main cemetery and removed the memorials in this section during 1990-91. A subsequent Chancery Court case found this to be illegal and set up a mechanism for those monuments to be restored at the request of descendants.
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
church on Lovat Lane, a cobbled street off Eastcheap
Eastcheap
Eastcheap is a street in the City of London. Its name derives from cheap, market, with the prefix "East" distinguishing it from the other former City of London market of Westcheap . In medieval times Eastcheap was the City's main meat market, with butchers' stalls lining both sides of the street...
in the ward of Billingsgate
Billingsgate
Billingsgate is a small ward in the south-east of the City of London, lying on the north bank of the River Thames between London Bridge and Tower Bridge...
, London, England.
Rebuilt many times, St Mary-at-Hill was originally founded in the 12th Century, where it was first known as "St. Mary de Hull" or " St. Mary de la Hulle".
Although the official address is Lovat Lane, the more notable side faces the street called "St Mary at Hill" where there is a huge two-faced clock extending several feet into the street. There is a narrow alleyway alongside, but no right of way.
Architecture
St Mary-at -Hill was already in existence by 1336. The north aisle was rebuilt at the end of the fifteenth century, and a south aisle and steeple were added a little later. John StowJohn 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...
, writing at end of the sixteenth century described it as "the fair church of Saint Marie, called on the Hill, because of the ascent from Billingsgate".
The church was badly damaged in the Great Fire of London of 1666 which began only a few feet away in Pudding Lane
Pudding Lane
Pudding Lane is a street in London, formerly the location of Thomas Farriner's bakehouse where the Great Fire of London began in 1666. It is off Eastcheap in the City of London, near London Bridge. The nearest tube station is Monument, a short distance to the west...
. After the fire, the parish was united with that of St Andrew Hubbard. Christopher Wren
Christopher Wren
Sir Christopher Wren FRS is one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history.He used to be accorded responsibility for rebuilding 51 churches in the City of London after the Great Fire in 1666, including his masterpiece, St. Paul's Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, completed in 1710...
rebuilt the interior and the east end, but retained the medieval walls on the other three sides, and the west tower to which he added a lantern. Wren's east end has a venetian window, now blocked up, and a broken pediment. His interior has four free-standing corinthian columns, supporting barrel vaults in a Greek cross pattern, and a coffered central dome. The church is 96 feet long and 60 feet wide.
There have been considerable alterations since the seventeenth century. In 1787-8 George Gwilt
George Gwilt
George Gwilt , also sometimes known as George Gwilt the Elder, was an English architect of the late 18th and early 19th century, particularly associated with buildings in and around London....
Senior rebuilt the west wall and replaced the tower in brick and in 1826-7 James Savage
James Savage (architect)
James Savage was a British architect, perhaps best known for designing St. Luke's Church, Chelsea.-Life:Savage was born in Hoxton, London, on 10 April 1779. He was educated at a private school in Stockwell and then articled to Daniel Asher Alexander, architect of the London Docks, for whom he...
installed round headed iron-framed windows in the north wall and replaced the vaults, ceilings and plasterwork. In 1848-9 he added a cupola to the dome and cut windows through the chancel vault. In 1849, the seventeenth century wooodwork was sympathetically augmented and adapted by W. Gibbs Rogers.The church survived the Second World War unharmed, but was severely damaged by a fire in 1988, after which the roof and ceiling had to be rebuilt. Much of the woodwork, including the box-pews, has not been reinstated.
Writing before the 1988 fire Sir John Betjeman
John Betjeman
Sir John Betjeman, CBE was an English poet, writer and broadcaster who described himself in Who's Who as a "poet and hack".He was a founding member of the Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture...
said of the church "This is the least spoiled and the most gorgeous interior in the City, all the more exciting by being hidden away among cobbled alleys, paved passages, brick walls, overhung by plane trees…"
The church was designated a Grade I listed building on 4 January 1950. On St Mary-at-Hill, there is an adjacent Grade II brick and stone rectory of 1834 designed by James Savage, incorporating a vestry of the late 17th century.
Music and traditions
From 1510 the Chapel RoyalChapel Royal
A Chapel Royal is a body of priests and singers who serve the spiritual needs of their sovereign wherever they are called upon to do so.-Austria:...
choir sang here.
The organ-builder Mighaell Glocetir worked at St.Mary-at-Hill from 1477 to 1479. He is possibly the same person as the builder Myghell Glancets who worked on St.Michael church at Cornhill in 1475. The great composer Thomas Tallis
Thomas Tallis
Thomas Tallis was an English composer. Tallis flourished as a church musician in 16th century Tudor England. He occupies a primary place in anthologies of English church music, and is considered among the best of England's early composers. He is honoured for his original voice in English...
was organist at St.Mary-at-Hill in 1538-1539. A William Hill organ was installed in 1848 and partly restored after the 1988 fire, but a more complete restoration did not commence until 2000. It is now used for concerts on Thursday lunchtimes.
In several books on English folklore, or about ceremonies of London, there is mention of the costermonger's festival held here every October. It also goes by the name "Fish Harvest Festival" or "Harvest of the Sea", associated with the fishmarket that was held at Billingsgate. Another notable ceremony is Beating the Bounds
Rogation days
Rogation days are, in the calendar of the Western Church, four days traditionally set apart for solemn processions to invoke God's mercy. They are April 25, the Major Rogation, coinciding with St...
, where notables and children process around the boundary of a parish or ward on Ascension Day, carrying slender rods. Originally the children were whipped (not severely) at points along the route. Almost every example died out in the middle of the nineteenth century, but the account books of St.Mary-at-Hill testify to its existence here. Four shillings were paid for the provision of fruit on the day of the "Perambulation" in 1682. In another example at Chelsea the whipped children were given four pence. One rare surviving example of "Beating the Bounds" is at the nearby church "All Hallows by the Tower", where it is held every three years.
St Mary Hill hoard
A hoard of coins (now known as the Mary Hill hoard) was found in a basement near St Mary Hill church in the 18th century. The hoard included the only known example of a coin from the Horndon mintHorndon mint
The Horndon mint was an Anglo-Saxon mint established at Horndon-on-the-Hill in Thurrock, Essex. It is known from a single coin of the reign of Edward the Confessor....
.
Notable people
The poet Edward YoungEdward Young
Edward Young was an English poet, best remembered for Night Thoughts.-Early life:He was the son of Edward Young, later Dean of Salisbury, and was born at his father's rectory at Upham, near Winchester, where he was baptized on 3 July 1683. He was educated at Winchester College, and matriculated...
, author of Night Thoughts
Night Thoughts (poem)
The Complaint: or, Night-Thoughts on Life, Death, & Immortality, better known simply as Night-Thoughts, is a long poem by Edward Young published in nine parts between 1742 and 1745.The poem is written in blank verse...
was married here in 1731. The antiquarian John Brand
John Brand
John Brand was an English antiquarian.Born in Washington, County Durham, he was educated at the Royal Grammar School and Lincoln College, Oxford. He wrote Observations on the popular antiquities of Great Britain: Including the Whole of Mr. Bourne's Antiquitates Vulgares , generally referred to as...
became rector here in 1784. William Turner Alchin
William Turner Alchin
William Turner Alchin was an English antiquarian and solicitor. He was born at St. Mary-at-Hill, Billingsgate. For some years he practised as a solicitor at Winchester, and during the latter part of his residence there he was engaged in the compilation of indexes to the ecclesiastical registers,...
, another antiquarian, was born here in 1790.
Burials
Parliament outlawed new burials in the City of London during the Victorian era, forcing the closure of its churchyards; in 1847 the church purchased burials rights 'in perpetuity' in a small section of the consecrated ground in West Norwood CemeteryWest Norwood Cemetery
West Norwood Cemetery is a cemetery in West Norwood in London, England. It was also known as the South Metropolitan Cemetery.One of the first private landscaped cemeteries in London, it is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries of London, and is a site of major historical, architectural and...
for its own parish use. It stood out from the main cemetery through its railed enclosure and planting, including monkey puzzle trees.
The London Borough of Lambeth
London Borough of Lambeth
The London Borough of Lambeth is a London borough in south London, England and forms part of Inner London. The local authority is Lambeth London Borough Council.-Origins:...
subsequently compulsorily purchased the main cemetery and removed the memorials in this section during 1990-91. A subsequent Chancery Court case found this to be illegal and set up a mechanism for those monuments to be restored at the request of descendants.
See also
- List of churches and cathedrals of London
- List of Christopher Wren churches in London